Sins on Lowered Wings

Sins on Lowered Wings
Naruto and all associated characters do not belong to me. I am not trying to make any money off of this story.
The above is true for all chapters.
Content warnings will be placed above the chapters when appropriate. Please enjoy.


Sins on Lowered Wings: part I: The Bet

He breathed heavily, his chest rising and falling quickly as he lay there on the grass. The trees swayed around him in a peaceful rhythm as the chill started to set in with the sunset. A very warm feeling started to fill his cold body, and he felt he could pass into the most peaceful sleep of his life. As if he had been deprived of his senses, the world around him felt relaxing, serene, beautiful. The breeze flowed through his black hair and gently teased the roots. And he no longer had the chakra energy to sustain his jitsu. He accepted his helplessness, and his red eyes slowly faded back to their original endless black. The only thing that kept him awake now was the shadow that moved over him.

“You could have easily dodged that, Sasuke,” a calm voice said softly. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that you sensed it. Why didn‘t you complete your attack?”

Sasuke stared up to the sky. “…Bird,” he whispered.

“Hm?” the person questioned, standing over him. Questioning eyes looked up absently to see a bird flying overhead.

“Would’ve hit…” Sasuke whispered.

The other person blinked. “You stopped because you didn’t want to hit the bird?” asked the amused voice. “Forgive me for saying so, but that sounds like an excuse.”

Sasuke stared up at the sky. “…You like birds, don’t you? I couldn’t care less… but you…”

His words faded off into something inaudible.

“You weren’t taking this battle seriously,” the person standing over him sighed. “But I guess I can’t complain. You lost.” The voice darkened slightly. “You know what that means….”

“…I know…” Sasuke whispered. And then he slipped into sleep, for his opponent had stripped him of his chakra, but not enough to kill him. Only enough to send him into a most peaceful slumber.

The one standing over him shook his head fondly and glanced up to the sky, admiring the bird that had been allowed another chance.

~~~~~~~~~~

Naruto yawned loudly as he walked down the path. He had trained late tonight. But his soul was energized now, and that’s what mattered to him. Though, his body was exhausted, and even his spiky blonde hair was looking limp. He would get a good night’s sleep tonight.

“Good evening, Naruto,” came a calm voice. “You’re on quite the deserted path tonight.”

“Neji?!” Naruto blinked. “Hey! What’s up! Why are you-- WHAT THE HELL!”

“I assume you are reacting to this?” Neji glanced toward his shoulder at the face of the sleeping young man.

Sasuke looked more peaceful than Naruto had ever seen him.

“What’s with Sasuke?!” Naruto demanded, pointing to the dark-haired ninja who was riding piggy back.

“We had a little match, and he lost,” Neji smirked. “I’ll be taking him home now.”

“Sasuke lost?” Naruto blinked, raising an eyebrow. “Come on! Come on! What really happened! Even if Sasuke lost he wouldn’t be unconscious. Is he okay?”

“He’ll be fine. He just needs rest. I’m taking him now. We will meet again soon, Naruto.”

Naruto moved aside and let him pass, thinking it odd that Sasuke could be taken out so easily. Something told him that Neji was hiding something, but he shrugged it off. Sasuke could handle himself. Though, he was unconscious. But hey, it was Neji. What could go wrong?

Naruto sighed and continued home. He’d just bug Sasuke about it later.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura ran her fingers through her pink hair as she waited. She rang the doorbell once more, wondering where Sasuke could be. Perhaps he was taking another stroll around the area of the old Uchiha clan? He had been going a lot lately.

She was about to turn away when footsteps caught her attention. She looked up to see Neji approaching slowly, silent in his strength. In the darkness he looked as though he was carrying something heavy. It took her a moment to realize what it was.

“He’s fine,” Neji said before she could ask. “Just sleeping.”

“Those marks on his arms and neck,” Sasuke gasped. “You manipulated his chakra….”

“Not completely,” Neji said, as though he didn’t care either way. “But more importantly, could you open the door? The key is in my pocket. Forgive me, but I’d rather not put him down here.”

Sakura nodded and slipped her hand into Neji’s side pocket, slowly pulling out a key and unlocking Sasuke’s door. She pushed it open and made room for Neji to walk in.

“Thank you,” Neji nodded as he passed through the door.

Sakura watched as Neji gently set Sasuke on the bed. And he was incredibly gentle with him, as though he wasn’t the one who caused the wounds.

“Are you sure he’s okay?” she asked softly.

Neji noticed her concern and activated his Byakugan. The veins around his eyes suddenly stood out as his intense violet-tinted eyes scanned Sasuke’s body, looking past the flesh to see the blue flow of pure energy. He then let his eyes fade back to their normal pale violet as the veins in his face went to rest.

“He’s fine,” Neji nodded. “His chakra is rebuilding itself. Though he will probably sleep all night and well into the afternoon tomorrow.”

Sakura nodded as Neji headed for the door. She gave one last glance to her sleeping friend before walking out with Neji.

“Not that I question your abilities, Neji,” she said once their were outside, “But….”

“He let me win,” Neji said in an emotionless tone.

“But still, for him to be so drained--”

“It would be the same if Hinata had managed to hit him. The trick is actually getting attacks through to manipulate the chakra. I simply landed a combo that he didn’t block.”

“Why didn’t he?”

“He was distracted by something,” Neji said softly. “I can’t say much more than that.”

“How odd,” Sakura blinked. “I wonder what’s on his mind.”

Neji only shrugged, though he knew the answer. And then it was silent for the rest of the walk. It’s not that they didn’t like each other. They just didn’t have much to talk about. They bid each other goodnight and parted, each of them going home.

~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Naruto waited impatiently for Sasuke. He wanted to ask his long-time rival what happened with Neji last night.

“Hmmm,” he muttered to himself. “Stupid Sasuke….”

To be honest, Naruto was a bit jealous. These days there weren’t many missions, and he wanted to train with the best these days. And nothing gave him more encouragement than fighting against Sasuke. If Sasuke won, he rubbed it in, which only made Naruto want to get stronger. If Sasuke lost he’d smirk and shrug it off, but the fact that he smiled at all told Naruto that he was proud of him somehow. Or at least that he acknowledged him.

But Sasuke was fighting Neji now. Did he think Naruto was no longer a challenge? It wasn’t often that Sasuke even found it necessary to have an opponent. Fights with Sasuke were usually someone else’s idea.

“You look down,” a friendly voice said.

Naruto looked up to see Lee smiling at him.

“It’s not like you, Naruto.”

“Hey, Lee,” Naruto said, turning towards the green clad ninja. “You know Neji better than most people. Is he any good to train with? Or is it usually a fight for pride?”

“Hm,” Lee said, thinking. “Usually, for me anyway, it’s a fight for pride. I feel I have to prove myself to him and keep up with his level. If I can’t do that, my way of the ninja seems to have less meaning. Why do you ask? Did you want to train with him?”

“Not really,” Naruto said, looking up at the sky. “Sasuke was training with him last night. It just seemed odd. I thought maybe it could be personal.”

“That’s weird,” Lee blinked. “Neji didn’t even mention it this morning. Even if he lost he’d mention fighting someone like Sasuke.”

Naruto frowned a bit. Something was odd about the whole thing. Now he was really anxious to talk to Sasuke.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sasuke opened his dark eyes and stared at the ceiling. It was well into the afternoon now, but thankfully, he didn’t have anything important to attend to. He absently ran his fingertips over his arms, noting a slight tingling sensation where Neji had manipulated the chakra there.

“Is there any pain?” a calm voice asked him.

Sasuke turned to see Neji standing by his bed, looking at pictures of Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, and their odd mentor Kakashi.

“…No,” Sasuke responded.

“Good,” Neji smiled slightly. “That wouldn’t have been my intention.”

“…I’m tired,” Sasuke groaned. “Get out.”

“It won’t be good for you to sleep the rest of the day away as well,” Neji smirked.

Sasuke sighed, seeing that he wouldn’t be left alone. “Aren’t you going to gloat?” he asked, sliding out of bed.

“Of course not,” Neji responded, as though surprised at the question. “I thought both of us were prepared in the event that either of us lost.”

Sasuke stretched slowly. “…Yeah. But are we going to fight like this every time this comes up?”

“I’ll tell you after you pay up,” Neji shrugged.

“I’m going to need some time to pay you,” Sasuke sighed. “The fight was just yesterday. You can wait.”

“Tomorrow,” Neji said sternly.

“…Fine,” Sasuke shrugged. “I’ll come to your place.”

Neji nodded and headed for the door. “Tomorrow then,” he said as he opened the door. And then, “Hello Sakura.”

Sasuke turned to see Sakura standing there, her hand raised to knock on the door. Slowly she lowered it as Neji passed by her.

“Sasuke,” Sakura blinked, walking into his room and shutting the door. “Are you alright?”

“…Yeah,” he nodded. “Just tired. Nothing to worry about.”

“Is Neji bothering you?” she asked.

Sasuke took a moment to answer, which worried her even more.

“…No. We just had a match. Nothing big.”

“I see,” she said softly. “But… how did you lose?”

Again, Sasuke took a moment. “Distracted…” he muttered.

The young woman decided not to press the issue. She knew when Sasuke had enough questioning.

“Well,” she smiled cheerfully. “I brought you something to eat. I was going to give it to you yesterday, but you were sleeping when Neji brought you home.”

Sasuke took the food and smiled slightly. “Thank you,” he said, with most of his appreciation in his eyes rather than his smile.

“It’s nothing,” Sakura smiled as she headed out. “See you soon!” she waved.

Sasuke stared down at the food she brought. Sakura was always so thoughtful. Not just for him, but for everyone. He glanced over to his picture with the two of them standing with Kakashi and Naruto. The group had always been there for Sasuke. They made his sins feel so small. But it saddened them all to know that they couldn’t take away all of his suffering.

But of all the people trying to help him, one person stood out in particular right now. He could even remember the night it all started.

He had been walking along the dark streets of the village, as he often did on moonless nights. The darkness was forgiving for people like him. It covered the scars in his heart, kept him from feeling vulnerable under the gaze of others. But most importantly, most people hid from darkness, and it let him be himself… alone and more relaxed than he could ever be in the light of day.

The occasional person would pass him. Patrols, people coming home from late training sessions, people who simply lost track of time. But he saw no one else like himself. It was a bittersweet feeling, in a way. He didn’t want people he knew to feel this way, no matter how lonely it got.

Occasionally Kakashi would walk past him, but he never figured out where the man was coming from or where he was going.

“Good evening, Sasuke,” is all he would say as he continued on his way. And Sasuke always silently thanked the man from the bottom of his heart for not prying, though he did suspect that Kakashi was watching him and worrying about him. (After all, it didn’t seem likely that Kakashi was reading his treasured little romance novel in the dark with only one eye, but then again….)

Everyone had learned not to pry. He suspected that most people wanted to, but some were too afraid while others simply hated how withdrawn he was. But they all helped him in their own way. People who never talked to him in the past suddenly stepped forward these days, wishing to get closer to him. Sasuke suspected that Naruto and Sakura were behind it, but he couldn’t bring himself to be annoyed.

“Sorry to bother you,” Lee had said just last week as he rested a hand on Sasuke’s shoulder. “Sasuke, can I sit and eat with you?”

Sasuke blinked, but didn’t show annoyance. “…Yeah.”

“Thanks!” Lee beamed as he pulled a meat bun out of his lunch. “I saw you training this morning. That was amazing! You master things so quickly.”

“…Thanks.”

“It must be nice,” Lee smiled. “But you still work so hard, so I suppose it isn’t any easier for you mentally or emotionally.”

“Not at all,” Sasuke sighed, looking at the sky. “Not at all….”

And then… just the other day, someone even more unexpected.

“Um… umm…” came the timid voice behind him. “S… Sasuke.”

He turned around to see Hinata staring at the ground, wringing her hands together. He softened his eyes just slightly and tilted his head to hear her small voice. He slid his hands out of his pockets and assumed a more relaxed pose as he waited for her to say something. Apparently his actions worked to some extent.

“Sasuke… I was… I was wondering if you’d help me copy some scrolls. I mean… you probably don’t want to use your Sharingan technique for something so… so stupid… but…”

“Sure.”

“R…Really?!”

“…Yeah.”

But even with more people talking to him, no matter how many stepped up, he still found himself walking alone at night. Or at least, that was the case before….

This was the night he found himself stopping at the sight of one particular ninja. The other young man stopped as well, and they stared at each other with a few feet between them. Suddenly Sasuke felt as though he were exposed… as though he could no longer let the darkness cover his sins. It was as if he knew deep down that the other young man could see everything, even the things long hidden. Sasuke caught himself before he could shudder. It wasn’t often that people could make him uncomfortable. But on nights like this, he left himself too open.

“Sasuke,” came the calm voice. “Good evening,” the young man nodded slightly.

“…Neji.”

“You look troubled,” Neji said in an unemotional tone, his long, dark hair flowing freely in the wind even though his forehead protector was still perfectly in place.

Sasuke nearly flinched at the comment. Even though Neji’s Byakugan wasn’t active, he still felt as though Neji’s white eyes could see anything. And it wasn’t often that people said Sasuke looked troubled… because, honestly, that’s just how he looked.

“…The usual,” Sasuke responded flatly.

“I see,” Neji said.

“I’m curious as to why you’re out there,” Sasuke blinked.

“Just walking,” Neji replied.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but decided not to press the issue. After all, he didn’t want Neji prying, so why should he?

“…I’ll be on my way,” Sasuke said, slowly walking past the other young man.

“You come out here a lot,” Neji said just as he passed.

Sasuke stopped, a little unnerved. “Mind telling me how many people know my schedule besides you and Kakashi?”

Neji didn’t respond.

“Tell me one thing then,” Sasuke sighed heavily, turning around. “Are Naruto and Sakura pushing all of you to talk to me? Or is it really a coincidence that people suddenly want to be close to me?”

“You don’t like people talking to you?” Neji asked.

“…Just curious as to why.”

“I’m talking to you because I want to,” Neji said. “And because you looked like you were in a dark place. I thought I would at least give you some acknowledgement.”

Now Sasuke almost felt bad for asking. Almost.

“…Oh.”

“Well then,” Neji said as he turned. “Our paths will cross again. Good night.”

“…Good night.”

And then Sasuke continued on his way. He no longer felt like eyes were peering through his soul. He hoped that Neji didn’t make a routine out of walking this same path at night.

But Neji didn’t need to walk the path anymore. He only had to acknowledge Sasuke more and more as the days passed.

Sasuke slowly brought himself out of his memories and started to eat the food Sakura brought. But soon he found himself lost in his thoughts again.

“Why haven’t you chosen one?” Neji asked him day as they sat on a branch in a tall tree. He was referring to the girls who were training below.

“That’s an odd way to put it,” Sasuke said, raising a brow.

“Since you were young they’ve been after you,” Neji shrugged. “I was wondering why you hadn’t chosen one.”

“No need, no interest, no time,” Sasuke said. “…And Itachi took priority.”

“Ah, yes,” Neji nodded. “Your brother.”

“I don’t want to talk about him….”

“I understand.”

“…I had wondered,” Sasuke began. “I wondered about Sakura.”

“She is very dedicated to you as a friend. Everyone knew she wanted more though.”

“…Yeah.”

“So? What stopped you? You know her well. You seem to be close.”

“…”

Neji turned to stare at him. He suddenly smirked and used his Byakugan. Sasuke visibly flinched as Neji started to search his features with his eye technique.

“I fucking hate it when you do that,” Sasuke protested, putting a hand over Neji’s eyes.

“I can see through your hand, you know,” Neji grinned.

Sasuke dropped his hand and groaned.

“You’re heart rate rose,” Neji smirked. “And when you moved your eyes to the lower right for a brief moment it told me you foresaw pain for some reason. Now what could it be? And there goes your heart again….”

“Shut up!” Sasuke said with a glare. “Turn those off. I’ll talk to you.”

Neji relaxed his eyes and shut down his Byakugan technique.

“I never liked Sakura or any of those girls…” Sasuke muttered.

“That’s not what your face just told me….”

“You asked why I never made a move on Sakura. It’s because I could never have feelings for her.”

Neji raised an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to speak.

“And why haven’t you made a move on Tenten?” Sasuke interrupted. “You’re close to her too.”

Neji frowned. “She’s just a friend.”

“And Sakura is just a friend to me.”

Neji continued to stare at him.

“What?!” Sasuke demanded.

“…Nothing,” Neji said, turning and staring down at the girls again.

Now it was Sasuke’s turn to stare. “I hit a nerve…” he smirked. “Something happen between you and Tenten? Or do you like Sakura?”

“Neither,” Neji said, still looking below him.

“Hinata?”

Neji lifted his surprised eyes. “Of course not!”

“Lee?” Sasuke smirked.

Suddenly Neji went a pale, he looked at Sasuke as though he had been caught doing something horrible.

Sasuke’s smirk faded slowly. “I was joking,” he said softly. “Not that it would matter to me anyway.” He smiled slightly. “So… is it Lee?”

Neji looked away quickly and watched the people below them again. He swallowed hard and looked incredibly tense.

“I guess I gave myself away there,” he said, chuckling bitterly.

“Does Lee know?”

“I don’t like Lee,” Neji said, shaking his head.

Sasuke blinked. “Then--”

“I don’t like girls either,” Neji continued. “You implied that I liked other men. That’s why I looked that way just now.”

“Did you look like that because I implied it or because--”

“Because I actually like other guys,” Neji sighed heavily. “I don’t make a habit of lying when I’m caught. But if you dare tell those loudmouthed friends of yours--”

“Shut up,” Sasuke frowned. “I’m not telling anyone anything.”

And then there was silence between them. Sasuke could tell that Neji was more than a little sorry for even bringing the subject up.

“Hey,” Sasuke spoke up finally. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.”

Neji didn’t say anything. He only leapt from the tree after Sasuke. They both landed cleanly on the ground. He started to walk off when he heard Sasuke mutter behind him.

“Shit,” Sasuke said under his breath.

Neji turned around. “Did you actually land wrong?” he mocked.

But Sasuke had a smirk on his face. “No…. Just thinking about how much I despise you right now.”

Neji frowned. He thought he’d been prepared to be distanced if he ever told anyone about his sexuality, but it really hurt to hear those words from Sasuke. He glared at the other young ninja, who ran his fingers through his black hair.

“Neji,” Sasuke said, lifting his eyes from the ground. “You would have been a lot safer if you liked girls.” He started to walk towards the town. “Let’s go eat.”

Neji’s frown faded into a look of confusion. He slowly started to follow Sasuke towards town, half fearing that they would pass by the ramen restaurant only for Sasuke to tell Naruto about Neji’s secret.

“What did you mean when you said I would be safer?” Neji finally asked.

Sasuke realized that he probably sounded like a real ass. More than usual, anyway. “I meant that now you have to deal with me,” he said without stopping or turning around. “I told you, I never liked Sakura or any of those girls. And probably for the same reason you never did.”

Neji stopped, and sensing this, Sasuke turned around, his face serious.

“You too?” Neji managed to say after a long silence.

Sasuke nodded. “…Yeah.”

Neji stood there, trying to process things.

“You’re thinking too much,” Sasuke frowned. “Let’s go eat.”

Neji nodded and started to walk. Together they went to a small restaurant, far from the ramen shop.

A sudden knock at the door brought Sasuke out of his memories. He realized that he had finished the food Sakura brought without realizing it.

“…Yeah?” he said loudly.

The door opened and Naruto stepped in.

“Sasuke! Sasuke! Let’s go train!” Naruto demanded.

“Not today,” Sasuke said, rolling his eyes.

Naruto growled. “Still tired from being knocked out by Neji last night?” he mocked.

Sasuke glared at him. “Shut up….”

“Seems like someone is a little out of practice!” Naruto smirked.

“I was distracted, stupid,” Sasuke replied. “It happens.”

“Distracted?! Distracted?!” Naruto yelled. “You don’t get distracted! You’re too arrogant to get distracted during a fight!”

“The truth is,” another voice piped up. “Naruto was worried about you, Sasuke.”

Sasuke looked up to see Lee.

“He knew that Neji couldn’t take you down so easily, so he was worried about what could be wrong.” Lee explained.

Naruto stared at Sasuke, nearly pouting like a small child. Sasuke couldn’t help but smile.

“I’m fine,” Sasuke said. “Neji and I just needed to set something straight. It wasn’t a serious battle so I let my guard down and got hit. And once you’re hit by someone like Neji, you know what happens.”

Lee nodded. “Makes sense, right Naruto?”

Naruto nodded. “I guess so.”

But both Naruto and Lee knew that something was still amiss. Neji still hid the fight. Sasuke just admitted to not taking a fight seriously. It was all out of character.

“What did you need to set straight?” Naruto asked.

Sasuke shook his head slightly.

“Aw! Come on! I’m your best friend! You have to tell me! It’s a best friend requirement!” Naruto complained.

“Neji causes a lot of inner struggle for people sometimes, Naruto,” Lee interrupted. “Maybe he doesn’t want to talk about it.”

Sasuke was more than happy to have Lee there. After all, this was a bet he couldn’t talk about.

“Sasuke,” Neji began one night as they stared up at the new moon. “Both of us have dominant personalities, wouldn’t you say?”

“…Yeah.”

“So which of us enters the other if we fuck?”

Sasuke nearly spit his drink out all over the ground. Only Neji could be that polite and rude at the same time.

“You don’t seem like the type to let someone fuck you, and neither do I,” Neji said as though he were talking about any old topic.

Sasuke had to admit that he was right. Vulnerability was the last thing either of them would show. With their personalities, even during that intimate time one of them would feel the need to have the edge.

“Who said I wanted to fuck you or be fucked by you?” Sasuke asked.

“The bruises all over my body from your fingers digging into me was a bit of a giveaway,” Neji responded in an amused tone.

Sasuke’s face grew serious and he stared up at the sky again. “You left some marks too,” he muttered.

“Let’s fight for it,” Neji said, returning his gaze to the moon.

“What?!”

“Let’s fight to see who will be the dominant one for our first time,” Neji said.

“Fight to decide who fucks who?”

“Yes.”

Sasuke sighed heavily. “Why are all my friends idiots?”

“Tomorrow then?”

“…Yeah. Tomorrow before the sun sets. We’ll fight then.”

Neji smirked. “I hope you’re prepared in the event that you lose this little bet.”

“We’re going to meet up with Sakura, Tenten, and Neji to eat tonight,” Lee said, noticing that Sasuke‘s mind had drifted.. “Would you like to come, Sasuke?”

Neji’s name was all he needed to hear.

“I’ll be there,” he smiled.

And with that, Lee managed to pull Naruto away before the blonde could ask anymore questions.


~*~*~*To Be Continued*~*~*~

(Hello! This is only my third fanfic, so please bare with me!)