Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Innocent Illusions ❯ Changing ( Chapter 7 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

A/N: Oh gosh! I'm really sorry this update took so long. Meh! Well, I made a small promise in my mind (and I do hope I keep it) that I wouldn't keep readers waiting for more than a week. So... yeah. Well, go hurry up and read the anticipated chapter.






Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and Co.





Innocent Illusions


"Achoo!" Naruto placed a finger under his nose which blocked each of his nostrils from smelling the foul scents in the air. It effectively stopped the irritation in his nose that was bound to have turned into another sneeze.

"You okay, Sobame-chan?" Mina asked.

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto had almost managed to wave her off before another sneeze rocked his body. He reached his hand out, silently asking a question. The other waitress understood and handed him a tissue.

"I think you're sick." She said as soon as Naruto grabbed the tissue.

"It just kinda stinks in here." He threw away the small piece of used cloth before giving her a cheerful smile. "I'm fine. Let's go do some actual work before we get in trouble."

"Okay." She said uncertainly before she left.

Naruto didn't consider himself sick. Maybe a little... fatigued but not anything too bad. He stifled another yawn and rubbed his eye, hoping to throw away the entity that was zapping away his energy.

Today was one of those 'Why do I even bother?' days. Naruto rarely got them considering that he was always enthusiastic about having a brand new day filled with unknowns waiting for him. So that meant today was a rare day then.

As soon as the sun came up, causing a glare to erupt from Naruto, he knew that all he think about for the whole day was jumping back into bed and blissfully sleeping the day away. His tired limbs seemed to weigh him down as he basically walked the day as a zombie with a fake expression of giddiness on his face.

"May I take your order, sir?" Naruto said in a monotone voice. He nodded as he wrote down the entrees and walked back to the counter before sighing. This was too boring.

He idly thought about what would happen if he happened to quit this job. Then again, Sasuke was here so it just so happened that Naruto didn't have a say in the matter of keeping this job. But it was so tempting to imagine himself laying in his bed doing absolutely nothing at all.

"Achoo!" Naruto sneezed again. He breathed in deeply to try to get some clean air but that just caused him to go into another round of coughing.

"Are you sure you're not sick?" Mina asked again.

"I'm fine. There's just a lot of smokers here today." It was true. The air was contaminated with the thick fumes of the cancer stick which was probably another addition to Naruto's list of why today was a horrible day. "It'll just go away."

"It was a little chilly out when you went on the picnic. Maybe you're sick." Naruto quickly shook his head at her suggestion.

"I said I'm fine. Don't worry. It'll... just go away."

"Yeah. Sure. But if you puke your guts out on the floor, I'm not cleaning it up." He gave a small 'ha' at her comment before looking at the clock. "If you're looking for that guy, he's over there."

Naruto looked where she was pointing at and sure enough, Sasuke was there, silently waiting for him.

"Thanks. I'm gonna take break now." He saw her give him a small nod before heading toward Sasuke. He sat down across from him and lied his head down before giving a very tired 'hello'.

"What's wrong with you?" Sasuke asked boredly.

Naruto raised his head but eventually got tired of lifting the weight. So he put his elbow on the table and laid his head onto his hand before locking gazes with Sasuke.

"Umm... I don't know. Maybe I just don't feel like talking." Naruto glared at Sasuke's 'Yeah, right.' expression.

"That's impossible." Sasuke replied in a bored tone.

"Just shut up!"

"Hn."

"I told you not to say anything!" Naruto snapped before he could stop himself. He watched to see if Sasuke would get angry but instead, saw a sneer sent in his direction.

"I didn't say anything." Naruto could've just stopped there. He could've just ignored Sasuke's taunt and have a very nice nap but no. Sasuke sent him a smirk, and it wasn't no ordinary smirk! Oh no! It's was a challenging smirk. And Naruto never backed down a challenge.

"You did just now!" Naruto childishly retorted to the smirking Uchiha.

"So you think you can take away my privilege to speak?"

"Hell yeah!" Naruto brought his fist down onto the table to show how serious he was. "So I'm telling you to shut up so shut up."

Sasuke put his arm on the table before leaning forward and giving Naruto another of his amused smirk.

"And if I don't?" Naruto grinded his teeth before leaning forward also. Somewhere in his mind, he remembered that there was a situation similar to the one he was in. It was when Sasuke and Naruto had gotten into another fight. Naruto had been trying to impress Sakura but somehow, Sasuke acted like a jerk and gotten her affections. He stepped in front of Sasuke and glared at him which caused them to land into another glaring contest. Before the kid behind him bumped into him and he... Why did he have to remember that kind of memory this moment?

Ha. Naruto smirked inwardly as he saw the their motions was mimicking the memory. Some things never change.

"Well, then. I'd have to beat the living pulp out of you and maybe torture you a little bit until you shut up."

"You're surprisingly very violent for a little girl." He said, leaning in a little more.

"Little? I remember lifting you up when we first met!" Naruto retorted, copying Sasuke's previous movement.

"I can promise you that it will not happen again." Sasuke remarked coolly before leaning in, gently bumping their noses. Of course, the action was looked upon by two different perspectives. One person was thinking how easily woman were influenced while the other was faintly have a deja vu moment. The situation was oddly resembling his old memory.

"Well, I can promise you that I will break your promise." Naruto replied, menacingly.

"Big words for a little girl." Sasuke smirked as his words got the desired effect.

"Give it up with the little thing! Damn it!" Naruto smashed their foreheads together in retaliation. Although, none of them felt any pain. "Just wait until I get my hands on you. You're gonna regret those words!"

"Hn." Sasuke smirked before he stared into Naruto's blazing, blue eyes and leaned forward. The girl must obviously be aware of the position she was in, and she wasn't backing away. So this was a clear sign to take advantage of.

Naruto looked up and was surprised by the change of attitude in Sasuke. He was about to ask him what the hell Sasuke was doing when Sasuke caught his eye. Damn him.

Why did Sasuke have the ability to put someone in a trance with a mere look? Naruto wanted to look away, but he couldn't.

"Sobame-chan!" Akane called. Naruto turned his head toward her before giving her a friendly wave. She smiled back at him before leaving.

Isn't she mad that I interrupted her kiss? Akane looked back at her bubbly friend before giving a tired sigh. That girl probably didn't know the predicament she was in. Sobame-chan is so oblivious. She looked at the table again but quickly turned away when the man gave her a glare.

"What are you looking at?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing." Sasuke said as he turned back to Naruto.

"I wonder what she wanted. Well, anyways, I'm gonna regret your words." Sasuke lost his teasing tone and gave a very monotone answer.

"Like what?"

"Hmm. I guess I could-" Naruto felt a small prick some place near his throat before he started coughing. Damn the smoke.

"So you're going to get me sick?" Sasuke said in the same bored voice but still managed to look concerned when he reached over and placed his hand on Naruto's forehead. Naruto swatted the hand away before giving him an annoyed expression.

"What is with everyone today? I'm not sick!" Sasuke sent another of his 'I don't believe you' looks which caused Naruto to give an aggravated sigh. "It's just... There's a lot of smokers here today. The smell is irritating me."

Sasuke sent him a nod which Naruto thought meant 'I understand'. Naruto put his arms on the table and laid his head down before his body was jerked up.

"What the hell?" Naruto yelled as Sasuke dragged him to the entrance. "Where are you taking me? Damn it! I'm talking to you!" Naruto complained a little more until Sasuke suddenly stopped. Naruto rubbed the spot where Sasuke had grabbed him and sent a glare toward the other man. "What the hell were you doing?"

"You that the smoke that is filling the whole bar is the cause of what I saw earlier. Right now, I'm deciding you need some fresh air."

"You can't just decide what I need!" Naruto would've agreed to leave without a fit, but the authoritative tone in Sasuke's last sentence just made him want to be rebellious. He frowned as Sasuke moved closer to him and instinctively shut his eyes. Naruto felt the velvety cloth being placed over him and opened his eyes in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"You might get cold." Naruto looked down at the waiter uniform he was forced to wear, and he had to agree. The uniform wouldn't exactly protect him from the cold, but he wanted to refuse. He didn't want to accept the jacket, but he also didn't want to get Sasuke angry. Sasuke wasn't the type to care much about the comfort about others so this type of gesture was rare. "Hey, hurry up. Let's go."

"Fine." Naruto slipped his arms quickly through the big jacket. Sasuke's jacket was huge compared to his transformation's body. The end of the coat almost reached down to his mid-thigh. Naruto happily buttoned the jacket up. He didn't like the fact that he had to wear the bastard's jacket, but he hated that he had to wear the revealing uniform. Naruto gave a small smile when he was done. He felt less... exposed to the world.

Sasuke gave Naruto a small tug on the sleeve before he headed out the door. Naruto followed after and felt the blissful clean air hit his face.

"I wonder why I didn't think of this before." Naruto said before gulping down a deep breath of air. And to his relief, he didn't go into another round of coughing. This feels so much better. "What do you wanna do while we're out here?" Silence followed his answer which meant that Naruto had to pick. Hmm. What should we do? "I got it!" Naruto said before he grabbed Sasuke and ran off to the destination in his mind.

He saw it on the day of their picnic. They were walking to the picnic spot when he noticed along the way that there was a small ice cream shop and a bench somewhere in the grassy fields. The bench was a little far off from the village which meant it could give Sasuke and Naruto some privacy. It wasn't as if Naruto wanted to be alone with Sasuke, but he knew that Sasuke liked his solitude. So Naruto would get a delicious treat while Sasuke would get a peaceful afternoon without people bugging him.

They reached the ice cream shop, and Naruto's face was currently pressed against the glass that stood between him and the icy treats.

"Pick one quick." Sasuke commanded.

"I'm thinking! Which one do you think is better, fruity tooty strawberry or triple fudge swirl?" As expected, Sasuke ignored the question to glare at the bright-colored wallpaper. "Oh! I know! I'll choose the... cookie dough vanilla!"

The man behind the counter gave Naruto a big grin as he picked up the biggest cone there and giving him two giant scoops. Naruto reached into one of his pockets to find his wallet, but Sasuke beat him to it.

"You don't have to do that. I got my own money, you know." Naruto complained, but Sasuke was still ignoring him. The man gave a small 'Thank you' before handing over Naruto's ice cream. "Don't you want any?" Naruto asked Sasuke before he remembered he didn't like sweets. "Fine. But you're missing out on a lot."

They left the small shop. As Naruto thought about it, Sasuke was really out of place in the shop. Each wall was painted a different bright color. There was also a little chime when you opened the door. The place screamed too cheerful for Sasuke. That's what Naruto thought as he watched Sasuke's hurried pace. Yup. That place was too cheerful for dark Sasuke.

Naruto guided them to the little bench he saw earlier. They sat down and watched the wind making little ripples on the tips of the grass fields.

"Are you sure you can finish that? It seems like a big waste of money to me if you're going to throw it away."

Grr. Naruto thought. Sasuke had just ruined the peacefulness.

But Naruto knew he didn't really mind. It was better when Sasuke talked.

"Well, it wouldn't be a waste of money if you didn't buy it. So you're the one who wasted your money. Not me." Naruto would've smirked at Sasuke's 'Hn', but he was too busy eating. "Besides, I wouldn't let something as good as this uneaten."

"Hn."

"Since I'm eating and I'm too busy to talk, why don't you tell about yourself?" Naruto paused for a while as he reviewed his progress over the month. Basically, Naruto told Sasuke basically everything that happened to him while Sasuke just sat there and kept to himself. "I barely hear about your life." Let's see what he says.

"What do you want to know?" Naruto ignored the fact that somehow the words seemed forced.

"I don't know. How about your past? Where you were born? Your fa-friends? Oh! How about your friend that I remind you of? That would be nice to know." Naruto grimaced as he almost said family. Of course, Naruto knew he was already pushing it, but somehow, saying the word family would be like lighting the fuse to an unstable bomb inside of a volcano. Hopefully, Sasuke wouldn't notice that he had almost said family instead of friends. That would be bad. Horribly bad. "So you get to choose which one you wanna talk about."

"You're done eating now. I'm not required to talk." Sasuke said, deflating Naruto's excitement.

"What?!" Naruto gaped at the man before him. He knew that this kind of reaction was more likely than Sasuke admitting anything but it ticked Naruto off for some reason. "Come on! I don't know much about you! At least tell me some part of your life!"

"Why should I?" Did Naruto sense a little anger in the last statement? Sasuke's past was a bad subject to talk about.

"Because! I barely know anything about you! I told you a lot about me so you should at least return the favor." Naruto looked at Sasuke before he was caught in a blazing glare.

"Do you think there anything in your ignorant little life that seems to be unpredictable to me? I probably could've guessed what your life was like before you even told me. You lived in a blissful world, never aware about a damn thing that was painful. You've grown up being embarrassed of your parents without realizing how easily they could be taken away from you. All that seems important to you right now is what people may think of you and money. You're just another one of those people who would rather talk of action instead of acting. You think you may know everything." Sasuke turned his head away from Naruto, refusing to even look at him. "You probably don't even know what it's like to suffer. You will never understand me."

Naruto watched Sasuke with shock. Then, his emotions seemed to empty out of his body until rage filled up the empty space.

"A lot of people have judged me. My parents were dead before I got to even see them. People shunned me when I needed them most. I was all alone, and I suffered greatly." Naruto spoke in a low tone but somehow, it made his words even more deadly. "Someone finally noticed me and took me in. That's when I began to feel happy. Along the way, I found people who grew to be more like a sister and brother to me. But my brother left us when we couldn't give him what he wanted. I'm trying my damn best to find him and to stop the pain from his disappearance. I suffered, but I wanted to stop suffering. I wanted to be happy, and I worked my ass off to finally feel how it felt to be happy. A lot of people judged me even they didn't know a single thing about me. I feel disappointed that you might be one of those people." Naruto said before he turned and walked away. "I think I should go back, now." Naruto continued to walk before abruptly stopping. "By the way, I'm not angry at you, but I can't say that I'm not disappointed. But I'm not angry."

Naruto walked away but was stopped when he heard Sasuke's voice.

"I don't know how, but you manage to surprise me. Hm." Sasuke stood up and watched Naruto with cold eyes. "If you want to know about my family so bad, my parents were killed before my very eyes. As for my brother, he's pretty much dead to me, but that's still not enough. That's all I'm telling you so you better not-"

Sasuke was cut off when Naruto jumped at him and... gave him a hug?

Honestly, Naruto didn't know why he did that. It reminded him of when he had told Sakura more about his painful past, and she unexpectedly hugged him. Was this the same feeling she had felt?

Why was Naruto hugging Sasuke? Why didn't Naruto know the reason he was hugging Sasuke? Why... didn't he want to let go?

All Naruto knew was that some inexplicable force had compelled Naruto to his current action. Now, it was making him feel grateful. Why? He didn't know.

"Thank you." Naruto whispered into Sasuke's chest causing the man to stiffen.

If Naruto had looked behind him, he would've saw the uncertain expression on Sasuke's face slowly fade away as he lifted his hand and placed it on Naruto's shoulder.

"Shouldn't you be getting back now?" Sasuke said softly.

"No. Not yet." Naruto stepped back and smiled at Sasuke. "I wanna stay out here with you just a little bit longer."


~*~*~*~*~*~


This was a different feeling to Sasuke. He was confused.

He didn't know what, but he sensed something had changed. He didn't feel different about the girl.

Sasuke still planned using her to get what he wanted.

He wouldn't let anyone get in the way of him and killing Itachi. Nothing.

So why was this bothering him?

It felt like there was something that he should know. He could feel that there was something he should know, but he couldn't seem to grasp the hidden meaning.

What was he supposed to know?

This was infuriating Sasuke. Why couldn't he figure out what is bugging him?

All it was telling him was something had changed. Something had changed.

He'd have to complete the next step in his plan then.

And he'd have to do it soon.

Sasuke ran the plans through in his mind, not noticing the creeping figure watching him.


~*~*~*~*~*~


A/N: Sorry it's so short. It's just I had some problems with this chapter so it took a while. Sorry again for that. Review. They make me feel better.