Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered ❯ Opening Old Wounds ( Chapter 4 )

 

The walk to Konoha was silent, not a tense or awkward silence, just plain silence. Sasuke was grateful that is was so late since the streets were empty. There was the occasional ninja that would walk past but they didn't even give them a second glance. It was probably because Sakura and Naruto were walking in front of him and no knew he was there. Not that he was complaining he didn't want to be noticed. To be noticed meant he would have to explain why he was back and why he left in the first place. He knew he wasn't ready for that.

 

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice where he was until they started approaching his house. “They didn't tear it down?”

 

Sakura slowed down a bit to walk next to him, “Well actually me and Naruto live here now.”

 

“It was her idea.” Naruto stopped at the front door and started looking through his pockets for the keys. It was then that Sasuke noticed the Uchiha emblem next to the door. “I painted it yesterday, you can paint it from now on.”

 

“Oh.”

 

When Naruto finally got the door open he moved to the side to let Sasuke walk in first. Upon entering he couldn't believe what he saw. He remembered a house that was always cold and empty. This was something completely different. There was more furniture, which although took up a lot of space was strangely inviting. There were pictures on the wall from their childhood. Sasuke scanned the wall briefly before stopping on a picture of Team 7.

 

“I doubt you need a tour. Your room is as you left it. Now if you don't mind I'm going to go make dinner.” Sasuke watched Sakura walk past him and into the kitchen. He heard Naruto shut the door behind him and lock it. Sasuke decided to go to his room. Taking his shoes off he started to walk down the hall. He knew Naruto was following him, and he didn't mind. When he opened the door to his room he couldn't believe what he saw. Everything was exactly like he remembered it. It was like walking into a photograph. Nothing had been moved; even his dirty laundry was still on the floor.

 

Naruto stood behind Sasuke and watched him get ridged when he opened the door to his room. He knew Sasuke was surprised to see the room. Naruto leaned against the doorframe when Sasuke finally entered the room. `I wonder what he's thinking?' Naruto realized then that he would have to learn how to read Sasuke all over again.

 

“We didn't go through any of your things. All we did was dust and open the window.”

“Why?”

 

“We couldn't let the place get dusty and old.”

 

“No. I mean why did you forgive me so easily?”

 

“Oh.” Silence filled the room as Naruto searched for the right words. Sasuke had to turn around to make sure Naruto was still there. Naruto was looking at some random thing on the wall.

 

“I know I hurt you, so why?”

 

Naruto set his gaze on Sasuke and looked into his guilt filled eyes. “You're my friend. I never had anyone before you or Iruka. I'd do anything to keep you. I know why you did what you did. I would have done the same thing. Yes you hurt me, but you were hurt too. You're still hurting. But you've changed. You learned your lesson. I would have waited forever for you to come back.” As soon as the words left Naruto's mouth he knew he meant every single one.

 

“Sorry.” Sasuke didn't know what else to say. After all he had done to Naruto he still wanted to be friends. He never knew someone with such a forgiving heart existed. It was at that very moment he promised to never hurt him again.

 

“Stop apologizing, it's scary.” Naruto reached out and playfully punched Sasuke in the shoulder. They looked at each other and for the first time in almost three years Naruto was truly happy and his smile showed it.

 

“Hey guys! Dinner!”

 

Naruto was almost skipping down the hall toward the kitchen. “Is it ramen?” Sasuke knew what the answer was when he saw a spoon fly past his door. “Sakura that's mean.” It surprised him at how easily the three of them fell into their old routine. Sakura yelled at Naruto, Naruto would pout and Sasuke would stand back and shake his head. Sasuke knew everything was going to be all right.

 

 

Sakura couldn't be happier. Sasuke was back, Naruto was happy and all three of them could move on. She found the two of them sitting at the table, patiently waiting for their food. Naruto noticed the smile on Sakura's face and it warmed his heart.

 

 

Dinner was eaten in a comfortable silence. No one knew what to say. And even if they did they didn't want to ruin the moment. They were simply basking in each other's presence. Once the table had been cleared and the dishes washed they migrated to the living room. Sakura took the couch, Sasuke a chair and Naruto sat on the floor with his back to the couch next to Sakura.

 

“So what did you two do while I was gone?” The silence was getting to be too much for Sasuke. Besides he was curious as to what Naruto and Sakura had been up to.

 

“Oh well we spent the first year fixing up the place. Sakura did most of the work, I just did what she told me to.”

 

“And after that?”

 

“We trained.” Naruto stated the obvious causing Sakura to smile.

 

“Silly he knows that.” Naruto turned and pouted at her.

 

“Who trained you?”

 

“Oh, well Kakashi and Shizume trained me, and Jirayia trained Naruto. Sometimes we went on missions, but most of our time was spent training.” Naruto simply nodded as Sakura answered the question.

 

“I can tell you've gotten stronger Sakura.” At the comment Sakura blushed.

 

“Sasuke, I'm gonna tell Thick-brows you were hitting on his girl.” Naruto was quickly rewarded with a fist to the top of his head. `I knew that was coming.'

 

“Lee?”

 

“Oh we've only just recently started seeing each other. We're not really a couple yet.”

 

“Don't lie you know you are. You're just to scared to admit it.” It was true. Sakura was scared of commitment. Most of her fear stemmed from the fact that if she did one day decide to get married she might never be able to be a ninja again. She would be a wife and maybe a mother. She couldn't even being to image what life her children would have if she died. All she had to do was look at how Sasuke turned out to see what could happen.

 

“Naruto what about you?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Are you seeing anyone?” A furious blush suddenly appeared on both the face of Naruto and Sakura.

 

“Well you see….um….the thing is…..”

 

“He hasn't dated anyone since we broke up a year ago.” Just when Sasuke thought he couldn't be anymore shocked, he was. He found himself looking from Naruto to Sakura and back. Naruto refused to look at him, where as Sakura was still red as a tomato. Sasuke just stared at Sakura. For someone who hardly spoke, he was even more speechless. Looking at Naruto he found that he was slightly curious about their relationship. But he also knew it wasn't his place to ask.

 

“We were lonely.” Naruto still refused to look as Sasuke as he talked. He just looked at some random spot on the ground. “It was convenient, you know. She understood what I was going through and I understood her. It made sense at the time. But loneliness can't hold a relationship together.” Sasuke could tell that they were both relieving the relationship. Thinking about the relationship only brought back all the feelings of loneliness that both of them had struggled so hard to get rid of.

 

Sakura couldn't take the silence any longer; she had to do something. Suddenly something dawned on her and she focused her attention on Sasuke. “So, what did you do for the three years you were away?”

 

`I knew they would ask eventually.' Sasuke sighed heavily. He interlaced his fingers placing them under his nose and propped his elbows on his thighs.

 

“I suppose I should start when Naruto passed out.” Naruto obviously stiffened at the statement. Sakura's fingers twitched, she wanted to place her hand on his should to calm him down but decided against it.

 

“Is it safe to assume that he told you everything about that day?” Sasuke didn't want to relive the fight, it was too painful and he didn't think he could talk about it. He waited for one of them to give him some kind of answer. Finally Sakura nodded.

 

“Naruto was passed out on the ground. I simply stood there staring at him. I had aimed my Chidori at his chest. He aimed his Rasengan at my forehead protector. After all the things I had done and said he still wouldn't kill me. That's when it started to rain. I occurred to me that when Zabuza died it snowed. Those were Haku's tears that fell from the sky that day. I wondered if he was crying now because of what I had done.” Suddenly Naruto got up. He couldn't listen anymore. He wanted to know what Sasuke had been doing, but he couldn't sit there any longer. It hurt too much to hear. He mumbled to Sakura that he would be all right and walked out the door. Not once did he look at Sasuke.

 

“He'll come back. It was just too much for him.”

 

“Should I stop?”

 

“No, keep going. I'll tell him later. It probably won't hurt as much if I tell him.”

 

“Ok.” Sasuke looked over at the spot where Naruto had been sitting. He got up and moved to the window. He didn't want to look at her face or Naruto's spot as he talked, it would only make it harder.

 

“I don't remember much after the rain started. All I know is that I walked. I don't know for how long or in what direction. I just simply walked away. I ended up in a small village. I don't even remember the name of the village anymore. Somehow I managed to write a letter and I paid some kid to deliver it. I stayed there for a few more days and then left. I decided to leave the Fire Country. I needed to go somewhere where I could sort things out. I ended up in the Tea Country. No one knew me there so it was easy to blend in and hide.”

 

“Did you ever go visit Idate?” Sakura had gone on a mission to the Tea Country once and had asked Idate if he had seen Sasuke. He had said no, but she had a feeling he was lying to her.

 

“No, but we almost ran into each other once. I was staying in an abandoned house on the outskirts of a small village when I saw him. He might have seen me, but I'm not sure.”

 

`It seems like Idate was telling the truth.'

 

“I had decided to stop being a ninja, and live the life of a normal peasant. I thought maybe then I could be happy. I could start over. So I went from village to village. I'd train a little here and there in my travels. Then about a year and half into my travels I had a nightmare. I dreamed of Orochimaru. I dreamed that he came here and killed you, Kakashi and Naruto.” The nightmare was still so fresh in Sasuke's mind. He knew if he stopped talking now he wouldn't ever be able to tell anyone about the nightmare ever again.

 

“That morning I decided that no matter where I went or how I lived my life, Konoha was and will always be a part of me. I realized then that I would rather die protecting my precious comrades then run away. Naruto lived his life that way and from then on I would too. But before I could start my new path I had to get rid of the snake.” Sakura didn't even notice Sasuke had moved from the window until she felt the couch shift next to her. She didn't have the courage to look at him but she knew he wasn't looking at her either.

 

“How did you kill him?”

 

“It was rather easy for me to get close to him. As soon as he heard I was in the Sound Country he sent out escorts for me. I told him that I didn't want anyone to know I was there, and he agreed. He accepted me with open arms. I stayed there and tried to gain his trust. Even with his useless arms he would a difficult man to kill. I had to get him when he was vulnerable, so I waited. About a week ago, while we were sparring, I saw my chance and took it. Kabuto let me leave the village without resistance. I think he had been planning on killing Orochimaru as well.”

 

“Can he be trusted then?”

 

“No. If anything I would have trusted Orochimaru more. At least with him you knew what he wanted. Kabuto is a total mystery.”

 

“True.”

 

“So, I left the Sound and upon arriving here I sent Naruto another letter. To be honest I really did think Naruto was going to kill me.”

 

“He can't kill you. You mean to much to him.” Sakura heard Sasuke sigh heavily, almost like he had been holding his breath the entire time. She knew talking about the past three years was hard. Those three years were hard on everyone. She also knew that he had left out a lot of details. Maybe one day she would ask him about the Sound, but for now she'd let it slide.

 

“What do I mean to you Sakura?” Sakura was suddenly taken aback by the question. That was the last thing she expected him to ask. She sat there next to him, and looked at his features.

 

“If you're wondering about the crush I had on you, you can stop. My feelings for you do not go beyond friendship. My affection is now directed to one man, and he is no longer you.” She didn't mean for it to come out so harshly, but it was true. A heart once broken can never be the way it was before. She had given him a chance to love her the way she loved him. It was now Lee's turn, and she knew he would love her until his last breath.

 

“Good. Someone like me doesn't deserve someone like you. I don't think I'm capable of loving someone the way Lee loves you.”

 

“Yes you are.” Sakura took hold of Sasuke's hand. He looked from her hand to her face to see her smiling at him. “You just need to find that one person who warms your heart. She's out there, trust me.”

 

Blushing Sasuke turned away from her, “Thank you.”

 

“It's getting late so I'm going to go to bed now.” Sakura got up and was about to enter the hallway when Sasuke asked her about Naruto. “Don't worry about him. He'll be back. Good night.”

 

Sasuke stayed in the living room looking out the window for a while after Sakura had left. He thought about how much they had changed. He wondered if they truly trusted him. He knew that tomorrow they would have to go see the Hokage about his return. Sasuke was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't even notice Naruto walk in the house.

 

“You should get some rest, it's gonna be a long day tomorrow.”

 

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” Sasuke turned and noticed that there was dirt on Naruto's pants and that he looked tired and sweaty. Before he got the chance to ask him where he had been Naruto walked off.

 

“Well good night Sasuke.”

 

Sasuke waited a few minutes before getting up and going to his room. It took him a while to find something to wear to bed, since all his clothes were now too small. As he lay in bed he heard Naruto get out of the shower. He heard the door to Naruto's room open and close. Sasuke was about to fall asleep when he heard the sound of Sakura's door open followed by hushed voices. Sasuke couldn't make out the words but he knew Sakura was telling Naruto everything she had heard that night. The last thing Sasuke heard before falling asleep was the sound of Naruto closing his door for the night.

 

 

 

MAKE WAY FOR THE MONSTER CHAPTER!!! This was originally 2 chapters, but I decided to mash them together.

 

I know that never in a million years would Sasuke ever talk that much, but I had to get the story out somehow. Well now that all the wounds have been opened the healing can begin. For those who don't know Naruto was out training. I mention in Chapter 1 that when he gets sad he goes and trains until the feeling is gone.

 

About the whole Haku thing. I am a firm believer that one of the underlying themes of the series is what Haku told Naruto; “Only when you protect someone precious are you truly strong.” Haku had a profound impact on the team, even if they don't notice it. I noticed it and that's all that matters.

 

For all of you who wanted Sas/Sak…… sorry. This chapter basically killed any chances of that. I'm more of a Lee/Sak fan anyway. I did leave it open for a Sas/??? pairing though.

 

So like always leave comments, suggestions, likes, dislikes, flames, social security numbers…..you know all the usual.