Archive of Our Own

His gaze was fixed on the door of his apartment, waiting expectantly for the knock.

Sasuke would return to the city, or at least that's what he implied in the last letter he sent to Naruto. He specifically stated that he didn't want him to come looking for him at the main entrance to Konoha; he wanted to be as inconspicuous as possible, and that wasn't easy with the village hero escorting him. It made Naruto a little angry; after all, he loved going to meet him at the entrance. It felt like a personal and intimate gesture, especially since he'd only seen him after many months.

He was anxious.

Too anxious.

His leg bounced against the ground in a regular rhythm, his hands clasped over his face, resting his chin on it. He had missed him terribly, so much so that he couldn't even sleep at night without first checking if he could sense his chakra. He knew Sasuke surely missed him too, but the jerk would never admit it.

When he returned, Naruto made sure to have a thousand things to do for him. One of them was to go and greet everyone who respected Sasuke, since, well, there were some who really seemed to want him dead. Then he would take him to a duel, just because it was fun and reminded him of when they were young, especially since neither of them intended to give in. If he was lucky, he might even get him something to eat and drink. And if he is even more lucky he'll stay and sleep with him. By "sleep with him" he means the same bed, which is big enough for both of them, but that's not what's important to Naruto; it's the feeling of normalcy.

Sasuke asleep was the only time he ever saw him truly at peace. His brow, always slightly furrowed, would disappear, and his eyelashes would rest on his cheeks. Whenever he slept, he curled up, his hands clutching the Heirloom as if it were about to be taken from him. It was the only time he could see his friend relaxed, and it was always when he was in his bed, with him beside him like a constant warmth. Naruto watched him sleep with such affection that if someone saw him from the outside, he'd look like a psychopath. Perhaps he'd even pretend to be asleep himself to snuggle up against his back and rest his hands on his waist. If he were awake, he'd smash his head against the wall, but being deeply asleep –Naruto loved that–, he would let himself be hugged.

He didn't want to name the satisfaction he felt holding Sasuke in his arms; let's just say he loved him, very much. So much so that when he had to leave, he felt his heart clench and his eyes sting. He would sleep for the next few nights with the pillow on which Sasuke had rested his head, breathing in his essence until it faded completely and he had to wash the pillowcase. He would send letters to him in the days after he left, telling him absolutely everything, his hand weary from writing so much, only to receive one reply for every ten letters.

He heard a dull thud behind him and when he turned around, Sasuke was standing in the doorway of his room, his arm hidden beneath a black cloak he'd recently started wearing. His hair was longer than usual, perhaps because he hadn't had time to cut it, but all Naruto could think about was how good it looked on him. He jumped up and hugged him tightly, enjoying how the cold fabric, worn out from being exposed to the exterior for so long, warmed against his body. He could hear Sasuke chuckle softly, his right arm resting around his back.

“Okay, idiot, that’s enough,” he said gently, feeling the smile in his words.

“I haven’t seen you for months and you rarely answer my letters, let me enjoy this!” he exclaimed, squeezing tighter.

He barely broke away for a moment, giving Sasuke his most tender look. He was truly so happy to see him again.

“I missed you so much,” he finished, always unafraid to be the first to say it.

“I can tell. You must have been bored without me,” he replied, dropping his bag beside him. “I won’t be staying long. I came mainly to inform Kakashi about a mission.”

“You could have kept that to yourself,” he said, taking Sasuke’s bag and carrying it to his room, subconsciously assuming he would be sleeping there. “I preferred to think you only came for me.”

He entered the room without saying a word to Naruto, who was already unpacking his bag to organize his things. Naruto noticed him groan for a moment, massaging his shoulder with his one hand, and approached to examine it. Unfortunately for him, Sasuke quickly stopped him, looking at him with boredom.

"I just want to see what happens to you!"

“I slept horribly last night, bad position,” he said simply.

Naruto could already imagine what it must have been like, perhaps in the top of a tree or something similar. He pursed his lips: "I can help you ease the pain."

“I was thinking, I’d better take a shower.”

“We could go to the hot springs!”

“I’m not thrilled about the idea of ​​bathing with other people,” he muttered, taking off his cloak. Naruto quickly stopped him, tying it back up.

"You forget that I, Naruto Uzumaki, have certain privileges."

The proximity made Sasuke instinctively lean back. As he tied the knot again, he still kept his hands resting on the two threads, smiling broadly at his friend. He quickly went to gather everything they needed for the hot springs and took Sasuke with him, explaining his good friendship with the owner and how she always let him use a private area when he asked.

Sasuke walked beside him through the crowded streets of Konoha, not caring when they had to stop so the blond could greet people or be interrupted by a young man wanting an autograph. He had adjusted his hood to hide underneath it, which annoyed Naruto, but he also knew he had a reason for it.

His friend hated returning to Konoha, a place filled with pain and bitter memories. He knew it was torture for him to go back after everything that had happened, but he still made time to go there just to spend time with Naruto, trying to make up for lost time and ensure he was a good reason for Naruto to truly make positive changes when he became Hokage. If anything made him happy, it was being able to bring Sasuke back, even if only for a few days, and manage to coax a smile from him, however small.

They entered the establishment and were greeted with euphoria by the woman Naruto had mentioned on his way there. The woman grabbed Naruto's hands and squeezed them tightly.

“It was about time you came back, Naruto-kun,” she said, rubbing her hands together.

“Yes, and I brought company!” he said, bumping his shoulder against Sasuke’s side, who merely bowed solemnly. “So I was hoping to get a prime spot.”

He handed the woman money, and she laughed with delight. “Of course, of course!” She took some keys from a shelf and led them to the dressing rooms of a small private room. There was an ice-cold shower and a glass door that revealed a medium-sized pool, its surface obscured by steam. As soon as they were alone, Naruto quickly took off his clothes.

Sasuke took his time; after all, it was freezing outside, and he was wearing several layers. Besides, he liked to keep his clothes tidy, folding them and putting them away in the lockers. He took the towel Naruto had left for him and wrapped it around his waist, only then pulling down his boxers. Naruto was already soaking his body with the icy shower water, only catching glimpses of his figure from behind. He was probably hoping Sasuke would join him, but his friend was patiently waiting for him to come out of the stall. His face was slightly turned away, avoiding watching Naruto shower, which made the blond want to tease him a little.

“Come on, Sasuke,” he said, turning around, the water still running over his head. “Haven’t you ever bathed with other people?”

“I already said I’m not fascinated by it,” he murmured, his hands resting on the edge of the bench.

“But it’s me.”

Sasuke rolled his eyes, staying put. Naruto gave up and turned off the tap. He gestured for Sasuke to come along as he left through the door separating the changing rooms from the pool. Only then did he relax his neck and walk toward the shower, taking the towel from around his waist. He did it quickly; he didn't like cold water, and now that he had the chance to shower in hot water, he didn't want to stay under it for too long.

He walked across the ceramic tiles. Naruto was already in the water, sitting on one of the steps, the water reaching his chest. His eyes were closed, relaxed. Sasuke walked slowly to the edge, unwrapping the towel from around his waist as the water covered his legs. He could see Naruto's head slowly turn, his blue eyes peeking out from the corner of his eye, even though his body was already submerged, and he waded to the other side.

Naruto pursed his lips like a little boy.

He stood up, the water now covering his lap, and walked just a few steps close to Sasuke, close enough to be able to speak.

“I told you it was a good place, the water is always at the perfect temperature.”

“Honestly, it’s fine,” Sasuke nodded, much to his delight.

“How was your trip through the small villages of the nation?”

Sasuke raised his eyebrows, then closed his eyes, sinking deeper into the water and leaning against the wall.

“Boring, though very peaceful,” he replied, his head tilting gently to one side. “People are kind. Sometimes, on longer missions, I stay with families I’ve gotten to know over time. Which is nice, since most offer not only a room but also food in exchange for small dues.”

With a little help, Naruto already figured out that Sasuke meant fighting raiders who had been lurking along the shores of the Land of Fire. Obviously, for Sasuke, that was a simple and easy task, so he wasn't worried about getting hurt in any altercation.

“You’ve been forced to be more sociable,” he said, trying to tease him a little, imagining his friend talking to other people rather than just monosyllables.

“Unfortunately,” he said softly, not at all regretting it.

In the letters, Sasuke talked about people Naruto obviously didn't know. Sometimes he mentioned a little girl named Yumiko, whom he met when she was two and only babbling. But the last time he visited her again, she was four and could count to one hundred. He would stay with Yumiko's family for at least a week, and in return, he had to help in the fields and keep the little girl entertained. Naruto's heart swelled with love just thinking about Sasuke playing with a little girl, his face always so serious, yet his expression softening when he had to interact with younger people.

He rarely spoke about people his own age, or at least they didn't seem to be when he mentioned them. He usually spoke politely about villagers, about rebellious teenagers who were sometimes caught causing a ruckus. They're just like you were when you were a kid, I feel like punching them." He said in his letters, and Naruto laughed loudly when he read him complaining. He made no mention of any friends he'd made, if an old woman or a pregnant woman and her young husband even counted as friends. Nor did he mention girlfriends, much to Naruto's delight…

Because he didn't want Sasuke to beat him to getting a girlfriend first! Duh.

“I hope you haven’t been breaking girls’ hearts out there,” hefinished, almost impulsively. “Neither Karin nor Sakura have gotten over how you rejected them.”

Then a snort. And Naruto began to chuckle softly.

“I haven’t met many girls, and even if I had, I haven’t been interested in them,” he said flatly. Naruto smiled triumphantly.

“Cool.”

Sasuke turned to look at him, his eyes piercing him as if he could put a hole in his skull. Then he cleared his throat, regretting the word he had used.

“I mean—it’s great that you weren’t there, you know, lovebombing some peasant woman around there," he quickly retracted.

“What the hell is lovebombing?”

“Oh, it’s a term the Chunin use now, you wouldn’t understand,” he said. He didn’t quite understand it either. Konohamaru introduced the term while telling him about a drama his friend Moegi had with a boy from the village. To avoid looking like an old man, he pretended to understand. “Besides, you can’t get a girlfriend before me!”

Sasuke submerged in the water, then surfaced. His hair fell straight over his shoulders, showing off its length even more. He didn't want to admit it, but the sight was far more pleasing than he'd like; Naruto couldn't take his eyes off him.

He turned his back on Naruto, who was at the edge of the pool, now with a towel in hand, rubbing his arms. He also took a towel, which he left on the shore, and began to gently rub his arms. The blond followed his movements with his eyes, slowly analyzing his white back with small freckles down to the curve of his lower back, where his buttocks peeked out. He just wanted to see if the dark-haired man was in shape; after all, every shinobi had to have a fit body, and some very fit –really– train their butts. Sasuke wouldn't disappoint anyone, since his body, despite being slender, was firm, his abdominal muscles defined but not excessive, his arms with triceps peeking through his skin, and his butt… Well.

He mentally scolded himselff; he shouldn't be visualizing another man's naked body, much less praising him. Although he doubted Sasuke hadn't been praised for his escapades, people aren't blind.

He glanced back, only to catch Sasuke trying to scrub his back with the cloth, without much success. He swallowed and approached Sasuke from behind, the curtain of steam parting as they moved forward. He took the cloth hanging from Sasuke's shoulder and wrung it out behind him. Sasuke didn't turn around, only turned his face, watching him through his violet eye.

“I’ll help you wash your back,” he said, placing the cloth where Sasuke was trying to reach with one hand.

His friend hummed in agreement.

He focused on every inch of his back as the dark-haired boy pinned his hair forward, revealing his entire back. From his distance, he could count each mole that appeared, tracing irregular lines. It was the first time they'd gone to the restroom together; the memory of seeing him with his friends flashed through his mind as he gazed at his milky skin. Sasuke really was a very handsome man.

“Did you feel very lonely on your missions?” he asked, trying to distract the man.

“I’ve been alone for a long time, it’s not like it affects me,” he replied, and although he wasn’t harsh, Naruto frowned deeply, feeling hurt. “But I’ve met people and I’ve been with people.”

“What?” he stopped, his hand still on his back. “I thought you didn’t like any of the girls you saw?”

Sasuke shrugged, "Well, there are other things besides girls..."

Oh, ok. 

Yes, that's true, there are many genres out there.

“You’ve been with… men,” he said slowly, resuming his work.

“No”, he states. “There have only been situations with them. Nothing formal, nothing to overthink”.

Oh, ok. 

He's talking about sex, good.

His throat felt like a desert in the middle of nowhere, despite the large amount of water around him; he felt like he was in a desert.

A slight unease rose in his chest. It wasn't that Sasuke was seeing other people—that was fine, he really was. But that he hadn't told him? Especially the detail that they were men. Which was also fine; the world had come a long way, and that topic was no longer taboo. Even so, he would have appreciated knowing that his best friend was into that sort of thing.

Remember when Sakura mentioned it, while reminiscing about how she was hopelessly in love with Sasuke, just like thousands of other girls? She said it was impossible for a man who supposedly liked women to reject every woman who showed him romantic affection; statistically, he must have liked at least one. Naruto just laughed, thinking Sakura was exaggerating. He'd only ever liked Sakura throughout his entire teenage years, and even though he found many girls pretty, he rejected many of them. Maybe Sasuke just hated people.

It should be noted that Sakura rolled her eyes and said that talking to him was like talking to a wall.

Now his words made sense. But the annoyance persisted, even as Naruto cursed himself for being so dramatic. It wasn't like he wanted to hear Sasuke's stories about being with other men; he wouldn't like it. It made his head spin and made him want to die. He didn't think he was bothered by the fact that Sasuke was gay, but rather that… he fucked with people.

The thought quickly escaped his mind when he realized he'd been rubbing the same spot on Sasuke's back for a long time. Now, a red mark was visible on his lower back, contrasting sharply with his pale skin. He wrung out the cloth again and placed it on Sasuke's shoulder, trying to pretend nothing had happened.

"Does it bother you?"

“We guys always help each other wash our backs, so it doesn’t bother me,” he replied, waving his hands quickly. “It was my duty as a friend at the hot springs to scrub your back!”

“I mean…” he turned slowly to face Naruto, the water barely covering his groin. “…So it bothers you that I’ve been with men.”

“Oh. No,” he hastened to say, coming out as a sigh, “of course not, it’s good to know.”

"Why?"

“Why?” he said too loudly, “Can’t I know things about my best friend?”

His friend nodded, though not entirely convinced. Silence settled between them; the sound of the water moving with their bodies was the only sound echoing off the tiles. Naruto felt embarrassed for some reason, as if he'd been caught doing something mischievous. Sasuke remained where he was, the steam swirling around him and clinging to his skin as droplets. He felt an urge to fill the silence with a joke, a silly remark, or a trivial comment, but his tongue and mind betrayed him.

“How does it feel…,” he began, his cheeks starting to burn, unable to look at Sasuke. “…To kiss a man?”

The sound of a small splash startled him a little, but he still didn't want to turn around, pretending that he was still rubbing his body with the towel.

“Not too different from kissing a girl, to give you an idea,” his friend replied, with caution in his voice.

Memories replayed in his mind. His kiss with Isarabi, which was actually mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to save him from drowning, just like Sakura's, which saved his life. Then there was Fuka, who wanted to steal his chakra and also made him feel like an idiot. He didn't really feel like any of those counted. And then there was the childhood memory of the two accidental kisses he shared with Sasuke; neither of them involved anything more than lips, and neither of them expected them to happen! They both decided to forget them, something like a common trauma, but if someone asked Naruto about his first kiss, he'd immediately think of that time.

“But I imagine that, being both men, there must be more competitiveness?” He sounded like an idiot; he hated giving Sasuke the satisfaction of seeing him make a fool of himself.

To his surprise, Sasuke's face showed no hint of mockery. He seemed a little tense, and perhaps blushed, but that could have been the heat going to his head.

“It depends, sometimes you don’t want to be competitive.”

Oh, ok. 

He felt he understood what he meant, but his mind refused to process it, feeling both his chest and face flush. Even though his body was already flushed, he didn't think Sasuke would notice. He looked away again, now wetting his back with his hands, trying to keep himself occupied.

"I see."

The water stirred again, this time in small ripples in his direction. The gentle splashing told him Sasuke was approaching, and for some reason, his feet refused to move. He stayed put, pretending the conversation that had just started hadn't happened, that they were just taking a bath.

He stopped a few centimeters away from him, his chest in front of him, and no matter how much he avoided his gaze, he kept returning to that spot.

“Why the question?” he said slowly, still standing in front of him, impassive.

“I just wanted to know what it was like, I’m curious, you know that,” he replied evasively.

"Do you want to feel what it's like?"

“Yes,” he answered faster than he could process his question. His hands fell to his sides and his eyes met Sasuke’s, feeling a jolt of electricity run through his body.

He just wanted to know what it was like to kiss a man, and well, Sasuke is a man and he's standing a few feet away. Ignoring the fact that he's naked, it's just a form of exploration. Sasuke offered; he wanted to show him because they're friends and Naruto asked. So, like a good friend, he's going to show Naruto what it feels like to kiss a man! That way he could compare it to the other times he'd kissed a woman while unconscious, on the verge of death, or vulnerable!

Sasuke moved a little closer, until he could feel his breath on his lips. He swallowed loudly, his body completely tense, almost ridiculously tense.

“Relax your face,” he said gently, cupping Naruto’s cheek in his hand to hold it in place.

“That’s what I’m trying to do,” he muttered.

He took a deep breath and relaxed the tense muscles in his face. Sasuke's hand was cold, probably because his face was burning hot, but anyway, Sasuke's hands never seemed to be at room temperature. He closed his eyes, trying not to think too much, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Then he felt it.

A slight pressure on his lips.

He focused all his senses on the texture of his friend's lips; they were incredibly soft, almost like silk. The pressure increased slightly until he felt something wet brushing against his lips, and his body trembled so much he felt like he was about to faint. He felt the pad of Sasuke's thumb move directly to his lower lip, right where he had licked it, and pull it down, leaving his mouth slightly open, allowing Sasuke's tongue to enter.

If he didn't die now, he would die in a few seconds.

Experimentally, he stretched out his tongue, reaching for Sasuke's. Sasuke seemed surprised for a moment, withdrawing his tongue slightly, but then with clumsy expertise, he brushed it against his again, deepening the kiss. The tension in his body dissolved into a snort, his hand gripping Sasuke's elbow, trying to find something to hold onto. Their tongues touched in every pause between kisses, each one more hungry and at the same time more chaotic. He could feel Sasuke's quickened breathing, which swelled his ego. But he wasn't in any better shape, still breathing heavily against Sasuke, a mixture of moan and grunt. His other hand settled on his friend's slender waist, which he'd been eyeing ever since he saw his back. He lightly caressed the skin before Sasuke pulled away quickly, still together but now their mouths separated by a thin trail of saliva.

They looked into each other's eyes for a moment, pupils dilated and cheeks flushed. Both wanting to say something.

“It’s not very different from kissing a girl,” he said quickly, trying not to seem upset.

He didn't know how to kiss, much less a girl; he doesn't know why he said that.

The puzzle of Sasuke's face changed several times before becoming serious again, avoiding Naruto's gaze and moving away from his touch.

“I told you so,” he replied, taking a greater distance.

“But, um-”, he scratched the back of his neck, “it was still distinct, i mean, it was good.”

He meant very good but he didn't dare.

“Yes, I suppose so.”

Sasuke shifted uncomfortably; it was the first time he'd seen him so openly like this. Perhaps because what they'd done was strange in itself, but it wouldn't be the first time! At least this time it was with both of their consent and not some trick life had played on them.

“My fingers are like prunes,” he held up his hand for Sasuke to see, “maybe we should go out.”

“Go first, I…”, he stirred again, sinking deeper into the water, “I’ll get out in a little while.

Naruto walked slowly towards the edge of the warm pool and when he stood up on one of the steps, he automatically stepped back down.

There was a problem with his body.

Perhaps the hot water and the fact that he had just been tongue-tied with someone else (not necessarily Sasuke, Sasuke has nothing to do with this), had stirred his manhood. Not fully erect, but hard enough to be noticeable. He thought about turning back; after all, it had only been a few seconds and he could change his mind. But then he thought it would be too obvious. If he had just noticed, it wouldn't take long for Sasuke to suspect.

He glanced at Sasuke, who was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, and quickly grabbed his towel. Wrapped it tightly and ran to the dressing room to take a cold shower while Sasuke was still away; that should reduce his erection.

He cursed himself internally, wanting to rip off his penis; he was no longer a teenager, he should be able to control his libido.

Just as he came down, Sasuke returned. He thanked all the gods who had been with him during that critical moment. If Sasuke found out he'd gotten an erection from his kiss… he didn't really know if Sasuke would laugh at him or try to kill him.

They returned to the apartment and Sasuke changed his clothes. Then, when he expected him to say he was staying the night, he decided to change his plans.

“I’ll go see Kakashi and then I’ll leave.”

He approached the bag that Naruto had previously disassembled, and quickly put his things inside.

“But you arrived a few hours ago, we haven’t even had lunch!”

“I’ll buy something for the road,” he replied, as if he didn’t have Naruto about to cry in front of him.

"At least I can accompany you to Kakashi's, and then we can say goodbye at the exit."

“It’s not necessary,” he said firmly, his face serious and impassive. If Naruto didn’t know him, he would have thought it was a bit rushed. “It’ll be short; I’ll leave as soon as I’m done.”

Something inside him twisted, making him feel mistreated. He wanted to beg him to stay, because even though they had already overcome that stage, he still always felt he had to plead with Sasuke not to leave again. He surely had things to do, perhaps he was going to help some villager or solve a secret case that even he couldn't know about.

Or perhaps he’ll meet with a lover.

He pursed his lips.

“So, it's a see you later,” he said gently.

“Yes, idiot,” Sasuke replied, a small smile on his face. He put his cloak back on and combed his hair, concealing his Rinnegan.

He opened his arms and caught him in them, resting his head on his friend's shoulder. Sasuke returned the hug a second later, clinging to his back. They let themselves melt together for a few seconds before Sasuke slowly pulled away; if they stayed like that for too long, Naruto would stitch his body to his before he even noticed.

And just as he returned, he disappeared.

Naruto wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he can't stop thinking about the kiss he shared with Sasuke.

They met again while Naruto was finishing a quick mission in the west of the nation. They let him go it alone, since he usually had to bring a team with him to provide support and teach them a thing or two. He appreciates being alone; he can sleep wherever he wants, eat whatever he wants, and only have to worry about his own backside. He gets along well with young people these days, but they can be very stressful; he doesn't know how Iruka and Kakashi put up with them when they were younger.

The encounter was spontaneous. Naruto stopped to rest at an inn and suddenly sensed Sasuke's chakra approaching at great speed. He dropped his bag at the inn's entrance and ran toward the source of his energy, colliding heavily with him on a rooftop. Some tiles gave way, but Naruto managed to grab Sasuke and hug him tightly.

Three months had passed since they last saw each other!

He noticed his friend's hair was shorter than the last time they'd seen each other, but it was still long, falling gracefully around his neck and giving him a more delicate face. When he hugged him, he felt bigger than before; he must have been eating better these past few months, as his muscle mass was palpable, though he remained slender. Naruto wastan happy to see it.

He guided him to the inn where he was going to stop. Luckily, his bag was still there after he abandoned it; his money was in there too. He asked for a room for two and forced Sasuke to stay and sleep at the inn with him. After the last time they saw each other, Sasuke ran away from him after the warm waters, leaving him alone in his bed for several more months. He didn't give him a chance to refuse, practically dragging him to the room, taking his bag, and putting it away before he could unpack it himself.

“Does this count as kidnapping?” he said, watching the blond man move around the room making sure there was no way out other than the door.

“No, because I’m your best friend.”

"I don't think a kidnapping doesn't count if it's done by a friend," he said, despite what he was saying, there was a mocking smile on his face.

“Best,” he emphasized, “Best friend.”

Sasuke sighed, collapsing onto the quilt on the floor. It was already night, so he was probably exhausted.

“What are you doing here?” he asked Naruto, who had thrown himself into the adjacent shell. “I thought Kakashi wouldn’t let you out so you could train to be Hokage.”

“As iff he couldn't let me go, you idiot,” he grumbled, “but this time I had to resolve some problems outside of Konoha. There were riots near the border with the Land of Rivers, and they needed to send someone to calm things down and prevent the conflict from escalating.”

“And obviously they had to send you,” he added, amused, “the man capable of making even the worst person you know reconsider.”

Naruto chuckled softly. “Hey, I managed to calm things down, so that’s why I’m here now, resting from my hard work as a redeemer.”

He glanced at Sasuke, who now had his back to him, pulling the shirt over his head and putting on a looser one, almost like pajamas. His eyes lingered on his shoulder blades, his back a little broader than before, the muscles defined with each movement as he undressed. He tried to look away, but then he noticed dimples appearing on his lower back, deeper than the ones he'd seen at the pool. He felt that if he placed his finger there, he could touch his pelvis.

“What are you staring at?” Sasuke asked, without turning around.

“I wasn’t looking at you,” he lied to save face, “I was thinking of telling you that… Shikamaru and Temari are getting married!”

“¿Shikamari y Temaru?”

“Shikamaru and Temari!!" he shouted, throwing a cushion at him. "Temari, Gaara's older sister, One-Tailed Shinjuki. And Shikamaru, team 10."

“No idea,” he said flatly.

“Oh, please,” he said, covering his face and throwing himself backward onto the bed.

“Naruto, I go to the village a few times and I only see you, maybe Kakashi and Sakura,” he threw the cushion back at him, “Do you really think I would remember the kids from another team more than mine?”

“You could at least try to remember, so you can imagine what they're like as a couple,” he murmured.

He heard the dark-haired man snort and the bed creak open, and couldn't help but chuckle. Sasuke obviously didn't care about people he didn't remember; he'd forget them as soon as dawn broke anyway. He watched him settle back on his back, his head resting on the pillow, his black hair spilling out onto the pillowcase. He smiled softly at the sight; he really missed Sasuke.

“Don’t you think it’s strange?” he said, settling down to sleep as well. “People our age are getting married and will probably have children in a few years.”

"It's just the cycle of life, idiot."

“Yes, but, for example, we don’t have partners and we might be far from getting married anytime soon.” Saying it felt strange, but he decided to ignore it. “But everyone else is already settled down… Haven’t you thought about settling down? Starting a family, building a home…”

“I don’t believe that’s my destiny, honestly,” Sasuke replied, his voice no longer mocking. “I haven’t been able to bring justice to my family yet, and I don’t think I can build one without achieving that first.”

He stopped to look at him for a long time. Despite the absence of sadness on his face, Naruto knew. He knew he was in pain, and just seeing his eyes gleam in the dim light of the room, he could see that it was something that still weighed heavily on him. An impulse, just like when Iruka comforted him, took hold of Sasuke's hand. To his surprise, he didn't withdraw his hand, but he did look at him in surprise, perhaps not expecting the blond to do that.

“We will make sure your family rests in peace, Sasuke,” his thumb stroked the back of his hand, up and down. “I will do everything in my power to make it happen, believe me.”

Although Sasuke didn't respond, he lightly squeezed his hand. A mutual understanding. Sasuke trusted him; he knew that, within all parameters, even if he disagreed, Naruto's priority would always be Sasuke's happiness and peace. He had proven it time and again: even if the world turned against him, even if everyone told him how stupid he was, he would always be there for Sasuke, even if it meant sacrificing himself.

Their hands were still intertwined.

“And you, Naruto?” he asked, shifting the focus away from himself. “What does the future Hokage of Konoha want for his life?”

Naruto sighed loudly, “Everyone says I should get a girlfriend,” he said dejectedly. “I’m excited about the idea of ​​having a family, after all, I didn’t have my parents with me.”

"Well, with your reputation as a hero, there are surely many who are willing to have the Uzumaki heir," he had a small smile on his lips, clearly mocking Naruto and his lack of romantic encounters.

“Sakura once told me…” he began, his fingers playing with Sasuke’s, slender and elegant, and Sasuke’s hand was relaxed, allowing him to caress them gently. “that Hinata Hyuuga was interested in me.”

“Oh… and you believed her,” he continued mockingly, Naruto knowing that he had no idea who Hinata was.

"Well, she confessed her feelings to me not too long ago."

Then those docile fingers turned to stone. Naruto thought Sasuke was about to double-tap him, stiff as a board, preparing to unleash his witty venom. But nothing happened; Sasuke fixed his piercing gaze on him, as if unsure if Naruto was serious.

“But then I had this mission and I told him that when I returned I would give her an answer.”

"And do you like her?"

He was taken aback by the question; he never expected Sasuke Uchiha to ask him, as if they were just ordinary teenagers at a sleepover, if he liked a girl. His tone of voice was monotonous yet tense, completely uncomfortable discussing such a frivolous topic as relationships.

“She’s cute, she blushes when I say anything and sometimes she gives me food she’s prepared,” he said thoughtfully, “Iruka says she’s perfect for me, since she takes care of my diet.”

Sasuke slowly moved his hand away and settled back on the quilt, now looking directly at him with his whole body.

“That doesn’t answer the question.”

“I don’t know, maybe…”

Although he sounded hesitant, he truly didn't know. Hinata was a beauty. Always with her soft voice, a small smile, and rosy cheeks. He remembered how she sacrificed herself while fighting Pain to try and save him. She cared for him and always seemed interested in everything he had to say. Even so, something held him back from feeling anything romantic for her. She would be a great friend, just like Sakura, but without so many friendly insults and pointless arguments. He was sure that as a girlfriend she would be stunning; a line of men would love to have her as their partner and introduce her to their parents. But…

Sasuke flicked the light switch on his side of the bed and turned off the lights. He was a little surprised since they hadn't agreed to go to sleep yet. He had a lot he wanted to ask his friend, nothing important, he just wanted to hear him talk.

"Well, that poor girl is going to be with someone who doesn't know how to kiss."

He couldn't see his face in the darkness and couldn't tell if Sasuke was mocking or serious when he said it. Even so, it was a direct blow to Naruto's ego. If he had done so badly, why hadn't he said anything at the time?

This conceited man.

“Hey, I’m not a bad kisser at all,” he said, though he wasn’t even sure of his statement.

“Then your lack of practice,” he countered.

As his eyes adjusted to the dim light, Naruto began to glimpse Sasuke's face. He was staring at him, his eyes gleaming in the dim light filtering through the window, his face resting on the pillow, his hand tucked beneath it. From the shadow behind him, he could make out the curve of his body in the position he was lying in. He swallowed the last bit of saliva in his mouth.

As the silence lingered, a crazy idea crossed his mind.

What if… they kissed again?

It's all a practice scenario, after all. Who else is Naruto going to practice with? If he offers it to his best friend, he might end up dead; if he asks Shikamaru, Temari might kill him; and if he asks anyone else, he'll obviously be rejected! Besides, he's returning to the village in a few days; there's no one else around.

He wasn't afraid to say it; Sasuke clearly had experience. The way his tongue tasted his, sealed his lips like a spell, the way he held his face. He'd surely done it many times with other people, perhaps without feelings involved, or yes. Obviously, that made him uncomfortable, since he had probably kissed more times than him!

"Sasuke..."

“Naruto.”

"...Can we...practice?"

His words filled the room, a silent tomb engulfing them for a second that felt like decades. He was about to take it back when he felt Sasuke sit up on his futon and pull it closer. His heart was beating so fast he knew Sasuke must hear him, damn it.

He fell back onto the futon and pulled himself up with one hand until he was level with Naruto's face, just a few centimeters away.

"Practice."

He hesitated for a moment, but then his right hand moved on its own and cupped Sasuke's face, just as they had done to him a few months before. Sasuke's cheeks felt icy cold to the touch, perhaps because his hands were too warm. He leaned in slightly until his nose brushed against Sasuke's, feeling the breath from his friend's parted lips against his own. He licked his lips, afraid they were too dry, and brought them together, too gently, almost like a ghostly touch.

Sasuke made a small sound that distracted Naruto, so he leaned forward and pressed his lips harder against Sasuke's. They were still just as soft, as tender as fresh meat; not too thick, not too thin, just perfect. He cradled his face more tightly, but didn't dare open his mouth. Then they separated.

“You have to…” Sasuke said angrily, his lips brushing against each other, “open your lips slowly and caress them with your tongue.”

Like a good student who wants to learn, he whispered a small "How?"

"Like this."

Now it was Sasuke who approached and placed his lips on his, opening them without breaking the chaste kiss, and caressed Naruto's lower lip with his tongue, inviting him to open his mouth. As soon as he felt Naruto begin to obey the silent command, he withdrew. He watched expectantly, waiting for him to try next. And despite feeling his head fill with helium, he pressed himself against his friend and let his tongue lick Sasuke's lower lip, which was already opening its mouth. Feeling the touch of his tongue against Sasuke's, he felt a wave of adrenaline surge. And still without breaking the kiss, Sasuke murmured: “Go on.”

It was all he needed to deepen the kiss even further. He let his tongue explore his best friend's mouth just as Sasuke had in the hot springs. He licked and tasted and sealed his lips, the wet sounds escaping their mouths intensified by the night's silence. The more he did it, the more addictive it felt; Sasuke's soft moans were driving him wild. So this is kissing. 

In a surge of courage, he pushed Sasuke down and loomed over him, his hand at the back of his neck, continuing to kiss him hungrily. The raven-haired boy must have been surprised, because his tongue went limp and unresponsive for a few seconds before his right hand gripped Naruto's pajama top as he let Naruto kiss him deeper and deeper. He was almost on top of the dark-haired boy, his face pressed against Sasuke's, their breaths becoming erratic.

“Ah."

He thought that sound was coming from him.

But it was Sasuke, completely lost in the feeling of his sealed lips. His hand tightened its grip on his shirt until it reached his back.

If this weren't Sasuke, I'd tell him it's the hotest thing he's ever experienced.

He wanted to coax more sounds from his mouth, simply because they sounded too good and tickled his abdomen. He caught Sasuke's lower lip between his teeth and bit down, softly but firmly. The worst (best) mistake of his life was opening his eyes in that half-second and seeing Sasuke, his eyes tightly closed and his eyebrows arched upwards, looking like he hadn't expected this but at the same time enjoyed it. That was very good for his ego. Too good for him.

He didn't realize how long he held his breath until he let out a gasp that dissipated into the space between them.

They stared at each other in bewilderment for a few seconds, incredulous that they'd gone this far. Sasuke looked especially shaken, his hand still caught in Naruto's cloth, pressing against his skin. It wasn't long before he lowered it and smoothed his hair, even with Naruto still partially on top of him. Naruto got the message and gently pulled away, trying not to crush Sasuke as he adjusted himself.

They both lay staring at the ceiling, their breaths still heavy and their hearts beating fast.

“Sas-”

“I think you already know the basics. The Hyuuga girl will be happy,” he interrupted, turning his back on Naruto. “Good night, Naruto.”

“Yes, good night,” he replied, his question catching in his throat. He turned his face once more to see Sasuke's silhouette.

It was good practice, it left Sasuke perplexed, though he knew he learned too quickly. He remembered the dark-haired boy's face again, eyes closed, enjoying Naruto tugging at his lip. He, too, enjoyed Sasuke's tongue dancing with his own. Sasuke had a knack for entwining their tongues, sucking and licking simultaneously.

He wonder who he had learned it from.

He slept with his jaw clenched, that being his last thought of the night.

The next morning, Sasuke's futon was spotless, as if no one had ever slept on it. His bag was gone from the room, leaving only Naruto's hoodie and his mission bag. A bitter feeling washed over him.

It was always like that when Sasuke left without saying goodbye.

He went down to the inn's small dining room and approached the reception desk to order food, but to his surprise, the young woman at the counter informed him that his breakfast had already been paid for and was ready to be served. He sat down at the table, and a sweet tea with dorayaki arrived as soon as he settled in.

A small smile appeared on his face; he knew this was Sasuke's way of apologizing for leaving without saying goodbye, so Naruto forgave him.

When he arrived at the village, he met Hinata. She seemed both nervous and expectant, her hands clutching the hem of her long sweater.

He decided to accept her confession and go out with her.

Sent Sasuke a letter telling him about it, but he didn't reply.

Hinata was too understanding towards him.

They held hands, spent time together, and everyone knew about their relationship. Even so, Naruto only kissed her four times in the three months they were together.

The first time was after their first official date; they had gone for a walk outside Konoha near a stream. Hinata planned a picnic with all of Naruto's favorite things, and Naruto brought her a bouquet of flowers on Sakura's recommendation. At the end of the date, Hinata was standing on her tiptoes with her lips pressed together, and he had no choice but to press his lips to hers. The second time was at her apartment while they were playing cards. Hinata lost most of the games, and Naruto leaned in to give her a quick kiss on the lips to stop the pout that was forming. The third time was during a short walk, initiated by Hinata. The last time had been a month ago, and it was the first time they used tongue. They were at his apartment, the first time Hinata had stayed over. They snuggled up on the bed, and his hand rested on one of her breasts. Hinata let out a small gasp of surprise, turned to face Naruto, and then stole a kiss. Kissing her felt good; she had full lips and a shy tongue. She wore strawberry-flavored lip gloss, and when their tongues met, she let out a small moan that excited him a little. And although it seemed Hinata wanted to take the kiss further, she gently stopped, and through the darkness of the night, he couldn't see her expression. So he settled back down to sleep.

That, after three months in which they spent most of their time together, really made him feel like a jerk. Sakura made that very clear when they met at a bar.

She barely heard so much four kisses, almost broke a wall with one blow.

“Four kisses!” she shouted so loudly that people turned to look at them.

"Can you please not shout?"

"Naruto Uzumaki, how is it possible that you've been with a girl for three months and you've only kissed her four times?"

He pursed his lips, "Should relationships be based on how many kisses you give to your partner?"

“No, but the fact that you have them counted is worrying,” she rubbed her forehead, stressed. “Tell me the truth, do you like Hinata?”

"Of course."

She was very good to him. She accompanied him everywhere, always remembered every little thing he said, and only had kind words for him.

But something was missing.

"Then you should prove it, because if you're really interested, let me tell you, you look like an idiot dating a goddess."

The pressure overwhelmed him; on one hand he had Sakura who wanted her friend to be a good boyfriend for her friend, Iruka who just wanted Naruto to start a family on his own with the woman, and his damn inability to show more romance to the girl he'd been dating for three months.

And Sasuke hasn't sent a single letter in all that time.

He decided he needed a break, perhaps to visit Gaara and clear his mind in the arid landscape of the Hidden Sand Village. He spoke with Kakashi alone, this time not asking for a mission but requesting permission to disappear for a few days, without giving any further explanation.

Kakashi considered refusing, as the village depended on Naruto. But then he noticed his student's gaunt and weary face, softening his heart and allowing him to go, but ordering him to leave at least two clones patrolling the village. Only then did he realize that he had been talking to a clone the entire time, who smirked at him when given permission and vanished in a puff of smoke. His former student had likely already embarked on his escape from the city.

Traveling long distances didn't bother him at all. He headed straight to the Land of Wind without wasting much time, taking the familiar route he always took to visit his friend, who, even if he appeared unexpectedly, was always happy to see him and provide him with every comfort he could.

Only when he was about to cross the border did he feel the one thing that would change all his plans in less than a second.

Not far away, Sasuke's chakra enveloped him, and he quickly dropped to the ground to follow. It had been three months since Sasuke had refused to answer his letters, even though he knew Kakashi was still receiving reports from Sasuke from afar.

He felt both offended and sad.

He headed towards a house in the middle of the woods, which in turn had a large field behind it. Some farm animals were grazing nearby, guarded by sheepdogs that, as soon as they sensed him, began barking to alert the owners. Naruto started walking slowly and stopped at what appeared to be the entrance to the small field, waiting for someone to come out and greet him.

A man, older than him, with a goatee and hair tied in a braid, appeared in the doorway. He had a little girl holding his right hand, with two buns on either side of her head and a straw hat on her back. The girl, as soon as she saw him, ran towards him with a branch in her hands.

“Intruder! What are you doing in our field!” she exclaimed, threatening him with the branch.

“Yumiko, don’t be rude.”

His brain clicked, and his face lit up. He crouched down to the girl's level and said, "So you're the famous Yumiko!"

The little girl looked at him for a second and then looked at her father: “Daddy, why does the man with a whiskers know me?”

The front door opened again, and a very pregnant woman appeared, one hand supporting her upper abdomen and the other her lower. She walked with difficulty. Her long, brown hair reached her waist and was styled with small lotus-shaped hairpins. As she was about to descend the porch steps, a slender figure, wearing only a white sleeveless shirt and wide-legged trousers, approached to help her down.

He clearly knew the girl was Yumiko if Sasuke was there.

The dark-haired man didn't seem surprised to see him; even with his impassive face, he could see the gleam in his eyes the moment he saw him. His heart skipped a beat at the sight, but he completely ignored it.

“Oh!” exclaimed the woman, “then you must be Naruto.”

“Hehe, that’s right!”

The woman's husband came closer to support her as she walked; it was noticeable in her steps that her pregnancy was at term, so heavy that she could barely stand on her feet.

“I’m Akemi, this is my husband Sora and my daughter Yumiko,” she smiled serenely, “it’s an honor to have the hero of the world in our home.”

“Please don’t put me on too high a pedestal, I’m just a young man.”

As he said that, he tried to catch Sasuke's eye, who was looking at him with the same indifference, but now the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned. Naruto knew he was happy to see him; it was evident in his blinking. He must have sensed him approaching while he was with the family.

“Sasuke, it’s been so long,” he said as a greeting, suppressing the urge to rush and hug him.

“I guess so, I don’t usually keep track of time,” he replied, and Akemi nudged him with her elbow.

"Act like I haven't talked about you that much, Naruto!" Sora said next to his wife.

Sasuke's cheeks quickly turned pink, "that's not true."

“Yes, it is!” Yumiko shouted, despite not understanding the importance of her words.

Sasuke grabbed one of the girl's pigtails and gently tugged it, more of a friendly game than a punishment. The girl let out a squeal followed by a giggle as she ran away from him. Naruto watched the scene, mesmerized.

“Well, I hope it was only good things*,” he placed his arms above his head.

“Please come into the house, lunch is on us,” said Akemi, already turning to go inside.

“Oh, no need, I was just passing by.”

“I insist,” the woman’s genuine smile made him feel that rejecting the offer would be worse than spitting out her food.

He ended up being taken to the house. Sasuke slowed his pace until he was beside him, and the moment Naruto felt his body heat close to him, he felt infinite happiness.

The house wasn't too big or too small; it had a cozy dining room and an open kitchen. Toys were scattered on the floor, and the walls were covered in drawings. Sora helped his wife sit down and then began serving the food. Sasuke nodded for him to sit. Standing next to her, he couldn't help but notice how young she looked, perhaps a few years older than they were. It was hard to imagine her pregnant with Yumiko, and now he saw her pregnant with another baby, still retaining a youthful charm.

“Naruto, you can ask me anything, no problem,” she laughed when she noticed him looking at her belly.

“I’m so sorry!” he said, embarrassed, throwing his arms up in the air. “Have you been pregnant for… a long time?”

“I’m in my last month,” she said, affectionately caressing her belly. “it’s a mischievous baby; they moved more than Yumiko.”

The girl raised her head when she heard her name and sat down in front of Naruto to listen to the conversation.

“Are you excited to be a big sister?” he asked the little girl.

“Yes, I hope it’s a girl, but if it’s a boy that’s fine too,” she said excitedly.

The dishes were served quickly after that. The food was so good that Naruto thanked himself for agreeing to stay. The family was very friendly; Sora was a lumberjack, so living in the middle of the forest made perfect sense, and Akemi made sweets, selling them in a village a few kilometers away, where she also saw her doctor. They had known each other since they were young, and Akemi admitted that she couldn't stand Sora at first—he was too quiet and always looked at everyone with boredom—but as soon as he opened up to her, they were inseparable.

He was fascinated by the story; it truly was a fairytale love story. That explains why they married so young and had their first daughter so young as well.

But the story of how they met Sasuke almost stopped his heart. Yumiko had quietly wandered away from her father, approaching the nearby river. Carelessly, she tripped over a tree root and fell into the icy water. She was out of Sora's sight, so he only realized what had happened when he heard his daughter's scream as she was swept away by the current. He jumped in to rescue her, but the current that caught her was too strong. Panic gripped him as he watched his daughter sinking, but then he heard a rapid splash and a wall of water rising up in front of him.

He said it happened so fast she barely realized what had happened. Then he saw her daughter out of the water, lying on the grass, and a man, barely wet, helping her cough up water.

“Sasuke really was in the right place at the right time,” Sora said, his eyes shining with excitement, “If he hadn’t been there, I don’t even want to think about what would have happened.”

“Our gratitude to Sasuke is immeasurable, so we consider him one of the family,” Akemi added, gazing fondly at Sasuke. “Yumiko adores him deeply, even though she doesn’t remember what happened that day; it’s as if she knows he saved her from a very young age.”

Her friend was eating peacefully and casually left food on Yumiko's plate. She smiled happily at him, eating as soon as it touched the plate.

“I am grateful for their hospitality.”

“Sasuke has always been so great, if I could count the times he has saved me it would be impossible to list them,” he dared to say, unable to let go of Sasuke’s trail.

He glanced at him quickly, his ears reddening, before returning to his food. "Eat it or it'll get cold, you idiot."

“We’d love to know more about what Sasuke was like when they first met; he’s quite secretive.”

“I could spend all day talking about him when he was younger! He was a real pain in the ass, always being the coolest and smartest, trying to beat me at everything,” he began to ramble.

Yumiko started laughing and Sasuke gave her a fake angry look that made her laugh even more.

“Naruto, why don’t you stay a few days?” Sora said this time. “If you have nowhere else to go, we’d be happy to let you stay!”

“Actually, I’m taking a short vacation,” he scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed, “I was planning to visit my friend Gaara, but I sensed Sasuke here so I had to come!”

“It’s a sign!” Akemi said, “you should rest here, it would be an honor if you stayed.”

He turned around to study Sasuke's face, who was pretending to be very interested in the tablecloth pattern, but he could see a small, suppressed smile on his lips. Perhaps he was hoping he'd say no, so he wouldn't have to endure Naruto's embarrassment as a child, and Naruto was delighted to make him feel that way. So he happily agreed.

They let him settle into the same room where Sasuke was staying, which had its own bathroom. He arranged his futon right next to his friend's, as they always did, and packed his things to stay for at least a week.

He was thrilled; he'd missed him terribly. Not even his village duties had kept him from thinking about him. It was even worse because the idiot hadn't answered any of his letters, probably because he was busy. But now he was off in a beautiful forest with a lovely family; he had no excuse.

For three days, Yumiko clung to him despite him being a stranger, partly intrigued by his whiskers, calling him "cat-man" whenever she needed his attention. She showed him the pets they kept in their yard, including a few ducks and a fully domesticated pig. She showed him her collection of rocks she found along the way and also her collection of hair ribbons.

“I really like it when Mom does my hair in little buns, but Uncle Sasuke does the best hairstyles,” she said as she placed small clips in her short hair.

“Sasuke combs?”

“And he’s the best!” she shouted.

The mental image was etched in his mind like a tattoo, though she wouldn't admit it to anyone. Where did he learn to do hairstyles?

He hadn't spoken much with Sasuke during the day since he'd accompanied Sora to cut down trees. He spent the day with Yumiko and Akemi; they even taught him how to make sweet bread, and although hers looked like anything but bread, the taste of Akemi's recipe made you forget the shape.

When Sasuke arrived, his hair was tied back in a ponytail, and his loose white t-shirt was stained with dirt and damp with sweat. The sight of Sasuke's arms flexed over the axe at his shoulders and the sweat trickling down his neck was incredibly exciting. Naruto wasn't blind; he knew when a man looked appealing. He had plenty of female friends who had taught him that. He felt a little ridiculous with Yumiko's hair clips, but Sasuke's laughter at the sight made him ignore it.

“You must be exhausted,” he said as soon as he started to lie down on the futon.

"It's good physical activity; I haven't been able to train these days."

He had just taken a bath and was now wearing loose pajamas that Sora had probably lent him, since they were bigger than him.

“We should spar tomorrow, I haven’t been able to train either and I’d like a close-quarters fight.”

Sasuke hummed in agreement, lying down on his futon and gently stretching his muscles before relaxing completely. With his eyes closed, he told Naruto it was a good idea, and Naruto knew then that he should turn off the lights to sleep. He lingered, though, gazing at Sasuke's relaxed face, breathing softly before succumbing to sleep himself.

The next day, Sora received a letter from a regular customer, asking if he could leave firewood at his cabin, which was a few kilometers farther from the nearest village. Naruto offered to help him deliver it, as it would get there faster.

“I appreciated it, but it helps me visit other families who are regular customers,” he told him during lunch, “The nights are getting colder and colder, so it’s good business in the towns along the way.”

Sora would leave tomorrow morning, though he expressed relief at having Sasuke and Naruto at the house, as they could protect Yumiko and Akemi if anything happened. He estimated he'd be gone for about two days, but would try to return sooner. His daughter was upset at the news that he couldn't take her on the trip with him; she liked going to the village with him, but he only took her on day trips.

“Akemi went to lie down for a moment,” Sasuke announced, coming out of his room, “the baby is more active.”

"He probably feels like his father is going to leave."

They helped their father load the firewood onto his bicycle-powered cart. Naruto was impressed by the man's strength, able to carry so much weight simply by pedaling and without using chakra. However, he was even more impressed by Sasuke's new outfit, so different from his usual layered clothing and dark hood. While working with the family, he wore loose-fitting shirts and equally loose-fitting trousers, and he tied his hair back, sometimes sporting braids on either side of his head. It made Naruto wish he could grow his hair out so Sasuke could style it for him.

Strange thought, go away go away.

Sasuke led him to a vacant lot in the middle of the forest so they could train. He had to admit he was excited about the prospect of a duel with Sasuke, just like when they were young, simply to hone their strength. Now, older, with more experience in physical combat and having already experienced hitting each other with all their might, they knew their limits.

“I hope you don’t back down,” Sasuke said, getting ready at one end.

“Not in your dreams,” he replied, cracking his knuckles.

They watched each other from ten meters away. There was no hatred, only that spark of eternal rivalry.

Without warning, Sasuke closed the distance. His movement was a blur of speed. He launched an upward roundhouse kick that Naruto blocked by crossing his forearms, feeling the impact vibrate in his bones. Sasuke didn't stop; he used the rebound to spin in the air and throw three kunai on an impossible, curved trajectory.

“Too slow!” Naruto shouted with a grin.

Naruto performed a quick hand seal and two clones appeared out of nowhere, intercepting the kunai with their own knives and launching themselves headlong at the Uchiha.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan. His red pupils swiveled, anticipating every trajectory. With almost insulting elegance, he dodged the clone's first punch, grabbed its wrist, and used it as a shield against the second. With a fluid motion, he kicked the original clone in the solar plexus, dissolving it in a puff of white smoke.

But the real Naruto was already up there.

Naruto descended with a Rasengan spinning violently in his right palm, illuminating the area with an electric blue glow. Sasuke didn't even blink. His left hand ignited with the chirping of a thousand birds. The Chidori danced between his fingers. Instead of colliding head-on, Sasuke waited until the last millisecond, twisted his body, and deflected Naruto's wrist, causing the Rasengan to slam into the ground, sending a column of earth and rocks flying.

They both jumped back, landing softly. They were slightly panting, but their faces reflected pure satisfaction.

“You’ve improved your reaction time,” Sasuke admitted.

“And you’re still a show-off,” Naruto replied, wiping the dust from his cheek.

The moment he finished speaking, his figure vanished into a cloud, and all he knew was that Naruto was right behind him, a second away from knocking him to the ground. Then, as fast as light, he reached for his left arm and shoved his body over his back, throwing him to the ground and letting himself fall on top of him, cornering him. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, and his breathing was ragged, but the excited grin on his face made Naruto burst out laughing.

"You didn't see that coming!" he mocked, still trapped between Sasuke's torso and the grass.

“Even so, I beat you.”

He deactivated his Sharingan, revealing his dark iris. His eyes slanted slightly, a smug smile playing on his lips. His legs were pressed side by side, his kunai pouch dangling from his side, a stitch away from falling off, but still revealing the curve of his waist. Naruto stared at that narrow waist before his gaze drifted to that face, lingering longer than he intended. Sasuke's breath brushed against his cheeks, his arm beside his head, his body pressed high above his, hot and throbbing.

He could reached out to grab his neck and-

“Uncle Sasuke and cat man!” Yumiko’s voice echoed through the forest, scaring away the birds that had been left behind by the noise.

They both jumped in opposite directions, looking towards the source of the noise. The girl appeared from the bushes with a wide grin.

“Mom’s letting everyone know lunch is ready,” she said, approaching Sasuke and extending her hand for him to take. “Why is the floor raised?”

“A slight earthquake, I don’t think you felt it,” Naruto replied, approaching them both.

“Mmm”

Sasuke took her small hand and let the girl lead the way, Naruto following a step behind before Yumiko raised her free hand for Naruto to take. Even he was surprised at being obedient to a five-year-old; he gave her his hand and they walked together.

“Watch out, tree trunk,” Naruto warned, raising his arm with Sasuke at the same time and thus lifting Yumiko above the branch.

“Yay!” she shouted, “again.”

And so they left, swinging Yumiko while her childlike laughter shook the forest.

He glanced at Sasuke, who had been playing along from the start and was smiling slightly at the little girl. A thought that Sasuke would make a wonderful father crossed his mind, and a sweet pang of affection touched his heart. His friend deserved a daughter he could braid and play with, even if he saw it as something distant; Naruto could vividly imagine it.

Akemi mentioned that she heard the noise they made in the forest and that some animals were startled. They apologized profusely, even though she didn't seem angry at all; in fact, she and Sora seemed intrigued and amused by the image of the two ninjas fighting. Naruto admitted his defeat to Sasuke but promised that tomorrow—since they were scheduled to fight again tomorrow—he would beat Sasuke. Sasuke simply sipped his soup slowly, ignoring Naruto's tantrum.

When they went to bed, they stayed up talking about everything and nothing. Sasuke told him about what he'd been doing for the past three months, emphasizing how busy he'd been destroying Akatsuki hideouts and helping small villages. He listened attentively, fascinated to hear Sasuke's voice again, because even though he wouldn't say it out loud, he'd always wished he could do the same.thiswith him. Lying face down on the bed and talking about their days, the things they like and hate even though they both already know them.

He fell asleep first, hugging his blanket.

Naruto didn't get a chance to say goodbye to Sora. He'd left very early, just as the sun was rising, and Naruto was fast asleep—not even the end of the world could wake him. When he entered the kitchen, Yumiko was angry, her eyes red from crying, probably because she wanted to go with her father. Akemi, on the other hand, stayed in bed; her feet were too swollen to get up, so Sasuke took charge of the food. He decided to keep Yumiko company, entertaining her with stories from his youth and the countless pranks he played to get attention. As soon as Yumiko calmed down from her initial anger, she joined them.

“Iruka had to follow me; he was the only one who could see through my actions. He reprimanded me, but at the same time, he understood me.”

“You must have been the bane of the whole village,” Akemi said, her hands caressing her belly.

“I was, but they were no better. They weren’t good to me, even though I was a child, they still avoided me.”

“And yet you fought for them.”

"Catman, and why do you want to be Hokage?"

“It’s been my dream since I was young!” he replied excitedly, “although, at first, it was motivated by my desire to be seen. Growing up isolated, friendless, and discriminated against, I developed a need to be important, and nothing was more important at that time than becoming Hokage.” As he said those words, he felt his tongue grow heavy with emotion, “But then, I made friends, and very good ones at that. I met people who saw me for who I was, and that desire to be seen mutated into a genuine desire to protect them.”

“When you become Hokage, you’ll have to come see us anyway,” Akemi finished, crossing her arms. “Or I’ll really get angry.”

“Of course I’ll come, I’ve grown very fond of y’all.”

The sliding door opened, revealing Sasuke with a bowl of rice and soup on a tray. Akemi clapped happily, and Naruto helped her to her feet.

“Thanks, Sasuke- oh!”

They both jumped up at the sound of her scream. She gently rubbed her belly as she closed her eyes in a painful expression.

“Akemi, is something wrong?”

"I think the baby appreciates it too, he just kicked me right in the ribs."

Naruto made a sound of pain just imagining it.

“Bad baby,” Yumiko scolded.

He also served a plate to Yumiko, who refused to leave her mother's side. So they then joined them in Akemi's body to eat, eagerly awaiting the baby's reappearance.

“I’ll sleep for a moment,” he said, snuggling Yumiko, who lay beside him. “I’ll ask you if you can avoid making the ground shake again.”

“Yes, yes,” Naruto clasped his hands together apologetically. “We won’t make a scene, we’re sorry.”

After leaving the room, they decided to complete other household chores. They fed the animals, watered the houseplants, and put away the leftover wood Sora had left over from the day before.

There was tension between them despite their promise to Akemi that they wouldn't make too much noise, much less cause an earthquake with their fights. When they were putting away the logs, Naruto would throw one with more force than usual, causing Sasuke to catch it in mid-air and break it with his fist. Or when they were carrying the food jars, Sasuke would deliberately stick his foot in to try and knock them over.

After a moment of silence, they began walking briskly toward the barren area of ​​the forest, acting as if they had arrived there by chance. Naruto took off his jacket and the white t-shirt he was wearing, while Sasuke simply removed his poncho. They stopped, looking into each other's eyes with excited smiles on their faces.

“No jutsus”, said Sasuke.

“It seems so to me,” said Naruto.

They moved in circles, knees bent and hands open, searching for an opening until Sasuke broke the inertia. He launched himself with a straight punch to the face, a sharp, linear movement. Naruto tilted his head just a few centimeters, feeling the air from the fist graze his ear, and countered with a hook to the liver. Sasuke reacted immediately: he lowered his elbow to block the impact and, taking advantage of the proximity, attempted a leg sweep.

Naruto jumped, hanging in mid-air for a second. Sasuke wasted no time; he placed his hands on the ground and launched an upward scissor kick. Naruto crossed his arms in front of his chest, taking the blow that sent him flying back several meters, dragging his feet through the dust.

“Bastard,” muttered Naruto, regaining his balance.

This time he charged. His style was more erratic, based on intuition. He unleashed a flurry of rapid punches. Sasuke deflected them all with the palm of his hand, with surgical precision, as if he were swatting flies. Naruto feinted a right hand, but instead spun around to land a side kick.

Sasuke trapped Naruto's leg under his arm.

“I’ve got you,” the dark-haired man said with a satisfied smirk.

But Naruto used his free leg to propel himself off Sasuke's shoulder, performing a backflip and breaking free. In midair, Naruto threw a downward punch that Sasuke blocked with both forearms in an "X" shape. The impact caused the ground beneath Sasuke's feet to crack slightly. Both reacted cautiously, moving to continue their fight on firmer ground. Sasuke swung his forearm behind Naruto's neck and, in a swift motion, tried to throw him to the ground. That's when Naruto, with his free arm, grabbed Sasuke's waist and swept his legs out with his free foot.

They both fell hard to the ground, Naruto now on top of Sasuke, his arm still wrapped around his waist. Sasuke's eyes flashed red but quickly settled to a deep black; he'd been completely taken by surprise.

“I won this one,” he decided to say, smiling smugly.

“Hmmp,” you snorted Sasuke.

He didn't know why, but the position they were in—his arm around his waist, lifting him slightly off the ground, their chests almost touching from their deep breaths, their legs intertwined—was too comfortable for him. Sasuke's warmth so close reminded him of that night at the inn where they'd slept. When he'd pulled him beneath him to deepen their practice kiss.

It was ironic, despite having practiced deep kissing, he only tested it once with his girlfriend.

"Sasuke, can we…?”

His friend's face took less than a second to turn red, partly because of the heat and partly because deep down he knew what the blond was going to propose.

He was about to finish the sentence, but Sasuke's lips were right there, parted, waiting to be devoured. He moved closer to capture them…

But Sasuke grabbed his mouth with his hand and pushed him back roughly.

“Hmumpt?”, he mumbled into his hand.

"What the hell are you trying to do?"

“Praftice kiffinf”, he stammered again.

"You have a girlfriend, you can't do that," he said, pushing him hard again, now moving his body away from him and throwing him back, bouncing on his buttocks.

Naruto raised his eyebrows. “So you read my letters.”

"Yeah."

“And you didn’t answer because…”, he insisted.

“Because I was busy.”

“And you didn’t have time to give any opinion about your friend while you were in a relationship that you motivate?”

“I didn’t motivate anything, I asked you if you liked it and you said maybe and then…”, he said quickly, moving his hand vaguely, “…And then you started dating the Hyuuga girl, I didn’t influence anything.”

"You said we should practice kissing so I wouldn't embarrass myself in front of Hinata!"

“You were the one who wanted to practice!”

“You were the one who mentioned it first.”

They looked at each other in silence.

“Okay, and why can’t I ask you to practice now?” he said, trying not to sound irritated, but he was.

“Are you stupid?” he exclaimed a little too loudly, “You can’t go around kissing people, and the reason is obvious: You have a girlfriend!”

“We’re just going to practice!”

"Practice with your girlfriend, you dumb-fuck."

If someone asked Naruto why this conversation irritated him so much, he wouldn't know how to explain it. He understood what Sasuke was saying, but he refused to accept it. They were supposed to just be practicing, Sasuke said he couldn't be a bad kisser boyfriend, and yet Sasuke is the best kisser in history, and he was willing to help him. Not now; Because he has a girlfriend. Then who's he going to practice kissing with!

It's just logic.

Only then did he notice that Sasuke's Sharingan was glowing with intense light, almost like a murderous rage. Naruto was about to tear his hair out.

“Why are you so angry?”

“You go around asking people for kisses while your girlfriend is back in the village wondering why you decided to take a vacation without her?” His voice was filled with rage. “Is this some kind of game to you?”

I didn't know if that question referred to his relationship with Hinata or to whatever was going on between them.

Before he could respond, swift feet interrupted their discussion.

“Uncle Sasuke, something’s wrong with Mom!” It was Yumiko, her eyes filled with tears.

They scooped the little girl up in their arms and ran as fast as they could to the house. Yumiko was crying loudly against Sasuke's chest, terrified. They both feared the worst for a moment until they reached the door and heard Akemi's screams and whimpers. Sasuke handed Yumiko to Naruto and ran to his friend's room, where he saw her standing frozen in the doorway.

“What’s wrong?” Naruto shouted, rocking Yumiko.

“Akemi!” said Sasuke as he entered the room.

Unable to resist, he took the girl's hand and they ran to the room.

Akemi was covered in sweat, writhing in bed in great pain. Her eyes were closed and a grimace was on her face.

There was no doubt about it, she had gone into labor.

“Akemi, you’re having contractions, the baby is going to be born,” Sasuke said, helping Akemi to get up, but she refused.

“N-no, Sora must be halfway to the village, I can’t have him now,” her voice trembled, tears and sweat running down her cheeks.

"I can't believe you have been with contractions this whole time, Akemi!", said Naruto, petrified.

“Naruto!", Sasuke shouted.

All it took was for him to call Naruto to summon a clone and order it to go find Sora as quickly as possible.

Yumiko clutched her pants, terrified of the scene.

“Yumiko, I need a big favor,” said Naruto, taking her little hands, “go to the stable and look for a blue-covered book, come back when you find it.”

“Yes!” she shouted, not understanding that he was actually just trying to distract her; the blue book didn’t exist.

As soon as she left, Naruto tried to convince Akemi that she had to give birth now or it would be dangerous for her. Both he and Sasuke seemed nervous, unsure of what to do to help the poor woman.

“Bring towels from the bathroom,” Sasuke ordered. “Akemi, you’ll have to stand up; it’ll be easier for you to squat.”

“I have to wait for Sora!”

“I have them!” he said, handing them to Sasuke. “You know what to do?”

Sasuke swallowed hard, a sign that he really didn't know what to do. He rushed to support Akemi while Sasuke went to wash his hands at the sink to improvise.

"It's okay, Akemi. Everything's going to be alright. I... I once helped a sheep give birth. It's similar, isn't it?"

Akemi, who until now had only given him tender looks, glared at him between two contractions.

"Naruto, if you compare me to a sheep again, I swear I-!", before she could finish the sentence she grabbed Naruto's hand and screamed in pain.

Sasuke returned to the room and stood in front of Akemi, helping her bend her knees. He placed a large number of towels beneath her and a towel in his hands. Then he signaled Naruto to change positions.

“One arm, remember?”

“Damn, that’s true.”

He knelt before the woman who was gripping Sasuke's right arm so tightly it seemed she was trying to dislocate his joints. He asked permission to look, which was met with a gurgle of pain.

“I can see the head now,” Naruto whispered, his eyes wide with shock.

Only then did Akemi's water break. Despite having studied anatomy and understanding the basics of the human body, he hadn't known that a pregnant woman's belly contained so much water.

“Holy shit,” Naruto said quickly, “It’s real! It’s happening!”

“I need you to push, as hard as you can,” the dark-haired man tried to sound as calm as possible, without knowing why he was saying it.

“Come on,” Naruto encouraged, “one, two, three, bid!”

Amid clumsy shouts of encouragement, made-up instructions, and the chaos of old towels, a breath of relief escaped the woman.

The miracle happened. With a final effort that seemed to shake the foundations of the house, a sharp, vibrant cry broke the tension of the storm.

Naruto caught the baby with trembling hands, wrapped in the towel he held as it fell. The silence that followed was absolute, broken only by the ragged breathing of the three of them and the loud cry of the baby.

“Good, very good…” murmured Naruto, wiping the little one face with a gentleness that no one knew he possessed.

Helping her lie down, Akemi collapsed onto the pillows, exhausted but with a faint smile. He told Sasuke to find something sharp and clean it with alcohol, which didn't take him long before he found a pair of scissors. Still holding the scissors and with his heart racing, he looked at his friend. Both of them had sweat on their foreheads and were breathing even more heavily than Akemi.

He slowly rose from the floor, making sure the baby was calm, and placed him on Akemi's chest. Akemi lovingly stroked his face and kissed their forehead, tears streaming down her face.

“Congratulations, she is a very healthy girl,” Sasuke said.

“My little girl, you really couldn’t wait to meet us,” she said tenderly, cradling the baby.

Naruto approached Sasuke to check if he was alright, but his hands were covered in a mixture of amniotic fluid and blood. His friend grabbed his arm and pulled him into the bathroom, helping him clean his hands. Even though Naruto certainly didn't need a third hand, he let Sasuke spread the water over his arms and help him scrub them.

“Akemi, here: drink some water, you must be exhausted.”

She just hummed, happily hugging the newborn.

Shortly after, Yumiko returned to the room with a blue book in her hands. Naruto nearly hit his head when he saw there was indeed a book on the shelf, but at least he had distracted the little girl long enough that she didn't see the party scene, though she did see the scene where her sister was born. She approached the bed where her mother was and began jumping for joy upon learning it was a girl.

They both set about cleaning up the mess while mother and daughter rested from the trauma of childbirth. Sasuke hadn't uttered another word since what had happened; his eyes were unfocused, and he seemed completely distracted. Naruto was the same, but he was talking a mile a minute. It was the first time he'd seen a baby born, and as traumatic as it was, it was strangely beautiful.

“Akemi!”, they heard a shout from outside the house running towards the entrance.

Sora seemed to have had the worst hour of his life, but he managed to arrive by bicycle, leaving all the logs abandoned.

The moment he entered the room and saw his wife embracing their newborn daughter, he began to weep. He apologized profusely to Akemi for not being there, kissing the heads of both his new and older daughters. The scene was so moving that it brought tears to Naruto's eyes. His friend stayed by his side and at one point leaned against Naruto, his head resting on his shoulder. It didn't seem intentional, but rather a sign of exhaustion from the emotional experience.

They left the family alone while they prepared something to eat.

In the silence, broken only by the sound of the bubbling pot and flat surfaces clattering, Naruto noticed that Sasuke was quieter than usual, only slowly nodding at everything he said. His facial expression was blank, but again, his eyes told a different story, gleaming in the light from the stovetop.

"Sasuke, is everything alright?"

He nodded, serving the soup into the bowls.

He wanted to keep trying, but Sasuke beat him to it by walking to the room with the bowls, leaving him no choice but to follow. Sora was holding the baby in his arms, gently rocking her. When he saw them enter, his eyes filled with tears again.

“When I arrived, I was so overwhelmed with emotion that I couldn’t thank you,” he said, stepping in front of them and placing his hand on the baby’s head to gently press it to his chest. He bowed deeply, “Thank you so much for helping Akemi have a safe delivery.”

“Don’t bend over so far, Sora!” Naruto exclaimed, placing the bowls on the table beside the bed.

“You’ve helped my family again, Sasuke.”

“Sasuke,” Akemi said from behind, “Do you want to hold her?”

He couldn't hide his surprised expression, and Naruto smiled tenderly at him.

“I… I would prefer not to, I’m afraid it might fall.”

“I know that’s not going to happen, take it,” Sora said, arranging it to hand it over.

He tried to position himself to hold her, but it was clear he was uncomfortable not having an arm to support her. When the baby was almost completely against him, he saw that she seemed to be held securely. Only then did he notice that Naruto had placed his hand along his side, helping to support the baby's lower back, letting her head rest on his left arm. For a long moment, he simply watched the baby stir in that position, her eyes tightly closed and her breath softly pant.

He stretched out her hand, making sure Naruto had a firm grip on it, and gently stroked her red cheek.

“What are you going to name her?” he said softly, mesmerized by the baby.

“Akemi and I decided on Keiko,” Sora replied, “She was fortunate enough to be born with your help; without you, we don’t know what would have happened.”

“Keiko,” he repeated, caressing her cheek again.

“The name suits her very well,” said Naruto, his gaze traveling over Sasuke’s long eyelashes as he looked tenderly at the baby.

The tension in Sasuke's shoulders vanished the moment he caressed her cheek. His hardened face softened, revealing an expression of utter affection. He needed to talk about this with someone, to share what it's like to see Sasuke's emotions so raw, to tell them how beautiful he looks when his brow is relaxed.

Sasuke shouldn't imagine starting a family when he has experienced firsthand, at the age of twenty-one, what it's like to live with one.

As they returned Keiko to her father's arms, even Naruto felt the absence of the baby's warmth. Sasuke looked rejuvenated, a small smile on his lips that would take some time to fade.

“Sora, just so you know,” Naruto said, giving a thumbs-up, “You didn’t lose the sale! My clone already took care of everything, he should be coming back soon.”

“I am deeply grateful, Naruto.”

The day's turmoil and overwhelming emotions had knocked them both down. They collapsed heavily onto their futons, still unable to fall asleep. Naruto saw his friend's relaxed profile lying on top of his blankets, his eyes half-open, staring at the ceiling, exhaling the heavy air around him. He was about to break the silence when Sasuke spoke first.

“I…” he began, Naruto avoiding swallowing to not interrupt him. “I was a little angry, afraid I wouldn’t be able to hold the baby, at least not during her first few moments.”

He said nothing, waiting for him to continue.

“I must thank you for lending me a hand, literally,” he said, turning to look at him, “Thank you very much.”

“Don’t thank me, idiot,” he said despite the blush on his cheeks. He was about to laugh for a moment before stopping and looking at Sasuke, “Sasuke, Sakura knows how to make a prosthetic arm. You can still go and ask them to make one.”

“No.”

"I mean, that way you'd have more peace of mind."

“This isn’t a whim or a matter of laziness, it’s a reminder,” he said sharply, “I made mistakes in the past, I hurt many people, I hurt you, and I kept doing it until the very last moment. You lost your arm too, but you didn't do anything wrong; you fought to save me. The sorrow I feel for not having my arm goes beyond the physical; it's…

The memory that this is the path I chose and that it has consequences,” he whispered. “But you’re here, and you fill all that void. So I’m glad it ends this way, because despite everything, I know you’ll be there.”

Unable to wait any longer, he lunged at Sasuke, knocking them both down onto the futon. He clung to his body as if he wanted to merge with him, absorb both his skin and his words, become completely one with him. It took Sasuke a few seconds to return the embrace, guiding his arm around his back and pulling him closer. He wondered if he could hear his heart pounding wildly inside him, wondered if Sasuke could feel his heavy, trembling breath at the base of his neck. He could feel it, he could hear his breath in his ear, smell his hair, and the scent of his skin.

“I will always be there to be your left hand,” he whispered to him.

There was no response other than a tighter grip on his back and Sasuke's face burying itself deeper into his neck.

“Idiot,” he whispered back.

He left the next day, letting the family enjoy their new home. He said goodbye to Sasuke with a tight hug, almost feeling as if the dark-haired man were holding him there. He would stay a while longer, helping out as much as he could with Keiko's arrival, and then he would continue with his pending missions across the continent.

As I watched his silhouette disappear into the distance, all I could think about was going back.

He broke up with Hinata as soon as he arrived. She was devastated, which broke his heart. The idea of ​​being friends didn't appeal to her; she asked for some distance, at least for a few months.

When he wrote to Sasuke with the news, the reply letter fell on his window.

It was going to be Sasuke's birthday.

July 23rd, one of the few birthdays he remembered without having to mark it in red on the calendar, practically tattooed on his mind.

Obviously, Sasuke didn't celebrate his birthday, or at least he hadn't for many years. When he first began his journey of redemption, he wouldn't allow Naruto to cross the country to visit him, explicitly threatening that if he even dared to show up, he would smash his skull. Naruto knew he wouldn't be able to do that, but he still took precautions. In the following years, it was impossible for him to pay a surprise visit, filled with missions and other activities; he could only send him a gift, hoping he would like it.

This time was different; not only did he not receive threats from Sasuke, but a direct invitation.

Usuratonkashi.

I know you're doing well, so I won't make things too cheesy. I'll be near the Amane River in a coastal town—I'm sure you know which one. I also know you'll be around on the evening of July 22nd, so perhaps our paths will cross.

See you. 

He had to reread it four times before realizing that it wasn't that Sasuke knew about a mission yet to be assigned to him, but rather an order for him to be there the day before his birthday. In short, he was inviting him to spend his birthday with him.

Just like a schoolgirl, he hugged the letter and rolled on the floor, ignoring Kurama's snorts at seeing him so happy over a cryptic letter from Sasuke.

Despite only two months having passed since they last saw each other during his impromptu vacation, Kakashi showed no resistance to Naruto's visit. He even welcomed the trip, explaining that he was "more anxious than usual, and it was stressing him out unnecessarily." Kakashi didn't know the reason for this, but Naruto understood it perfectly. After returning to the village, ending their brief relationship, and receiving more frequent letters from his friend, the memory of the barren spot where he and Sasuke had their friendly sparring session, which escalated into an argument before they were called away for a family emergency, haunted him even in his nightmares.

After breaking up with Hinata and telling Sakura about it, the first question that came up was: "Why did you break up with her?", and although the answer could have been something simple like "she loved me more than I loved her" or "we weren't compatible", an answer came to his mind that at first didn't affect him at all but then fell like a cement box on top of him.

He couldn't kiss Sasuke if he was dating someone.

He made it clear when he tried, he just wanted to practice because they had already done it and he learned a lot, but Sasuke's face of anger and disappointment when he told him that if he kissed other people while in a relationship was all he needed.

It wasn't his fault; Sasuke kissed well, too well. They usually tied in everything, but Naruto could admit without feeling hurt that Sasuke had a natural power to make one melt with his kiss. When he was brutally rejected for the very good reason that he had a girlfriend, it made something inside him break.

He told Sakura none of this, letting guilt and shame take over before admitting that he liked the way his friend kissed.

The anxiety he felt in the following weeks stemmed from the secret he kept hidden inside. Whenever letters arrived from Sasuke, he would run and hide in his apartment to read them in secret, always hoping for an invitation somewhere or even a clue as to his whereabouts, where he could see him, and where he could kiss him.

For practice!

He would ask Kakashi every day if a new letter from Sasuke had arrived, if he had inquired about him, or if he knew approximately where he was. Addicted to his attention, he would travel to the ends of the earth to be with him.

The path to the Aname River is difficult to access for anyone who isn't a ninja. It's said that not only is the path swarming with fortune-hunting bandits, but the sheer, almost impenetrable rock walls themselves cause even the most seasoned explorers to turn back. The civilization near the river is not only isolated from the rest of the world, but also untouched by any conflict. They know little of what lies beyond the wall other than what the ninja who visit the area tell them. The citizens live a peaceful life far removed from conflict, remaining in their austere surroundings.

When Sasuke mentioned the place, he knew it meant only one thing: no one would recognize them, and therefore no one would bother them. Such a carefree town doesn't give much thought when foreign ninjas enter the city, even if they might pose a threat, since part of its reputation is for efficiency. Any conflict that arises in the city is resolved by the police force, who are indeed trained within the ninja tradition.

After crossing the great wall of rock as if it were nothing, he arrived in the small town with sweaty palms. He could sense Sasuke nearby, so he made his way to the streets and enjoyed not being recognized. He browsed the small shops and bought something to eat while he looked for Sasuke. To his delight, it wasn't long before he spotted him eating a yakitori skewer on a rooftop terrace. He was looking down at him, the corners of his mouth slightly turned up as he bit into a piece of chicken.

“You really love going from one place to another, don’t you?” he said behind him as soon as he went up onto the terrace.

“Mn,” he hummed thoughtfully, “I like finding places where I have peace.”

He sat down beside him, his feet dangling over the precipice just like Sasuke's. His hands were still sweaty, so he wiped them on his thighs and took out Sasuke's gift, still wrapped in paper.

“I brought you a little something, but it’s bad luck to open it before your birthday,” he handed him the bag, “so you’ll have to wait until the 23rd.”

“You shouldn’t have brought a gift,” Sasuke said, still putting it in his bag under his coat. “You could have just paid for the drinks.”

“Oh?”

He followed Sasuke through the bustling city streets at night. People crowded the food courts, and some were stumbling along the street, clearly drunk. It felt like a young city; no one seemed older than forty. The moment he saw the place Sasuke was taking him, he realized it was no different from any bar in Konoha. The murmur of people enveloped them as soon as the door opened. Tables were packed with large groups of people, sake bottles of all sizes adorning the tables, some sipping from stools, others stumbling out. No one would guess this was Sasuke's scene.

“How did you find this place?”

“They are not very difficult to find in the city center.”

A person who was originally at the bar serving drinks, upon seeing the dark-skinned man enter, left their job to approach them.

“Sasuke!” he greeted, approaching too close. “I didn’t know you were here.”

“Mm, I arrived recently, actually,” he replied.

Naruto watched the scene unfold, focusing particularly on Sasuke's reaction as soon as the man approached. His eyes, though seemingly unchanged, widened rapidly, then softened before returning to normal. The man was tall, with long, straight black hair cascading down his shoulders and back. He reminded Naruto somewhat of Neji, except that his eyes were a dark green in the bar's lighting.

“You could have warned me, we could have met.”

Okay, he didn't like that tone at all..

“I brought company,” he replied to what Naruto considered frivolous flirting. He pointed to Naruto beside him, and finally the man noticed him.

“Oh, excuse me,” he said quickly, looking Naruto up and down. “Hideyoshi.”

"In."

He didn't even bother to introduce himself; he wasn't interested in Hideyoshi being there, though he wouldn't mind if he left either. He didn't like the way Hideyoshi looked at Sasuke.

“There’s a free table over there, let me take you.”

“We have legs,” he said, more abruptly than he expected.

Sasuke glanced at him for a second before looking back at Hideyoshi, gave him a nod, and the man smiled broadly, as if he'd just received a pat on the head. He whispered something to Sasuke before returning to his post at the bar.

Naruto wanted to ignore it, he really wanted to.

They took a table slightly removed from the one the bartender suggested and ordered two bottles of stronger sake, served by a young woman. The air in the tavern smelled of old wood, cigarettes, and alcohol—an aroma that, strangely, managed to relax Naruto. Sasuke sat across from him, the candlelight dancing in his dark eyes. There were no admirers, no grateful villagers, just the two of them in a forgotten corner of the world.

He listened to Sasuke talk as drinks went down their throats. He didn't drink much, and when he did, it was always with a group of friends. Now, alone with Sasuke, he didn't feel the need to hold back. Out of nowhere, he let out a silly laugh, catching Sasuke's attention, and rested his cheek on his hand. The alcohol was already turning his cheekbones a bright red.

"I was thinking about Keiko," Naruto blurted out, with a nostalgic smile. "Who would have thought that the great Sasuke Uchiha would be bringing a baby into the world, and that I'd be part of an impromptu delivery too? You almost fainted when you saw the baby, don't deny it."

Sasuke glanced down at his glass, but a small, lopsided smile betrayed him.

"It was an... unexpected situation," he replied softly. "But I couldn't have done it if you hadn't been there. You always appear when everything seems to be spiraling out of control."

Naruto felt a lump in his throat. That was the trap: when Sasuke was honest, Naruto's barriers crumbled. He remembered the warmth of that house, the way Sasuke held the baby with almost reverential care, supported by Naruto's arm, and how, for a second, Naruto allowed himself to imagine that this was the future he wanted for them both. But he mentally shook his head.

We're friends. Just friends celebrating a birthday.

"Well, I'm glad you chose me for this trip," Naruto joked, though his voice trembled slightly. "Although I bet Yumiko misses you more than anything."

Sasuke fixed his gaze on his again. The distance between them on the table seemed to have shortened without either of them noticing.

"She has her family," Sasuke said with an intensity that took Naruto's breath away. "But I only have you to put up with me on my worst days."

Naruto swallowed, feeling his heart pounding in his ears. Denial was failing miserably.

"It's weird, you know?" Naruto muttered, slurring his words slightly as he played with the rim of his glass. "Whenever we're together, it feels like no time has passed."

Sasuke let out a short, almost imperceptible laugh. Naruto loved that laugh. His slender, firm arms stretched across the table, his exposed skin glistening in the dim light. He looked different without his traveling cloak; more jovial, more approachable, and yet vulnerable.

"You say a lot of stupid things when you drink, Naruto," Sasuke replied, though he didn't look away.

Naruto felt a warmth that didn't come from the alcohol.

He watched as Sasuke brought the glass to his lips and, for a second, was mesmerized by the movement of his throat as he swallowed. It's the drink. He said to himself with inner panic, I'm just happy for his birthday.. 

“But also when we are far apart, I suffer a lot and time feels like it lasts forever.”

“Force of habit, I suppose,” he said softly, taking a swig straight from the bottle, ignoring the glass beside him. Still with such elegance that only he could pull it off.

"Why did you choose me to come here?" Naruto blurted out suddenly, his voice deeper than usual.

He took the bottle that had just left Sasuke's lips and drank a long sip, his eyes half-closed, glancing sideways at Sasuke, who was watching his every move. He slammed the bottle, with a sip still inside, down on the table, his hand gripping the cold glass.

Sasuke reached across the table, his fingers accidentally brushing against Naruto's as he reached for the bottle. The blond didn't move away. On the contrary, he felt an electric shock that left him completely silent.

“Who else would I invite if not you?” said the dark-haired man, grabbing the mouthpiece and sticking his tongue out slightly before swallowing the last of its contents.

His mouth watered at the sight. Both bottles were finished, he felt dizzy, and he had a terrible urge to get closer to Sasuke. When he set the bottle down on the table, they looked at each other for a long second, their fingers still touching in a secret caress. Unfortunately, his bladder had other plans.

“Okay, I have to—” he stood up awkwardly, feeling the effects of the alcohol. “Bathroom.”

His friend stifled a laugh and gestured for him to go. Then he quickly escaped to the bathroom, dodging the people standing in the hallway talking. He bent over the urinal and, as soon as he let go, felt a mixture of relief and pleasure, as if he'd been holding it in longer than he should have and was sensitive. A soft groan escaped his voice, unnoticed by the other men in the bathroom.

After washing his hands, he took the opportunity to look at himself in the mirror. Red cheeks and squinty eyes, he looked like any other drunk. Unlike Sasuke, who always looked ethereal even when drunk, his cheeks painted like watercolors, his lips redder from the alcohol's tingle, and his eyes sparkling. A sight with pained eyes; anyone who saw him like that would do anything to steal a kiss. He straightened his clothes, which for some reason seemed disheveled, and left the bathroom to meet him.

To his surprise, the table where they had been sitting had their bottles and glasses, but there was no sign of Sasuke. He moved away from the tables and searched the main hall where the bar was, looking among the patrons for the stools, walking through the crowd to reach the long table in search of him.

And then everything slowed down.

Sasuke was at the bar, but he wasn't alone. Hideyoshi, his broad back turned to Naruto, was with him. It might have seemed like a normal sight if you didn't notice how his right arm was extended beyond Sasuke's reach, almost wedged between the bar and his chest. But that wasn't the worst part. Sasuke looked completely relaxed against him, his right elbow resting on the bar while the other man was practically leaning in. His eyes blinked slowly, his lips were slightly pursed, and his cheeks were just as flushed as when he'd left.

It was stupid, he had no reason to feel that way, but Sasuke knew people everywhere, some were fleeting lovers, maybe now Naruto was witnessing one.

This person has perhaps kissed Sasuke's mouth more times than Sasuke has kissed him. They've tasted the sound of his moans against their lips, held his waist, or trapped him by the neck. Perhaps he was the first they experimented with, or the second, or the third.

Now there was something inside him that burned brightly, beyond unjustified jealousy; it was envy. Sasuke was there, accepting the closeness of this person who had known him for less time than he had known him, but who had perhaps already experienced everything. And he doesn't judge Sasuke for that, but hates thinking that others could enjoy it, he selfishly wanted to believe he was the only one capable. And now there was someone there, a threat in drunken eyes, flirting with him, with Sasuke, his Sasuke…

He didn't notice when he dodged through all the people in his path and pushed the man near Sasuke out of his way.

“Hey! What the f-”, then a quick punch, a move so perfect that no one noticed when his fist crashed into his face.

"Naruto, what the hell!" His voice came out sternly, his eyes glowing slightly, a dangerous aura surrounding him. "What was that?"

He ignored the call and looked back at Hideyoshi, his piercing eyes tearing at him. “Get your ass out of here, unless you want to—”

“Naruto,” Sasuke pushed him, breaking free from the corner. “Leave him alone.”

As if they had just insulted him, he turned his body towards Sasuke and grabbed his hand.

“Come with me.”

He grabbed Sasuke's arm and dragged him down the hall toward the bathroom, weaving through the crowd while ignoring the dark-haired man's protests. He burst through the door, and with a single glance, the other men left.

“What the hell was that?” Sasuke exclaimed, his voice echoing off the bathroom walls.

“Did he do it?”

Sasuke stared at him, his eyes bloodshot, one eyebrow raised in confusion. He took another step closer, but Sasuke remained still.

"What are you taking about?"

“Have you been with him?”

His words sounded clumsy because of his heavy tongue, his head was screaming, he felt sad and frustrated. Sasuke still didn't seem to understand and that oppressed him even more.

"Did you never learn to be clear in what you say, you idiot?"

“Does he kiss you better?” he said quickly. “Have you been—” The saliva felt like it was passing through a narrower tunnel. “—Have you done anything?”

After going through three stages of realization, Sasuke seemed to understand what he was talking about. His eyes twitched, his brows furrowed, but there was something brighter in his eyes.

“Why you care?”

“I’ll kill him,” he blurted out.

He didn't know if it was the alcohol talking, if it was his mind saying anything or if it was him, Naruto Uzumaki, wanting with all his might to eliminate the other person who had felt the softness of Sasuke's lips.

“I’m going to kill him,” he repeated, his hands clenched into fists, trembling with rage.

“What the hell?” he stammered, his brow now relaxing, realizing that Naruto seemed to mean it, the chakra around him growing heavy. “Naruto, you’re-”

“No, I won’t allow it,” he muttered, trying to dodge Sasuke to go into the hallway and confront that guy. “They can’t know too.”

Sasuke's hand caught him in a strong bond, his hand exerting so much pressure that it could break a mortal's arm.

"What can't they know?"

As fast as lightning strikes the top of a tree, Naruto yanked his arm back, pulling Sasuke with him.

The moment their lips touched, their tongues met. He placed one hand on his waist, the other pulling him closer, keeping him pressed against him. Sasuke's arm slowly relaxed, falling deeper and deeper into the kiss until his grip loosened and he accepted his fate.

Their breaths, a mixture of alcohol mingling between their lips, their hands grasping everything within reach: Sasuke's waist, his back, his hips. Unable to decide where he felt most comfortable, and to his surprise, Sasuke surrendered completely, his right arm caressing his neck to deepen the kiss. Soft sounds escaped his mouth, sending electricity through his entire body, his hands tingling with an overwhelming need. They collided with a wall, Sasuke's back hitting the cold tiles, the kiss still locked, Naruto clinging tightly to him.

Everything was spinning; all he could feel was Sasuke writhing against him, his eyes closed, afraid to open them lest the image of Sasuke vanish. He was being childish, licking and biting everything he could of Sasuke's mouth, a way to quell the fire within him from seeing him so close to someone else.

He was supposed to be unaffected, not to care if Sasuke had learned to use his tongue with other people, if those people had put their mouths on his body or snuggled up to him while they slept. But it was a lie. He couldn't imagine it, not when the one and only Sasuke was only close to him, allowing him to hug him, to snuggle up to him during the nights he stayed over. It was unnerving, ridiculous, to think that someone had let out the same sounds he was now hearing for the first time.

He pulled away from Sasuke's soft lips with a sharp sound, beginning to trace a trail of kisses from his chin to his neck. Sasuke's hand tightened on his chest, though he couldn't tell if he was pulling him away or closer. He licked just above his collarbone before biting down hard, reveling in the tremor of Sasuke's body as his hands lifted the hem of his shirt and felt the heat radiating from his back.

“Nar-”

He captured his lips again, tracing circles along his side with his thumbs. Sasuke's tongue timidly brushed against his as the vibration of his moan echoed through his mouth.

“Wait-”, Sasuke huffed between kisses, “Naruto- ah.”

“No,” he said firmly.

He abandoned the exposed skin to now grasp his face, both hands on each cheek, holding it in place while he abused his mouth. And although Sasuke was melting, lost in the kiss, he still had his consciousness half-awake and gathered energy in his palm and pushed Naruto away. Although in the state they were both in, he only managed to make him pull his lips away from him, but their bodies remained close.

They stared at each other for a long moment before noticing someone banging on the bathroom door, probably a waiter who'd received a complaint. Both stood frozen, still processing what had just happened, before Sasuke covered his mouth with the back of his arm and stormed out the door, pushing aside the man who'd been banging and everyone else in his path.

The man opened his mouth to protest against Naruto, but did the same as the dark-skinned man, dodging bodies to chase after Sasuke who was already leaving the premises with his poncho on.

He was still dizzy, unable to hurry, but he still ran after him, despite his throbbing head. Sasuke wasn't in any better shape, running aimlessly, still covering his mouth with his hand, as if he'd been punched.

“Sasuke!”, Naruto called, on a street that was emptier than the others.

There was no response; Sasuke seemed to want to propel himself to escape across the rooftops, but his chakra ignored him.

“Hey!” he said, clinging to one of the walls.

“What?” Sasuke shouted, finally facing him, his face still flushed from a mixture of alcohol and embarrassment. “Why the hell did you do that?”

“Did you kiss that guy?”

“Answer the fucking question, you idiot.”

“Answer that first and maybe I’ll answer the other one!”

“No, i didn't kiss Hideyoshi.”

"So you slept with him?"

“What the hell?” Sasuke exhaled, incredulous. “You want to die?”

“Yes, I want to die!” he slurred, the alcohol hitting him harder now with the icy night breeze. “I want to die just thinking that asshole touched you, that one of those horny idiots at the bar kissed you or felt your skin! I fucking want to die, I feel like I’m suffocating just thinking about it.”

“...”

“Besides, why the hell are you reacting like this?” he hiccuped. “Like you haven’t kissed me before, what difference does it make now? I’m done with Hinata, there’s nothing stopping us unless you’ve found some fucking son of a bitch to fuck in these past few months!”

He staggered closer to Sasuke, grabbing the hem of his coat. His eyes, with the Sharingan activated, were clouded with a crystalline layer that could be either alcohol or tears held back.

“You’re drunk, Naruto.”

“Yeah, no shit,” he gasped, feeling a lump rising in his throat. He felt like a kid again, fighting back tears as he was reprimanded. Sasuke was looking at him with the same amount of anger and confusion. “I’m so drunk, but even sober I think about kissing you.”

"You're just talking nonsense," he grabbed his arm to pull him away, but Naruto's grip was stronger.

"So why does it make so much sense to me? Why, if it's nonsense, does it hurt here?"

He took the hand that tried to push him away and placed it on his heart. It must have been the surprise, because Sasuke let him guide his hand and feel his heartbeat beneath his palm—strong, steady, and rapid. The warmth of Sasuke's fingers on his chest almost roused him from his reverie, but the mere sight of him, his eyes shining and cheeks flushed, drew him closer.

"If it hurts so much, then what should I do?"

And as soon as he said that, thick tears began to stream from his eyes. He felt a rush of emotions that, thanks to the alcohol, he couldn't control. It was a mixture of humiliation and rejection, both for having undressed like that in front of Sasuke and for having blurted out all his thoughts without thinking of the consequences. He closed his eyes, letting his body tremble, and at the same time, he let go of Sasuke's hand so he could leave, but his hand remained there.

He felt the fingers move up his chest and gently grasp his cheek, wiping the tears from the cheeks and caressing his cheekbones. He let himself be touched and tilted his head to crash against the palm.

It only took a few seconds for them to melt into an awkward, wobbly embrace. Naruto realized they were both very drunk, and their tears resembled those of a child throwing a tantrum. If he hadn't matured and learned that suppressing his feelings with violence didn't work, they might have ended up in a worse situation.

“Let’s go to the inn,” he said, breaking the hug for a second before putting his arm behind his shoulders.

He nodded, letting Sasuke lead him to wherever he was staying. He let his head fall heavily onto Sasuke's shoulder, making it a little harder for him to grip, but Sasuke didn't complain at all. They'd drunk the same amount, and yet Sasuke seemed more sober than he was.

He didn't even realize when they came in; Sasuke had barely pushed him onto the bed. Despite being the less drunk of the two, his head still seemed to be spinning as Naruto noticed him struggling with the buttons while taking off his clothes. He watched as the shirt rode up, revealing skin he hadn't touched much before. He reached out to help undo the remaining three buttons, but Sasuke moved away, finishing the job with his back to him.

"Sasuke..."

"Silence," he said, approaching and taking off Naruto's shoes. Naruto smiled slightly at the domestic scene.

“I’m sorry,” he said gently.

He didn't answer, and in that silence he fell asleep.

Upon waking, all he felt was a throbbing pain in his head, like being repeatedly struck with a hammer. He could barely move his head without feeling like his brains were about to explode, so he lay with his eyes closed and horizontal until his senses adjusted to being awake.

He felt very hot, as if the sheets weighed 30 pounds each, pressing him against the bedspread. He raised his arm to try to push them away, but then he felt another arm.

It must have been his, maybe he fell asleep.

He gripped it firmly, determined to move it away, but then the arm shifted slightly further to his side. He decided to open his eyes to look at his chest, but a dark patch of skin blocked his lower view. Only then did one of his nostrils pop open, letting in the familiar scent of Sasuke's shampoo. He relaxed; after all, it was just Sasuke sleeping on his chest. He closed his eyes again and settled down to sleep.

Sasuke sleeping on his chest.

He straightened up, Sasuke's body gently falling beside him, beginning to stir. He saw colors as he got to his feet, blurring his vision and causing him excruciating pain, but he tried to ignore it and look at Sasuke beside him. A white sheet covered his lower body, but left his hairless chest exposed, since, for some reason, Sasuke wasn't wearing any clothes.

Then he looked at himself.

He wasn't wearing a t-shirt either.

He lifted the sheet that also covered him, just to make sure and his boxers were there, untouched. He let out a sigh of relief that lasted only a few seconds before he realized he remembered nothing of the previous night. He remembered entering the bar with Sasuke, a handsome man who seemed to know Sasuke, greeted him, and was quite flirtatious. They drank a bottle, talked, and then… he was in bed, with Sasuke beside him, shirtless, just his boxers. If they're still in their ass…

He reached out to try to lift the sheet covering his friend, but was stopped by another hand, this time Sasuke's, who was already awake and looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Ah!” he cried, pulling his hand away, “You’re awake!”

Instead of saying hello, he rubbed his eyes with his forearm and made a hoarse sound.

“I’ll bring you water!” he said quickly, escaping to the mini-bar in the room, taking out two bottles of water and handing them to the dark-haired man, who was still lying horizontally.

“Thank you…”, he stood up slightly, quickly taking a drink of cold water.

His gaze quickly lowered and he noticed the hem of Sasuke's underwear; he closed his eyes, thanking God.

“Oh.”

He looked outside; the sun was already higher than the hills surrounding the city, perhaps it was just getting late and they were only just waking up. It was already the next day and therefore…

“Sasuke, happy birthday,” he said softly, kneeling beside his bed, his headache quickly fading away.

He only blinked a couple of times, looking out the window and at Naruto.

“Last night...?”

“Um…”, he hesitated, since he really didn’t remember anything and didn’t know what he had done, “maybe I drank too much, I’m sorry if I said something stupid.

“Okay,” he said hurriedly.

He avoided his gaze, so an uneasy feeling settled in his chest. So he did something silly, great. Anyway, he didn't want their conversation to turn into that, not when it was Sasuke's birthday and he seemed so evasive.

“Hey…”, he moved slightly closer, still maintaining a distance.

"What."

“Happy birthday,” he said, moving a little closer again, testing the waters to hug him; it had been a long time since he had hugged him.

“I heard you the first time.”

“Mm~”, he hummed.

He felt like he was forgetting something until he saw Sasuke's poncho, lying near the door. He went over to rummage through the inside pockets, shaking them while Sasuke looked at him with both confusion and sleepiness.

"What are you looking for?"

“Your gift,” he said, shaking the poncho harder in the hope that a gift would fall out. “Did you leave it somewhere else?”

 “Shit-”

“What?”

“We rushed out of the bar yesterday, I probably left them there,” he muttered, getting up to look for his pants. Naruto tried to avoid looking at his long, slender legs, but it was useless.

“No, no, stay here, I’ll go.”

“No, I’ll go,” he said sternly. Something in his expression told him that Sasuke really didn’t want Naruto to go anywhere near that place. Did he think he was going to get drunk again? After his awful hangover, he didn’t want to touch alcohol for at least three years.

As soon as he took a step forward to snatch the poncho, his foot tripped over the air and he had to hold on to the mattress.

“Look at you, you’re all dizzy, I’ll just go and pick it up, it’ll take me less than five minutes,” he smiled despite Sasuke’s stern look, “Take a bath, relax, I’ll take care of your birthday.”

He tore his gaze away from Naruto's smile and did as he was told, going into the bathroom and leaving Naruto to quickly get dressed so they could go find the bar. Although he didn't know the place and couldn't remember how he'd gotten to the inn, he recognized some familiar corners from when he arrived, which helped him find the bar. It seemed closed, judging by the lack of people, unlike the night before. The empty entrance and tables gave him a strange feeling, much like an abandoned city. He approached the bar and drummed his fingers on the table, hoping someone would hear him.

“Welcome, what can I be-”, a voice spoke from behind a platform and as soon as it appeared, it looked at Naruto in horror, backing away. “No, dude, I’m not looking for trouble, really.”

“Huh?”

That was Sasuke’s friend, but now he wasn't looking at him kindly, but rather cautiously. He had a purple cheekbone that Naruto didn't remember ever seeing before.

What's with that face, am I that terrible when I'm drunk?

“I don’t feel like fighting,” he reiterated.

"Well, neither did I. I just came to pick up something Sasuke left behind yesterday."

“Oh…”, he came out of his hiding place and crouched under the bar rummaging through wobbly bottles, “Yes, he left something on his table, here it is.”

He placed the gift on the bar, pushing it in with his fingers. Naruto caught it and made sure that whatever was inside was intact. When he went to thank Hideyoshi, the man seemed eager for Naruto to leave, which in itself wouldn't be a problem since he didn't like the guy either, but now he was curious about what had happened to make the young man react that way.

“Thank you,” he said slowly, still not moving. Then he ventured: “Listen, the truth is I don’t remember much from last night, I drank too much and…”

“Yes, it was noticeable.”

He resisted the urge to reproach him for his tone and simply continued: "The thing is, I don't remember what I did to make you look at me like that, so I would appreciate it if you told me what happened."

Hideyoshi didn't seem convinced by his explanation, pointing to his cheekbone, "You hit me in the face."

“What?!” he exclaimed, leaning closer to the table to get a closer look, “Did I do that?!”

“Yep.”

“Was it an accident? Did I push you or I stumbled?”

“I’m ninety percent sure you did it on purpose.”

Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing. While he didn't like Hideyoshi, he didn't know him well enough to hate him and punch him. His cheekbone looked painfully swollen; it was surely a chakra-less blow (thankfully), but with enough force from a young man who trained daily.

He stepped away from the bar and leaned forward deeply in front of the man, his forehead almost touching his knees. “I’m really sorry, I don’t know what the hell came over me.”

The man's face showed he really hadn't expected Naruto to apologize. He scratched his cheek and waved his hand. "Okay, its fine, you were drunk."

“I swear I’m not an aggressive drunk.”

“Okay, thanks for apologizing,” he said hesitantly.

He put the gift inside his jacket, ready to leave the premises with a great deal of guilt inside him.

“Hey, by the way, don’t get mad at your boyfriend, he wasn’t flirting with me, and neither was I,” Hideyoshi said, before he walked through the door.

"Boyfriend?"

“Sasuke,” he raised a thin eyebrow, “don’t tell me you guys broke up because of that…”

“No, I mean, why do you say Sasuke is my boyfriend?”

“Isn’t it?” he asked, but seeing that Naruto was staring blankly at him, he said softly, “Well, my brother went to check what had happened between you two in the bathroom after the fight.”

"Wait, why did I hit you?"

“I guess you saw me very close to Sasuke and you didn’t like it very much,” he said in a tone that sounded like a question, “my brother said that the two of them were locked in the bathroom and that after they came out, another boy who was in a stall said that you were kissing…”

His gaze was surely unlike anything he'd ever seen before, his vision blurring with color, just like when he woke up with a hangover. But now, more than alcohol coursing through his veins, a wave of memories from the previous night washed over him. He remembered the sake bottle between Sasuke's lips, their fingers touching, going to the bathroom to freshen up, seeing Hideyoshi with Sasuke, the punch to his face, going with Sasuke to the bathroom, asking him if he'd slept with Hideyoshi earlier, and then…

His hands slapped his cheeks at the same time, the sound of the slap bouncing in the empty space, the young bartender staring at him like a madman as the memory of how he caught Sasuke's lips, grabbed his waist, felt his tremors flood him.

Shit, shit, shit.

“Then you guys left quickly, and Sasuke left that package on his seat,” the story concluded. “And you didn’t pay for the drinks, so…”

“Oh, yeah, shit,” he said, taking money out of his wallet. No need to bother counting it. He clutched the gift, not quite understanding. “Sorry for hitting you.”

"Hey, are you guys dating or...?"

He frowned, thinking that perhaps the guy did deserve the blow, but Hideyoshi stepped back and didn't insist any further. He left the bar with his heart pounding. Perhaps Sasuke knew about it and didn't say anything, or was he really too drunk to remember? It's most likely the second one, after all, they drank the same amount and Naruto already has better alcohol tolerance and had a mental blackout less than an hour ago, so Sasuke must have been worse.

When he arrived at the inn, he hesitated for several seconds before knocking. He tried his best to maintain a normal expression, showing no hint that he'd just been told he'd basically had a jealous outburst in front of Sasuke. The door opened, revealing a tidy room, a made bed, clothes arranged, and Sasuke greeted him with damp hair and a t-shirt that showed off his collarbones.

“You found it,” he said simply, looking at the gift in his hands.

“I found it, yes,” he affirmed, moving the wrapper from side to side. “They had it stored away.”

“Who kept it?”

Despite maintaining that calm expression, he could sense the uncertainty in Sasuke's voice, the attempt to extract information. Then his mind began to buzz: He remembers, he knows you punched Hideyoshi in the face and then cornered him against a bathroom wall. He really didn't want to be confronted, and Sasuke didn't look like he wanted a confrontation either, so he chose to withhold information.

"A very friendly employee at the establishment."

Sasuke hummed, sitting up on the bed, but as he lowered himself, he let out a muffled sigh against the futon's springs. All he could do was curse in his head over and over again.

“Well, here it is,” he said, approaching him and placing the package in his lap. “Open it!”

He sat beside him to watch him unwrap it, his slender, elegant hand untangling the ribbon as he gently tore the paper, mesmerizing him. A carved wooden box then appeared among the torn papers. Sasuke picked it up and examined it from every angle, appreciating the detailed drawings.

“This box is very well made, thank you Naruto.”

“Idiot, the gift is in the box.”

Sasuke rolled his eyes as he tried to open the box, afraid of breaking it. When the lid finally gave way, his eyes widened in surprise.

It was a leather kunai pouch, good leather, just the right length to wrap around his leg or waist. The stitching was an all-too-recognizable orange thread, and the outer leather was carved with simple, rough designs, though also branded with a hot iron the symbols of his clan and the Uzumaki clan, together in a hidden corner. When he opened it, a small pouch fell into his palm, which he immediately recognized as an Omamori, a braided mix of blue and orange. He examined it carefully, caressing the small, clumsily but also thoughtfully crafted points.

“It’s so you always return safely from your missions,” he said, fidgeting with his fingers. “I know it’s impossible for anything to happen to you! But I’d still like to know there’s a backup.”

Sasuke still said nothing, meticulously examining the gift. That made him even more nervous.

“The sewing isn’t the best!” he spoke again, to fill the silence, “Sai helped me a little with the details, since I kept pricking my finger and the Omamori is a bit crooked because I made a mistake with the measurements and-”

“It’s perfect,” Sasuke murmured.

"You like it?"

“A lot,” he said as he reached for his own kunai pouch, taking the weapons out and putting them in the new one, “How did you know I needed a new one?”

“I saw it…”, his voice came out louder than he intended, “…When we had our first sparr where Akemi and Sora, I noticed that it was worn and broken.”

“I don’t remember taking it out?”

“It was when we were on the ground, I noticed your legs and…”

The dark-haired man stared blankly at him, and only then did he realize that what he was saying sounded revealing, almost like a teenager unveiling a dark secret. He began to stammer before explaining himself.

"I mean, for a second I saw your kunai holder and its condition, haha."

He couldn't admit that he'd spent more time than he wanted staring at his body on top of him, especially now that he knew that he could know what he did that night. The last thing he wanted was to make Sasuke uncomfortable on his birthday with something as mundane as Naruto's complicated feelings toward him after three kissing sessions they'd shared.

“Thank you again,” Sasuke said, smiling slightly, adjusting the bag around his waist.

And there he was again, watching.

The day passed peacefully. Sasuke didn't seem keen on buying a cake, saying he wouldn't be able to finish even a slice. Naruto tried to find less sweet options, but Sasuke hesitated. Finally, he decided to take him out for dinner at a yakiniku restaurant, just the two of them in a small booth while they grilled meat and ate. Sasuke looked happy, his face relaxed, his hair falling gracefully around his neck, and eating a generous amount. Naruto took his time cooking the meat to please Sasuke's liking.

“It’s the first time in years I’ve done anything for my birthday,” he said as they walked back through the darkened streets. “I thought there would never be a time when I could enjoy it.”

The smile that spread across his face made up for all the anxiety he'd felt that day, wondering if Sasuke had hated him or thought very little of him. He felt like he could finally breathe easy.

“I’m glad I spent it with you,” he added a little later, “it was a good day.”

His heart was confused; he didn't know whether to interpret that as him not remembering anything from last night, or if he did remember and still considered it a good day. His hands began to sweat, and he felt like his clothes were burning his skin. He gave Sasuke a complicated smile; he wasn't going to ruin his birthday because of an existential crisis, he couldn't.

But needed to know.

"Sasuke..."

“Mn?”

“Last night I… I really-”

“Don’t say anything,” he replied quickly, “you were drunk, so was I, whatever you remember let’s pretend nothing happened.”

He looked at him, his heart pounding in his chest as he watched Sasuke avoid his gaze. His fear was real; Sasuke really did remember, and besides… hated it. He decided to sweep what had happened under the rug and ignore it. He should be grateful that Naruto had agreed to spend the whole day with him despite everything; he really should consider him a friend, while Naruto couldn't stop thinking about him.

“Okay,” he finally said.

And the rest of the way was silent. At the inn's entrance, he made way for Sasuke to go ahead, silently following behind. They began unbuttoning their clothes to prepare for bed. Sasuke went into the bathroom for his second shower of the day and to brush his teeth. Naruto followed, trying to clear his mind of distracting thoughts. He emerged from the bathroom only to be bombarded again, this time with the sight of Sasuke with nothing covering his chest and back, his underwear so short that his gaze was fixed on the dimples of his lower back.

Sasuke had prepared a bed on the floor, a little further away from the mattress. He went ahead and quickly got into bed, hurrying to pull the covers over himself after the strange thoughts that had been running through his head. Sasuke's graceful figure walked to the bed, then curled up inside out of Naruto's sight.

“Good night, Naruto.”

“Good night, Sasuke.”

The lights went out, leaving only moonlight filtering through the blinds. Despite the silence, so inviting for sleep, he couldn't fall asleep, too alert to Sasuke's every move: the creaking of the bed as he shifted, his soft sighs and moans in his sleep. He felt a strong urge to escape; the air seemed thin, so thick his head felt like it was spinning. Taking advantage of the fact that Sasuke's back was to him, he quietly got up and went to the door.

He climbed to the roof of the inn, which had railings; the cold wind caressed his bare legs and stirred his hair. He leaned heavily against the railing, watching the movement of the streets in the night.

He couldn't stop thinking about what Hideyoshi had told him and the images that flashed through his mind. His hands tingled with the sensation of Sasuke's skin beneath his fingertips, so soft yet firm, as his arm drew him closer, perhaps due to the effects of the alcohol and ecstasy. He felt guilt and shame, as well as a strange feeling in his chest, as if a stake had been driven through his heart.

It was surely the rejection he felt as soon as he realized Sasuke remembered what had happened, and he decided to ignore it, as if it were nothing, as if it were just another passionate encounter. As if he hadn't criticized him for the importance of sharing kisses with someone. He must have been trying to protect their friendship, but how many more kisses would be enough? Why was Naruto unable to stop thinking about Sasuke's soft lips, his bright eyes, and his flushed cheeks, gasping for air? Why couldn't he stop thinking about how beautiful his smile was, how breathtaking his laugh was, and the way he looked at the people he cared about?

And Naruto knew what it was, but if he said it out loud it would be too real. A sentence that would condemn his heart.

But he was already doomed.

He heard light footsteps behind him, but didn't have to turn around to know who it was. He stayed put, not turning around, until the warmth of another body settled beside him. If he glanced over, he'd lose his mind.

“Can’t you sleep?” he said softly, leaning on the railing.

“Mn.”

The sounds of nocturnal birds accompanied their silence, too lost in their own thoughts to pay attention. Below them, young people staggered past, not unlike themselves.

“Today is a full moon,” he murmured, noticing it round above him.

Sasuke approached to look at it. His eyes followed the silhouette of his profile, gleaming in the cold light. Only then did he notice he was wearing his hoodie, black with orange details. It fit him perfectly, tailor-made for him, letting his hair caress his shoulders as the wind styled it.

“It’s beautiful,” Sasuke said, his eyes sparkling as he gazed up at the sky.

"Yeah."

But he wasn't looking at the moon.

It was then, when Sasuke turned to face him, catching his eyes locked on him, that the spark ignited. He doesn't know who approached first, but the connection was explosive, melting into a kiss, their noses touching, their hands grasping at anything they could find. Sasuke's hand caressed the back of his ear, drawing him closer, deepening the kiss. Naruto cupped his cheek with one hand and pulled him closer with the other, chest to chest, where he could feel the sway of his chest rising and falling as they went deeper.

Naruto's tongue met Sasuke's, and the blond's brain went into recession. He surrendered to Sasuke's hungry rhythm, devouring each other, small moans escaping his lips the more contact there was, the more chaotic, the more needy.

They were fighting over who felt more, who wanted to humiliate themselves more.

He withdrew his hand from Sasuke's cheek and took his hand, just like at the bar, climbing down from the rooftop and heading to their room. They went straight to the bed, falling back with Sasuke on top of him, rushing to kiss him again before either of them could speak. Taking advantage of the opening, he gripped Sasuke's backside, letting the gasp of surprise be absorbed by his mouth as he adjusted him, positioning his face perfectly so their lips could meet easily. Sasuke's hand moved up to his hair, grasping the short strands, stroking the back of his neck.

In the brief moment they parted, a strand of saliva separating their mouths, flushed cheeks, their breaths heavy, their eyes met again the instant their gazes met. If they stared into each other's eyes for too long, they wouldn't be able to face what they were doing; their thoughts would flood in faster, and the only way to silence them was like this, melted into desire.

The position changed quickly as Naruto laid him on his back, letting his weight fall lightly onto the dark-haired man. Then, the hands that had been gripping his cheeks and neck dug beneath his clothes, the warmth of their skin beneath his fingertips. His sweatshirt, still attached to Sasuke's body, open at some point, revealing his pale chest, marked by superficial scars that raised to the touch. He felt a kind of ecstasy, an uncontrollable desire, a dangerous sensation at his touch, like tasting a forbidden and yet addictive fruit. He began to gasp into the kiss, revealing his need, as this was the first time he had felt this way. And Sasuke was no better; his sighs, small moans as he did everything he could to keep Naruto there, on top of him, only served to heighten his excitement.

Then Naruto realized, finally the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. He was in love. It wasn't just kissing for the sake of kissing; the envy he felt wasn't about wanting to beat Sasuke, as he always claimed. He was jealous. Jealous of the thought that these sighs had been heard by someone else, just like those kisses, Sasuke's shy tongue against his own. He feared that someone else had spoken to Sasuke in the privacy of a room, that perhaps Sasuke had slept on someone else's chest or had sex with someone else. Because he wanted to be the only one to experience it, the only one to know him, the only one to kiss him.

Now they were kissing for no reason, driven only by the adrenaline of being exposed. Their eyes locked, and like two opposing magnets, they were drawn together. There was no plausible excuse; justifying it with practice, with learning, was no longer an option. The kisses slowed, and the fear inside Naruto began to grow.

He'll realize it.

Perhaps he realized it long ago.

He slowly pulled away from Sasuke, the smack of his lips snapping them out of their trance. He removed his hands from Sasuke's body, immediately feeling the absence and regretting it. They remained silent, neither daring to say a word. Naruto moved away from Sasuke's body, trying to avoid looking at his pale chest rising and falling, his underwear outlining the area of ​​him that had reacted to the kisses.

“Sasuke… what are we doing?” Naruto whispered, almost afraid of breaking the spell. “There’s no alcohol left. We’re not in a bar, and I’m not trying to ‘learn’ anything. Why did you kiss me back like that?”

Sasuke looked away towards the window, his chest rising and falling with difficulty.

“I don’t know, Naruto,” he replied in a voice that tried to be firm but failed. “You just broke up with Hinata. You have a void to fill, and I’m the only one you have close right now. This… is just a reaction to that.”

“No,” he said sharply, stepping further away, “I’m not talking about me, Sasuke. I’ve spent months trying to convince myself this was just curiosity. I tried to tell myself I was asking for those kisses because you ‘knew’ and I didn’t. But…”

Now he walked away completely, pacing in circles around the room, clutching his hair.

“I thought, ‘Okay, Sasuke dates men, he’s experienced, for him this is normal, just another encounter.’ I tried to convince myself that for you I’m just a friend you can be… open with. Because it kills me to think that for you I was just another one of those guys you met on your travels, while for me…” he stopped abruptly, staring at him intently. “for me you’re the only one. I don’t understand how you can kiss me like that and then act like it’s just a formality.”

Sasuke remained rigid, his fingers gripping the fabric beneath his hand. He couldn't meet Naruto's gaze; his hair fell across his face as he propped himself up on his elbow. He looked so vulnerable; if they weren't in this situation, Naruto would have already kissed him.

"What do you want me to say?" Sasuke hissed. "What do you want to understand?"

“I want to understand why!” Naruto shouted. “I want to understand why, if you have so much experience with others, you still let me touch you like this. If I’m just a fling to you, something insignificant, why do you look at me like I’m all you see? Because it doesn’t make sense, Sasuke. It doesn’t make sense unless I’m an idiot who…”

He swallowed weakly, feeling his throat burn more than any cheap liquor. He stopped, his eyes shining brightly, tears welling up in them, and Sasuke was there, looking at him expectantly, his eyes wider than ever. He couldn't keep them open; he closed them tightly before speaking again.

“I was the idiot who fell in love,” he said, sounding more like a whisper.

Something inside his chest was released, like a taut rope snapping, letting its weight fall into the void. But he couldn't savor the feeling, the weight of his words clinging to his shoulders.

“I’m in love with you,” he whispered again, “and it hurts that others came before, that everything I hoped to experience with you, you already experienced before.”

He wiped the tears from his eyes like a scolded child and continued: “And it’s not your fault, you have the right to be with whomever you want. The problem is me, I can’t accept it. Not when I feel so much when we kiss, knowing you don’t feel the same.”

Sasuke was speechless. The fury on his face had dissolved into something far more fragile. He lowered his gaze, letting his bangs fall over his eyes, and Naruto braced himself for the worst. His impulsiveness and envy had led him to this point, going from being embraced by Sasuke's lips to being trapped by the truth he was hiding even from himself.

Like a criminal awaiting sentencing, he kept his eyes closed.

“There were no others,” Sasuke said in a barely audible whisper.

Naruto opened his eyes, still trembling. "What?"

“There were attempts,” Sasuke confessed, clenching his fist at his side. “There were people in the taverns, guys who approached me, and I approached them too, trying to convince myself that I could go on. But it never went beyond that. I couldn’t.”

He continued, “I couldn’t because every time someone got too close, I saw your face. Every time someone tried to touch me, I remembered why I was on this journey of redemption in the first place. I lied about my experience because I wanted to seem like someone who had already moved on from you. I wanted you to think I was the one in control, when the reality is that no one has ever touched me… like that. Ever.”

Naruto released the breath he hadn't known he was holding. The envy that had been suffocating him vanished, replaced by a painful realization.

“No one knows me better than you,” Sasuke concluded. “There never was anyone else. It was always you, even when I tried with all my might to make it anyone else.”

The cloud of ecstasy dissipated, leaving only two people naked in spirit. A confession as painful as it was gratifying. He approached where Sasuke sat, knelt before him, and his hand brushed through Sasuke's bangs to get a better look.

“Why didn’t you say so?”

After a humorless laugh, he said, "I always hoped your obsession with me would equal mine, but the signs weren't enough."

“I wanted you to kiss me so I could know what it's like to kiss a man.”

“You’ve always been an unfiltered, curious person.”

“I wanted you to teach me how to kiss”

"Because there was a girl at home waiting for an answer."

“I wanted to kiss you in the woods.”

“You were confused…”

"For someone so intelligent, you're actually an idiot."

"At least I always knew I loved you, and I didn't need to get drunk to realize it."

Naruto laughed, trying to wipe away his tears. "In my defense, I thought it was normal to see your best friend and think about starting a family with him."

"That doesn't defend you, it makes you look more like an idiot."

“God, I love you.”

He pushed him back onto the bed, burying his face in his neck. “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you,” he murmured, his words absorbed by his skin. Sasuke’s arm gripped his head, allowing him to bury his nose at the base of his neck as well. “Sasuke, I love you. I love you. I love you.”

He felt Sasuke nod against him, still pressed tightly against him, feeling tears welling up on his neck. He allowed himself to pull back just a little to capture his lips, mingled with tears and saliva. He loved kissing him; it made perfect sense. There were no other lips he'd ever expected to kiss. They fell back onto the bed, still locked in the kiss, their hands intertwined at some point.

“So, when you agreed to teach me what it’s like to kiss a man…,” he murmured, his lips pressed against Sasuke’s chin, “…You wanted to kiss me.”

Sasuke seemed too happy to be embarrassed about it. "I thought you'd reject me, it was the most obvious thing, really."

“And when the Hinata incident happened…”

“Yes, I wanted to kiss you too,” he rolled his eyes.

"What an excuse to do it."

“I thought this would be my last chance to do it,” he rested his chin on Naruto’s chest, “after all, Iruka said she was the perfect woman for you.”

For a moment, he was mesmerized by how beautiful Sasuke looked, so gentle and attractive, his black eyes contrasting with his pale skin. Only after a moment did he realize that Sasuke was reproaching him for something, perhaps his romantic relationship with Hinata.

“Iruka just wanted me to be with someone, not alone,” he said, and Sasuke hummed, unconvinced. Sasuke combed his hair, tangling the smooth strands in his fingers, “but I was never alone, I have you.”

Now Sasuke's cheeks flushed, his brow furrowed in mock anger. "Don't say that."

“But it’s true,” and  he began to place kisses on the top of his head. “You’re my one and only.”

They remained like that for a moment, listening to their hearts beating in unison. The light of the full moon flooded the room; by now, they could easily see the silhouettes of each other's faces. After a long time, the knot that had been suffocating him had finally loosened, allowing him to openly admire Sasuke. As if it were the perfect place, his eyes began to close with Sasuke above him, his breathing slowing, his cheeks dry of tears. He closed his eyes gently, and then he heard him.

"I love you."

The smile on his face wouldn't disappear even if thousands of meteorites fell on him.

It was a relief to wake up and have Sasuke pressed against his chest. He almost feared that everything that had happened the night before had been a dream.

His black hair lay across the pillow, his long, white neck exposed, perfectly positioned for Naruto to kiss him. Still, he felt shy, resting his nose in the crook of his neck and inhaling softly, afraid Sasuke would be startled. His right hand was pressed against his chest, his left hand asleep.

Naruto loved every second.

Despite the bitter separation, Naruto felt an infinite joy that did not go unnoticed upon arriving at the village.

Sasuke returned to his secret missions before letting Naruto kiss every accessible part of his body. He hugged him tightly, wishing he could merge with him, carry him back to the village in his pocket. But he knew Sasuke hated going to the village; the memories and fears wouldn't fade even in years. Still, he promised to come see him. That was all he needed.

The first thing he did upon arriving was go to Sakura's office at the hospital. He found her buried in books, studying and practicing with her chakra; she was startled as soon as she saw him enter; in her own words, I've never seen such a wide smile on someone, it's terrifying. He wanted to tell her, in the most casual way possible, that he and Sasuke were seeing each other, but Sakura had other plans since she almost made the wall next to her explode.

“I knew it!” she exclaimed, the blow hitting the wall leaving a huge crack.

“What did you know?!” Naruto backed away to the other corner of the office, terrified.

"I mean, I don't really knew… But it really was the most plausible possibility,” she said, rolling her eyes. “You not mentioning Sasuke and somehow bringing up how handsome he is the last time you saw him would make me think you’re an imposter. The only logical reason why you couldn’t stop thinking about him, EVEN while you have a girlfriend, had to be that.”

“You're making it sound too obvious…”

"Because he was! Your spirit, your motivation, everything about you depends on Sasuke in some way. Someone might call it obsession instead of love, but since it was you two..."

“Why didn’t you mention it before?”

"You don't listen to me even when I tell you something clinically. Would you have listened to me if I told you that you liked Sasuke?"

Before he could answer, Sakura was told she was needed in the ward, so she just patted his shoulder and left the office.

He didn't know who else to tell. Everyone noticed something had changed, but he didn't know who he could trust enough to confide in. Kakashi was the second person he spoke to. The moment he walked into the office, Kakashi said "congratulations" without even looking up. Despite the humorous situation, he felt excluded. Did everyone know that Naruto loved Sasuke more than Naruto himself?

He thought about talking to Iruka, but decided to stay silent. Iruka didn't like Sasuke very much; in fact, he harbored a bit of resentment toward him. After years of seeing his beloved student chasing after him and suffering because of him, then seeing him in a hospital bed recovering from nothing less than an amputation, Naruto couldn't mention Sasuke's name without Iruka's face turning stern. He never said it outright, but that fatherly demeanor, the one who disapproved of his daughter's delinquent boyfriend, said it all.

He didn't feel like he was lying if he was just withholding part of the truth. So he simply told him that he was seeing someone and that he was very happy.

“Oh! That’s good to know,” he said, warming his hands in a cup of tea. “Do I know her?”

“Um…” he thought of a quick answer. “Maybe, I’m not sure.”

"Then show me a picture of her, so I can see if I've seen her before."

"S…he doesn't like photos, I don't have any," which is true, Sasuke doesn't like photos, so I couldn't show him one either if he wasn't hiding the truth.

“Too bad,” Iruka murmured, “and what’s she like? Is she pretty?”

“One beauty among thousands.”

"Wow! I hope you introduce me to her soon! I hope this girlfriend is the one!"

Seeing his genuine smile calmed Naruto's heart. At least he seemed happy that Naruto was with someone, and the way Naruto arrived with renewed energy told him he was happy too. His good humor was unfading; he could get bird droppings on his favorite shirt and still be grinning from ear to ear. He was more efficient on missions, with a 100% success rate—the complete opposite of how he'd been not long ago.

But something was bothering his throat. Especially after Iruka's last comment. Girlfriend. Well, actually, he'd be his boyfriend, but that's beside the point. They both admitted their feelings, quite dramatically as they always have been, but at no point did they label what they were; they simply accepted that they loved each other. He didn't even know if Sasuke considered him a boyfriend, besides the fact that he would be his first boyfriend—which made him incredibly happy.

Sasuke's letters arrived more frequently. Despite their scant content, Naruto treasured them with all his heart, especially when he read Sasuke saying "yours only" at the end. He would jump around the apartment until the neighbors complained. But in none of them did he mention the word boyfriend...or partner or whatever. He felt stupid for even thinking about something as trivial as a label.

Sasuke was now out of the country on a top-secret mission, the details of which even he knew nothing about. Kakashi refused to elaborate, but judging by his teacher's impassive expression, he accepted that he wouldn't see Sasuke for quite some time. He would have to count the months, just as he had done before realizing he loved Sasuke on his birthday.

Some time later, Naruto reconnected with Hinata. Not romantically, but as friends. She was feeling better after their bitter breakup, and she was even able to talk to him about it. She wasn't sure whether to tell him the details of why he decided to end things, but Hinata was more perceptive than she thought.

“Naruto-kun,” she said as she walked beside him, her hands clasped in front of her, “it was Sasuke-kun, wasn’t it?”

“Huh?”

“I mean—” she broke off nervously, her hands fidgeting, “I mean, I always noticed that Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun had something special. Whenever we were together, you talked about him, and I ended up learning more about him than about you. And the last time we kissed…” she stopped, her fingers playing with each other, “…You whispered his name…”

His feet got tangled and he fell face-first to the ground. Hinata let out a squeal and tried to help him up.

“Are you okay?” she asked breathlessly.

“Hinata, why-”, he stood up awkwardly, leaning on Hinata’s hand, “why didn’t you say anything? I was a complete jerk to you, I can’t believe I did that!”

Although he could believe it.

“Naruto-kun, what was I going to say?” she said with a smile on her face, so kind, “It was like a puzzle came together in my mind, suddenly everything made sense.”

“But it was unfair to you!”

“Of course it was, really unfair,” she agreed, “Even after you returned from your trip, even knowing it was the end, it hurt me more that you didn’t tell me the real reason.”

“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to tell you, it was that I really… didn’t even know what was wrong with me,” he said softly, looking into the girl’s gray eyes, “I’m so sorry, Hinata.”

“It’s okay, it’s in the past now,” she said gently, “I realized later that you were just as confused as I was, and even though you were a… I’m sorry —idiot, I can’t blame you completely.”

The conversation was a burden he hadn't known he carried upon being released. He left Hinata at a house he didn't recognize at first glance, but then saw Kiba open the door. Even though he and the werewolf-like had a good relationship, he still eyed him suspiciously when he dropped her off. That's how he learned that the two of them were something and she was very happy to know it.

The months passed like this, surviving on the short letters Sasuke sent him from the other side of the world. He watched as the days dragged by, painfully slow, only making him feel worse.

Once, a thick piece of paper fell from the bottom of a carefully sealed letter. When he picked it up, he saw it was a photograph, but not just any photograph—a photograph of Sasuke. He was facing the camera, his sharp eyes fixed on it, his face tilted slightly forward. He was wearing a navy blue suit, sitting on a small chair against a backdrop that looked like a bar. The back simply said:

A young man took these photos of me, I don't want them so you can keep them. 

He placed it in a frame he had bought that very afternoon to keep by his bedside. Every night he went to bed and kissed the glass protecting the picture, right where Sasuke's lips should have been.

And time passed until the beginning of October. Sakura arrived home with two jars of ramen and sat cross-legged on the floor, slurping the noodles. The original idea for the get-together was to talk about Naruto's upcoming birthday. He told her he'd prefer it to be a surprise so he wouldn't have to think so much about preparations, and Sakura rolled her eyes, dropping the subject to move on to ridiculous stories about the hospital.

He had written to Sasuke, subtly hinting at an upcoming important date. He left the invitation open, just as he had done on his birthday, saying he would leave his apartment door unlocked so he could simply push it open.

Naruto woke up on October 10th feeling down, as Sasuke wasn't snuggled up beside him. The reply letter arrived shortly after the one he'd sent, and neither mentioned him coming to the village. Breakfast was a gift from Teuchi, who let him choose whatever he wanted, as much as he wanted, refusing any payment. Soon, Kakashi joined them, escaping his Hokage duties to greet him. Everyone around remembered his birthday, congratulating him and some giving him small gifts. His spirits lifted even further when Iruka prepared lunch for him at his house, where he caught a faint scent of cake in the air, though he chose not to mention it.

Sakura and Sai went to find him, acting suspiciously (in reality, Sai seemed impassive) as they took Naruto to a nearby building. They blindfolded him and dragged him toward the entrance, guiding him as best they could. Only when they removed the blindfold did he see darkness until the lights came on and everyone was in the hall. Rock Lee and Tenten were clapping with party hats on their heads, Ino and Choji were cheering, Gaara, Temari, and Shikamaru were throwing confetti, and many more were there, including Yamato, Kakashi, Tsunade, and a teenage Konohamaru.

He couldn't help but laugh heartily with happiness, even though he had expected a surprise party. Sakura was now holding a large cake, which Iruka was surely making, with all 22 candles lit.

Naruto gazed at the crowd around him, his eyes sparkling with excitement. His trembling hands gripped the sides of the cake, trying to steady it. He blew out the candles after making his wish, and the grand hall erupted with energy as music, drinks, and games began. Everyone rushed to embrace him, those closest to him squeezing him so tightly he could barely breathe. The atmosphere was celebratory, and even with such infectious joy, Naruto's heart yearned for only one thing.

He joined in his friends' games, chatted with the older ones, and drank. All to drown that sad feeling. Only after he had exhausted all his energy laughing and dancing did he escape to the terrace for some fresh air. It was the middle of autumn, and the breeze was getting colder and colder, burning his cheeks. Even so, he breathed deeply until his nostrils stung.

But…

Reaching back, he caught a slender wrist between his fingers and pulled it to the edge of the terrace. He pinned the body against him, in a maneuver that would have been dangerous were it not for the reason why he would tear out his heart right in front of him.

“Sasuke.”

It came out in a whisper before he lunged at him, nuzzling his nose beneath his ear, inhaling deeply. His hand released his wrist to encircle his waist and travel up his back, pressing herself closer to his chest. His beloved's hand moved up to his hair and began to gently stroke the short strands. He pulled back to gaze at his face, as beautiful as it had been five months ago, his eyes half-closed in a relaxed expression, his black hair cascading over his shoulders, his cheeks flushed. He didn't have to wait long before leaning in to kiss him, capturing those lips he had longed for so much between his own. Sasuke seemed to remember the way his kisses felt, for he greeted it with a moan of contentment as their tongues brushed against each other, deepening the kiss as they held each other tightly.

“Damn, I missed you,” he said, his lips still trapped in his mouth. “I thought you weren’t coming.”

“Don’t be an idiot,” he murmured softly. “I missed you too.”

They melted into another kiss, this time slower, savoring the closeness. Sasuke's lower back bumped against the edge of the terrace, lifting him slightly and changing the angle of the kiss.

Naruto was definitely addicted. He never wanted to separate from his lips.

“Happy birthday, old man.”

“Shut up,” he said, pinching his side.

They stayed like that, gazing into each other's eyes, Sasuke's hand tracing the path from his biceps to his forearms. He didn't know when they had become so intimate, a mixture of so much time apart and the feelings stuck in his throat. Though deep down he knew he could never take his hands off Sasuke, not once.

“I couldn’t bring you a good gift, money was very scarce and time was tight,” he said, taking a small bag out of his inner jacket.

Naruto carefully opened it, revealing a braided bracelet with a protective inscription. It was well-made, of good material, and clearly hand-braided. He smiled sweetly and put it on, Sasuke helping to adjust it to his wrist until it fit snugly against his skin.

“It’s beautiful, Yumiko told me you’re good at braiding.”

“That girl…”, he clicked his tongue in mock annoyance.

Sasuke's hand remained still on his wrist, gently caressing the area of ​​her pulse, the calluses on his fingertips carefully brushing against his skin. He brought his other hand closer and began to stroke the back of his wrist, in a complicity only they could share.

“Sasuke… I need to ask you something.”

“Don’t you think the people downstairs will worry if you don’t come back?”

“I can call a clone if that really worries you,” he said, rushing to summon it, but Sasuke stopped him, laughing softly.

“Tell me what you want to know, you blockhead.”

His hands began to sweat; he wanted to wipe them on his pants, but the coldness of Sasuke's skin prevented him from moving away.

“You…” he cleared his throat nervously, “you really are important to me, realizing that I loved you was the best thing that could have happened to me.”

Sasuke stared at him intently, his eyes wandering between his lips and pupils. He swallowed hard again and continued:

“And I know the distance is complicated and that we don’t see each other as often as I’d like,” his voice began to tremble slightly. “Even so, I want us to… I want us to be boyfriend and boyfriend, I mean—yeah, boyfriend and boyfriend or whatever you want to call it. We can… do what normal young people do, make it official and—and get married I know we're not normal young people and nothing about us is normal, but—I'd like to be able to tell everyone that I'm—married to Sasuke Uchiha, you know?”

He felt the words spilling out without any meaning, practically vomiting sentences onto Sasuke's feet. He didn't know when he stopped looking into his beloved's eyes, or when his hand began to squeeze his tightly, afraid he would vanish.

And Sasuke was silent. Then he panicked as he began to open his mouth to say:

“Naruto, I need you to give me some time to-”

“If it’s too much of a problem we can stay like this, we don’t need labels or a wedding, I just want you—I’m being childish and sentimental, I just…”, he stammered, “I just want to be with you.”

“Naruto, yes, I do want to. I want everything, but—” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple twitching, Naruto’s mind betraying him, and he thought about biting it. “I need to do something first, before I can accept, I need to…”

"I don't understand."

“Tomorrow, tomorrow you’ll have your answer,” he said firmly. “But I need to do this first.”

“Can’t you do me the favor?” he pouted, his head tilting heavily to Sasuke’s shoulder, “Because it’s my birthday.”

“Hey, idiot,” he lifted his face with his hand, letting the weight fall into his palm, “I love you.”

It was like a band-aid on a wound, after his pseudo-request had been postponed until tomorrow. He took Sasuke's lips as soon as he recovered, quickly deepening the kiss until he felt his beloved's ragged breath. His hands gripped his waist, reveling in his body, pulling them closer until parts of his body began to awaken.

“Oh-”, someone murmured behind them.

They turned quickly to face the intruder. A sigh of relief escaped them when it was just the pink-haired girl in the doorway with a bottle of white wine in her hand.

“Sasuke-kun! I’m so glad you came!”

Sasuke already knew that Sakura knew, so he quickly relaxed when he heard her speak.

Her friend quickly covered her mouth. “Excuse me for interrupting! Some guests are already leaving, so the birthday boy should go and say his goodbyes.”

“Ah! We’re coming,” he said, tugging at Sasuke’s hand, but ended up being pulled back by Sasuke’s motionless body. “Hey, come on!”

“You can go, birthday boy. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Sasuke-kun, you can go down, there are no enemies down there,” Sakura said, moving a little closer to them. “Well… I think.”

“I won’t actually be coming down, but thank you. Enjoy the rest of the evening.”

He turned directly to Naruto, whose eyes held that wounded puppy-dog gleam. He whispered "tomorrow," and Naruto nodded before pulling Sasuke toward his for a chaste kiss that made Sakura turn away in embarrassment.

"Tomorrow."

He disappeared as quickly as he had arrived. And despite that conflicting feeling, his mood shifted to a more relaxed one. Only those in the know noticed the change in his mood and quickly understood what had happened.

He woke up with a hangover, it was already mid-afternoon, having slept for more than twelve hours after partying with his friends until the early hours. The renewed energy from Sasuke's visit on the rooftop in the middle of the night allowed him to sing karaoke for rounds until his throat was sore.

He lifted his feet from the bedspread and shuffled out of the room. He poured himself a glass of water in the kitchen, and as he was about to take a sip while looking out the window, he noticed Iruka sitting on the sofa with a steaming cup of tea.

He stifled a scream, almost dropping the glass to the floor in a mess. Iruka smiled gently at him:

“Good afternoon, Naruto.”

“Iruka-sensei!”

“Don’t shout, I heard you almost lost your voice at karaoke,” he began stirring his tea with a spoon, the shimmering sound waking the neurons in his brain. “I came to check on you since you hadn’t been in touch for hours, and Kakashi told me you were half-fainted at the end of the party.”

“That explains the hangover,” he whispered to himself.

“I left your lunch heating up, sit down and eat, you must be hungry.”

Despite obeying, he felt something was very wrong with the way Iruka looked at him as he sat down at the table and served him lunch like a small child. He placed the steaming bowl in front of him and sat down at the front, still holding his teacup. He picked up his chopsticks and ate as if he hadn't touched food in years, his cheeks filling with fat.

“Iruka-sensei, how did you get in?”

“I’m a ninja, Naruto,” he said smugly, “although I was actually able to get in because they didn’t lock the door.”

“Oh.”

If it's true, those who left him in home kept their promise of leaving the door open if Sasuke decides to visit him in the night. At least Iruka was the one who found his door open. He slurped what was left of the bowl straight from the rim to his lips and sighed contentedly.

“Didn’t your girlfriend come to your birthday?” Iruka asked, looking at him with one hand on his chin.

“Um… No,” he replied cautiously, preparing to lie. “She was busy tonight, so we agreed to meet later.”

"At least you'll see each other later, you must be eager."

“Yes, haha,” he laughed humorlessly, pretending to scrape food scraps from her bowl.

Iruka would be smiling at him, but with a very strange smile.

"And how is Sasuke?"

A shiver ran down his spine. "Sasuke? Oh well, he must be on some mission, haha!" He got up from the table to wash the bowl and avoid Iruka's gaze.

“So, he didn’t come to your birthday,” he said behind his back, and Naruto started to sweat profusely.

“Well, it’s not like I can come very often anyway!” he started rubbing hard. “Besides, what would I come for, hahaha!”

He heard footsteps behind him but didn't dare turn around, focused on removing invisible stains from his chopsticks.

“Naruto, I already know.”

He turned off the water and calmly turned around. “You know what?”

Iruka sighed, grabbed the back of Naruto's shirt collar and pulled him towards the sofa, forcing him to sit next to him.

"That your girlfriend, the most beautiful among thousands, is Sasuke."

He could have continued fighting to deny it, but seeing Iruka's tired eyes, he knew it was true and that it was from a first-party source.

“How did you find out?” he muttered, embarrassed by his previous actions.

“Sasuke.”

Almost as if it were a bad joke, he looked at him, confused. "Sasuke told you? When?"

“Early this morning.”

Seeing Naruto's face contorted with confusion, Iruka sighed, rolling his eyes, and settled himself on the sofa before beginning.

“He knocked on my door early this morning. I thought he was a neighbor, and you can imagine I almost had a heart attack when I saw him standing there,” his face impassive. “It was unexpected. I didn’t know whether to let him in or find out if it was a mistake. But then he asked me directly if he could talk to me, with that serious face that says he must have to give in.”

“He stood there in the living room even though I invited him to sit down. I thought about making him something to drink since he looked so tired. I was about to get up when I saw him slumped over in front of me. It was so terrifying I thought I was having a nightmare.”

Naruto was puzzled but didn't dare to interrupt.

“Then he said…” he pursed his lips before quoting. “That he knew my opinion about your life is important to you. And he knew I didn’t have the better opinion of him. But to please, give you my blessing so that… you guys can be a couple.

I was a little slow to understand, but then I realized that the girl you were talking about was actually a boy, Sasuke, specifically,” he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. “And that they hadn’t made it official yet.”

“He said he had to do something first,” he whispered.

“Naruto told me that you were the most precious thing in his life, that you were the bond that kept him alive. That he didn't want to hurt you again, that he loved you too much, but that he didn't want to be the reason he had to walk away or feel trapped. Or the reason you and I broke ties. He just wanted my blessing since he knew it was important to you, even if you wouldn't admit it.”

“And what… what did you say?”

Iruka shifted in his seat. “I don’t know Sasuke very well as a person. I know all the crimes he committed and I know his motivations, but I also saw everyone worried sick about him, and him belittling them. Especially you, since it was impossible to stop thinking about saving him,” he said gently. “But I also know that I’ve never seen you as happy as you have been these past few months, that every time you talk about him your face lights up, and when you’re not with him you fade away.”

"What I'm trying to say, Naruto, is that all I care about is your happiness. I've known you since you were little, and I want to see that little boy start a family and be happy, no matter what."

He couldn't hold back much longer before tears streamed down his cheeks. He hadn't truly realized how important those words were to him until the moment he said them. Sasuke really knew his heart. Imagining Sasuke asking Iruka, the closest thing to a father figure in his life, for his blessing on their relationship was an image that would stay with him for ages.

Iruka patted him on the shoulders, not really knowing how to restrain the young man.

"So if you haven't made it official, I think it's the perfect time before he leaves, don't you think?"

He nodded, his eyes closed to stop the tears from flowing. He quickly put on his pants before leaving the house, but not before giving Iruka a look full of emotion.

Everything was clear. He planned to lie to Iruka for as long as necessary, and if Iruka disapproved of their relationship, he would have to distance himself from him, even though it would break his heart. Now that he knew he loved Sasuke and that the feeling was mutual, nothing would stop him from being with him. Sasuke, as perceptive as he was, knew this before he even considered it.

Love was a very simple word to explain everything I felt for him.

He approached some waterfalls where Sasuke's chakra danced, stopped among the rocks, and saw Sasuke, submerged in the crystal-clear water, his body shimmering in the water's reflection. His hands began to tremble with anticipation. His Sasuke is so beautiful.

He took off his shirt and clothes, leaving them scattered on some rocks. As soon as his feet touched the water, he realized it was warm, just right for swimming. Sasuke was still facing away from him; his bare skin was all he wanted to touch, an extraordinary beauty. He was only a few steps away from him when he reached out, and Sasuke's body vanished in a mist. He didn't process what had happened until he felt his body submerge in the now deeper water. He opened his eyes and saw him.

Sasuke took his hand, sinking with him, the brightness of the sky still allowing them to see each other. He was smiling, his lips sealed and his face calm, surely laughing at him to himself. Naruto gripped his hand tighter and pulled him closer, his other hand catching the back of his neck, letting out a breath as soon as their lips met. Their hands remained together, intertwined.

Their bodies floated in that whimsical position, then he took advantage of his ability to crash against his chest and make them swim upwards. Even with the wind whipping against their heads, they didn't break the kiss, they only deepened it. They already knew each other's tongues, they already knew how they moved and the sounds they made; they were addicted to the sensation. Their bare skin together was all they needed to survive.

As they walked away, Naruto chuckled softly.

"My Sasuke..."

The dark-haired man looked away, embarrassed, but still letting their chests brush against each other. “I… I couldn’t stop thinking about how important it was for you that Iruka approves of your relationships.”

“Mm…”, he hummed, leaving kisses on his beloved’s cheekbone.

"Like with Hinata..."

“Hmmm”, his kisses descended to his neck, enjoying Sasuke’s scent.

“Naruto.”

“Mm?”

“My beloved.”

It was like he'd been slapped, but in a really good way. He stepped back, his eyes shining, his gaze fixed on Sasuke's. He was everything to him, he truly was.

“My beloved,” he said, caressing his cheek as tears streamed down his face. “I can’t believe you bowed to Iruka-sensei…”

“Shut up, don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not making fun of you!” he pulled him closer. “I really love you, Sasuke. You’re fascinating in every way.”

“I love you,” he whispered, a little quieter than Naruto but with the same intensity in his eyes. “And I wanted to do things right.”

“You did them perfectly.”

It didn't matter how long it took them to realize they were meant for each other. Beyond secret kisses and hidden meanings, where Naruto is, there's Sasuke, and where Sasuke is, there's Naruto, whether in each other's thoughts or physically. They don't know how they survived without touching, without kissing, without telling each other they loved each other, but that's in the past. Now, there would be no eternity without them loving each other.

They sealed their fate from the moment they met and now they continue it with a kiss.