Sasuke remained by Sakura's side for about an hour, thinking about how she fought for his affections, and he never returned them. 'She's gone, she's gone, she's gone,' his mind chanted over and over, flashing images of her when she laughed, when she cried, when she beat Naruto over the head for something stupid, and most of all when she made lovey eyes at him. Suddenly a hand lighted on his shoulder. It was Kakashi.
"We're leaving now. Others from the village will take care of her body." Kakashi said solemnly. Sasuke said nothing as he rose, turning away from her body. 'Even the dobe is quiet,' he thought to himself, 'He really cared about her, but she did to him what I did to her. Ignored him.' These words left the taste of bile in his mouth, making him want to vomit. He resisted the urge and continued walking back to Konoha with a heavy heart.
As the remaining members of Team 7 re-entered Konoha, a bell tolled once, signifying to the village that one ninja was lost. Sasuke winced at the sound, remembering the day Itachi destroyed his life.
Sasuke returned from a day of lessons at the Academy, finding the house unusually quiet and dark. "Mother? Father?" he called into the darkness, a young boy of seven. He trudged up the stairs, feeling slightly concerned with each step. He headed toward his room, noticing that something was amiss; the door to his parents' room was ajar. He pushed it open, eyes wide with horror at what he saw. His parents were dead, blood seeping into the tatami mats beneath them. It was there he saw a note on the wall across the room. He walked slowly, avoiding the tainted tatami mats, at grabbed the note. He scanned it over, hands shaking at the name signed at the bottom.
"Itachi," he whispered to the silent room, tears falling down his cheeks.
"Sasuke! Look out!" Naruto shouted, snapping him from a memory. He had nearly walked into a cart piled with citrus fruits.
"Watch where yer goin'!" the owner growled.
"Gomen," Sasuke said quietly as he continued heading for home, Naruto at his heels.
"Quit following me, dobe," Sasuke growled with no feeling behind it.
"We live on the same road, remember?" Naruto said angrily. Sasuke plodded forward, eyes focused on the mansion far down the road and the development even farther away.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Naruto asked angrily. Sasuke whipped around, piercing Naruto with a deadly glare. Naruto proceeded to badger him, ignoring the daggers nearly shooting from Sasuke's ebony eyes.
"Leave me alone, Naruto." Sasuke replied in a venomous voice.
"I know Sakura was just killed, but it's not like you had feelings for her! You ignored her!" Naruto said, nearly shouting at him. That was the last straw for Sasuke, who drew a kunai and held it to Naruto's throat.
"I. Said. Leave. Me. Alone." Sasuke whispered into Naruto's ear, pushing him forward and releasing him. Naruto had a frightened look in his eyes, backing away from Sasuke, who returned the kunai to his holster and continued walking.
"Sasuke.." Naruto said softly, sadness saturating his voice.
"Hn?" Sasuke asked none to kindly as he looked back at the younger shinobi. Naruto ran forward, locking him into a tight hug, sobbing.
"Sakura-chan's gone. She's really gone." he managed to say between sobs. Sasuke gently put his arms around the younger boy, his muscular frame shaking, unsure of what to do or say. Naruto cried on Sasuke for several minutes until he regained enough composure to walk forward. Sasuke still had his arm draped around Naruto's shoulder, trying to support his comrade when all he wanted to do himself was collapse into tears. He remained stiff, if not emotionless as they walked. They reached the Uchiha mansion, Sasuke turning down the walk to his front door when Naruto said suddenly, "Don't leave me, Sasuke. Don't leave me alone." Fresh tears sprang into his eyes, and Sasuke sighed inwardly.
"Come on, dobe, but just this once." Sasuke said, defeated. He let the younger shinobi into his home, hoping his company would make some of the pain recede.
He led Naruto into the kitchen, and began preparing some hot tea to calm himself and the boy.
"I only have Earl Grey. Is that ok?" he asked, looking to Naruto, who barely managed a nod. He set some hot water to boil and took two mugs from a cupboard and placed a teabag in each. While the water was heating, Sasuke made a small plate of crackers, cheese, and some pepperoni. He placed this in the center of the table and sat opposite of Naruto. The silence was only broken by his sporadic hitching and the kettle whistling, announcing with a scream that the water was done. Sasuke rose, pouring water into each mug and carried it to the table, setting one in front of Naruto.
"Thank you, Sasuke." he mumbled, head still bent.
Sasuke allowed his tea to steep for several silent minutes, watching Naruto with great intensity. 'He's never this quiet.' Sasuke thought to himself. Almost as if Naruto had heard this, he looked up and stared into Sasuke's dark eyes, his own devoid of their usual cheer. Naruto removed the teabag from his mug, squeezing the last bits of water from it. Sasuke did the same to his own and took a sip, feeling some of the tension in his head slip away.
"Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden?" Naruto asked with a hint of suspicion. Sasuke fixed him with another if-looks-could-kill-you'd-be-dead glare.
"Because, baka, you asked me not to leave you alone, so I didn't," he replied. 'I probably should've left him on my doorstep.' Sasuke thought bitterly. Naruto brushed off the death glare and insult, taking his words at face value. 'What the hell is he up to? First he tries to kill me, then he invites me into his house, then gives me food and drink! I don't get him!' Naruto took a small sip of his tea, finding it rather tasty and soothing, and tossed his previous thought aside. 'Maybe he really does care.'
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Chapter notes: I still don't own Naruto, and I never will. Slightly AU.
"speech"
'thoughts'
flashback