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dmitrykaramazov · 2 months

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Ah, as soon as he said it he almost regretted it. All he'd done now was build up Naruto's anticipation about this gift, when it was really—well, really such a small thing, he wasn't even sure that Naruto would like it.

"Well, don't get so excited, it's really not a big deal ... hey—!" he exclaimed lightly when Naruto pulled him along with his trademark enthusiasm for a big bowl of ramen. Great, dammit. Now he somehow had to make his gift stand up against Teuchi's pork miso ramen, which might very well be Naruto's favorite thing in the world.

He had absolutely set himself up for failure. But he didn't have a better suggestion where to go, and he supposed that he could go for something to eat. Naruto's enthusiasm was such that they'd turned up at Ichiraku's in barely five minutes.

Just like old times, Sasuke thought. Naruto had changed physically, but he was still ... he really was the same old Naruto still. In some ways.

"Naruto! Well, you're here earlier than usual," Teuchi greeted warmly as they approached and took a seat. "And you've brought a friend, too ... uh ..." he trailed off, clearly struggling to recognize him.

Sasuke was well past grimacing at this sort of awkwardness. "Sasuke," not enough to go from, "Uchiha."

"That's right! Mikoto's kid," Teuchi said, and for a moment, Sasuke's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Well, look at that. How you've grown. Now tell me, what can I get you two?"

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dmitrykaramazov · 2 months

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… I can ensure that Naruto is stationed in Konoha on the days of your arrival. Then again, if there is some crucial piece of information you must relay, I should remind you that it can just as easily be relayed to me (I am, upon my last check, still Hokage …) In any case, I’ll ensure that he’s around. I don’t think he’d forgive me if I let him miss your stop by the village, either. I hope you intend to stay long. Safe travels, Sasuke. Signed, Kakashi

Sasuke’s eyes scan the last portion of his former mentor’s letter over and over again. The more times he does, for whatever reason, he feels some odd warmth in his stomach grow, some light flutter that won’t go away. Occasionally, that same warmth feels like it travels upwards, colouring his face a pale, sheepish red. Both him and Jugo have been on the road to Konoha for the past couple of days, stopping at a quiet, hidden ryokan in Cha no Kuni the night before, if only so that the two of them could take a proper bath in the hot springs. It had been just around dawn when he’d dipped into the warm water; now, the afternoon sun was pulling a light sheen of sweat over his skin again.

Sasuke sighed, pocketed the letter, paid no mind to Jugo’s somewhat preoccupied glance. He had the letter that many times now, that at some point he’d felt forced to show it to his companion as well. If there was something in it to feel concern over, Sasuke had added no such context aside from merely shoving the letter into Jugo’s hand and counting on him to understand what Sasuke himself was struggling to put into words. If Jugo did, in fact, understand, he was kind enough not to say anything that might press his own nerves.

It had been two years now. Granted, that time frame felt simultaneously much longer, much shorter than that. Time passed alarmingly quickly when one was busy; they’d travelled rather far and wide in that time, exploring, learning, researching a couple things of import. Two years were also a very long time not to see someone. He could feel the weight of Naruto’s last letter against his chest, that inner pocket of his jacket where he usually carried his most recent letter—he told himself it was for easy reference whenever he had time to write back, but then that didn’t explain why he’d re-read it long after he’d already sent his reply and was waiting for Naruto’s next. He wondered how much Naruto had changed, too. How much of it was likely impossible to put on paper.

“Jugo, we’re not far,” Sasuke noted. He knew the outskirts of Konoha like the back of his hand, at least the outer parts that hadn’t called for reconstruction after Pain’s attack on the village center. “Could you … ask your birds to scout him out?” His usually quiet companion gave him only an affirmative hum. As they walked through the woods, Sasuke watched each colourfully feathered bird flock over, chirping happily on Jugo’s arm before finally flying off. It was a small spectacle of nature he’d always enjoyed watching, but as he watched the birds fly off he could feel only his sense of anticipation growing. It grew particularly louder when they began to approach Konoha’s gate and Jugo’s birds still hadn’t returned.

“Nothing?” Sasuke asked, parting his hair across the middle of his face to make both eyes visible. It would ensure easy recognition when they made it to the gate. Aside from the fact that his hair had grown slightly past his shoulders not much had significantly changed, he thought, but who knew how many new jonin the village had acquired in the past two years? They might not recognize or even remember him. A small part of him hoped that was the case, but the rest of him was not foolish enough to put his hopes on that.

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