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As Sasuke hopped from branch to branch above the dimly lit camp site, he couldn't escape from the smile brimming on the edges of his lips. He'd always enjoyed the occasionally banter and teasing with his teammate, especially when he had the upper hand. Throughout his full day of travel into the Village Hidden in the Rain, he'd felt a constant, yet gradual increase in his body temperature that paralleled the anticipation coursing through his veins. There was plenty of time during his journey that he questioned whether or not he should be going. He didn't let anyone know he was leaving the village and he barely gave himself enough time to logically conclude the best course of action. In the worst case scenario, he could lose all credibility and find himself in a prison cell again... He didn't want to think that of Konoha, but he still had to answer to the elders, no matter how senile and unreasonable they were. The only ones on his side were the ones who knew him, but even then... Some were still wary of his presence. How was he supposed to prove his allegiance if he was never allowed outside the village though? It was ludicrous.

As he landed on the ground, a mud puddle wet his ankles, dirtying up his pants and shoes. His eternal smile from his rekindling with Naruto quickly faded into a shadowed grimace. It's not like he was already beyond dirty, but something about wet shoes took the cake. He walked over to the first dry spot he could see and lingered under it. He took a deep breath, feeling the wave of exhaustion hit him like a ton of bricks, but then...

Sasuke's eyes widened at the rumble exuding from his body's middle region.

I'm hungry.

It seemed that the anticipation of seeing Naruto again and joining their mission concealed his immense hunger. But now that he was focusing on it... Sasuke's face became pained as he keeled over to groan, his wet hair slicked to the sides of his face. His eyes widened... He hadn't eaten since he'd saw Sai near 48 hours ago.

He looked around, heading towards the camp site, hoping not to wake Sakura up... It was dark and raining... Which made it difficult to search for any food. He was assuming they would be in back packs or travel bags, yet... What if they ate fish? What if they'd run out of their rationed meals and had to think on the spot every day... Catch their food...

Sasuke looked up towards the emptiness near where Naruto was... After he'd teased, regained the control, consumed the power, and gained back his confidence... He was now going to grovel for food from his ramen-obsessed friend.

His stare into the bleak forest, must've caught Naruto's eye, because, soon enough, he wandered back onto the camp site. Sasuke could tell that Naruto was still building himself up after Sasuke's quick retreat, so he didn't speak to him. They both just stared at each other as the heavy rain lifted into a light mist.

Sasuke loved feeling the power in his hands and seeing Naruto be near speechless, which was unlike him. It wasn't an uneasy speechless at all, which made Sasuke's smirk reappear. This speechless was more like... Lovestruck.

However, Sasuke's reign of power was quickly surrendered as he gripped his cloak, covering his stomach and inhaled sharply. A loud growl billowed out onto the campsite. This misfortune caused Naruto's head to tilt and his hand to fly straight over his mouth to stop himself from bursting out in laughter. And with pleading eyes, Sasuke groveled for food of any kind, casting aside his pickiness.

Naruto lead Sasuke to the edge of the water, where he was standing before. They looked out over the misty, moonlit space.

"We've basically been only eating fish, y'know." Naruto perched himself on top of a boulder, looking down at Sasuke, who was holding a makeshift fishing rod in his hands.

Sasuke felt eerily domesticated as he waited for a fish to bite the bait at the edge of the clear stringed rod. There were many, more simple, ways to catch a fish, but a majority of them would gather unwanted attention from either their comrades, or enemies. So, the long and steady journey to catching a fish seemed to be the only option.