A C C E P T A N C E

D A M S E L

"Tch, where is that loser?" Sasuke's smooth voice uttered his complaint against the harsh wind as we sprinted through the trees, side by side. Our feet moved nimbly, completely in sync as we jumped from tree branch to tree branch, traveling at our highest speed in order to locate Suigetsu.

"We've only been searching for a few minutes, Sasuke," I replied, forming a tight line with my lips. "I'm trying to locate his chakra again."

As I weaved my chakra into the natural energy surrounding us, I forced myself to spread my sensory radius as far as I could. I was undeniably worried about my troublemaker of a best friend, unsure of what the hell could have convinced him to stray so far, and the evidence of my concern was written all over my face despite my attempt to control it.

He knew better, damnit; Suigetsu knew better than to leave my radius if we ever split up, so it was becoming increasingly hard for me to not imagine the worse possible scenarios. I kept repeating over and over in my head that Suigetsu was strong, he was a capable shinobi who could hold his own against an enemy. But unfortunately, none of those thoughts reassured me in the least as the minutes of his absence continued to increase.

"You'd think he'd be smart enough to stay close by," Sasuke sneered under his breath.

I frowned, unsure whether I was meant to hear his words or not.

"He is..." I whispered, hearing my voice crack and mentally cursing myself because of it. I couldn't let myself slip back into my depressive thoughts, not when I'd come this far. I had made so much progress, I couldn't allow myself to drown in doubt again. I absolutely couldn't.

As if sensing my distress, Sasuke's head turned in my direction. His onyx stare studied the falsity of my crumbling, blank expression, and from my peripheral I watched his lips mimic my own. Then, as we continued running, I felt a hand slide over my lower back, positioned beneath the bag that also occupied that space. His thumb stroked against the fabric of my shirt in a reassuring gesture, and I couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow over at him, not expecting his reaction at all.

"Is Sasuke Uchiha trying to comfort me right now?" I asked, making my surprise apparent.

His rich eyes held my stare for less than a second before rolling to accompany his usual scoff. His hand abandoned me in the next instant, and found itself raking through his hair instead before taking refuge in his pocket.

"You just had to open your mouth, huh?" He was facing forward now with an unreadable expression, but his tone was playful as I punched his arm lightly.

"It just seemed a bit out of character," I admitted with a shrug, still spreading my chakra as thin as possible for me to receive an accurate reading. "But hey, if twenty one year old Sasuke has the capability of admitting his wrong doings, then I guess anything is possible."

"Hn, shut up Ayuka," he smirked at me. "Just focus on finding the knucklehead so we can get back on course."

I smiled.

"There's the Sasuke I know."

~~~~~

"Sui--!" My alarmed shout was quickly muffed by a hand slapping against my mouth.

"Hush," Sasuke's hot breath fanned over my ear as he extinguished my words, and a subconscious blush stained my cheeks. "Did you lose brain cells traveling with that imbecile?"

His other arm was wrapped around my shoulders strongly, holding me against him as our feet came to a hard land on the closest tree branch. Flustered at both his closeness and his actions, I hastily shrugged out of his grip and scowled at him.