Home

Are We Going Home?

Sasuke's head jerks up from its deep slumber. His eyes are blurry as they adjust to the sunrise spreading it's misty light onto the Uchiha courtyard beside him. He looks around, vividly remembering the occurrences from the night before. Him and Naruto reunited, finally, but their conversation and time together lasted only a mere hour. He smells the dewey air and the remnants of Naruto's piercing cologne. His eyes trail to where the blonde had fallen asleep a few hours ago, except he's no longer there. Sasuke is surprised Naruto was able to make his way without him noticing. He must've been nearly as drained as Naruto was.

Waking up alone is a scene that'd been imprinted in his mind for a long time. There was a part of him hoping to see the idiot laying there, sprawled out, waiting for Sasuke's touch to draw him out of his dreams and back into reality, but, of course, that wasn't the case. He leaned his head back against the pole and sighed. As he replays the moments from the night before in his mind, he doesn't know what to make of his emotions or the conversation itself. It was just... Normal. He'd mentioned Hinata... When Shikamaru talked about him missing a lot, was it just that everyone seemed to have found their... Person? When Sakura said a lot of them had moved on and found love... Was she talking about more than just Sai and Ino? Or Shikamaru and Temari? Was Naruto a part of that equation... He knew Sakura and Naruto were close, with near familial bonds, so it wouldn't surprise him, if he'd confided in her, or if she helped him express his love for Hinata... He wasn't the most bright, so it was believable. But if Hinata was his "home..."

Sasuke scoffs at the idea, drawing his eyes away from the imprint Naruto had left in the blanket.

And with that, a feeling he'd managed to fully suppress came bubbling up his throat, triggered: Jealousy. Sure, he'd always been jealous of Naruto and it wasn't something he was proud of, but this was hopeless jealousy. Even though Sasuke was trying to understand his emotions toward his friend, he might've been too late. If Naruto found his "home" with Hinata, maybe that was Sasuke's answer. He was stuck.

Sasuke gulps, attempting to swallow the jealousy.

He squints as the peaking sun blinds him. He's sure the world had woken up and begun their routine, meaning it should be time for him to start his, and so he does just that. He grabs the blanket and pillows and heads into his house, catching one, final sniff of the blonde's musk.

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Sasuke, without his cloak on, stands in the middle of the training grounds, which he used to frequent as a child. It seemed to have been untouched for quite some time. He wasn't sure why he was training, perhaps it was the lack of motivation to do anything else... He holds three shuriken's in between each of his fingers. And as his eyes shut, the world goes silent... He jumps up, does a swift back flip and tosses the shuriken's with vigor. All three hit dead center on their targets.

As he lands on his feet with perfection, a branch cracks behind him. Whipping himself around, he spots Sakura. She waves and gives him a soft smile.

"I dropped by your place earlier." She explains. "I came looking."

Sasuke releases his tensed muscles and walks over to his cloak, placing it over his shoulder. "Have you been here all day?" She asks as he walks next to her.

"Yeah."

Sakura nods. "There hasn't been many missions for us, lately. I don't think any of us have been out here in months." That'd explain why it felt deserted. Sasuke looked to Sakura, whose hands were clasped together in front of her as she walked, as if she was holding something in.

"What is it?" He asks.

Sakura looked up at him, a faint blush running across her cheeks. "Oh, I didn't know if you'd be interested, but a few of us are going out tonight to celebrate."