21: Shadowed Feelings (Sasuke's POV)

Shadowed Feelings (Sasuke's POV)

Konoha was loud. Too loud.

Sasuke stood atop Hokage Rock, arms crossed, watching the village below. It should have felt the same as before, but it didn't.

Naruto was back.

The idiot had somehow defied time itself. Again.

Sasuke exhaled through his nose, trying to ignore the strange tightness in his chest.

It should have been simple. Naruto had been erased, so Sasuke brought him back. That was all there was to it.

But it wasn't.

Because now, Naruto didn't know.

Didn't know how many nights Sasuke spent staring at the empty Hokage monument. Didn't know how his name, his face, his entire existence had been ripped from the world.

Didn't know how Sasuke alone remembered.

Naruto had been gone.

And Sasuke had been the only one left to care.

That should have been fine.

He had spent years convincing himself that Naruto was just his rival. Just a bond formed from childhood stubbornness.

But that wasn't true, was it?

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair, frustrated.

Naruto had returned, grinning like nothing had happened. He didn't realize the weight of it. How deeply Sasuke had needed him back.

And that realization was infuriating.

He could fight Naruto. Argue with him. Chase him to the ends of the world.

But this?

This feeling that clawed at his chest, tightening every time Naruto laughed—

This, he didn't know how to fight.

"Tch. Idiot." Sasuke muttered under his breath.

Naruto's voice rang out from below, carrying through the village.

"Oi, bastard! You just gonna stand up there looking broody? C'mon, I'm hungry!"

Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment.

That voice. That familiar, insufferable presence.

For years, he had convinced himself he could live without it.

But now that Naruto was back?

He wasn't letting go again.

"Hn. Coming, dobe."

And if Naruto ever disappeared again…

Sasuke would tear time apart himself to bring him back.

The night air was cool against Sasuke's skin as he sat on the roof of the old Uchiha district. From here, the village stretched below him, bathed in moonlight.

And somewhere down there—probably stuffing his face with ramen—was Naruto.

Sasuke exhaled slowly, tilting his head back to stare at the stars.

Naruto had always been loud. Impossible to ignore. And yet, now that the world had forgotten him once, Sasuke found himself hyper-aware of him in a way that irritated him to no end.

Or maybe that was a lie.

Maybe what irritated him was why he felt that way.

It had taken losing Naruto—really losing him—to realize something.

Something that had been there for a long time.

And now, with Naruto back, Sasuke couldn't unsee it.

He'd been watching Naruto more than he should. Catching the way his eyes brightened when he talked about the village. The way his mouth quirked up before a teasing insult. The way he leaned too close when he spoke, like he had no concept of personal space.

It was unbearable.

Because it meant something.

And Sasuke didn't do feelings.

Not like this.

Not for him.

"Tch." He ran a hand down his face, irritated at himself. This wasn't some ridiculous love story. He wasn't some fool caught in his emotions.

It was just Naruto.

Naruto, who had chased him for years. Who had fought him, broken him, saved him.

Naruto, who had left a void when he was gone.

And now—Naruto, who was here.

Sasuke let out a slow breath. He knew the truth now.

He just didn't know what the hell to do with it.

"Oi, bastard!"

Sasuke's fingers twitched at the familiar voice. He didn't need to look to know Naruto was behind him.

Of course he was.

"What do you want, dobe?" he asked, keeping his tone flat.

Naruto landed beside him with a heavy thud, legs crossed, grinning like he had no care in the world.

"You disappeared after dinner. Figured I'd come find you."

Sasuke didn't respond. Didn't trust himself to.

Naruto sighed, leaning back on his hands.

"Y'know, when I was erased… I don't really remember what it felt like. But I do know one thing."

Sasuke glanced at him. "What?"

Naruto grinned, eyes half-lidded, gaze flicking to the stars.

"Somewhere, somehow… you still remembered me."

Sasuke's breath caught for half a second.

He turned away before Naruto could see the way his fingers curled into his sleeve.

"Hn. Don't get cocky, idiot."

Naruto laughed, warm and carefree. Too close.

Sasuke clenched his jaw, staring ahead.

Naruto would never know.

Never know how close Sasuke had been to breaking time itself just to see him again.

Never know how deeply Sasuke had missed him.

Never know that, for the first time in his life—

Sasuke was afraid of losing someone.

Because if it was Naruto…

He wasn't sure he'd survive it.