Blood of the Broken, Scars of the Spiral (there are whirlpools in our veins)

Chapter Twenty-Three

Even a second of freedom is worth more than a lifetime of bondage. 

- James Frey

//

Naruto eyed Sasuke cautiously as they approached the Academy. The other boy's face was blank and motionless as a carved statue, his eyes as lifeless as cut glass; even his chakra was too still under his pale skin.

Naruto didn't like it. Not one bit.

Sasuke was supposed to be crackling heat and bursting flames that tasted like lightning on the tip of his tongue. He was supposed to be bright, burning passion and bright bursts of colour, not washed out and empty, not the dry lifeless tundra in its place.

"Take care of him," Mito-obaachan had said before they left the apartment, speaking to him in the Uzushio's tongue. He had kept his face clear as Sasuke watched on in confusion when Naruto went silent, as though listening to something, and Naruto could feel the old pain-hurt-grief twisting in his chakra. "He's been betrayed by the person he trusted most, and has lost everything. You are all he has."

Naruto knew bits and pieces of Mito's past, when she first came to Konoha. She'd told him stories of the Whirlpools Princess. That was how he knew that Mito-hime had lost everything to Konoha, as had every Uzumaki that set foot in this wretched cage. That she essentially had been sold to men for 'breeding'.

It made him angry.

Realising that Mito-obaachan saw part of herself in Sasuke just made him feel even more protective over the other boy than he already felt.

Naruto wasn't sure why he felt so protective over Sasuke. He'd always been aware of the other boy, even before the massacre– there was just something about the dark-haired Uchiha that had drawn his attention, a pull deep inside Naruto as his chakra reached out automatically for Sasuke's.

Naruto wasn't upset by it. He liked Sasuke and he liked the idea of being friends with him. It was just super weird.

"I wish we didn't have to go to the Academy," Sasuke muttered, finally breaking the silence that had settled so heavily over him since they'd left the apartment that morning.

Naruto grimaced. He didn't really like the Academy either– even if Iruka-sensei was okay, sour-Mizuki was crappy and mean. He would ignore Naruto and pretend he didn't exist. He was rough when pulling his limbs into position during taijutsu practice, and Naruto knew he wasn't even teaching him right because Mito showed him how to do the katas properly after.

He also kept making Naruto run laps during class, even if he hadn't done anything wrong, and would lose Naruto's homework and assignments then lie to Iruka-sensei about it, saying that Naruto hadn't done them.

That hurt. Naruto didn't even bother trying to defend himself anymore– he couldn't bear the hot, acid taste of disappointment, the churning in his stomach, as Iruka-sensei frowned down at him and scolded him for lying.

He did his work. Maybe it wasn't his best work (he would never give Konoha his best), but he got it done regardless.

"I don't wanna go either," he muttered. "But we don't wanna look suspicious."

They'd already missed four days of the Academy, to give Sasuke time to grieve for his clan and his brother, and to rage at the Hokage and the village. Any longer and the Hokage might start to get suspicious about why Sasuke was avoiding the Academy. The Hokage could kill Sasuke if they weren't careful.

That could never happen.

(sasuke-brother-hurt-pack-mine-mine-mine)