When Sasuke Met Naruto (SasuNaru)

- Chapter 14 -

In a cramped apartment building in downtown Mizu, Naruto Uzumaki sat with his back against the wall, kicking at the worn carpet in a desperate attempt to escape. Outside, the rain poured down, running through the shattered window above him, while the howling winds came rushing in, sending a chill up his spine. Before him stood a blond man with a knife in hand, stepping forward as lightning flashed, illuminating the wicked grin on his face. Soon, he was looming over the teen, raising his weapon high in the air.

"Join us, Naruto."

Before the blade could fall, however, the man's eyes went suddenly dull and the knife fell to the floor. After coughing up a mouthful of blood, the murderous blond glanced down to find the bloody blade of a katana sticking through his stomach. Moments later, the man fell in a heap to the side, revealing a raven-haired teen, who quickly sheathed his weapon.

"Sasuke?" Naruto asked, wiping the tears of horror from his eyes.

"Dobe," the Uchiha replied with a warm, half-smile, extending his hand to the blond. "Let's go."

After a brief moment of hesitation, Naruto grabbed the teen's hand, only to have a loud, obnoxious ring cause the surrounding world to vanish in an instant.

xxxxx

Naruto, his face sandwiched between his pillow and his comforter, slapped his hand against the nightstand in an attempt to stop the infernal ringing. After a few attempts, his hand finally met the phone, which he pulled up to his ear groggily.

"Hello?" the blond asked, rubbing his eyes as he tried to adjust to reality.

"Naruto? It's Sasuke."

"Sasuke?" Naruto exclaimed, sitting up suddenly in bed. "W-what's up?"

"Not you, apparently," the Uchiha replied, a faint chuckle making its way through the line. "I thought I'd be safe calling you at two, but I guess I was wrong."

"Two o'clock? Is it really that late?" Naruto asked, turning towards his clock radio. Sure enough, it read 2:04. "Wow, I must've slept like a rock."

"Somehow I'm not surprised. It was an... eventful night, I guess."

Neither teen said anything for a few seconds, both thinking of the same, unspoken event. Despite the fact that they both knew what had happened, it was somehow a taboo subject, one that was secretly acknowledged, but never mentioned.

"Look, I was thinking we could meet sometime today and put the finishing touches on our project," Sasuke began, a hint of hesitation in his voice. "We can ask a few final questions, and then get a start on our papers. What do you think?"

"Oh, that sounds great," Naruto said, kicking the covers off himself. "I just need to get ready first. How does three sound?"

"Fine by me. Should I just come over there, then? Or, maybe you'd rather meet somewhere else."

"Here works," the blond responded, trying to mask his excitement. "I'll see you in a little bit, then."

"All right, later."

With a faint 'click,' their conversation ended, and Naruto set the phone back on the receiver. After swinging his legs over the side of his bed and briefly rubbing his eyes, the blond stood up and started for the bathroom, yawning slightly as he shut the bedroom door shut behind him. As soon as he had stepped inside the bathroom, he began to strip off the wrinkled clothes he had fallen asleep in, chuckling at the slight impressions they had left on his skin.

Wow, I must've been really tired, falling asleep like that...

Once all of his old clothes were in a little pile in the corner, Naruto hopped into the shower and jerked the handle to the left, sending water spewing from the head. As soon as the water touched his skin, the teen let out a small yelp and almost fell down as he hopped back – it was freezing. He stood with his back to the wall, letting the frigid water pound against his feet until it finally reached a tolerable temperature, at which point he grabbed the soap and began to lather up.