When Sasuke Met Naruto (SasuNaru)

- Chapter 44 -

It had been a rough few days for Naruto. The ordeal with Sasuke had been quite draining, and the fact that the blond had barely been able to see him since the weekend only made things worse. Now it was Thursday, and he still had only seen his boyfriend for a few hours throughout the week.

Those Nazis at the hospital. 'Visiting hours ended fifteen minutes ago' – well, so did school! How am I supposed to see him!

The thought enraged Naruto to no end. So, it was with a great sense of urgency that the blond darted down the streets after school. Sasuke was supposed to be released today – Kakashi was going to pick him up – and Naruto was determined to be there, nurses and their rules be damned.

So, ten minutes and several near misses with passing cars later, Naruto arrived at the hospital. No sooner had he entered the front door, however, than he was stopped by a man with a long blond ponytail. The vulpine boy eyed the man curiously, contemplating whether he should push him out of his way or just try glaring at him to death. Before he could decide, he realized just why the man seemed so familiar – he looked just like Ino.

"You're Naruto Uzumaki, correct?" the man asked in an authoritative manner.

"And you're Mr. Yamanaka," Naruto replied suspiciously.

"You're very observant, aren't you? That's just what I like to see," Inoichi Yamanaka replied with a satisfied smile. "I'll have you know you're quite hard to get a hold of. Gaara told me you'd probably show up here after school, though. Glad I listened to him."

"Gaara sent you? But... why?"

"I'm his lawyer. The trial for his father's murder is this Saturday, you know – and you're a key witness," Inoichi responded as he turned around, waving for Naruto to follow. "Only you and Gaara know exactly what happened on the bridge last night. Your testimony is key to judging his frame of mind following his father's death."

"You need me to testify?"

"It's for Gaara. Look, Naruto, I know the prosecutor in this case. Ibiki's a real hardass – he's not going to go easy on Gaara just because he's a kid. He'll try to make Gaara look like some sort of monster, and we have to do everything in our power to show that he's not – that he's the real victim in this case."

Naruto shook his head; this week just kept getting worse and worse. "I'll do what I have to do."

"Great. I've already collected the necessary information from Gaara and Lee. They've told me everything they could about this case. What Mr. Subakuno was like that night, what exactly they remember happening. I just need you to tell me what happened between you and Gaara on top of that bridge," Inoichi concluded as he pushed a seemingly random door open along the hospital corridor, revealing a strangely vacant room.

Naruto followed the lawyer inside and sat down on the empty bed, while Inoichi plopped down on a padded chair. This was certainly not how Naruto had pictured his afternoon. He was supposed to drive home with Sasuke, so they could finally catch up. They had almost a week's worth of making out to make up, a fact that greatly annoyed the blond. Nevertheless, he knew he was doing the right thing. Gaara needed him if he was to have a future – he couldn't turn his back on a friend, regardless of how anxious and horny he was.

"All right, Naruto, let's start from the beginning. What happened that night?" Inoichi asked, pulling out a notebook from his back pocket. He clicked the pen and waited expectantly for the teen's response.

"You mean at the bridge?"

"Yes, unless you know something else, that is."

Naruto considered this for a moment, shifting uncomfortably on the bed. "Well... I knew he and Lee were together before this all happened."