Letters we wrote

Letter 4

Another week passed, it was Sunday, Naruto was enjoying his free day lying in bed, eating instant ramen and watching a comedy show on tv. When suddenly he saw something crawling near the tv.

"You again!" he said sitting up in his bed. The snake crawled up and got near him. "I think I'll name you, you deserve a name" he laughed taking the scroll off its back. "I think you'll be...Saki. What do you think?" he asked, as if the snake were to reply.

But surprisingly enough, the snake nodded and curled into a ball to wait for him to write his reply. Naruto sat up on the bed and started reading the letter.

"I did meet Inari and Tazuna. And I will admit it was harder than I expected. But it has been the first meaningful experience I've had.

Looking at the bridge was not easy either. All the memories from that battle came to me like it happened yesterday. Difference is, now I know why I did what I did during that battle. Why I protected you the way I did.

You were my first connection after my family died, you were the first and only person I ever felt comfortable with. Only with you I felt like a belonged anywhere, where I could be something more than that last Uchiha kid."

A smile drew on Naruto's face, Sasuke had never been so honest and vulnerable.

"I guess I knew it unconsciously. I was just not ready to lose it so quickly.

That's where Inari saw me, right on the bridge. I didn't recognize him at first, but as soon as he told me his name I remembered clearly, I even remembered Tazuna's face.

He then took me to his house to drink tea.

I was weirded out by that welcome. At first I thought they didn't know anything about me. But then Tazuna told me how they had come to help rebuild after Pain, and that he asked you about me. How you told him part of the story, then they received all the news about me.

I can't describe the guilt and shame I felt.

But Tazuna said that he also knew about how I had helped ending the war. He thanked me. I felt as I didn't deserve it. I had to say thank you back, I even bowed like I had never done in my life. It was so unexpected to hear what he was saying to me."

A tear ran through Naruto's cheek. Sasuke was feeling loved, and grateful, exactly what Naruto was hoping he'd get from this trip.

"He also offered me a prosthetic, a wood one. Though, he said he respected the choice when I declined.

After that I just went to an inn they recommended, it was too late to continue.

Tazuna said the same thing about visiting Sunagakure. I decided I'll go. I'll be taking a cart tomorrow morning that will take me to the border with the land of the wind. I will be walking from there, see what I can find before I reach Sunagakure.

It's good to know Sakura is working at the hospital. She'll be director of that soon enough. If there's a reason we didn't bleed to death is because she's an outstanding doctor.

I hope she'll be happy. It was hard when I had to tell her I didn't feel the same way about her."

Naruto's where wide open in milliseconds. "You did what?!" Naruto screamed. Why had Sakura not mention this? Was she still too sad about it?

"Thanks for letting me know how she is.

Well, I'm off for now.

Uchiha Sasuke"

Naruto sighed.

"Now that was a loaded letter" he said letting the paper right in front of him. "You're going to have time to think, Saki" he let out a small and short laugh.