Brothers

After exchanging those few words, Sasuke and Naruto fell silent again. The atmosphere returned to where it had started.

Just then, the door opened, and a boy who looked about seventeen, with a strong resemblance to Sasuke, stepped out.

Naruto and Sasuke both looked toward him. Sasuke excitedly ran up to the boy and said, "Brother, I'm practicing shuriken. Are you free now? You said you'd teach me."

Naruto knew this was Itachi Uchiha, the man from the story who was most loyal to Konoha and had the loftiest ideals—and who had been willing to slaughter his entire clan for the sake of those ideals.

In Naruto's eyes, Itachi was a perfect person and a perfect shinobi, as great as Naruto's own father. They also shared the same weakness: their family.

Itachi had been willing to return to Konoha despite the danger to warn Danzo not to lay a hand on his little brother. Minato, too, had used the Dead Demon Consuming Seal for Kushina and Naruto, so Kushina could see the grown-up Naruto. They were both great men.

Itachi held up two fingers and tapped Sasuke on the forehead. Smiling, he said, "Forgive me, Sasuke. Maybe next time." Sasuke looked like a sulky little kid and complained, "You always say that. Hmph." Then he turned his face away.

Watching the brothers interact filled Naruto with envy. He had never experienced that kind of family affection in any of his three lifetimes.

When Itachi noticed Naruto looking at the brothers with envy, he also noticed the delivery box in his hands. Smiling, he said, "Hey, little guy, are you here to deliver food? Come on in." Itachi went into the house first. Naruto followed without a word, and Sasuke went in after them.

Itachi pointed to the table in the living room. "Just put it there." Naruto set the box down and took out two bowls of ramen, then got ready to leave. Itachi said, "Hey, little guy, why don't you stay and eat with my younger brother, Sasuke? I happen to have somewhere to go. You're about the same age, so I think you could become good friends."

Sasuke immediately bristled like a cat. "What are you saying, Brother? That I could be good friends with this brainless idiot? You've got to be kidding."

Naruto bristled too when he heard Sasuke's assessment of him. "What did you say? You arrogant, awkward little brat! How dare you say there's something wrong with my head and call me an idiot? What makes you think you can say that?"

Sasuke shot Naruto a scornful glance. "It's blazing hot, and you're wearing a cloak, a hat, and a mask. You've wrapped yourself up so tightly that only half your face is showing. If that doesn't mean there's something wrong with your head, what does? And you're all dazed and clueless. If you're not an idiot, what are you?"

Naruto was about to argue, but for a moment he couldn't think of what to say. Everything Sasuke had said was true. Furious, Naruto looked down at his black cloak, tore it off, and threw it out the window.

He glared angrily at Sasuke, ready to argue, but saw Sasuke staring at him in a daze. Naruto asked in confusion, "Hey, what's wrong with you? Did you go stupid? Why do you keep staring at me?" Sasuke snapped out of it when Naruto spoke. "So you're a girl. Girls should be more modest. And you're so pretty, too."

Naruto nearly spat blood when he heard Sasuke. He roared, "I'm a boy! A boy!"

Sasuke didn't quite believe him. "You're a boy?" Naruto snapped, "What's with that suspicious look on your face?" Sasuke turned away with a snort and muttered, "Why would a boy be so pretty? Anyone would get the wrong idea. Looks like you're not just an idiot—you're a pervert, too."

Naruto exploded with rage. "That's still better than being a damn tsundere, you awkward little brat, and a sharp-tongued one at that!" Then he turned his face away too.

Itachi watched the two of them interact with a smile. "All right, you two behave and eat first. I have somewhere to be, so I'm heading out." Sasuke looked at his brother seriously. "You have to remember next time." Itachi smiled. "I will." Then he left.

Sasuke watched his brother go, full of anticipation. Only after Itachi had closed the door did he turn to Naruto and say, "By the way, what's your name, you big idiot?" Naruto replied coolly, "My name's Naruto Uzumaki. What about you, you stuck-up jerk?" Sasuke answered just as coolly, "I'm Sasuke Uchiha. And don't insult me, you big idiot."

Naruto coolly replied, "Fine, but you can't insult me either." Sasuke didn't answer, only saying, "Let's eat. I'm starving." He sat down and started eating the ramen. Naruto sat down too and began eating. Neither of them said a word.

When they finished eating, Sasuke went outside to practice throwing shuriken. Naruto saw him training, came over, and joined in. Sasuke was slightly surprised to see Naruto practicing too, but said nothing and carried on.

But when he saw that Naruto's shuriken skills were no weaker than his own—and that Naruto even used a few extra tricks—he couldn't accept it. He wanted to see which of them was better.

Naruto felt the same way. He was surprised by how quickly Sasuke improved. At first, he could only hit six or seven out of ten shuriken, but before long, he was hitting every one. His technique improved at an astonishing rate, too.

In the end, the two of them grew stronger through their rivalry and came to respect each other. They kept training until dusk, when the sky was nearly dark.

During that time, Itachi came by, but they were so focused on their practice that they didn't notice him. Later, a man and a woman arrived: Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha.

Itachi was about to speak, but Fugaku stopped him with a look. Fugaku watched Sasuke's shuriken skills improve and found it hard to believe. Sasuke had never made progress like this before.

The other boy was the child of his friend, the Fourth Hokage, and he was improving just as astonishingly. After watching for a while, Fugaku took Mikoto and Itachi back inside. Neither Naruto nor Sasuke noticed them.

As the two trained with complete focus, a pleasant voice came from behind them. "Dinner's ready, Sasuke, Naruto." Only then did the two come to their senses and notice the woman behind them.

Sasuke cried out happily, "Mom!" Naruto, however, just stared at her blankly. Mikoto Uchiha smiled and took Sasuke's hand, then held out her other hand and took Naruto's. Still dazed, Naruto let her lead him back into the house.

By the time Naruto came to his senses, he was already sitting at a round table. He and Sasuke sat together, with Fugaku Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha, and Itachi Uchiha across from them. Mikoto placed food in his bowl and said, "Come on, Naruto, eat up. What are you sitting there for?" Naruto looked at the food in his bowl, unsure what to do. Sasuke beside him was a little bewildered too.

Then Fugaku Uchiha spoke. "Mikoto, being so warm all of a sudden is going to leave the children at a loss." Mikoto realized she had made a silly mistake. "I was just so happy. Seeing Naruto and Sasuke getting along so well, and seeing that Naruto has grown up safe and sound, I got carried away."

Fugaku looked at Naruto and said, "You're probably wondering about this. There's nothing mysterious about it. Your parents were our best friends, and before you were born, both our families hoped you and Sasuke would become close brothers." Sasuke found Fugaku and Mikoto's words a little hard to believe, but Naruto remained calm.

Fugaku was a little surprised to see how calm Naruto was. "You don't seem the least bit confused or surprised." Naruto calmly replied, "No. In Aunt Mikoto's eyes, I saw deep affection and concern. In Uncle Fugaku's eyes, I saw relief.

"Those are the kinds of looks adults give to children. You aren't like the others, who look at me with nothing but cold disgust and hatred. So I thought you must have been close friends with my late parents."

Naruto's answer stunned Fugaku, Mikoto, and Itachi. They marveled at how intelligent the child was—his intelligence was almost unbelievable. At the same time, they thought of Minato and could only sigh, "He really is his son. That intelligence is terrifying. Hahaha! Good, good. Let's eat, then."

Naruto spoke politely. "Thank you for having me, Uncle and Auntie. I'd really like to ask about my parents, but I suppose you can't tell me, can you?"

Fugaku looked Naruto in the eyes. "I'd like to tell you, but we really can't. I'm sorry, Naruto."

Naruto was a little disappointed, but he replied calmly, "I was out of line. I put you in a difficult position. I'm sorry."

Fugaku answered, "It's all right. We can't tell you what you want to know, but although your parents are gone, you can think of us as your family. Sasuke is your brother, Itachi is your older brother, and Mikoto and I will watch over you as you grow up in their place."

Then Fugaku turned to Sasuke and asked, "Sasuke, are you willing to accept Naruto as your brother?" Sasuke hadn't expected his father

to ask his opinion, and he was a little surprised. But he quickly came to his senses and thought it over.

Then he said to Fugaku, "He's a little dumb, but I can accept him. After all, I don't dislike him." Naruto was still very moved. Sasuke's words had annoyed him a little, but he could tell he meant them.

Fugaku asked Naruto too, "Are you willing to become part of our family?" Seeing the sincerity hidden beneath Fugaku's calm gaze warmed Naruto's heart. He softly replied, "I am."

When Fugaku heard Sasuke and Naruto's answers, a flicker of emotion passed through his calm eyes, but he quickly concealed it. He nodded and said coldly, "Then let's eat." But Naruto noticed the emotion hidden in Fugaku's eyes. As a jinchuriki, he was especially sensitive to people's eyes.

Naruto suddenly understood why Sasuke was so aloof. That personality was clearly inherited from his father. Naruto was at a loss for words and could only lower his head and eat. He kept wondering if he had agreed to Fugaku's suggestion on impulse because he wanted a family so badly.

After dinner, Naruto promised to come train with Sasuke the next day, then returned to his little house. Lying on his bed, he thought of the affection in Fugaku and Mikoto's eyes, and his heart warmed.

Naruto gazed at the moon outside the window and murmured, "Looks like I'll have to make a slight change to my plans."