Work Text:
Sasuke finds himself having a late breakfast out with Sakura. It’s her single day completely away from hospital shifts, he looks out the window, away from Sakura and his eggs on toast smothering a frustrated frown. Most would think it a good thing, spending time with one of the few people who wanted him back in the village. But people saw Sakura stuck to him like glue with her puppy eyes and assumed.
Most of the time it is fine, Sakura is usually tired enough from her shifts that she doesn’t bother flirting with him. Honestly Sasuke enjoys the time they spend together and considers her a true friend. But the flirting makes him uncomfortable. He doesn’t deserve Sakura’s devotion and continued friendship much less her love, especially after trampling over those feelings and almost killing her during the Kage summit.
He has no idea how to dissuade Sakura without hurting her, it’s in these moments that the scabbed wound of the Uchiha massacre bleeds. Most people have family to advise in matters of the heart and as good as team seven is Kakashi or Naruto were not people to ask about anything emotionally delicate. So, it’s with relief that Sasuke bids Sakura goodbye making his way to the forest of death for his usual sparing match with Naruto.
“Sasuke” Naruto whines collapsing dramatically on him as he enters the clearing, “the old bats on the council are looking at marriage alliances again”
He easily supports Naruto’s weight for a few seconds before shoving him to the ground.
“You’re the war hero” Sasuke points out reasonably.
“You defeated Kaguya too, and they’re not pushing proposals down your throat”
To be honest Sasuke is surprised they’re not, with him being the last known holder of a Kekai genkai, but the state sanctioned slaughter makes things complicated, so he supposes they are avoiding the topic.
“Maybe you should have gone missing nin too” he replies
At least he only has Sakura to deal with, the rest of his child fan club have all moved on including Ino.
“Maybe I should go to Suna and hide with Gara”
“Temari would find you”
Naruto shivers, probably at the thought of a Temari and Shikamaru team up to drag him back to the village, that’s where his mind has gone at least.
“A backwater Ramen shop owner then”
Poking a hole in this one is terribly easy, “You’d eat all your customers food”
“There’s nothing to be done, I’ll pretend to like you and then they’ll leave me alone” Naruto says sweeping his hands through the air, as if it’s a grand declaration.
Sasuke laughs till he’s used all the air in his lungs, “No one would believe it, you don’t have a subtle bone in your body”
It’s only when he’s collapsed on the ground still snorting, Naruto playfully scowling down at him that Naruto speaks again.
“No seriously it could work, we already spend lots of time together, I’ve thought about it, please”
Sasuke considers it, no one would argue with Naruto if he found someone he clearly likes. Naruto is a village hero; most people are romantics at heart and in the current peace no alliance marriages are totally necessary. It could also solve his own problem neatly. Sakura’s observant, if he fakes an attraction to Naruto, she will most likely stop her own flirting without dragging out old history for an emotional and uncomfortable conversation.
“Fine, it’ll have to look mutual, so people don’t think it’s a hopeless case and continue pestering you. But I am not entering a fake relationship.”
“What” Naruto scrunches his face up in confusion.
“I won’t fake a relationship, but I’ll fake some attraction, with people’s assumptions that will probably be enough” Sasuke clarifies.
“Huh”
Naruto still looks confused, so Sasuke adds smirking “This way it’s plausibly deniable.”
It took a day of planning and two weeks of action. Lingering looks and touches in view of others and some of their usual banter tweaked, is all it takes for Sakura, the council and funnily enough Kakashi to buy it. All together it wasn’t terribly difficult. The last act they’ve planned to really sell it is a kiss. It’s not hard to lure in Sakura as an invested friend, Ino as the biggest village gossip and Kakashi because he is truly nosey like that.
As Sasuke arrives in the clearing with Naruto hand in hand, he easily spots a slight tuft of grey hair peeking out from behind the memorial stone. No garish orange covered icha icha paradise shows itself and Sasuke hides a smirk. Kakashi is clearly anticipating something much more entertaining and who is he to deny the man.
Sakura, Ino and surprisingly Hinata are even easier to spot clustered together in the trees under light genjutsu. That may work on Naruto, but not him, they must think him too entranced in this fake budding romance. While that means their charade has worked, it’s an insult to their opinion of his shinobi skills that they’d ever think him that off guard.
The heavens open to dust them with sun-soaked rain and Sasuke can admit it sets a romantic tone. They reach the middle of the clearing, Naruto takes his hand back and Sasuke suddenly misses the warmth. But he’s quickly distracted as Naruto leans in, breath tickling his damp hair.
Why is his heart pounding?
“Let’s get this over with, ya” Naruto whispers.
Sasuke nods, feeling beyond words somehow.
Naruto’s scalding hand lands on his shoulder and Sasuke curls his arm around Naruto’s waste, rain damped cotton under his hand. Slowly they draw together and their lips touch.
Sasuke expects a jarring clash of lips and a feeling of vague repulsion to settle in his gut, like the times on mission and that one time with Karin. Instead, the kiss is gentle, a combination of both his own and Naruto’s hesitance, sending lightning through his veins and it takes all of Sasuke’s willpower not to shiver.
A choked laugh comes from behind him, and they both jump back, Tsunade stands hands on hips, smirking, eyes burning in satisfaction and blond hair limp from the light drizzle of rain.
“It’s about damn time” she declares, “years of obsession, we’re all sick of the pinning.”
Sasuke feels his face grow hot, across from him Naruto is also turning scarlet. He supposes it’s good their ruse worked, even the Hokage believed it. That had been the entire point.
Tsunade sighs heavily, “The chasing, obsessive focus on each other, Sasuke you literally came back to the village for Naruto, I don’t know how you both missed it for so long.”
“There’s no way that’s true right?” Naruto stutters glancing back at him.
His first instinct is to deny it, he did not come back to the village for Naruto; there’s no way his motivation could be so shallow. He came back to atone, to fulfill his brother’s will, so why do those reasons feel like excuses?
But Naruto has always been a constant, Sasuke’s never imagined him not being there, Naruto asked, and he followed.
Sasuke has the terrible creeping realisation that he may have just been caught by his own trap. Because that kiss had felt good.
It was warm, a level of surety he had never dreamed existed and he wants more. He groans covering his face with his hands.
He can’t believe it, the attraction he faked, it must have been a lie, he can’t have been so oblivious, but it doesn’t feel fake anymore.
“Sasuke” Naruto prompts hesitantly.
An uncomfortable silence settles over the clearing, save for the light drumming of rain hitting the earth, gradually forming puddles. He can’t answer that, he can’t express the depth of his realisation, he’s not sure he wants to. Instead, Sasuke focuses on the droplets of rain slightly obscuring his vision, the pinpricks of cold hitting his exposed arms and face, the irritating feel of waterlogged hair and just breathes.
Eventually he must answer Naruto, bright blue eyes demand it.
A tightness claws up Sasuke’s throat as if to prevent him spilling so in the end he just hums. But Naruto seems to understand everything he can’t convey, judging by his reddening ears. Sasuke takes one look at the bystanders invited and spontaneous, most not even bothering to hide, madly cackling and grabs Naruto’s hand to drag him away somewhere more private.
“Mission accomplished, no one will bother me about a relationship again” Naruto exclaims happily.
Sasuke sighs already imagining the ribbing that will be coming but even that can’t dampen the cocktail of excitement, happiness and shear bliss pumping through his veins.