Melancholia

Chapter 14

For Sasuke, the Ninja Academy held a lot of memories, both good and bad. Some in particular that stuck out to him most had to be some of his sparring matches with Naruto. Ever since he could remember, they'd always been at each other's throats. But somehow, it had always made him feel a little... less alone to know that there was somebody out there a little bit like him. And yet, it also scared him, being reminded of his family.

So for so long, he'd desperately tried to push those feelings back.

And then he was put on Team 7, and once again, he was consumed by it; that familiar warmth. The comfort of being part of something important again, having comrades and people who cared about him, who he cared about. Sakura, Naruto, Kakashi... No matter what happened, he never wanted to lose those precious to him, not again. His family was gone now, but he had to do something about what was before him. He knew this.

No matter what he'd tried to tell himself before, Kakashi was right. Even Tsunade had been as well. He needed to focus on what was important right now. His recent encounter with Itachi, even with Orochimaru aside, had made him lose sight for nearly a month, but he couldn't let it consume him. He wanted - needed - to get stronger, but not like this, not the way Itachi or Orochimaru told him to. Least of all as the way things were.

Because of how close Iruka and Naruto were, He had figured Iruka might have some answers about Naruto's possible abusers or at least might be able to get some answers from Naruto about them.

Several children passed him by in the hallways, filling him with a sense of nostalgia. He hadn't even been by this place in months, so it was kind of odd, and yet as he watched the children bantering amongst one another, he couldn't help but stifle a small smirk, but chose to ignore the situation, heading on to his destination.

Upon reaching Iruka's classroom, Sasuke was familiar enough with the academy that he even didn't even bother knocking, instead just sliding open the door without hesitation. He knew that class was still in session, but quite frankly, he didn't care. Naruto was what mattered now.

Iruka was writing something on the chalkboard when Sasuke walked in.

"Oh, Sasuke!" Iruka smiled nervously, taken aback. "I didn't expect you to come by. Is there something I can help you with?"

Barely, the two picked up on whispers from Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon, who were inquiring why Sasuke was there. Sasuke paused for a second, noticing the way the kids were looking at him, but didn't even bother with formalities, jumping to the chase. "There's something I need to ask you... Preferably alone."

Judging by the look in Sasuke's eyes and his tone, this was something that needed to be kept private and Iruka complied. Whatever it was must be important. After all, Sasuke wasn't the type that bothered with such things if they weren't.

"Of course. Do you mind waiting outside for a second?" Iruka urged, and Sasuke did as asked, stepping out of the room. Shortly after, Iruka followed behind.

"Sorry about that..." Iruka apologized, scratching the back of his head, before speaking back up in a low voice. "So what was it you needed to talk to me about?"

"It's about Naruto..." For a long moment, Sasuke kept his eyes down as he tried to think of a way to word his question. "...I was wondering if you knew about the Kyuubi... and how that thing is inside of him..."

He was sure he did. He just needed to make absolutely certain to know they were on the same page.

"...Yes, I do... Why are you asking about it...?" Iruka wanted to know. In all honesty, this was the last thing he expected Sasuke to bring up, and he couldn't help but wonder how Sasuke even knew. Then again, it somehow wasn't really that surprising at this point. Many people did. And he was Naruto's teammate, so it shouldn't be that big of a shock by now.