Diamond in the Dirt

Warning: Rated M

Author's notes: Call this chapter two of my comeback. I'm ashamed to admit I had to re-read the story to write this chapter, and I'm hoping it'll turn out to be a long one! Or long-ish. I can always come back to it – I've spotted loads of typos in my reminder of the storyline. I also have some bad news – the notebook of ideas I used to write the twenty two chapters of 2008 has gone AWOL. I swear I saw it just the other day... hrmph. Luckily for you guys, I found some scraps of storyline in various other notebooks – gotta love my back up plan.

Sorry to those I promised the chapter would be out on Sunday - I'm a busy lady! Working full time is NOT NICE, to those who do not work full time. Those who do, sympathise (and empathise) with me!

Chapter 24
The Unknown of Uchiha

Weeks passed in Red Hill. Naruto worked for Kakashi, and Sasuke stayed indoors. Brooding mostly, helping seldom. Naruto left him alone to think; having Kakashi's job occupied him to a degree that he did not pester Sasuke quite so much as he would usually. Their relationship had turned far more amicable, and they grew comfortable around one another.

Kakashi eventually allowed them to move in with him and his pug, Pakkun, sleeping in his living room on the floor. Sasuke grouched about it a lot. It had made his back stiff and sore and his mood darken considerably in the mornings but he quite liked the little dog. Kakashi liked to wind him up even more than Naruto did, which was unfortunate because both Sasuke and Kakashi rarely left the house. Kakashi stayed home because his leg hurt mainly – but he was a lazy man. Sasuke's reason was slightly more difficult to define.

"Uchiha," Kakashi drawled at eight-thirty one sunny morning. Naruto had left fifteen minutes ago and Sasuke was doing his best to sleep. He exhaled angrily and opened his eyes.

"What?" Sasuke glared over at the grey haired man. Kakashi lived in a modest studio flat, and he was peering at Sasuke over the kitchen counter a cup of tea steaming beside him. Sasuke bit back a rude comment.

"Don't get shirty, lad, I'm just being friendly," Kakashi smiled brightly. "Listen to what I got to say, eh? I've got something you might like." Sasuke raised an eyebrow expectantly, humouring him.

"What is it?"

Kakashi pushed a tourism magazine off the edge of the counter so that it landed on Sasuke. Sasuke was suitably startled, which made Kakashi chortle. Hearing the noise of the magazine making contact with Sasuke, Pakkun skittered over inquisitively to Sasuke. With a quiet grumble of outrage, Sasuke almost threw the magazine back at him, but an article on the front cover caught his eye. "Uchiha?" he read his surname out loud. The article was on the 'Home of Uchiha Madara'. Sasuke hastily opened the contents page and found the article.

The Uchiha family is a relatively new family when compared to the wealthy clans of today traced back hundreds of years. Uchiha Madara, founder of the clan, was born 24th December one hundred and twenty years to date. It is a clan of many branches, with descendents of Madara ruling the clan claiming to hold the purest blood. Uchiha Madara is well known for the murder of his brother and his subsequent exile and even today specialists debate the reason for Uchiha Izuna's untimely demise.

It remains the popular belief that Izuna and Madara's complex relationship spawned from sibling rivalry from a young age. Sources described Madara as a genius "destined for greatness". It was apparent from a young age that the eldest brother was a leader, although some called him "tyrannical" in his youth. Little is known about his mother and father, although it is speculated both came from far removed branches of the Hyuuga clan, and the lesser known Oto clan. The Oto and Hyuuga clan are still thriving clans in society today, the branches from the main line spreading to many countries around the world.

The Uchiha clan prided itself on purity; for the generations after Madara's exile marriage was arranged between cousins until the clan grew. Still the smallest of the reputable clans, the Uchiha family made its name among the wealthiest families in history. Madara became a little-known legend, and members of the Uchiha family spoke of him with little admiration or gratitude.

So what happened?

Izuna and Madara were competitive. Their education shows equal grades, top of their classes and schools. Both were given multiple school awards and trophies. Both were Prefects, and then Head Boys. Despite a five year age-gap between the brothers it seemed that they shared an intense rivalry one for the other.

Izuna and Madara both married wealthy women from branches of the Hyuuga clan, with evidence to suggest that these unions were prompted by their father. The wealth and reputation of the clan soared with the birth of their children, and many other clans brought forward their daughters to be chosen for marriage into the main line of the clan. Only those with the purest of blood were accepted into the main line of the clan, and some branches were allowed to form to ensure the continuation of the clan should numbers dwindle.

Upon the death of Izuna, a separate branch from the main line was formed. The children of Izuna wanted nothing more to do with Madara and his authoritarian ways and moved away from Red Hill. There are many descendents of Izuna alive today, and other clans bear a disdain for members of the Uchiha clan born from descendents of Madara. Despite being held in low regard, descendents of Madara claim to be true Uchihas due to their "purer blood". Descendents of Izuna, however, call the blood of members of the Madara branch "dirty" because of the blood spilled many years ago. This indicates that the rivalry was indeed perpetuated through clan members through every generation. Cousins turned their back on each other and went their separate ways.

The Madara branch remained in Red Hill for the following century, and although Madara had left a large clan when he was exiled, three or four generations on saw a severe decline in Uchiha birth rates and high infant mortality. The clan began to fade.

On the other side of the country, Izuna's branch thrived. A final victory for the brother, Madara finally conquered. The last living relative of Uchiha Madara at the time this article remains anonymous.

Suitably silenced and shocked out of his grump, Sasuke closed the magazine to look at the date the magazine was published. Twenty two years ago – he looked up at Kakashi. "Why do you have this?" he asked.

Kakashi shrugged, looking slightly more serious than before. "Your name rang bells, so I visited the library. There's not much written about your family, is there?"

Sasuke felt uncomfortable. He'd always been discouraged from asking questions. "We- they – are a very private family." He did not know why. But he'd never thought of his family history as incredibly important, they were like the samurai in his history textbook. They weren't exactly real to him. "Why do these clans matter?"

Kakashi shrugged again. Pakkun sat down beside Sasuke and leant against him. Sasuke scratched his silky ears idly. "I wouldn't know lad, I just find it a mite strange. You hear about these Hyuugas everywhere, don't you? They've got a museum for Madara and hardly any information to go with him. And you hear things about him when you're on the streets. I'm surprised you ain't."

Sasuke pursed his lips, thinking. He only remembered what Naruto had said, and he'd forgotten the important bits. Surely they weren't that important in that case? And apparently Orochimaru had prompted Jiraiya to tell Naruto the story. If he ever returned to the city he'd ask Jiraiya. "Hn. I know an old man who knows the story. But he's somewhere I think it wise to avoid for now."

"Mmm, these are dangerous times we are living in. Lots of bad people, lots of bad things happening to good people."

Sai walked into the brothel, dismissing the receptionist's greeting. He walked straight up the stairs, knowing exactly where his first target was. He felt so joyous when his plans required little attention. It made him feel so good. He could feel a smile wanting to form at his lips but he put it away in a corner of his mind. He would enjoy this later with a good piece of information and the aftermath of some violence, perhaps.

He knocked politely on the wooden door. The receptionist had followed him upstairs and spoke: "sir, you can't come up here; all our ladies are busy at the moment. If you'd like, I could-" Sai held up a hand for silence. She stared at him a little gormlessly.

"I'm here on business. Do not interfere." He sounded calm but he was irked. She had interrupted his excitement. He touched the handle of the knife tucked into the waistband of his pants through his shirt. The girl looked uncertain, but something made her retreat rather than argue with him. Satisfied, he knocked on the door again, louder. Evidently nobody was home – how very troublesome for him.

He pulled a bobby pin from his pocket and fiddled with the lock until it sprung. Excellent. He entered the room.

It was very shabby. Very plain. A bottle of sake lay on its side beneath the chair in the corner, the bed was unmade. The lights were out and the window was open. Sai could not help but feel a little... disappointed.

He debated briefly on whether or not to ask the receptionist for the man's whereabouts but did not want to look foolish. It made perfect sense to wait for the old man to return – catch him unaware? Yeah, probably best. He did not want to return empty handed: Sai always got what he wanted. By fair means or foul, although he was partial to the latter.

He looked around for somewhere to sit. The bed was unmade and the chair in the corner had seen better days. He wouldn't risk sitting on it. He opted to make the bed and sit on it to wait. He had lots to think about and some plans to make should this one fall through. In the unlikely event that this one fell through. Sai's plans never fell through.

As he fluffed the pillow and stretched the duvet taut across the mattress, he saw that the bedside table had a tiny draw. He opened it smoothly, and saw it was full of papers. He could read over them, they probably held some useful information. Seeing as the man he wanted to see had let him down he didn't see the harm in gaining some second hand evidence, sometimes it proved just as good as questioning the, ahem, 'witness'.

Not nearly as fun, however. Sai was slightly wistful. He settled cross-legged on the bed to read.

"Good afternoon, Sasuke! Kakashi!" Naruto called cheerily, slamming the front door. Sasuke winced from the armchair on which he was reclining - sideways on, legs over the arm – Kakashi always yelled when Naruto slammed the door.

"Don't slam the damn door, you brat!" At the sound of his master's voice, Pakkun began to bark. Sasuke sighed. He should be used to this cacophony by now.

"How was it?" Sasuke asked lazily. Naruto frowned at him and ignored his question:

"Have you been sitting in all day again, Sasuke?" Naruto flopped down on the free armchair, exhaling loudly. Sasuke made a 'tch' noise and wouldn't meet Naruto's eyes. "At least tell me you've eaten, bastard!"

"Yeah, I've eaten," Sasuke lied.

"No, he hasn't," Kakashi interjected, smiling sadistically. Naruto glared at Sasuke.

"Oh, come on, Sasuke! What's the problem this time? I bought food you like this time!"

Sasuke felt slightly humiliated at being scolded and was irritable. "I'm not hungry, what are you going to do? Force me to eat?" The second the words left his mouth he regretted them. Of course Naruto could force him to if he wanted to: he hadn't eaten a proper meal for a good long while, and hadn't exercised for even longer. How could he fight him off if he tried to force-feed him. To his surprise though, the moment of opportunity passed without a retort from Naruto. He caught sight of Kakashi's disappointed expression out of the corner of his eye.

"Nah, do what you want. I'm sure you're not stupid enough to starve." Sasuke must have looked put out because Kakashi gave a loud 'HA' from the kitchen. Naruto glanced over at him and quirked an eyebrow questioningly. Sasuke liked this 'superior Naruto' a lot more than the normal one. Why, with cool comebacks like that one, he could almost be considered an equal.

"Do you want to walk Pakkun with me, Sasuke?" Naruto asked Sasuke. Pakkun trotted over excitedly at the word 'walk'. Sasuke considered it briefly.

"Hn. Fine." He hadn't been out-out in a long time. It'd probably do him a lot of good: stretch his legs and breathe fresh air. Air he was sharing with Kakashi, that weird old man. Sasuke felt perfectly safe around him though – he wasn't Orochimaru weird. Anyway, Naruto had a knack for staying out of danger's way.

Sasuke clipped the dog lead to Pakkun's collar at the door and followed Naruto out. Kakashi lived on the ground floor on account of his disability and so they walked straight out onto the street. Pakkun immediately started sniffing around and stopped various times to mark his territory. Naruto and Sasuke walked, staccato, to the beach.

Once on the sand Sasuke unclipped Pakkun and let him run free. Once it hit mid-March Pakkun would no longer be allowed on the beach as the weather started warming and the tourism picked up. For late February, the weather was balmy. Naruto did not miss the city in that moment. Sasuke threw a piece of driftwood for Pakkun to fetch, but the dog ignored it. Naruto laughed softly at Sasuke's disgruntled expression.

"Smart dog," Naruto remarked. "He must know that you'll only throw it again if he fetches it for you." Sasuke gave a flicker of a smile despite himself. He felt so calm here by the sea. Even the burning curiosity he felt about Uchiha Madara was quelled. His problems were distant.

After ten minutes of walking in silence, Sasuke stopped and sat down on the sand. Whistling for Pakkun, Naruto followed suit. The obedient little dog stayed close but stared longingly at the ocean, panting. Sasuke's legs felt tired. It really had been a long time with no exercise, and he began to reprimand himself for allowing himself to reach this level of helplessness. He grit his teeth and tried to regain his state of calm.

Naruto's eyes flicked to him for a fraction of a second, half-knowing what passed through his mind. Naruto would never have let himself become unfit, but Sasuke was oh so very different to him. He could hardly chastise him; he didn't exactly have to leave the flat and he wasn't running away here.

"So, how was work?" Sasuke asked awkwardly into the silence. Pakkun's ear pricked at the noise.

"Alright," Naruto scratched his head absently. "Not much litter to pick up at this time of year. Red Hill's pretty empty." To be honest, Naruto felt restless. Without his friends surrounding him, his life had become slightly empty. Sasuke was amazing – in a league of his own – but Naruto's friends had always been by him. And he'd left them behind. He also missed the challenges the city presented him with. He longed for the bustle of the markets and brothels and the general seediness that pervaded there.

"I'm going to take Pakkun paddling," Naruto said, standing up. The last thing Naruto wanted was Sasuke catching onto his gloominess. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"It's a bit cold, isn't it?"

"Nah," Naruto said dismissively, "it's practically spring. The sea'll be a bath!" Naruto stood up and brushed the sand off his pants and ran childlike towards the ocean. Pakkun chased after him barking happily. Sasuke felt an odd feeling of detachment from his surroundings.

The air was wet with a faint chill. He supposed some would call this weather 'mild'. He called it dreary. Sasuke did not know what he was doing here. He supposed he could find out about his family history, find the Izuna branch. His father was from that branch, but he'd never met any of his aunts or uncles or cousins. His mother wasn't an Uchiha, and he knew nothing of her family except that she was wealthy and the only offspring of his maternal grandparents. He couldn't remember meeting his grandparents, but had apparently seen plenty of them as a baby. When they'd passed away Sasuke did not know.

Naruto had reached the water by now, and had shucked off his shoes and was rolling up the legs of his trousers. Pakkun was already running in and out of the small waves barking excitedly and biting at the foam. Sasuke smirked as Naruto put his foot in the cold water and howled, doing a mad dance. He was determined though, and eventually joined Pakkun with the chase. Sasuke hoped he wouldn't complain too much about being cold on the walk home.

"Sasuke! Come join us!" Naruto bellowed across the sand.

Sasuke stood up and walked slowly towards them. He had no intention of going into the water. Pakkun scampered excitedly to him and then ran a full circle around him and launched himself back into the water. Naruto laughed and kicked water at the dog. "Now I know why Akamaru and Kiba are inseparable – dogs are great!"

"Hn. As long as I'm not the one washing him when we get home he's 'great'. He got dirt all over the bathroom when he shook himself and Kakashi used that as an excuse to get the flat cleaned. You had this genius idea, you wash him."

"Ah, Sasuke, you're too lazy. I've been out working all day," he whined, looking beseeching. Sasuke growled.

"No."

"Fine. I'll wash him. It's fun, he loves the water." He was hoping to trick Sasuke into doing it by reverse psychology. It didn't work.

"Don't get in the bath with him this time. He's probably crawling with parasites and diseases." Naruto let out a full bellied laugh.

"Ha! I've probably got more of those than he has!" Sasuke's face twisted with disgust. He prided himself on his cleanliness.

"Idiot. That's not something to be boastful about."

Naruto shrugged and grinned broadly. "I'm freezing. Let's go back. Look at my feet – they're blue!" He extracted a foot from the water and waggled his toes at Sasuke. Blue was an exaggeration, but they were slightly grey. Sasuke grimaced.

"I told you it would be cold."

"It's not so bad." Naruto pulled his socks onto his wet feet and slipped his shoes back on. "You should try it sometime. It's... invigorating."

Sasuke responded dryly: "I'd call a day with Kakashi invigorating. Everything that old man says energises me. With fury." Naruto chuckled.

"He's not so bad. At least we have a place to stay and food to eat." He glanced sidelong at Sasuke meaningfully. "Well, I have food to eat. What's up with you?"

Sasuke immediately felt squirmy and uncomfortable. "I'm not hungry. That's all." Sasuke mentally flicked through hundreds of subject changes. Should he tell Naruto about Madara? No, he wanted to keep his family to himself. He settled on making a promise he wouldn't keep. "I'll eat tonight. I'll make something for myself."