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It was only a matter of time before he asked about the tattoos.
He'd come over to Sasuke's apartment uninvited, as per usual, and Sasuke had no time to put on a shirt before the frantic knocking on the door got increasingly aggressive. Sighing, he got up and rushed to open the door. Naruto cooly walked in, his eyes glued to a video game held tightly in his hands. As he excitedly looked up, smiling eyes ready to introduce whatever game he'd brought to play on Sasuke's PS4 this time, he noticed the intricate artwork covering Sasuke's upper half.
Sasuke avoided making eye contact as Naruto stood there, mesmerized by the symbols emblazoned on Sasuke. With the look of astonishment spread across Naruto's face, Sasuke felt his ears go red.
"Are you going to stand there staring forever?" Despite his best efforts to hide his embarrassment, it crept through his wavering voice.
Naruto stepped inside silently and followed Sasuke to the couch. He sat and inspected every line, every stroke that created the brands that gave color to pale skin.
"Since when were you so badass?" Naruto's voice was full of curiosity and wonder.
"It's not badass, it's an Uchiha tradition. Every time a milestone was reached or a goal was achieved, a tattoo would be given."
"Itachi never had tattoos."
"You've only seen him a few times and each time was in his Akatsuki robe."
"You have a point..." Nervous laughter ended his sentence before intrigued silence befell him yet again. Naruto ran his fingers softly along the colored lines on Sasuke's body, making sure to take in every detail. Fingers resting atop the red koi that covered a substantial portion of Sasuke's back, he felt intrigued. The koi itself was faded, but had been surrounded by newer, brighter sakura tattoos. Four pronounced flowers were framed by countless smaller ones in a circle around the koi. "What's this one for?"
"I've had that one since I was a kid - got it tattooed by my dad at a few years old. It was just the koi at the beginning. Our house's symbol was the koi, brave and powerful. I got the sakura after the clan died. Their petals are fragile, like the lives of humanity." With the mention of his family, his voice went sullen, and his dark eyes seemed to gloss over with sadness.
"I'm sorry," Naruto was unsure how to react to the situation and quickly changed the subject. "What about this one?" His fingertips were delicately placed on the monarch butterfly on his collarbone. "Isn't it a little tacky?"
"No, dobe. It's a symbol of transformation. Everyone gets it when they're thirteen to represent becoming an adult. Every branch of the family has a different butterfly - my dad's was a monarch," he replied cooly.
The process repeated for just about every tattoo - besides the obvious, like the Uchiha family crest and the fire which is very clearly to represent the katon jutsu. Finally, Naruto stopped at the large red rose drawn on the sternum.
"What milestone could a rose represent?"
Sasuke pulled Naruto in close and gently pressed their lips together. "I got that one when I fell in love with you."