When Sasuke first left, Naruto had always expected him to get his revenge, and come home. When the news came in that he had, he felt so relieved that he could laugh with his friend once more. All that hope to be crushed when they told him that Sasuke would not be returning. So he chased after his friend, who pushed him away. He kept following until Sasuke turned around and threw a punch, to rid of that pest. And he would always follow.
No instead, those two sides of one coin, yin and yang, laid there. Broken, bloody and bruised. Staring at the sky dreaming. The aftermath of their final battle left both of them without an arm. Blood oozed steadily out of both of them, blurring their vision. No one had expected such a fight. No, near the end they threw punches and kicks at each other, conserving their chakra. It was a test of not who had the more chakra, who trained the hardest, nor who was strongest. It was a test of their wills. Who wanted their dream more?
Gasping for air with ragged breathing, Naruto turned his head over to look at Sasuke. The other male looked to be in the same condition. "Do you understand now… Sasuke? Why I want to save you? Why I care so much about you? And if you don't… Well then I guess i'll just have to throw a few more punches to get it into ya…"
"Sasuke… I have to tell you. What are we truly fighting for? I know you say that you want to be Hokage and all, rule and change the world… And kill me to reach that goal for your brother. But, I don't feel like that is the case. I wish that you talk to me, Sasuke. I always feel that your holding back from telling me what's really on your mind. By exchanging blows, I know that you can see my goals and dreams… You can see how my dream has grower from more than wanting to become the Hokage! I want to save you… I want to bring you back him and embrace you! But what is your dream? You've always said that it's revenge, whether it was on Itachi or the Hidden Leaf, and I know that you are more than revenge Sasuke! But sometimes it's hard to read what's going on inside of you… I care so much about you Sasuke! And I want you to know, that no matter how much you run, how much you hide away from me, I will always chase afar you and look for you. I will never give up on you. So please… Sasuke. Talk to me…" Naruto whispered, the words lingering in the air like heavy weights.
And then something so unexpected happened. He turned his head so that he could look at Naruto and then Sasuke smiled. A true smile of happiness. With his raspy voice, he parted his lips and started to talk.
"Do you remember? Back then when I told you to shut up? That you had no idea and who would never know how I felt? On our first real fight? I already know that you realize that it was a lie. I… I can feel your pain Naruto. I know it sounds crazy… But I can feel it. It hurt everywhere when I looked at you. I could feel your loneliness, and I knew that you put on that smile and would seek attention because you were lonely. And because I felt it, I knew you did also. We grew up deprived of love.I would watch you and smile, knowing that there was another person who felt the same way as I did. I'm sorry that I lied Naruto. But this, what I am about to tell you is not a lie. I was in the darkness, so darkness I became. I drowned within myself, and didn't care because I was so absorbed in the thought of revenge and hatred. And you, the tried to erase that darkness away, and each time you drew close, I would run away. I know that the rest of the village, including Sakura were aiming to kill me. And probably would have felt a heavy weight off their chests if I had died. But you Naruto, kept believing that I could be brought back into the light. That you could save me. I've never had anyone feel that way towards me. I'm not really sure how you truly feel about me. I'm not sure if it's for a selfish reason or a selfless one. Perhaps it's because a bit of darkness still lingers in my eyes that I'm confused to why you want me back so badly. My body has been consumed by darkness, so you really cant save that part of me. There's only one place where you have replaced darkness with light… My heart. You once told me that you would die with me. Do you still feel that way? You haven't run yet, so I want to believe that you'll stay with me until the end. I admit it, I lost. And I admit… I care for you… And my care can also be defined as love… I have always thought that I loved my brother the most. But now when I think of love, all I can visualize is you. Because in the end… That hatred, revenge, anger, and loss transformed into love. That is my truth, Naruto. Thank you… Thank you so much…"
Naruto was quiet. The most quiet he had ever been in his entire life. He took in all of it. Sasuke's confession and how he truly felt. It was more than Naruto had ever wanted. For all this time, Naruto had given his feelings away like a love letter to Sasuke. He always felt like Sasuke knew what they had said, but would never read them truthfully. So he was wrong. Naruto's love, Sasuke saw and knew what it was. It was never loud like Sakura's love towards him. It was not quiet like Itachi's love. It was not warm and tender like Sasuke's mother's love. It was full, devoted, and most of all true love.
Closing his eyes, Naruto let out a silent tear while giving a soft smile. "I don't regret anything. Our story might have followed many others before us. Sure, it hurt like hell, it was hopeless, it was agonizing. But no story can have a happy ending without pain. Our story built us, made us who we are. So I don't regret anything that happened Sasuke, I'm just glad that in the end, we were able to come together."
It's hard to say which of the two had the harder life. Sasuke- A boy who was born with, and then lost. A boy whose dark fate loomed around him, pulling him farther into the darkness. A boy who thought that his life was nothing to his revenge. Hated by nearly everyone for the choices he had made. And Naruto- A boy who was born with nothing, raised in isolation. A boy who had to carry his own weight with no support. A boy who was hated because he was born. A boy who was only accepted for being strong, not his personality.
Yet somehow, those two threads of fate met and intertwined. Darkness and Light pulsing around each other, hate and love, revenge and forgiveness, enemy and friend. But most of all, loneliness. Perhaps if the two were given family and friends they would have never had been so close, and maybe so. It's impossible to determine how it would turn out. But of all the possibilities, they were born with those fates.
"Sasuke, I remember our first real mission together. That boy Haku and his master… I think I understand now how you feel. And I want you to know that I feel the same." Naruto laughed.
"Look at us now! Lying down on some rocks talking 'bout our feelings and such! I bet you Sakura would be having a heart attack!"
"Heh. Yeah… It's strange how of all the generations past… That we were the ones to pull ourselves together before one of us died."
"Aw, don't be so morbid Sasuke. But hey, we can finally live out our future! We can build a better future for the village, and a better future for ourselves. See! I told you that a guy who can't save his own friend can't become Hokage! I promise that you won't ever have to bear the burden of hate all by yourself. You don't ever have to be alone in the dark Sasuke, because I'll pull you into the light! No matter what it takes!"
Gasping for breath, Sasuke closed his eyes. "Naruto… Please stay… by my side."
Naruto smiled. "Teme. Even if you run… I'll always be watching right by ya, believe it."
"Please don't start that believe stuff again…" Sasuke chuckled.
"Can't make any promises!"
And so the two reunited, smiling and grasping for each others hand, cleansing generations before them, and taking a step into a new future of light and love. It's true that their story had always been one that would end. Some may say that it ended here, with the boys finally finding peace within one another. But their story lives on, and plunges deeper.
{Heh heh... Thanks for reading if you did so. This is kinda a story with a bit of a different end and an explanation of what happened between 699 and 700 since we were kinda left hanging on that matter... Anyway I don't own Naruto and hope you tune in next time!"