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Solemnity: (n) The state or character of being solemn or earnest; gravity; impressiveness; observance
It didn't have to be this way...
It never had to be this way...
The crack of Sasuke's fist connecting to Naruto's face echoed so loud he almost wondered if his own bones had broken simply from the force of such a great sound. His wrist nearly buckled under the pressure and though he would never admit it aloud, the young Uchiha was a bit suprised that it simply hadn't shattered like his other. Too much force, too much power, too much chakra flooded through his body. Maybe even too much hatred.
But hatred was necessary for what he was about to do. Konoha needed to be destroyed. It needed to pay for everything it had done to him and his clan and especially to his precious brother. Naruto would understand. And so what if he didn't. Sacrifices had to be made, and he had decided a long time ago that Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, and everyone else were simply sacrifices worth making.
And what beautiful sacrifices they had made.
The Great War had done much of his work for him. Their battleground had already been littered with the bodies of the joint ninja task forces, teeming with the blood of many of Konohagakure's finest, among others. The coalition won their war, but their losses were almost too great for it to matter. The death of the Kages and the destruction of most of their lands had sealed this battle's fate as a Pyrrhic victory.
Not that Sasuke minded. It was less work for him. And while he did regret not being the one to do in the finishing blow on the army, he was at least content in knowing that it was another Uchiha who had. The path to Konoha, though overflowing with blood and bodies was largely clear for him, save for this one minor annoyance. It wouldn't take long to rid himself of the blonde.
At least, that's what he thought. He hadn't expected this- this overwhelming strength and skill. On some level Sasuke had always recognized the blonde as his equal, but this was far beyond any of his expectations. The Kyubi's chakra was coursing through Naruto's veins, empowering him, and the gifts of Sage Mode had made him much faster and so much more cunning. Even in his curse form he wasn't sure he could win.
That's what he had landed the bone-shattering punch, backing it with every once of hate and pain he had left to spare. Naruto went spinning into the rocks below, maybe even landing on one of the fallen samurai's bloodied swords if Sasuke was lucky enough. He leaped down from his stone tower to the crater left by Madara's attack and found the boy- bloodied, bruised, and near death. But still fighting. Typical, pathetic Naruto.
"Just give up now. I'll even give you the chance to run." The Uchiha teased, blowing a seemingly endless fireball in the other's direction. By fate or luck, Naruto dodged it unscathed though growling with each movement he made in the process.
"No! I promised I would either bring you home or die here with you!"
"A little late for promises, no?" The world seemed to slow down as the riled up blonde moved in for another attack. Sasuke simply took him by the arm and threw him into one of the cracked walls of ther crater, breaking the other boy's arm in the process. "Besides, you're starting to get sloppy. Just give up now."
"Never-" Sasuke stradled the blonde before he could even continue and rained down a firestorm of furious hateful blows upon his face.
"I'm giving you a chance! Why won't you just take it you moron?"
Despite his bruised and beaten body he's... smiling? What is wrong with this kid?
"Because, Sasuke-teme, I don't need it."
A feeling of warmth engulfed Sasuke as the blonde pulled him further on top of him and into a hug. The strange, almost foreign feeling struck a cord deep in his heart as memories rush passed him, quick as lighting. Warmth. Friendship... Maybe even love. He struggled for a moment, against both these emotions and this hold before he realized that he was free to leave at any time. Figures the idiot would make a stupid mistake like that.
"You're too easy to kill at this range." He mumbled, reaching for a kunai from the blonde's own pack.
"I know. So are you."
He never knew he could groan so loud; but when the blade, his blade, pressed through his ribcage and raptured his lung, the yound Uchiha simply couldn't stop himself. Blood began to drip like little rubies from his mouth as the sword pushed down further, sinking to the hilt through his body before nestling against his very heart. He grasped weakly at the blade, clutching it with the intent to rip it out before realizing that not only has it peirced his body, but that it's sank through Naruto's and stuck him to the ground as well.
"W...Why? You could have just killed me. You didn't have to die too..."
At this the blonde grinned in between blood splattered coughs. "What good is a hokage who can't even save his best friend?"
The implication of his words tasted as bitter as the other's blood did on his lips and it took everything within him not to break down at the sight of Naruto, with his beaming face and tainted, tortured body. This makes no sense. He could have won. That little trick could have been his saving grace, his assurance that he would make it back to Konoha and become Hokage. "Why? Why didn't you just kill me and go?" He struggled to grab the boy's collar, though even this action proved too much as his hands had already begun to fail him.
"You're my friend. What other reason do I need?" With a final cough of blood he seemed to lose the last grip his lungs had on air and the last grip he had on everything else. The blonde passed beautifully, starry eyed and smiling as bright as ever at his companion, his former team mate.
His best friend.
It took Kakashi nearly five hours post-war to find the boys and nearly five lifetimes to absorb the solemnity of what he was seeing. Naruto, smilling as bright as ever with Sasuke clutching him for dear life. If the man hadn't known better, he would have thought the Uchiha had died trying to save his friend...