Author's Note: Okay, this'll contain spoilers from recent chapters. I dunno what I'm thinking with this. I guess this is what fan fiction is all about: imagining what you want to happen. It's a great thing, but also a little annoying when all you can do is wait for the next chapter to see what's really going to happen. I guess this is what I want to happen.
I'm not sure if I'm going to make another chapter for this. I'll decide later. Thanks for reading.
Here is Fine
The dust was still thick and hazy, but it was obvious to those watching the battlefield that when it cleared, this fight was going to be settled in a few moments.
Sakura started to stand, gritting her teeth. "Kakashi, he's weak! We can stop him now. Let's—"
"Stop."
She froze, both from the single command and the vice-like grip on her arm. She glared at Sai. "Let me go. We can save Naruto."
The ex-Root operative shook his head and pulled her quickly back to the ground. "No one can save him now. He's on a level beyond us."
"Sasuke's not at full power! If we jump in now, it'll be settled."
"You're missing the entire point of this battle," Kakashi finally chided, deciding it was safe to look away from the hindering cloud of dirt. "This is for Sasuke and Naruto. We can't just jump in like that. You won't be saving Naruto. If anything, if we take this chance from him, it will destroy him."
Sakura looked between her Team 7 teammates and let out a frustrated hiss. "This is what we're reduced to? What the hell did we all come here for?" She flung her arm out to the thousands of shinobi that were scattered about the battle zone; whispers were on their lips, words of awe still being shouted due to the previous attack that had flung them all back.
"Our job was to help destroy Tobi. That's over. This is something different. It's all up to them now. We're going to leave them be."
"The war will be over if we take care of this," Sakura pressed. But even her own words weighed heavy on her heart, because her resolve to kill Sasuke had weakened long ago since her previous attempt.
"The war is over."
They looked at Gaara, who had quietly approached from behind. He was heavily injured, clearly tired, but he mustered strength to cast Sakura a look and murmur, "Sasuke is no longer a part of the war. As that masked man is dead, we are at peace." They were shocked when a small smile quirked his lips. "Right now, those two are in their own world. They're having a friendly spar. We can say so, can't we? So we'll leave them to it. Right now, Sakura, we need your skills elsewhere."
She hesitated, turning back to the area where the dust was finally beginning to drop. She thought she could make out a figure or two at last, but Sai gently drew her away. Sasuke was Naruto's job. The wounded were hers.
"Alright. Lead the way. But, Kakashi." She looked at him. "If he doesn't…"
The son of the White Fang shook his head. "Don't worry. Have faith."
Sakura sighed. I guess that's the only thing I can do for him now. "Lead the way, Gaara."
The pain was surprisingly non-existent, so much so that Naruto had a brief thought that he hadn't been hit at all by the blow.
'Idiot!' Kurama chided from within. 'Your senses have only been dulled! Nerve endings were cut. You're numb to the pain, not tolerant of it!'
"Aw, geez," he coughed out. There was blood. "Yeah, I got it." Sasuke had also been hit, he could tell. He sensed the young man's chakra several yards off; it was weak, fluctuating as though it were struggling to maintain itself.
'He's there! Kill him while you can still move!'
Naruto chuckled. "You know I can't do that. I won't."
'Then incapacitate him now.'
"No."
The fox roared angrily, causing him to wince. 'This bastard will wipe us both out! I'm not going to wait to be reborn again!' The roar suddenly dipped into a low snarl. 'And I refuse to watch you die.'
'Pretty fond of me, are ya?' Naruto silently joked, finding he didn't have the strength to say another word right now.
Kurama grumpily knocked his mental projection to the ground with a whip of a tail. 'Don't get too used to it. You're still one of the stupidest hosts I've ever lived in.'
'Hey!'
The Nine-Tailed Fox lowered his great head and stared at his host carefully. 'You know he's there. This has to end. The next strike—'
'Will decide this, I know.' Naruto blinked at the settling haze. 'But I want to be able to see his face.'
'…You're more gutsy than your mother, I think,' Kurama rumbled, settling down and shutting his eyes. 'The dust is clearing. Do as you must.'
Indeed, now he could make out the other outline. A great gust of wind suddenly struck, and for a moment he wondered if Temari had something to do with it. Either way, he was grateful, because now he could see him.
"Sasuke."
The look he received was bleak, if not slightly amused. All forms of the Sharingan had faded from the Uchiha's eyes. Just as well, Kurama didn't seem to have much chakra left to give. Naruto refused to ask him to help with his final attack.
A quiet smirk. "I suppose this will decide it." Sasuke's voice was hoarse, but strong enough to be heard.
"Hmph! My prediction'll come true."
"Hm? The one where you declared both of our deaths? I wonder…but, no. I will be left standing."
Naruto shifted his stance and felt his muscles screaming. So much for being numb to the pain. "Hey, before we do this, can I ask you something?"
The other's position also changed. The tension was mounting. "A dying wish?"
"More like a confirmation," Naruto corrected with a grin. Sasuke was silent, so he proceeded. "Remember how I told you to come after me with all of your hate? Me alone?"
A delayed nod.
"I'm gonna make sure it dies with me. So, if you somehow do make it out alive, can you leave Konoha alone?"
"I believe I had already agreed to crush you in place of the village."
"Yeah, I know, but…" Naruto straightened a bit. "I just wanted to hear you say it again. Because if you do go after everyone, the hatred'll just start up again. I don't want you to kill your friends."
"They aren't my friends…but I will not attack."
Naruto sighed and held out a hand. It was time, then.
He could hear voices, the voices of the shinobi watching, calling out to him, urging him to win. All about, the scent of blood and dirt was thick, and he briefly mused that he should wrap this up quick so that they could all go home; him, Sasuke, and everyone. Even the taste of blood was on his tongue.
Across the way, he saw Sasuke's hands form the appropriate signs for Chidori.
Likewise, Naruto went for Rasengan.
His mind drifted back to that day on the roof when they had first tested these two techniques against each other. Quite a day, though he had only dented that water container. Sasuke had punched a hole through his.
Might not actually make it.
'Don't doubt yourself,' the Kyuubi warned.
'I'm not.'
Chidori crackled in Sasuke's hand.
Rasengan sang in Naruto's.
As though they had silently agreed, they charged each other, and now the noise around them escalated. The cries of those fellow shinobi, encouragement to him, a prayer lifted up.
And when the two met, Naruto cracked a smile, hand stretched out to meet Sasuke's.
The fox watched the exchange of final blows silently, and when he noticed the results, he snorted and dipped his head.
Idiot.
White. All white, all around him.
Though colorless, the sky seemed soft, and the floor beneath his feet was liquid; he was walking on water, though he didn't exert any chakra for the task.
Where…?
"Eh?"
He turned at the loud growl and managed to contain his shock at the appearance of the Kyuubi. The creature stretched out a clawed hand to snatch him up, but he avoided it swiftly, skidding back on the water. Again, the fox started for him, then thought better of it and sat on his haunches.
"Where am I?" Sasuke inquired.
The fox sniffed haughtily. "Damn brat. You've got some nerve, coming in here. But you can't get by me."
"In…? Am I in that fool's head? Did he drag me down here?"
"Ha! Not a chance. I wouldn't let him do that anyway. You came here on your own accord."
"Impossible."
"You think so? Some part of your heart wanted to see Naruto one last time in a place without violence before you two went at it. Well, here you are."
Sasuke stood, eyes narrowed at the thought. "Then let me see him."
"Nope." The response was prompt, completely insulting in one word, and it caused his anger to flare up.
"You just said I came here to see him, so show him to me, you damn fox!"
He found himself pinned down by a monstrous hand, one claw inching towards his neck. The Kyuubi leaned forward until he stared at Sasuke down his nose, hot breath ruffling his hair. "Get something straight, kid. I've got a name. At least he had the curtsy to finally learn it when he found out. But you?" The claw scratched contemplatively at his jugular. "Hm, what to do with you…"
"Kurama, that's enough."
The fox paused and turned golden eyes elsewhere. Sasuke managed to twist his neck enough to see a sideways figure clad in familiar orange and black.
"You can let him up. I wanna talk to him too. Thanks for your hard work."
The fox – Kurama, Sasuke supposed – gnashed his fangs quite close to Naruto Uzumaki's head, but lifted his hand from his captive. "Idiot!"
"You said that not long ago," Naruto huffed as Sasuke stood slowly. "Can you go? I want to talk to him alone."
Kurama sent a final glare Sasuke's way – he returned it gladly – before stalking off to be swallowed up by mists. Naruto looked at Sasuke and grinned – that was not returned – before scratching his head awkwardly. "And now I can't even think of anything to say!"
Idiot, indeed. Sasuke felt his sword at his back and drew it. "I personally don't believe I came here on my own, so let me out."
"Whoa!" Hands went up. "You did, I swear! Don't worry, I won't keep you here long. Just wanted to…tell you a few things."
The sword lowered just slightly. "Hurry it up."
"Yeah. Well, first, I met your brother. Who was awesome, by the way." He cocked his head happily. "I mean, I'd met him before, but recently I saw him and I knew the truth about him. He really is great."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Because it sure as hell wasn't. In fact, because Naruto was actually acknowledging Itachi, a great pain gripped Sasuke's heart. Such bitterness as the thought of this loss…
"And second, I wanted you to know that no matter what happens when we go back out there, you'll always be my friend."
"There you go again, using that word." The sword point dipped into the water and Sasuke strode forward until he was a foot away, gaze hardened with annoyance. "Don't call me that, not when we've already done this much to each other."
Blue eyes didn't dim. "Sasuke, you…you even called me your best friend. The day we fought at the End. I remember, and I'll never forget." He noticed something. "Aw, damn. You're going back."
Sasuke glanced at his feet and saw that they were fading. I suppose the outcome of the final strike is to be revealed now.
"Hey, hey!" Naruto stole his attention. "I've got one more thing to say though!"
The transparency was spreading rapidly, but apparently he was still solid, for Naruto reached out and grabbed his shoulder.
Sasuke was jolted from the touch.
A fire-like warmth spread from the palm of the hand, a searing heat that flooded his body and let him feel exactly what Naruto was feeling.
Love.
Pure, unadulterated love and affection, a bond of loyalty and devotion meant only for Sasuke. He could see what Naruto had gone through since he left, could see how he'd refused to speak when pressed for information on Sasuke's whereabouts, could see how he begged and pleaded his sentencing to be withdrawn, could see how he wanted to share the pain.
He could only see love.
Their foreheads touched.
Dark eyes widened. It seemed Naruto had no idea that this gesture was so similar to his, to his dear brother—
"I'm not good with words," the fool, the damn idiot, murmured, and Sasuke realized that he was trembling, both of them were, "but I can try. Being a friend wasn't able to save you, but maybe being a brother will be. I can't replace Itachi. I don't want to. I want to be a new sibling. Sasuke, you're not only my friend. You're family. You're my brother."
That stupid grin on his face.
"And everyone else, all our friends back at the village, they're all your siblings too. We're a family! So if you don't want them as friends, then take them as your brothers and sisters, yeah?"
Wet. His cheeks felt wet. Why couldn't he see the fool's face? Was his sight failing in this realm? He blinked and the tears raced down his cheeks, clearing his vision.
Naruto's eyes were dry and blue, as blue as the sky. He was still grinning. He carefully took Sasuke's transparent hand and hooked their two first fingers together.
"Always wanted to do this," Naruto confessed. "Really."
And then they faded.
He was in darkness now. How he hated these transitions! But he could see it, just barely. A light far beyond. He raced towards it and was suddenly blinded by his emergence into the world.
Naruto's face was still before him, but not at all as he had seen in that world of white.
Bloodied, dirtied, full of pain and strain, trembling with effort to force rattling breath after breath from his mouth.
Sasuke stared and stared, then slid his eyes down to the place his hand had struck.
His fingers had gone straight through the flesh. He could feel the cool breeze assaulting the tips of his fingers that protruded from the orange-clad ninja's back. The blood wasn't drying. It was still coming.
"I still didn't go deep enough."
Sasuke inhaled sharply, pain finally crashing down on him. He looked down and saw Naruto's hand a few inches from his chest. Sasuke's clothes had been ripped asunder there, the surface flesh shredded in a gruesome spiral, but he could see that it would heal, and he wouldn't die.
He…pulled back?
"No way did I hold out on ya," Naruto coughed as though reading his mind. "I put the last of my energy into that but I ran out of juice. Damn—!" He slid back; Sasuke's hand fell away, leaving a gaping hole.
The air was quiet.
Somehow, Naruto managed to stomp and keep himself from falling. He straightened with great difficulty and waved Sasuke to step a bit closer, even though he was so close already.
Naruto reached out a hand, and Sasuke stared dumbly at it.
A whisper of touch startled him and he looked down at his hands. Sand?
Out of the corner of his eye, at the edge of the battlefield, he saw Gaara, surrounded by unfamiliar shinobi spectators, watching them closely. He was crying, but when he met Sasuke's gaze, he nodded, as though he were screaming, Do it!
As though he were saying, It's the least you can do now.
Sasuke slowly looked at the young man he had spent so much time training with, competing with, running from, challenging, hurting, hating, pain, so much pain—
He hooked their fingers together.
A blinding grin now on the idiot's face, stained pink with blood, and a rattling laugh.
"See? Much better in the real world."
There was a difference here. Sasuke's eyes were dry, too dry, but tears were streaming down Naruto's face this time.
"Why?"
Naruto gave him a look. "We're brothers now. It's my job to protect you and be there for you. Though you were born before me, so should I call you big bro?" And he laughed, laughed hard, and Sasuke knew it hurt him. He also knew Naruto didn't care.
The orange idiot was falling then, and Sasuke only barely managed to react quickly enough to catch him. There was a strange hum of noise coming up from the crowd, but he tuned it out.
"You…"
"Hey, Sasuke?"
His eyes didn't feel so dry anymore. "What?" he hissed without malice – for the first time in a long time.
"Take care of the family, okay? Remember what I told you too."
He couldn't see his face anymore. "Shit…I know."
"Hn." Those blue eyes were slowly disappearing behind bruised eyelids. "Take care, bro."
"Don't…" Blue was gone. "…Don't call me that. Idiot."
It had gone strangely quiet a few moments ago, and she had barely started healing her patients. Curiosity overwhelming her, Sakura had to push through the crowd to return to where Kakashi was standing. "Hey. What's—?"
She caught sight of the figures standing in the midst of destruction. They were talking – or one of them was, at least. And then he fell, and the other caught him. They were still talking.
That's not right.
No, it sure wasn't, because the one being cradled by the other shouldn't have had bright hair. Because that guy had promised to come back, hadn't he? This picture should have been the other way around.
"…Naruto?"
The crowd was talking now, low murmurs that were suddenly oozing sorrow and restlessness. Sakura grabbed Kakashi's arm and looked into his eyes. Even he seemed to know.
She shook her head. "No. No."
"Looks like it's over," the man decided to say. "Ow, hey! I've suffered enough!"
She had tightened her grip to the dangerous point of breaking a bone. "He promised." She turned her face away, but Kakashi told her to watch.
"We have to see what's going to happen."
They had stopped talking out there, and then the crowd's own sound died to nothing.
Silence. She hated it.
An earsplitting cry pierced the air, and it shattered her heart.
For it came not from any of the crowd, but from Sasuke Uchiha.
"Let's go!" Kakashi ordered, and they leapt out to the two.
As they drew closer, Sakura was nauseated to see the hole in Naruto Uzumaki's body. She felt a sudden flicker of rage when Sasuke clutched the young man to him, bent over the body, wailing with uncharacteristic grief.
How dare he mourn this boy, he who had been the cause of his pain since the start! But then she realized with a jolt just what Sasuke Uchiha was doing. He was mourning.
Naruto had gotten through to him.
"Kakashi—"
"I know." They reached them, and Kakashi pried the two apart with great effort. "There's still time to save him! Do it!"
Sakura arranged Naruto's limp arms to keep them out of the way, but Sasuke's howls made her flinch.
"Get away! Don't touch him! No! Stop it!"
Death surrounded the air, but Sakura managed a small smile. Naruto really had done it. She crooked a finger, beckoning Kakashi to bring the man near, then delivered a fierce punch to Sasuke's jaw.
He quieted and looked at her with pure rage; rage, but the hatred had gone.
Her smile widened. "Shut up. And let me work."
Shinobi were creeping nearer, her closest friends near the front. They could hear just fine.
Sasuke stared at her, then looked back at Naruto. He started struggling again. "He's still alive. I have to save him!"
"I'll be doing that." What was this strange calm she felt now? Hands hovering over the body, she began to stop the bleeding, closing up the wound.
"I'm sorry."
Calm disrupted. She looked at Sasuke, turquoise eyes taking in the battered ex-teammate coldly. "You can't say that to me. Not until you say it to him first. In person."
Nevertheless, Sasuke repeated it over and over, no longer straining against Kakashi, who was looking at him with wonder and relief.
"But please, save him."
She stared at the man she had once called her teammate and friend. It seemed that now, there was a chance to do it again. Damn you, Naruto. You fulfilled your first promise to me, but almost broke your second.
She sucked in a breath. "Somebody get me a stretcher! I need a tent ready now! And find Tsunade, if she's available."
While those approaching scrambled to follow her orders, she focused on pouring her strength into this task. When this idiot woke up, she swore the first thing he'd get was a good punch to the face.