They say there's a thread, invisible to us, that ties all human beings who are destined to be together. No matter how much the thread tangles, knots and stretches, the thread cannot be broken, and eventually those people will be joined.
"SASUKE YOU BASTARD!" Naruto screamed as he aimed a powerful right hook to Sasuke's jaw, which he dodged adeptly. The two of them stood, panting. Their clothes were torn from the attacks they unleashed upon each other, and the cool breeze brushed their hair from their faces and cooled their skin. They had started this fight approximately an hour earlier, and they showed no sign of giving up.
Suigetsu Hōzuki and Kakashi Hatake, on the other hand, sat in the branch of a tree on the edge of the clearing, which had been charred, cracked and devastated from the battle which was being waged by the rivals.
"You know we should really be doing what they're doing right now." Suigetsu said passively. Kakashi shrugged and replied simply in his usual quirky tone "I think this fight's far too satisfying to miss." The two looked at each other and nodded and returned their attention back at the pair who stood stationary in the middle.
The two rivals stood staring at each other in the middle. Sasuke jet black hair virtually still and a treacle of pure red blood traced down his chin. Naruto stood firmly, the left half of his jumpsuit had been burned straight from his chest by a fireball produced by Sasuke and it was obvious that Sasuke had landed a firm kick to this side as his ribs were visibly shattered.
The pair was obviously exhausted, Sasuke hadn't been pushed this far since his battle with Itachi, and that fact filled his heart with despair, that the idea that his former moronic friend was now at the same level as Itachi sickened him. Naruto, on the other hand, had nothing but desire in his heart now; the desire to bring Sasuke home.
"Sasuke," Naruto yelled a hint of despair in his voice "just stop all this now! There's nothing left for you out here! You've killed your brother, you've killed Orochimaru. What else do you want?" The air between the two of them was charged, Sasuke's dark eyes glared at him and he rebutled simply "To be the best."
A chirp of birds began to emanate from Sasuke as lightning formed in his hand. Naruto's hand began to shimmer with air too in reply after summoning a shadow clone to allow him to for a Rasengan. "Well," said Kakashi as he got to his feet "this is about to get interesting." The two began to run at each other and the ensuing collision shook the entire forest. The bright light illuminated every gap in the tree line and made the ground split beneath their feet.
The explosion at the centre of the connection suddenly released a shock wave which tore at trees and lifted up the forest floor, and even toppled some of the smaller trees. The force sent Naruto and Sasuke flying backwards, and fast. They both hurtled towards the thick tree trunks at the edge of the forest at an alarming speed. A blue blur appeared behind Naruto and caught him just in time to stop the momentum from pushing both Naruto and Kakashi into the dense jungle. It seemed Kakashi's immense speed seemed to help him get in position just in time. Suigetsu and Sasuke however, weren't quite as lucky. Suigetsu only realised what Kakashi was doing for Naruto in time for him to jump in the way of Sasuke and ended up with them both plummeting through several thick tree trunks before coming to a stop.
Naruto panted, his eyes closed as he rested for a few moments in Kakashi's arms. New cuts emerged as a result of Sasuke's Chidori, however when he opened his eyes and saw what had happened to Sasuke, he was far more relieved that Kakashi had been there for him. Sasuke lay at the end of a path of destruction and a few metres away from him lay his comrade; Suigetsu, who seemed to have tried to stop Sasuke the same way Kakashi, had stopped Naruto, but he had obviously failed to reach that goal.
They both lay, blood tracing down their bodies from cuts and Sasuke's right arm had broken and twisted from the way he landed on it. Suigetsu, it seemed had managed to engage his Hydrification Technique, but he still managed to hit his head hard enough beforehand to knock himself out.
Naruto sighed and for a moment looked like he two would pass out and Kakashi would be forced to carry 3 unconscious youths back to Konohagakure. (Note; a masked man carrying 3 unconscious boys in the middle of nowhere. What would you think if you saw that?) However, much to Kakashi's great relief, Naruto rose out his arms and, for once, did not shout with joy, nor blabber endlessly about how great he is, but instead he simply rose and looked into the distance, with a look of great pride and joy in his eye. The entire expression and look upon his face reminded Kakashi of Naruto's father, Minato, Kakashi's old sensei. It was a look of great thought and accomplishment. However he didn't look like this for long as within seconds of this look Naruto began displaying the two traits previously mentioned.
The air was still now, and the sun was beginning to set. Naruto had created Shadow Clones to carry the unconscious pair. Naruto had finally done it. He had beaten Sasuke and now he was bringing his friend home. Kakashi was the one who suggested taking Suigetsu, although he and his sword weighed them down slightly but Kakashi didn't believe that leaving the boy for dead was immoral and unfair.
As the night air rolled in the night became colder and the speed of the ninja increased as they made their way home. It was late by the time they finally reached the gates of Konohagakure, much to their relief. Immediately Kakashi called out the ANBU Black Ops to hide Sasuke from sight as they made their way through the village and make sure that only trusted people in the village knew of Sasuke's return.
Naruto, Sasuke and Suigetsu were sent to the most secure part of the Konohagakure Hospital, and Suigetsu and Sasuke were put under constant ANBU armed guard. It was the next morning that Naruto awoke to find Tsunade and Kakashi sitting by his bedside. It turned out Naruto had suffered several shattered ribs, a torn pectoral muscle, third degree burns on the left of his torso, lacerations on his left quadriceps and a fractured jaw. Sasuke it seemed was just as bad too. He his right arm when the Rasengan and Chidori met, he was also suffering from a dislocated left arm and had broken both his shin and foot on his left leg. Suigetsu had just been knocked out and cut several times, fortunately for him.
After she gave Naruto her diagnosis and his recovery routine, which he would inevitably ignore, she pushed a blonde lock out of her face and said simply, "So, what now?"
Sup Guys, finally managed to motivate myself to write and decided "New story? Why the hell not?" So here it is, so keep read, reviewing and follow me on Twitter Poisonandroid for updates! Hope you enjoy! - Nick