Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. :( I know Sasuke probably does. :D

Claimer: I eat Naruto with Ramen when I'm hungry... He.. I mean it taste good :D

Summary: Havn't you thought of how both Sasuke and Naruto felt after their final showdown at Valley of the End? Maybe it's a start of something that they'll realize soon... Chapter 1.

Happy birthday, Sasuke!

Enjoy :)

Book of Destinies

By: VeNgEaNcEoFrAiN

It became clear when everything started settling down. It became clear after that last blow. The last blow which swept Naruto unconscious and himself hurt. It became clear in his head that nothing mattered more than revenge. Then yet again, when his arm throbbed, when he fell to his knees, he came face to face with the other person he even spared time considering. Being inches apart, he stared down at the serenity in front of him. His stare softened as the raindrops drip down from his hair tips onto the other's face.

"Naruto..."

All colour and sound drained away from that very place. And time and space seemed to come to a screeching halt. One of the raindrops fell from his face. All the memories of both boys danced elegantly in it. Everything that ever mattered to him; everything that ever left its mark in his mind; everything that involved the one he's facing. His brows knitted in the middle. His expressions meshed into a painful look. "I..." He half expected the cheerful sun shine to throw him an expression or at least say his name questionably. A solemn sigh escaped his delicate lips. He rested his head on the smaller boy's shoulder. There were three words he could never bring himself to say. He was afraid. Afraid of rejection; afraid of the unknown; afraid of erasing what delicate lines of bonds he had gotten from the other; afraid of dematerialising the precious relationship he achieved; afraid of hearing what he expect to hear; afraid to make a move.

He got up from his previous position peering one last look at the unconscious boy. He tore his eyes off of him. His eyes remained shut tightly as he limped away from the blonde. Once again, the memories he had made with the blonde flashed in his mind, including the fight that occurred just now.

"Goodbye, Sasuke."

"It's something I'll never say..."

He's always stubborn in his own way. He never letting anything affect his determination. Never has he failed to display that characteristic in the search for him later on.

"Because..."

"I never want to say goodbye to you..." He gave a troubled smile.

That was probably one those sentences that Naruto made which ever make so much sense. Maybe it's Sasuke's fault this time around. Maybe he shouldn't go to Oorochimaru after all. Maybe if he stayed at Konoha... Maybe... But he knew, Konoha can never help him achieve what he wants. The bonds back at Konoha are just hindrances to his plans for revenge. He was also a hindrance; a barrier which he must overcome to even catch a glimpse of the tail of his search; a bond he must sever for anything else to continue. Yet he knew he couldn't do it. He couldn't kill him.

"Sasuke!" Came a familiar voice.

He came to a gentle halt and looked back over his shoulder. The body lying on the ground beside the waterfall remained there. That little chest rising and falling in a harmonious rhythm. He averted his gaze on the floor as another sigh released itself. He took his first step in abandoning everything he had back then.

"I'll bring you back no matter what!"

He shut his eyes in attempt to shut off the world around him; in attempt to protect his world from distractions, intrusions. He gritted his teeth and grabbed his throbbing head. Constant waves of frustration pulsated through his body as it shook slightly.

"Don't leave me, Sasuke!"

He painstakingly lifted his heavy eyelids and took a grim look at his surroundings. Somehow or rather, the terrains became black and endless. No trees were in sight; the valley was gone. And there he was standing alone in pitch darkness.

"Sasuke!" Yet another calling from the one he saw as a brother.

He frowned and pivoted on his heels towards the source of that voice behind him. There, seemingly standing in the spotlight was the one he had placed all his feelings in; the one who had placed his everything on their bond.

"Sasuke..."

He frowned at the figure yards in front of him. "You're an illusion of the past; the past that I have lost all desire to embrace."

"Is that where I stand in your heart?"

Sasuke's eyes widened in utmost disbelief. The blonde he knew will never say things like that. What did he care about where he stood in his heart? Why did he even bother about what his decision in life was? Why was he so into meddling with things he shouldn't? Why does Naruto need to intertwine his life with Sasuke's? Was it something called fate? Or was it something that Neji kept saying? Destiny?

"Goodbye, Naruto."

The raven head turned painfully, seemingly tearing his whole body from seeing the other boy. Two lean, wounded arms wrapped themselves around his waist. All he could feel on his bruised back was wetness. Drops and drops of something that both Sasuke and Naruto had enough of shedding. Those little arms gripped tightly as the smaller boy moulded himself onto Sasuke's back.

"Don't cry over me, usuratonkachi." Sasuke forced out a small, desolated smile. "It's not worth it."

Constant hiccups were heard as the crying gets more emotional. Naruto's arms clutched onto Sasuke's shirt ever more securely as he buried his face deeper onto his back.

"I'm sorry."

The three words that are so simple yet hold so much significance in the crossed lives of two people.

The weight of the other boy seems to fade along with all other darkness, returning the surroundings its light, colour, radiance. But nothing now gets into Sasuke's mind. In this light, in this colour, in this radiance, he had to choose to walk away from it and towards a dark, colourless, dead way.

Never had Sasuke felt so lonely. Never did this stoic boy feel so out of place. Never had he felt this heart-torn, upset, depressed... Never did he feel so much in... Ahh what was that word? Oh, that's right:

Pain...

Memories... Things that happened in the past; Things that made him what he is today; Things he dreaded fearfully, and cherished thankfully. Things that are tugged at his heartstrings. Every single memory of that obnoxious blonde played vividly in his mind. Their accidental kiss, the first encounter, the first fight, the first time Naruto cried for him, the first time he almost died protecting him, the countless times they actually smiled at each other, and most importantly, the way they acknowledged each other.

Naruto's eyes fluttered open slowly. Each flicker of the eyelid was weighted down by the despair he now begins to feel. "Sa...suke." He breathed out heavily on those three syllabuses. Instinctively, his head tilted to the left with one side of the face pressing against the cold, solid ground. A headband caught his attention. He reached for it painstakingly with his right arm, with his left paralysed during the fight. He lifted it up gently. A Konoha headband, a clear line across that significant symbol. Instantly, he recognised who its owner was. He firmly held onto the headband and placed it near his heart. His gaze fell back to the path lying to the side of him. His eyes dulled gradually as he stared at the disappearing silhouette of a certain unbroken bond. Anguish washed over his soul and left him void of other emotions. Dejection paralysed not only his body, but also his will to continue fighting.

A lone tear trekked the contours of his face slightly. Others soon follow suit, drawing invisible lines as they slide past his cheeks. His lead-heavy eyelids fell shut in attempt to hold back the shame of more tears. Instead, more of such tears flowed down those grief soaked window to a torn soul. Crying wasn't something Naruto was good at. The motions created by it always cause his stomach to hurt. Not this time... The younger boy's entire body felt so hurtful that it became numb, non feelings. That arching heart of a faith-driven boy was stinging. It throbbed so hard, that nothing could be felt. Slowly, Naruto curled on his side, hugging his legs to his vibrating chest and crying his heart out. It's been a while since he last wept this majorly. "Sa... Sa... Suke..." Hiccups erupted through the discontinuous calling out of the name that mattered to him so much. "D-Don't... Don't... Go..." Hot tears seemingly painted his face with a glistering glow and staining the already wet ground.

"Am I..." A fatherly figure stepped forward from the forest beside the beautiful falls. "Too late...?" The only thing that was heard is the loud sobbing of the fallen blond angel in pain. Not even the crashing waterfall can drown it. Kakashi's single eye softened as his gaze fell on the trembling body. "Naruto..."

Author's Note:

I personally like this chapter quite a lot :D Don't know why but hopefully you guys liked it too! Phew I rushed this in time with someone's birthday. Happy birthday Sasuke. :) Though I don't really like him. :/ Have fun.

Many Thanks,
VeNgEaNcEoFrAiN.