A/N: I would appreciate reviews, very much. Review!! :)
Naruto has nightmares. He doesn't tell anyone about them, not Sakura, not Sai, not Kakashi-sensei. Nobody. Ever since the battle of the Legendary Sannin, he keeps flashing back to it. However, it's an altered memory, not the same people.
Orochimaru's smug smirk is replaced by Sasuke's disdainful one, and the eyes shine red, three tomoe whirling about. He stands on top of Manda casually as if daring his teammates to drag him back, assuming that they aren't capable, even if they stand together.
Tsunade's grimness is replaced by Sakura's determination, pink hair gently blowing in the breeze. Her mouth is set in a straight line, her green eyes filled with pain. She fights because she has to, not because she wants to.
Jiraiya's long white hair is replaced by Naruto's blonde, but the stance is the same. He carries himself with an effortless pride, though others don't generally see it. He and Gamabunta talk as if they are training, not as if they are fighting one of the most important battles of their lives.
Naruto sees heartbreak in Sasuke's expression and knows that their Sasuke is in there somewhere.
Sakura is haunted by the inevitable, but to an extent, she has come to accept it. She knows that one day they will fight Sasuke, and that she isn't ready for what will come afterwards. Even though she is an accomplished kunoichi, death is not something that she can deal with.
She sees the sadness that Tsunade hides behind her no nonsense demeanor. Orochimaru was many things, but he used to be her teammate, somebody who always had her back. Jiraiya's passing was even worse, though he died an honorable death. Sakura pretends not to see the unwept tears, but she sees them more clearly than ever as the days go by.
How long do they have until their time comes?
Despite herself, Sakura feels some tug of hope that it will never come, but she tries to push it away.
Instead, she braces herself for the impact and prays that by some miracle, they'll all make it through.
Sasuke, though he can pretend that he doesn't care, truly does. He cared about his brother, and he cares about his former teammates. The image of Itachi dying, no, of Sasuke killing him, is burned into Sasuke's head. He doesn't want that to be Naruto or Sakura next. Yet, every time he closes his eyes, it's a new horrific scene, some technique of his finishing them off, his eyes not giving away his emotions.
Naruto sighs and tells him that he didn't deserve to be Hokage if he couldn't even bring his best friend back home. Sasuke shakes as he watches his closest friend die, but Naruto doesn't notice. He tells Sasuke that Sakura-chan will be waiting for him and that Sasuke should go back. Once he is dead, Sasuke allows himself to cry. More than once he has been jolted from his sleep to find his pillow wet.
Sakura smiles as she takes her last breath, wasting it telling him that she loves him. Sasuke only watches as the sparks of his Chidori force her heart to give out. He reaches out to hold her hand, only to realize that it is lifeless. He wakes up from this one with his heart racing.
Sasuke douses his face with cold water, hoping that the dreams will stop, knowing that they won't.
He can't bear to look at himself in the mirror, or he will feel the need to get revenge on the one that killed his teammates.
"Sakura-chan?" Naruto says tentatively.
"Yes Naruto?" she replies.
She is smiling brightly, as if she lives without a care in the world.
"We won't fail," he assures her. "Sasuke will come back with us."
Sakura doesn't answer, but her smile gets a little sadder. It's the first time since he left that they have dared to mention his name.
Upon waking up from an almost sleepless night, Sasuke sighs, an inexplicable wave of nostalgia washing over him.