I can't stand it- I'm suffocating! I pull myself away- but the beast pulls me back into its hold- refusing to let go. Relaxing my body- I try to go limp- maybe if I play dead… Crying out, it pulls me, if possible, even closer and I marvel at the idea of dieing like this- call it heroic. The beast cries out loudly, piercing my ears with it's sobbing and sniveling. Gathering some of my strength, I try again to push back- but it won't let me.
"Sasuke! I thought you were-" Sakura sobs and gasps for breath, leaking tears and sweat from worry. Disgusted, I look away from the soggy ninja as she hugs me against her- to die like this after all I've been through- how shameful. She stares down at my face, biting her lip with concern and pushes some of my hair away from my eyes, trembling. I watch her face as she calms down; she isn't the same. Uncertain coldness is behind her expressions and I watch as it shoves away her pain and tears: what is this? She squeezes my hand reassuringly and looks away, watching the other figure approach, covered in bruises and scratches that I helped cause.
His blue eyes shine in the dullness of the battlefield like a beacon against the dark and resentful red blemishes that covered the ground around us, and under me. The pain strikes again and I shudder in agony, straining my body to be still, but it twitches under the nerve damage. I cough, my throat allowing blood to escape onto the ground beside me. I tighten my hands into fists, struggling for my life, and realize that Sakura was still holding onto my hand. She rubs my back and tries to reassure me that everything will be fine; he arrives beside us, crouching down beside me and encouraging me to stay strong and alive.
Carcasses of comrades and enemies litter the ground like leaves in autumn, every five feet, it seems, a new one was laying. I try to turn my neck, and listen as the bones pop from stiffness; I clench my teeth and sit up, my entire body feeling raw. A sad smile plays in his eyes, and for the first time since this the fight had broken out, he talks to me.
"You did it," he said softly, looking towards the other end of the bloody field. I follow his eyes over to where he was looking and in the distance, a stream of black hair flows from the head of a mangled body. I want to see for myself. Shuddering in pain, I slowly stand up, my loose shirt almost completely falling off of me, revealing my scarred and bleeding torso. Red splotches are soaked into the fabric that haven't stopped growing yet, still getting larger with every shallow breath. Sakura tries to help me up, putting my good arm over her shoulder and helping me stay stable as I rise.
It's so nostalgic. Naruto walks beside us, watching the ground as we walk, and silent for what feels like the first time ever. He keeps his eyes away from Sakura as she explores the faces of the bodies, searching for any still living that she could save. In front of us, a hand writhes and moves, stretching out onto the earth, grasping it, then dragging back to its owner and repeating. Sakura sucks in her breath as we walk past the Akatsuki operative, hearing him gasping for breath- holding onto what life he had left, and we just walk by, not even turning- there's no need; it would be useless.
My past reflects in the fresh dew that glistens on the sparse green grass, begging for me to answer if what I chose for my life was right. My stomach clenches and lurches, sending me to the ground, hunched over and coughing violently. My entire body quivers and shakes in pain- I can't give up yet! I have to see for myself, or it's not worth it! I try to force myself up, but instead end up falling onto my side, I shudder in agony and Sakura leans down beside me, her face calm but worried.
"Don't push yourself," she says softly, tenderly brushing my hair away from my eyes again with her battle worn fingers. She never ceases to amaze me. After all that I've put her through, if I were her or Naruto, I'd hate me- but- I glance at them through eyes that were squinted in pain; they both are still by my side. Naruto looks at the ground beside me, never directly at my face, his blue eyes deep and reminiscent, a distant almost-smile sits on his lips, his mind on a distant day. My eyes force themselves closed against my will and my shallow breaths beg to slow down. For a moment, all is calm.
"No- I have to- I- have to-" I gasp, prying my eyes open and using every fiber of my being to will myself to sit up, crying out as my heart pounds heavily and strongly in my chest, more blood rises into my mouth and I spit it aside, my eyes forward- it's so near- all that I need. Sakura's vexed face shows fear for my pain and she tries to convince me to lay back down.
"Sasuke- don't be stupid!" she says angrily, words that she would ordinarily never use towards me. Her face flushes red with worry that she upset me and I ignore his, biting my tongue to keep myself awake.
"Here," Naruto leans beside me and lifts my arms onto his shoulders, placing me onto his back so that my feet were just slightly dragging on the ground behind us as he carried me. What is this? He holds my arms carefully keeping me balanced and on him. His feet trudge heavily as he carries me, Sakura watches, her face showing her anxiety; she never was good at masking her emotions. Why are they doing this? Clouds choke out the sunlight, hiding the morning as it begins.
The body is nearer and I watch it stiffly, wondering if- after all of this time- it could really have happened; it's seems too good to be true. My eyes blur some from the pain and in the corner of my left one's sight a gray mass of hair protrudes from the ground, catching my attention. Slowly, I turn them towards it and try to have my sight focus, as it does, the blur becomes my past sensei. I watch as Naruto slowly trudges past the body, his and Sakura's sight forward, their faces obviously distorted with worry, but they continue on. His face lay limply in the dirt, but his chest heaves with breath deep from exhaustion, he'll make it through. If I were younger I would have wanted to pry off his mask at a chance like this- but now… My hand tightens into more of a grip onto Naruto's jacket as we near the body.
"Let me walk now," I say, my voice horse, I hate to rely on him. He turns his face to me, then slowly bends some and lets me slide off, Sakura holds onto me to keep me from collapsing, but I brush aside her hands and force my legs to move me forward. I stumble briefly and she rushes forward, but lets me be as I regain my position and start forward again. My feet seem to weigh thousands of pounds as I drag them through the dirt towards the body. Black hair hangs docile on the grass, seeming to almost float above it, the pail face it belongs to is hidden and I lean down to turn the body, disgusted as blood leaks from what seems like every pore. I set my hand on the cloak and push the body's shoulder, watching as it falls flat onto it's back, it's face turned to me, it's eyes wide open and expressionless. Brother.
My breath stops for a moment and I fall down beside him, never moving my eyes from his lifeless face for a moment. Sakura begins to come to me, but Naruto reaches out to her and motions for her to stop, his face blank and hard to read. I stare at the face beside me; I once used to envy him. Everything came so naturally to him, as if he had known and practiced it since before any of us were even born, as if he had invented it himself. Everyone had loved him, everyone always said how wonderful he was, that he was the most promising ninja out there, and I even measured my success against his, but- he always came out on top. And then…
I suppress the urge to hit him, knowing it would be wrong, and instead, tears stream down my cheeks. My life. I look away from him and at the sky, for the first time in a long time, admiring how beautiful it was. I have wasted my life. Spite drips into my heart, like a toxin in which every drop was more lethal than the last. I wanted to kill him for wasting my life; but now I have and I realize that I have ruined it- I'm not even sure if I know myself. I hear a short sniffle and I turn look behind me, tears dripping from Sakura's face. Her haunting eyes watch me, glittering green with tears that were forcing their way out.
Those two, they were my best friends; what have I done? I once almost killed Naruto to gain the strength of the mangekyo sharingan, as it is my birth right; but… It seems so similar to what Itachi would have done. My arms and legs go numb from lack of blood, and my once white shirt now drips crimson, looking as if it were wine stained. My throat soon grows weak and loose, relaxing itself, and I finally realize- I'm going to die here. Turning back over, I face Itachi and laugh a tiny bit to myself, a funny thought crossing my mind at a quite untimely moment; I have beaten Itachi finally.
I stare over at his face and some how, relief washes over my weak self. If I were to survive this, what would I do? What would drive me to be stronger, to become better? Sure there's Naruto, but let's be serious, nothing could ever give me the determination as I had chasing after Itachi. So, in a way, yes, I can accept that I am to die here. I can't honestly say that it's something like fate, or destiny, but this feels right.
Reaching up, I slide his eyes closed with my weak hand, trembling from the strain of doing so little. His face is so peaceful, so out of place as he finally gets to sleep. Placing my hand at my side, I close my weary eyes slowly, watching as his face fades away from my sight. I breathe in deeply, tasting this world's air for what feels like the first time, and let it out for the last. Everything around me slips away little by little, and as someone grips onto me sobbing violently, the last of the Uchiha's dies.