"Sasuke!"
The word resonated soundly, bellowing above the din of the river which descended into a vast waterfall just meters away from where Sasuke stood. The tone pinned him to the ground, denied him from moving forward, toward power, toward freedom. He felt frustrated with his own self for being drawn to the idiot pursuing him, but he turned around.
"…Naruto…" he acknowledged tensely.
"What're you doing!?" Naruto hollered.
Although Sasuke was obviously not quite himself, with his curse seal having just been upgraded, Naruto did not feel threatened enough to activate his own recently-discovered chakra mode. This irked Sasuke. Was he so weak, so powerless that even Naruto was unafraid of what he could do?
Sasuke's lips curled into a scowl. "I would think that should be obvious, even for an idiot like you Naruto!" he shot back.
Naruto narrowed his eyes in irritation, but his demeanor continued to reflect that of a scolding friend rather than the obvious enemy that he had become.
"You know, that Orochimaru guy, he just wants your body!" Naruto informed. "Can you imagine all the weird things he'd do with you!?" Naruto shook in great animation, as though the thought grossed him out beyond belief… and it did.
Sasuke scoffed. "A small price to pay for power," he responded.
"You want power?!" Naruto hollered back.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. Really? Not even Naruto could be this thick.
"Hey! Just stick with me, pal! I'm gonna be the most powerful shinobi of all time!" Naruto proclaimed. "And all my friends'll become powerful at my side, even you!"
Sasuke shook his head. "Still living in childish dreams," he chastised. "That's why you're weak Naruto, why you could never give me enough power to defeat Itachi!"
"Hah!" Naruto barked in laughter, although Sasuke could sense the boy's chakra getting more intense. It began to form around him visibly. "When I'm hokage, you'll see!" Naruto assured. "You'll regret leaving! But don't worry, I'll still let you back at my side!"
"Enough talking!" Sasuke insisted.
"So it's gonna be like this then?" Naruto asked. "It's gonna be a fight?"
"Hasn't it always?" Sasuke answered simply.
Naruto crouched, morphing into a more animal-like visage as the features of his body began to match the kyuubi's energy from inside. "You'll be sorry when you're looking up at me from your back!" he warned.
Sasuke scoffed. "Please! You couldn't put a scratch on me!" He, then, put on his forehead protector. "Why don't you give it a try?" he invited. "Put a scratch right here." He pointed to his forehead protector. "–if you can!"
Not too long ago, Sasuke had been bested in a fight with Naruto, though Kakashi broke them up before they could truly see who was more powerful. Nonetheless, Naruto appeared capable of doing more damage than Sasuke at the time, but Sasuke was stronger now. Sasuke had to know that Naruto couldn't compete. He had to do this, to prove to himself that he was worthy of the power he sought, that he was worthy of finding Itachi and avenging his clan with honor.
"Prove your strength!" Sasuke demanded.
He could sense that Naruto was ready, that he would fight without holding back. He could sense that Naruto would drag him home unconscious if he had to, but Naruto wasn't moving… so Sasuke made the first move.
They clashed thunderously. As they traded attacks, countered, dodged, and tried out their specialty moves, it became clear to Sasuke that Naruto was more of a match than Sasuke thought he should have been. As the energy continued to charge between them, Sasuke's Sharingan eyes suddenly became sharper. The skill deepened and allowed him to see Naruto on a level he hadn't previously known. He could predict Naruto's movements more acutely than possibly Naruto himself.
It wasn't enough though. Even as Sasuke remained one step ahead, Naruto's reckless abandon made him a worthy opponent. He could not be surprised by Sasuke. He would change course on a whim, decide a new attack in seemingly the very same moment he'd decided on the old one, toss his body into the line of fire just to take a chance. His chakra would heal him as quickly as he took damage. He was fearless. He was determined. His intentions were deep and passionate, and Sasuke found himself being worn down by it all from within. The influence of the curse seal in his head made Sasuke frantic and desperate for things to end.
The two grew tired eventually, and Sasuke knew he was coming to the edge of his reserves, even as much as they'd grown in this state. He had to deactivate his eyes to save every drop of chakra for what he knew was going to be a tight fight right to the very end. Naruto showed no hesitation, ready to exert himself to the maximum. His emotional state made him more vulnerable than Sasuke, more likely to release chakra explosively. If Sasuke could just outlast him, just a little bit, just be a tiny bit more wise, then he would walk away victorious.
When he noticed Naruto gearing up for yet another explosive clash, Sasuke knew this would be the end of it. Naruto would knock him unconscious if Sasuke didn't do it first. Sasuke measured out how much chakra he'd need to match Naruto without becoming totally depleted himself. They were moving forward toward each other again so quickly, two electrical charges ready to meet, one reaching up toward the sky, one reaching down, searching for each other, searching for a point of connection. When they connected, like a lightning strike that finally released all of its energy, they scorched the earth.
Naruto released it all, everything that he had, and he lay motionless on the ground as a result. Sasuke stumbled forward. His mind was more battered than his body. His curse seal had receded, but he could still hear the voices that came with it. They were maddening, whispering of his weakness, of his pitiful identity. They asked him what he wanted. To be like Naruto? Or to be like Itachi?
Sasuke fell to his knees above Naruto with tears welling in his eyes, but he held them back. He kept them in. He would not cry. He would not become emotional like Naruto, lest he risk becoming so blind that he sacrificed his own self in an attempt to face his foes. But he could not become like Itachi either, willing to kill those who showed him such devotion with ease.
The voices kept whispering, hissing, berating… but the longer Sasuke stared down at Naruto, the more they began to fade. Sasuke used what chakra he could clamber together to activate his freshly upgraded Sharingan eyes, and looked into Naruto. He saw so much chakra still left unused, a bright orange oasis of energy ready to explode like a volcano.
He could faintly hear Naruto hollering deep in the recesses of his mind, as if he were fighting with his own self. Or… could it be… Could he sense Sasuke? Could he tell, even unconscious, that Sasuke remained at his side? Was he begging Sasuke to stay? No, it was more likely that he was screaming profanities and insulting Sasuke for being selfish enough to leave in the first place.
Sasuke closed his eyes, removed his forehead protector, and laid it on Naruto's chest. He leaned forward until his forehead met the cool metal of Naruto's protector and released a heavy breath that had been crushing his chest. Holding his emotions in was slowly suffocating him. He was too weak. This was why he needed to seek Orochimaru.
Even if he never found Itachi, he still had demons inside to defeat, for which he needed power that Konoha could never give. Konoha could not understand his loss. Konoha could do nothing to soothe the pain of being the last of his name, of bearing such rich ties to the man who'd taken that all away. To be bound by hatred for one who'd once been his role model and very best friend, to live with the dirty tinge of that pain on his heart was a demon tangible enough to need destroying as much as the murderer who'd made him this way.
Sasuke sat up slowly and opened his eyes. They trailed away from Naruto's face, "Can't y–"
The words ran away from him, for there, across the symbol that declared him a proud shinobi of the leaf, was a gouge that seemed to cut deeply into Sasuke's weary soul itself. Sasuke began to wonder if someone as strong as Naruto could learn to stay standing, if he could learn to use his emotions to finish a fight and not finish his own self, then… maybe… Could he defeat even Sasuke's demons?
His chakra was totally depleted by now, so Sasuke could only look at Naruto as a simple boy. He could no longer see beneath, but he would never forget what he'd seen just beyond Naruto, in the space between where corporeal bodies met with the mysticism of nature and harmony. The mental image would become the renewed basis for his own ninja creed, his nindo, his ninja way.
You can lay at the feet of the enemy, defeated by your own self, even when so much vitality stays left inside. To succeed is not to be the last one standing. To succeed is to know when to turn away.
Naruto was not depleted. Yet, here he lay. Almost.. as if… as if he had chosen to shut down… as if he had hoped his last blow would exhaust Sasuke and do no more. Was Naruto not willing to fight with such high stakes? Was Naruto really willing to knock himself out for the sake of protecting those he dumbly loved, even when those people were willing to kill him without hesitation?
But Sasuke couldn't say that, because Sasuke couldn't kill Naruto, could he? He could only sit like a fool and wonder about what all this could mean. Was it possible that Naruto was able to see Sasuke the same way that Sasuke was watching him? Was it possible that Naruto could sense the edge of Sasuke's chakra reserves and had chosen to let it all end with as little damage as possible? Sasuke shook his head to dispel the thoughts. He would only think himself in circles wondering these things. Truly, he'd never know. Even if he asked Naruto, he would not get a straight answer.
Perhaps one day he would be able to bore deep into the moron's head, and perhaps he would track Naruto's memories back to this valley where they met for the first true time in history, and perhaps he would find the answers buried currently deep in Naruto's heart, the heart full of intentions that Naruto was willing to die protecting. If Sasuke was in there, inside that heart, then he supposed that being at Naruto's side could be a good thing. Perhaps it was his duty to make Naruto stronger mentally, to help Naruto use his heart wisely, to pull that ocean of chakra out of the dobe. Perhaps, if he did this, then Naruto truly could crush every boundary that made Sasuke so weak.
Sasuke pocketed his forehead protector and hoisted Naruto up onto his back. He could not be sure what would have come of the Sound Four or the rest of the team that had come to recover him, but he did not care. He looked onward through the trees and began to make his way home.
"Stick with me," Sasuke murmured as he trudged onward with all of his remaining strength. "We'll be home in no time."
He carried on until his vision went black, and even then, deep in the recesses of his mind, he continued to carry Naruto's weight. He only stopped when his eyes began to crack and filtered in a bright light that he had come to recognize by now. He was back in the hospital, yet again.