They started attacking each other using visually incredible techniques. Taijutsu was their field of choice, the battle was too heated for a process as slow as ninjutsu. Quick hits, close dodges, the most remarcable displays of agility made by the finest trained shinobi of their time. Yet, Naruto couldn't help but feel the man fighting him was holding back.
At some point, his opponent shinobi managed to get hold of Naruto's shield, ornated with the symbol of the Hidden Leaf. He tossed the shield in an attack Naruto barely managed to dodge. it got stuck in the door of a van, and it would be foolish if they occupied themselves with retrieving it. He then immediately held up a kunai and attacked Naruto with all his might and skill. Naruto escaped getting hit by a hair, moving and trying to land an attack at any given opportunity.
The masked shinobi almost hit Naruto with his Chidori. Naruto was certain it could only have grown that strong after years of exsessive training. It missed and smashed the asphalt, making a circle of deep cracks. After the exchange of some rapid blows, Naruto saw the advantage and grabbed his shield once more. He smashed it in an attack the other countered with his kunai.
Naruto grabbed the attacker's Chidori-powered arm. He only succeeded in holding it because of the strength he had built up and his wind chakra. Naruto took a brief glance into his opponent's eyes. They had something familiar, yet they were a stranger's eyes. He expected, for some reason he couldn't place, for the eyes to change their form somehow. It had better not be a Rinnegan.
But that moment didn't last long. His foe attacked back, and Naruto was forced to throw him on the ground.
The man's mask flew off his face when it made impact with the ground. He stood up quickly, ready to fight back again. He turned and faced Naruto unmasked. Naruto was completely taken aback. It couldn't be...
Naruto's heart leaped to his mouth and sunk in his chest in an exchange of milliseconds. He wanted to scream, but in his shock he only managed to whisper the name he held so dearly.
"Sasuke?".
Naruto now knew why he couldn't recognise him from his eyes. They didn't burn any longer with the flame of revenge, his constant motivator. He had found the power he so feverlishly sought, but at the expense of using it to fulfill the wishes of others.
He gave him a look that was cold and calculating, the look of a killer. Yet, for one moment, Naruto had the feeling that he would remember all they had been through. That the old Sasuke, his beloved friend, would shine through.
But he diminished Naruto's hope with a few simple words:
"Who the hell is Sasuke?".