Thank you for commenting, Anon. As for your question... No, Naruto doesn't know about the deal between Sasuke and Kyuubi.

Training ten: Follow

Enlighten me
Reveal my fate
Just cut these strings
That hold me safe.

The last ten hours showed me how a simple, ludicrous innocent mind, without memories of any kind of hatred, could lead me a pretty dance and toy senselessly with my feelings. Sasuke showed weakness. Humans are capable of this, but not Sasuke. He was self-possessed, tough, insane, stubborn, hard as a rock damn it! Continually refusing to even act like everybody else, being and doing the opposite, this was what made him special! But now, he was just like any other nine year old kid. The passions, the fears, all replaced with copies of simple imitations.

Or had I been egocentric before the incident? Had I? Certainly I have always thought about myself and I've done things that solved only my problems. When I was hungry, I ate; when I was cold, I found heat; when I was angry; I fought and got rid of the problem. It has been like this since forever! But not now, the present was a different equation. When I'm hungry, I eat but I also think of Sasuke's growling stomach; when I'm cold, I share my bloody coat and body with this particularly annoying black-haired guy.

Why?

I saw people before doing all this, but why does it feels so abnormal to me?

/Because we were always alone. No one around means no one to share with./

And beside my actual existential problems, I had a new guy inside my head. I should have been scared, but I wasn't, which gave me this weird feeling that I'm losing my mind.

'Who are you again?'

/I am you. The real you./

'You say I am a fake?'

/No. You are just kind. Hypocrite kindness that's eating you, but also giving space to what's real, namely me./

I sighed. Sasuke shivered. I leant against the frozen tree, trying to reach the stars with my poor vision. It was so unlike me to think about… things. Sasuke jabbed his head deeper, tickling my neck with his muddy hair while his arms were clinging to my torso. His trembling legs were tangled with mine. Also, his right elbow was sitting leisurely on my cock, but I was too frozen to perceive the touch at a higher level than a small itch. I let him be.

Oh, I could barely focus, but I wasn't asleep either. Something just kept me awake.

/Dropping the bucket on someone else already? Not so kind anymore./

'You say it's my fault?'

/No. It's neither mine nor yours. The problem is this little imp./

'Sasuke?'

/Yes. He drags us down. He has been doing this to us for a while./

'It's not his fault.'

/Not a valid argument, isn't it? You think so too./

I closed my eyes and sighted.

'He can't remember a thing about himself; I'm definitely not going to let him die here.'

/Why?/

'Because.'

/This is also a invalid reason./

'I have never had a reason. Why should I make up one now?'

/You were questioning yourself a few moments ago. You seek answers. Or should I say, you actually need them to keep going?/

Here I was again, talking with myself about… myself, losing my mind without getting scared or angry. Maybe this thing that Sasuke had was contagious after all.

"Naruto."

I lowered my head, meeting Sasuke's worried gaze. "Is there something wrong?"

"Why would there be?" I asked frankly.

He pressed his head on my shoulder, biting his lips in a way that only guilty person do. "You keep sighting."

My eyes wide opened, in realization. "I thought you were asleep."

"I was, but you kept doing that for an hour now, it woke me up."

Again, when I was sleepy, I just slept without caring what other people would say. Now I even have to control my involuntary moves.

"I can't believe you wanted to stop in this weather and get some sleep." I murmured, more thinking about the weird fact than wanting to discuss it with Sasuke.

"I was tired. We had been running for ten hours, normal people need sleep after that." He argued, trying to make his point.

"Not when it's freezing outside." And we are not normal people.

"I…" I pressed my hand on his mouth, trying to avoid any further conversation. Doing this stuff I realized what a pain in the ass I had been before that.

"If you need sleep, then go to sleep, if you don't, we'll continue the running." He looked at me trying to find a way out, but there wasn't. He pouted and made himself more comfortable on me.

"And also move your elbow from my cock. "

He blushed hard and uncharacteristically. " I… I'm so sorry! I didn't intend to… it wasn't… it's not like I… I'm terribly..." Sasuke stuttered.

"Just move it!" Naruto yelled.

He finally stopped talking and moved. I sighed with relief.

"I'm sorry." he whispered and tried to avoid as much as he could the contact between him and my manhood.

'God, he is such a… kid.'

/Told you so. We should get rid of him./

I smiled unreasonable. The other self within me crumbled.

/I refuse to believe what have just crossed your mind. We are not like this./

'Don't you think it's interesting? I want to stay near Sasuke for a while. I just realized my old self seeing him so… hopeless, defenseless, with that passion of living in his eyes. Who knows what I might discover if we stick together longer than this. '

/This is wrong./

'Why?'

/He is dragging us down, he is getting as far away for our dream./

I frowned. 'What dream?'

/Of becoming Hokage. The kid made you forgot./

I almost felt how the strange creature smiled victoriously and proudly. I weighted all his words on my mind, trying to see the way out. I didn't forget, the dream is still there, inside, waiting to be achieved like any other dream. This time, it just didn't feel like a dream at all.

'I didn't forget.' Denying facts seemed to be the right answer.

/Yeah sure, and I'm a unicorn. /

'You are a stupid unicorn then. Becoming hokage is MY dream, not ours.'

/Yeah, and whereas you are hokage, I will rule the world while laughing manically./

At least this thing had a sense of humor. 'What's your name?'

/Naruto, obviously./

'I am Naruto. You must have some different name. We can't be both Naruto.'

/You are really dumb, aren't you? I'm you. Of course we have the same name./

'I'm not like you. You are not like me. Conclusion: we are not alike.'

I felt like I was wasting my time, my sleep time actually. I was stubborn, he was stubborn- we would hardly get a common opinion. I sighed; Sasuke moved his head a little above, leaning it on my shoulder. He puffed and murmured unconsciously some weird words which I didn't care to catch. I couldn't believe that he actually slept in this freezing weather. Well, I was some kind of heater for him so I guess it didn't really matter.

While thinking of other insignificant matters, I fall asleep. That night I was also kept away from the weird dreams I usually got.

~ Next day~

Naruto.

The voice again; it came back and continued the same way to penetrate my mind. Leisurely, distant, it was the exact same feeling as the first time.

Naruto.

But the urgency never came back, neither did my questions. I just refused to repeat the cycle so I forced my eyes to open.

"Naruto, you are awake."

The image started to get contour, the forms kept getting colored.

'Sasuke.'

/Yeah. Stop being melodramatic and wake up. We have to move./

What a sweet morning. I smiled ironically and looked around with agony. Sasuke was literally sitting between my legs, his long arms covering half of my exposed chest while the palms held his head in a way he could inspect me thoroughly. He also hummed.

"Stop doing that."

"Doing what?"

"Humming."

"But I like this melody." And he started again as if I'd be convinced how great the melody was. But once my ears caught the whole song a nervous feeling tried me.

The damn melody was the one I sung for Sasuke.

"Where do you know this?" I blurred out, half yelling.

Sasuke looked puzzled. He frowned and titled his head a little.

"Well?"

"I… I don't remember."

/ Obviously. /

I sighed with disappointment, Sasuke looked hurt. He closed his eyes firmly, looking calmer than the first time. It was like meditation. I waited.

"I think…" he started. I grabbed his hands with desperation and unjustified lust.

He looked startled at me, with a naturally surprise for my outburst, but fear never took its course. A rueful smile showed on my face. I loosen the grip, encouraging him to talk.

"So?"

"I surely heard this song recently."

I huh-ed him. "That's all?"

"When I think of persons, my mind just goes blurry. I have four faces in my mind and one of it is yours, the others three I can't recognize."

'Sakura or Kakashi maybe?'

My intentions were clearly to ask, but a chilly wind waved between us, being followed by colder ones; the wind was strong that day. Snow started like an afterthought.

"Come on, we have to move."

The raven showed me a pure emotion of displeasure I took up as childish. He couldn't have been expected to stay like that for the rest of our lives. A sense of unknown feeling clouded my heart.

"Where are we going this time?"

Starting to run ahead, taking the same direction as yesterday; that had to lead somewhere.

Another eight hours wasted on running in an endless circle. It didn't matter which direction we took, we would sooner or later end up in the same place. The snow just kept increasing with every step we took. Never in my life had I felt so sick and tired of being alive; every bad thing that could have happened already happened. With an excessive lack of mercy, the wind flooded our skins, hitting on us again and again until our bodies would become one with the ground.

"Naruto…"

I sighed. 'Not again…'

I stopped and turned to Sasuke. On top of this shitty situation, there was Sasuke who kept complaining about every stupid thing.

"I fucking told you we can't stop. " I tried to kept the tone down, but the end of the sentence came more as an yelling.

"It's not tha…" His legs gave away and I rushed on time so he wouldn't faint. My hands flinched at the simple touch of our skins. He was burning!

"You are running a fever! Damn it."

He could barely focus and kept losing control of his body. But every time he lost it, he surely came back with a desperate desire of living in his eyes. I gnashed my teeth. Always clutching tight this damn rope of life, even when everything goes wrong. You are a single miserably human, a great ninja with dark power and unreasonable dreams, a cursed homeless. Yet, you are so powerful and seduced by life.

'Tsk. Isn't this the reason why you continue to be an object of admiration and desire?

I'm different to you and you knew it. That's why you vehemently refused anything from me. Ah, lighting my way with more dark thoughts.

Even so, seeing you like this made me powerful- always thinking of you and your stupid eccentric ways of living life, doing whatever you want in order to achieve your dreams. '

"Sasuke, hang on. We'll definitely make it." I lifted his heavy body and continued to walk forward.

'People always thought you were the one with issues that gave his life away in exchange of meaningless dreams. But you weren't. You always knew that reaching one dream and dying while doing it is far more important that living a long life without lifting a finger. And I knew this too. You were confident. You knew you'll get stronger than your brother and powerful than any other ninja that leads Konoha. You believed and turned it into reality. Thing I was also aware of.

But do you know what's the difference between me and you? You never tried to make people like you. You didn't give a damn about their feelings and you succeeded in life not caring about the consequence of being lonely. I hated being alone and hated, but you didn't. Even though I never experienced those feelings, having curiosity as only reason for wanting them, I wanted them. You had them, lost them and after that not even the slightest desire of having them back washed over you.

But this is wrong too. Now you are just a free lonely bird. People do exchange freedom for the warmth of other humans being, you've done the opposite.

Still, you found a dumb blond haired friend that gave and still gives a damn about your life. Lucky bastard. '

A sly smile covered my face and I glanced at you like every enigma I had ever had just got resolved. But I felt good.

'I always put others on the first place, but I know that wasn't just my desire of others to like me. It was kindness. The type of kindness Sasuke would never understand. I was right, if anything in this world won't kill me, kindness will surely do.'

A weak shine lightened my face. It was the conglomerate of thousands of others lights. A village kept getting contour in front of us.

'I know now that hoping and being attracted to life always get you off from places you thought as being the ending of what you've built so far.'