Chapter 10

I'm Always With You.

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The entire workforce of the bathhouse was gathered outside on the bridge, waiting. Xembaba paced back and forth in a visibly bad mood.

Suddenly, Donald noticed something in the sky. He pointed at it wildly. "There they are!" he quacked.

Axel and Roxas landed lightly on the path. Xembaba glowered. "I see you failed to bring the replica back," he growled.

Repliku snarled, leapt off Roxas's shoulder, and transformed midair back into his human form, sort of like Jacob in the "New Moon" trailer but simultaneously cuter and more terrifying all at once. Drawing his Keyblade and holding back in a ready position, he said, "I'm sorry to say, but you're rather mistaken."

Xembaba turned his glare on Axel. "What have you done?!" he hissed. "The thing is even more rebellious than before!"

"Regardless of his condition, I brought him back," Axel said. "Now you have to keep your promise. Tear up Roxas's contract, and send him and his friends back to their world."

"Not so fast," Xembaba said. "I get to give Roxas one final test."

While the bathhouse staff booed, Repliku jumped between Xembaba and Roxas. "You jerk!" he said. "You've just an evil megalomaniac who'll destroy everything just to get your way!"

"Hold on," Roxas said, putting a hand on Repliku's shoulder and gently pushing him aside. "If it's a test that Xembaba wants…"

Roxas's eyes narrowed. He held his hands out to either side. Then, in two bright flashes of light, a Keyblade appeared in each hand. Clenching his fists and focusing his energy, Roxas roared—and the Keyblades turned from Kingdom Keys into Oblivion and Oathkeeper."

"… then a test he'll get," Roxas finished.

An EPIC BATTLE took place, with Roxas, Axel, and Repliku on one side, and Xembaba on the other. The popular Organization members, Donald, Goofy, and Mickamaji sided with Roxas, and the people nobody cares about sat it out. Pocket Cucco kept score.

Two hours, sixteen Limit Breaks, a stage involving an airship for some reason, and forty-three levels of boss fights later, Roxas emerged victorious.

As Xembaba faded away into nothingness and muttered some last words about Kingdom Hearts or something, everybody else cheered wildly. "You did it!" they shouted. "Good going, Roxas!"

"Thanks, everyone!" Roxas yelled back. "Thanks for everything! Goodbye!"

"Goodbye, Roxas!" everybody shouted.

While the crowd cheered, Axel grabbed Roxas by the hand. "Let's go!" he said, and the two started running down the path that Sora had first wandered onto all that time before.

"Where are my friends?" Roxas asked.

"When you defeated Xembaba, they woke up on the other side of the tunnel," Axel said. "They're there now, and they're looking for you."

When the tunnel came into view, Roxas braced himself—but there was no painful impact this time. "The invisible wall's gone!" he said. "I can walk through now!"

"But I can't go any farther," Axel said. Roxas looked back with a stunned look. Before he could say anything, Axel spoke. "Just go back the way you came, you'll be fine. But you have to promise that you won't look back. Not until you've passed through the tunnel."

"But what about you?" Roxas asked. "What will you do?"

"Don't worry," Axel said. "Now that Xembaba's gone, somebody's going to have to rise up and take control of this ragtag bunch. I'm fine now, I've got my name back. Everything will be okay."

"Will we…" Roxas swallowed. "Will we meet again someday?"

"I'm sure we will," Axel said.

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go. And don't look back."

"See ya, Axel."

"See ya, partner."

"Soooraaaa!" Kairi called, waving to him as he scrambled over the rocks toward his friends.

"Sheesh, slowpoke," Riku said, his arms folded across his chest. "What took you so long?"

"You shouldn't run off like that," Kairi said worriedly. "We thought we lost you."

Sora nodded, then looked at Kairi and Riku carefully. "Are you guys… sure you're all right?"

"Of course we're all right," Riku said. "What, it's not like we got into any kind of delightfully extradimensional trouble or anything like that." He turned and made his way across the rocks.

"Come on, Sora," Kairi said, holding his hand as they walked back toward the familiar side of the island. "Ooh," she said, "where'd you get the cool wristband?"

As the three made their way back to their boats, Riku shifted uncomfortably. "Sorry about earlier," he finally said, "about calling you a scaredy-cat. Caves are a bit scary, after all."

Sora shrugged. "It's all right. I think I'm fine now."

THE END!

Cast:

Chihiro — Sora

Sen — Roxas

Haku — Axel

Chihiro's Mom — Kairi

Chihiro's Dad — Riku

Yubaba — Xemnas

Kamaji — Mickey Mouse

Susuwatari (Soot Sprites) — Brooms

Little Green Frog — Demyx

Xion — No Face

Lin — Donald and Goofy

Boh (Baby) — Replica Riku

River Spirit — Ansem the Wise

Zeniba — Naminé

Bathhouse Workers — Organization XIII

Reader — You!

Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it!

(Itsumo Nando Demo — I'm Always With You.)

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OMAKE (BONUS FEATURE):

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Exhausted, injured, and his vision failing, Sasuke could do nothing but lie helplessly against the cliff wall. He did his best to glare at the orange figure approaching him. His eyes might have been ruined, but that color was recognizable from a hundred miles away.

Naruto.

Naruto walked slowly, deliberately across the ground. In his right hand, he clutched a kunai. One strike, and everything would be over.

Sasuke growled. "So here it is," he said in a voice hoarse from shouting and blood. "Here it ends. You've proven yourself the better shinobi. Good job, Naruto."

Naruto was silent. He stopped, two feet from where Sasuke lay. But although he was within striking distance, he didn't make his move.

Sasuke bared his teeth. "Why?" he whispered. "Why do you hesitate? Do you still think that you can save me?"

Naruto looked down on Sasuke, lying there battered and broken.

"Of course," he said softly.

Somehow, somewhere, Sasuke found the strength to shout. "You fool!" he screamed. "After all that I've done?! After all that I've become?! How can you possibly think that you can save me?! Everyone else has given up! Why do you keep on trying?!"

"AAAAARGH!" Naruto roared. His arm moved, the kunai in his hand flashing through the air. Sasuke closed his eyes, heard the thud, felt the impact of it. He braced himself for the pain… that never came. Slowly, he opened his eyes. The kunai was imbedded in the cliff wall, an inch from his left ear.

"BECAUSE!" Naruto screamed, grabbing Sasuke by the collar and bringing his face up to his, "you're my FRIEND!!"