Take this chapter as you may. If you chose to see these two boys romantically, or if you chose to see them as the strongest of friends, I'll leave it open just the way they do in the anime. I will say, this chapter made me get a little teary eyed when I was writing it. The story is almost at it's close, as well. A few more chapters. Review please :D

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Everyone was still affixiated with Madara when Sasuke turned his blade around. Shikamaru turned just in time to call out, "Sasuke!" before the blade pierced his pale skin. He showed no sign of pain at the self inflicted wound. Blood stained his clothes, black eyes welling up with tears as he removed the blade and threw his arms around a petrified Naruto.

"S-Sa-Sasuke…" Naruto shook, wrapping his arms around Sasuke tightly, kneeling with him as Sasuke's legs gave out, "You… Sasuke…"

Sakura rushed over and looked at the wound, "I don't think I can…" She stared at Naruto, "Naruto, I don't know if this is-"

"Try," Naruto whispered, "Try!"

"Naruto, don't cry," Sasuke smiled, fingers finding his cheek, "Don't weep for me."

"How can I not, Sasuke? How do you expect me not to cry? My first bond… my best friend…"

Sakura looked up helplessly, "What do I do, Naruto? What can I do… Kakashi sensei-"

Kakashi crouched beside the nin. Shikamaru, Temari, and Kiba stayed a few feet behind, "Sasuke, I'm sorry I wasn't a better sensei."

"I'm sorry for disobeying," Sasuke's smile was unwavering, "It is not on your head if your student refuses to listen, right? And you got through to this idiot so…" He smiled and glanced at Naruto. Naruto wept harder.

"Damn Orochimaru," Kakashi muttered, "Damn him. I hope his corpse burns in hell."

"We've all made mistakes," Sasuke whispered, "His obsession led to his downfall, as my own led to mine. I can see it all so clearly now - Why is that? How is it that when I'm face with death, I finally see it - the meaning to life?"

Kakashi thought about it for a moment, "Because it takes loss to show us what is precious to us. Heroes can only shine in the darkest of nights."

Sasuke's lips creased, before he smiled again, nodding, "Of course," His smile wavered, "What I would give to tell my younger self what I can see so clearly now. How different would our lives have been…" He looked at Naruto once more. At the weeping, torn Naruto.

Kakashi did something so unlike him, that it stunned even his students. He knelt to the ground, touched Sasuke's cheek, and kissed his forehead, showing affection a Shinobi was supposed to never show. Still holding firm to Sasuke's jaw, he swore, "You are one of those heroes in the darkness, Sasuke, you better believe it."

"Believe it…" Sasuke's eyes trailed to Naruto, "Did you used to say that, all the time, Naruto? Better times, better times…"

Kakashi's hand loosened it's firm grip. He patted Sasuke's hair, ruffling it a bit like he would to annoy him when he was younger.

"Sakura…" Sasuke's eyes met the pink haired girl's for the first time. She was weeping just as profusely as Naruto. For the first time, Sasuke saw how much he meant to her. He had always known, somewhat, but he had never seen the despair he saw now. Even when she threatened to kill him, there was never a hint of pain. She had masked it so well up until now, "Don't cry either, Sakura.."

"Oh, Sasuke.." Sakura gripped his hand in hers, holding him tightly as she cried, "Why'd you have to go Sasuke? I begged you…"

"I should have listened," Sasuke whispered, "I should have done a lot of things. Like tell you how sorry I was."

"Sorry? Sorry for what?" She looked up to meet the raven's eyes.

"Sorry for ever hurting you, for not listening to you, for insulting you all those years… You were always a pain, Sakura, but you never gave up on me for all the wrongs I did to you. You were never the strongest, but that didn't stop you from standing up and fighting for what you believed in. You were never praised the way you should have been Sakura, always in the shadows of your teammates. I'm sorry my selfish desires halted your growth. I'm sorry I hurt you."

Sakura shook her head fiercely, "Don't be sorry for stupid things," She sobbed once more, "Be sorry for doing something like this - stupid, stupid Sasuke! This… you're acting like Naruto…"

Naruto and Sasuke chuckled through their tears. Naruto's hand, his free hand, which wasn't already in Sasuke's grasp, found where Sakura's held Sasuke's. He wrapped his hand around hers to comfort her, show her he was there.

"Sakura, I can't apologize for something I am not saddened by. Don't you see?" Sasuke looked up at the sky, "My pain ends here today. My debts repaid and I'm free, free from the guilt, the hole I dug myself. There was never an exit beside this one - all other ways out would only cause more pain."

"I just can't understand why anyone could…"

"I thought having Naruto do it would show him he could overcome me," Sasuke bit his lip, "But I realized that he would never forgive himself the way I wished he would. I had to die letting him know I was happy - letting you all know I was happy. This is happiness for me. Being able to sit here with you two…"

Sakura wept harder, and after a moment, Kakashi stepped down beside her and patted her shoulder. When she only crumbled more, he lifted her up from under he arms and helped her to her feet, letting her cry into his chest as he pulled her away. Sasuke and Naruto needed their moment, alone.

"Sasuke-"

"Quiet, Naruto," Sasuke stared up at the sky, "Do you hear it?"

Naruto strained his ears, "Hear what?"

Sasuke pulled Naruto's head down into his chest, "My heartbeat."

Naruto's breath caught, listening as Sasuke's heart fought valiantly inside his chest to keep up a steady heart rate. At this point, he had probably lost so much blood, it was considerably difficult for it to continue beating, yet it beat, so strong and loudly in his chest, "My heartbeat Naruto… memorize the sound for me, okay?"

"Sasuke…"

"Memorize it."

Naruto's head still lay firmly to Sasuke's chest, a moment of silence passing between everyone. Shikamaru wanted to look away - this was a private moment - but couldn't keep his eyes off the two of them. Shikamaru felt his heart heave inside his chest, fall into his stomach, and crumble. He had never liked Uchiha, but he felt himself about to weep at this sight. He could feel the pain in his eyes, see the hurt and the longing and his life story come to him so clearly: All Sasuke ever wanted was a family; Someone to love him unconditionally, someone who cared.

Naruto whispered against Sasuke's chest, "Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"Did I ever tell you about my dreams?"

"To become hokage?"

"No, the one… the one about…" Naruto was trying to steady his voice, "You came back to Konoha. And for the first time, the world was right again. And-"

"Naruto-"

"No, I need to-" Naruto tried to calm himself, "The world was right again. We took the chuunin exams and passed - albeit, a few years later than we expected - and we were a team again, Sasuke. You, me, Sakura, Kakashi sensei… a team. Team 7. And, I never cried, never again. It was something I remember so distinctly from the dream. Because you were home, and because you were home, nothing could ever go wrong. The only thing that mattered was home. Our bond, when we were so close, could never be severed. And-" Naruto let out a sob, "H-Here we are… and I finally have you, but you're not coming home. You're never coming home, Sasuke. Our bond that I refused to let break all those years, through everything I never gave up, has been.. Has been cut right in front of my eyes, and I did nothing to stop it…"

"No, no, Naruto," Sasuke's fingers gripped Naruto's hair tightly, holding him firmly pressed to his chest, "Our bond - don't you see? - is much, much too strong to be severed by something so weak as death. A million deaths and our bond would still be strong. A million lives and we'd keep fighting to keep it alive. A million times I've tried to cut it - for your own good, never mine - and it would never, ever break. Don't you see? It's unbreakable, Naruto…"

Naruto sobbed harder against Sasuke's chest, "All I ever wanted was to get you back, why? Why can't I just have that? Why, the only thing I wanted was…"

"Calm down, Naruto," Sasuke urged, "You'll give yourself a heart attack and die before I can."

"Shut up," Naruto muttered, causing Sasuke to laugh a little, "You never understood how much you meant to me, did you?"

"Oh I knew," Sasuke patted Naruto's head, which stay firmly against his chest, "And I tried to hate you for it, because you were everything Itachi said not to be."

"Itachi…" Naruto sobbed, "He trusted me with saving you, and I failed…"

"No, Naruto, you didn't fail," Sasuke felt his heart break listening to him cry so violently, "You didn't fail. You saved me from becoming Madara, didn't you? You saved me from myself a long time ago."

Naruto pulled away so that he could stare into Sasuke's eyes, ignoring his blood stained blonde locks. He sucked in a hard breath and whispered, "Why did I waste so much time trying to fight you? When all I ever wanted to do was…"

"Because we were kids back then, Naruto," Sasuke's fingers brushed Naruto's cheek, "Obsessed with power and becoming strong and doing anything to get it. If I was any help to you figuring out that truth strength came in the power of friends, then I die happy."

"You're the whole reason I know that."

Sasuke cracked a smile, "Don't give me so much credit."

Silence fell between them again, eyes locked. Sasuke winced in pain; Instinctively, Naruto reached for his hands, holding them tightly in his own. Sasuke pulled the hands gently to his lips and kissed them, holding them there for a long time, tears dribbling down his cheeks and falling off his chin, eyes never even blinking, not wasting a precious second submerged in darkness anymore.

"Sasuke.." Naruto's voice was gone.

"Shh," Sasuke whispered, "There's no more words to say, Naruto."

"I love you," Naruto mouthed, voice long gone. Sasuke smiled through his profuse tears, "Sasuke Uchiha, I love you."

Sasuke pulled Naruto close to him again, rubbing his back with the hand he pulled free, "I know you do, Naruto, I know you do." With a small, sad smile he added, "That never needed to be said - that's why you don't have the voice now."

"The bond that can not be broken," Naruto whispered, "You'll be waiting for me, won't you? With Itachi an your family? My father too… I know you'll be there. If They don't outlive me, our whole team will be there, won't they?"

"Of course," Sasuke smiled, pressing his lips into Naruto's hair, "Goodbye, Naru."

"S-Sa-Sasu-Sasuke…" Naruto stammered, trying to mutter out something - anything - to get another minute with him. His ear still furrowed into Sasuke's chest, he sat there for a long time after Sasuke's grip on his hair had gone limp; Long after Sasuke's eyes had shut, long after Kakashi had told him that he was gone. Why? Because Naruto still heard his strong, valiant heartbeat etched in his mind. He'd memorized it.

"Naruto," Kakashi had the gentlest touch, "Many things in life are uncertain, but I swear on what life I have to live that you will meet him in the future once more, and in the next life again. I swear it to you, Naruto, I swear…" It was only Sakura who saw Kakashi begin to weep, the copy nin's emotionless demeanor giving way as he revealed all the pain he had sealed away, "I promise you, Naruto."

"Of course," Naruto's voice was calm, as his eyes met the tear stained cheeks of his sensei's with no fear, "They'll all be there, Kakashi sensei."

Kakashi pulled Naruto into his arms, but it was clear to Sakura, who sat near by, that it was Naruto who now comforted Kakashi. Sasuke was smiling somewhere, floating way above them. That made Sakura smile.