Summary: How far will you go to restore a piece of yourself that was cruelly ripped away? As Naruto contemplates the results of his actions, Sasuke is there to comfort him. Hints of SasuNaru and KuraNaru ONE SHOT. HIATUS ANNOUNCEMENT. Warning: slight depictions of violence. Happy Ending.

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ANNOUNCEMENT: So it had been awhile since I updated any of my stories. For that, I deeply apologize. I thought I would be able to write more post graduation, but wow, internship is a whole 'nother level. So let this be my formal announcement that ALL of my multi-chapters will be on a LONG HIATUS. I will still be posting one shots from time to time, but again, not with the same frequency as I used to. So I'm very sorry for those who are waiting for any updates.

With that said, read on.

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Note: Some of this fanfic take inspiration from Shinobi bro's "Kurama isn't Kurama any more" video on YouTube (can even be taken as an aftermath to it if you already watched it) with a little bit of concepts from fullmetal alchemist.

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Warmth.

It was the first of many things that filled his once empty body. His soul, freezing in the depths of blinding void, lost, aimless…. searching… in idle repose. Devoid and detached from any feeling, yet thirsting and oh so hungry for that touch… for that warmth.

Oh not a day have gone by that he missed this warmth. This all-encompassing chakra that nurtured him after every combat, this strong and threatening yet equally comforting presence in the background that lulled him to sleep in the night, the only true constant in his life when everyone else seemed to disappear at every turn.

This chakra was there when his master and father figure passed away, brutally murdered in the defense of a thankless village that sent him to die all alone; it wrapped him in its soft golden embrace, cradled him in its true and certain presence- presence as sure as the rising sun in the morning.

It was there when his best friend deserted their village, cradling him when he cried himself to sleep after failing to save the one bond he ever cherished. It was there when the village mocked him, his teachers reminded him how he would never amount to anything, or how his one and only teammate left cried, kicked and punched him for his failure to bring back the man he swore he'd return.

That chakra that blanketed him from every Kunai, jutsu, kick or punch, shielded him not just from physical threats but shielded him from his own darkness. A chakra that was always there… not like the others.

Oh how he missed it.

How he missed that strong and fatherly figure looming behind that gated wall that marked his seal. The reassuring touches he so craved as he lived a life with no parents, no friends and no real allies in his youth. It was always there… always in the background.

Like a silent guardian. Always watching… Always there for him.

But then…

It was cruelly ripped away from him. Without warning, without even a chance to say a proper good bye to the one true constant in his life. How he missed the warmth behind his foxy grin, that arrogance brimming from his crimson eyes. The fullness of his strong and resonant voice that thrummed in his ears.

And so, when he went home to an ungrateful clueless village, and an equally ungrateful family, he was filled when an all-consuming desire to take back what he has lost. To become selfish just this once.

And he did. What was once a war hero, Hokage of the people, savior of the shinobi world dipped into the forbidden arts and journeyed to a forgotten unknown location within the protection of Konoha's borders. It was a haze of blood and death. A quick work for a shinobi of his calibre.

After all what is a nameless, unknown village compared to a being such as he? What can a bunch of refugees- casualties of the past war against the Otsutsuki- injured men, weak women and clueless adoring children possibly do to a being who has lost so much- a being of sorrow and rage and wrath incarnate?

And all that Naruto could have asked for… is life.

Life for life.

Souls for soul.

Chakra for chakra.

The return of his other half. The chance to be whole again, to feel that familiar tug to his soul. After all, this is the law of the universe, the law of the world they live in. The basic law of equivalent exchange.

In order to gain something, one must be lost in return.

And as he stood atop a pile of rotting flesh and bones, relief washed over him as that familiar warmth filled his bones.

A spark….

Finally…

This is what he had been waiting for.

From the pile of dead flesh, a sparkle of crimson chakra flickered… before a golden hue bathed him in nostalgic glow. It permeated his every pore as he laid motionless around a pool of red crimson.

Finally…

A small smile started to tug at the corner of his lips. His crimson eyes finally gave way to relieved azures as the faint whispers reached his ears.

"Naruto…"

His smile widened as he lifted his arms to bask in that familiar presence.

"Kurama…" was all he could muster. But behind his voice was a slight tremble, the only sign of a storm of surging emotions within. Relief, sorrow, joy, love, anticipation- all culminating in a brief sigh of relief.

"I missed you, you damn fox."

"Impudent as always."

Naruto can only grin. Ahhh… there's the familiar voice he's been longing for…. Wishing for since the fight against Isshiki.

"Naruto…"

But just as he was about to reply, he felt something… the strength of that familiar chakra was slowly waning. And in an instant, desperation takes over him.

"Kurama… please…" He pleaded, sensing the same familiar feeling he did back when the great fox started to disappear before his very eyes.

"Our time is short Naruto. Why have you summoned me?" A faint crimson flickered before him before he caught a glimpse of that familiar crimson eyes he so missed.

"I didn't get to say goodbye… I— I didn't get to tell you how much I love you."

Annoyed crimsons softened. Before a faint tail caressed his cheeks.

"I know. I always did know that. We lived in one body you know." This time, Kurama's faint visage appeared before him. And tears welled around Naruto's eyes. Is this really it? All those weeks of preparations? All the sacrifices… is this really the time that the universe can give them? How cruel must life be.

"You're still as arrogant as ever. That hasn't changed." Naruto remarked, his voice shaking, tears still streaming, but lips grinning at the familiarity of this moment. A moment brimming with nostalgia at their old familiar banter.

"Tsk. I would have wished you to live well, Naruto. But seeing you in this state is beyond breaking. You know damn well that I am linked with all my brothers and sisters. Do not presume to think that I am blind to your actions, to your rage and sorrow. Just a I am linked with the tailed beasts, so can I see what my passing has caused you."

Naruto's face fell, remembering the emptiness he felt. Remembering the feeling of loss that would never compare to losing his arm, or losing his parents all over again may it be genjutsu or memories.

"I wanted to see you Kurama… I… missed you…" Naruto admitted, causing the fox before him to tremble.

"And I do too, little kit. But this is not the way. This is not the Naruto Uzumaki that I knew. You've grieved for far too much. You have become someone else. You have to move on… please? For my sake?"

"Oh yeah? Then what do you know, Kurama? You weren't the one who was left behind. Don't tell me what or how to feel…. I love you damn it! I miss you, you were the father I never had, the only friend I had before Sasuke… my other half before Hinata. And I'll move heaven and earth to bring you back. No one will stop me. It's a promise… a promise of a lifetime, you better believe it!"

"Close… but not."

"Hah?" Naruto uttered in sheer confusion.

"You have his stubbornness for sure, his indomitable will and drive to pursue his goal. But the Naruto I know would never sacrifice others for his own gain. Remember who you are, Naruto. And once you do, I'll always be with you…." Naruto's eyes widened as he felt the weakening of Kurama's chakra.

"Kurama, no, please.. please… don't leave me again…" He whimpered as he reached for translucent tails.

"If I have to kill, I will. How many more villages, Kurama? Just tell me... please… just don't leave me…"

"You are not the Naruto I know. Remember who you are, Naruto. You are Naruto Uzumaki… The only human who ever respected us. The only human who ever gave me a heart. You gave us names… and in turn gave us life beyond our existence as mere fonts of chakra. Remember…"

"No… Kurama…" But his pleas fell on deaf ears… the darkened village echoed silently, as if mocking him once more. The dead on his feet silently sneering at him, the dwindling fires and spinning ball of blue chakra around him the only evidence that he had once slaughtered a village so mercilessly before.

"Kurama…" He cried through strained voice as he punched the lifeless corpse before him, not even caring as it flew carelessly across the room. But it too was a lonely reminder that there's no comfort among the dead.

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"Naruto!" Sasuke found his best friend kneeling… covered in blood, mouth open and eyes flowing with tears. He had never seen Naruto this way. Not even the weeks following their great battle. Naruto apparently hid his sadness very well. And even without his Rinnegan, Sasuke's sharingan could see what had transpired from a distance just what happened to this poor insignificant village.

"He's really gone…. He's gone…." He heard a broken man spoke… a man so unrecognizable from the Naruto he knew and inwardly wept. As he caught the weight of his best friend, he stared into empty pair of blue and was instantly brought back to the day Itachi slaughtered his clan.

The same eyes…. the same inescapable sadness emanating from dead empty eyes.

"Naruto…" Sasuke could only hold him tight. "Come on, let's go home. Everyone's worried about you."

"What's the point?" Sasuke was taken aback at the venom and bitterness in the other's voice.

"There's no "him" there. I couldn't bring him back, Sasuke… I… I failed…I'm…. all…alone…" Naruto cried silently and Sasuke felt his chest tighten at the sight. While Naruto did indeed reassure him before that he was fine, Sasuke has always been skeptical. And so he kept a closer watch. But duties around the village and training Boruto has kept him preoccupied. And weakened as he was from their previous fight, Naruto's ingenuity has seemingly increased to the point where sometimes, even Sasuke has no idea if he's talking to the real one or a clone.

There have been times when he trailed Naruto only for him to disappear in a poof of cloud or smoke.

This time, the broken man before him was so different from the Naruto he saw after the war that Sasuke began to question if he's even paying attention at all.

"Don't be stupid…" Sasuke began… "You still have Konoha, Naruto. You have. Boruto, Hinata, Kakashi, even that lazy head Shikamaru. Everyone. You have me. You still have something to live for. Remember who you are Naruto. This isn't you."

Naruto looked at him wide eyed. Kurama's familiar words echoed within him, resonating as if the Kyuubi is still within him.

"I am here now because you didn't give up before. You didn't give up on me. So don't you give up now…"

"But what else am I supposed to do Sasuke? I couldn't bring him back." Naruto said in a small voice, chin leaning against Sasuke's forearm as he was being cradled softly. Sasuke just gave him a soft reassuring touch on the back.

"You may not. But I know you'll try again. Then again. And again… Until that fox gets tired of you chasing after him that he'll have no choice but to return."

"Like what I did with you?" Naruto cracked a small smile. And at this, Sasuke can't help but smile too. There's the Naruto he knew and love.

"Yeah. Like what you did with me. I'm here now aren't I?" Sasuke flicked the other's forehead. "Besides, something's telling me you didn't fail."

"Hey that hurt, teme!" Naruto uttered weakly, but can't help but give a confused look at Sasuke's eye. "Hey… why's your sharingan out anyway?"

Sasuke's smile widened.

"It's there, but it's faint. Amidst a sea of blue electrical coils is a golden orange flicker. It's an ember, a start of a fiery inferno that's yet to come. Are you getting what I'm saying, Naruto?"

"You mean?" Naruto's eyes widened even further. "You can't be lying now just to cheer me up, are you?"

"Come now, dobe, when have I ever lied to you before?"

"You really mean that?" As the other nodded, Naruto beamed widely, and enveloped Sasuke in a huge tight hug.

"All right! Man I can't wait to see him…."

"Me too Naruto… Me too.." I can't wait to see the old you again. Was left unspoken as the two heroes of Konoha enjoyed each other's presence, happy to see the end of the dark tunnel. As Sasuke basked in Naruto's wide and excited smile, he can't help but think that there may be times when the Sun is blackened, but just like any eclipse, it too shall pass. And the sun will shine again brighter than ever.

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End! Ugh, corny ending, but I needed to wrap this up. I'm running on pure coffee and two hours of sleep at this point. So do forgive any mistakes. I hope you enjoyed this short one shot. And maybe once I'm done with my other fanfics, I'll work on expanding this to multi-chapters.

For now, I'll remain in soft hiatus. I'll still be writing one shots from time to time , but my multi-chapters will be on break for now. Have a nice day everyone.