Sasuke didn't open the door. He stood facing it for a minute or so, debating, then turned around and held out the single silver key to his companion.

"Here."

Blinking, Naruto took the key from him and came forward, placing it in the lock and turning it. The tumblers fell away with a sharp click and he grabbed the doorknob hesitantly and pushed the door open.

'Hey, house! I'm home!'

"Welcome home, Naruto," Sasuke stepped inside past him and turned back to look into the other man's eyes."I left everything just the way you had it before the mission."

"Mission…?" the blond came inside as well.

"Yeah," Sasuke began to venture deeper into the house. "That's where you…you lost your memory."

'Made…it…'

"What was the mission?" Naruto called after the taller man, who had disappeared down a short hallway.

"Nevermind that for now," he called back. "Focus on the house. See if you can remember anything."

Confused blue eyes lifted to the walls and he began to scan the room for any tell-tale signs of his past. Up ahead somewhere, Sasuke waited for him patiently.

'Rotten milk again. Haven't you learned? That's why you get sick all the time.'

'Like I can help it. I didn't choose to live by myself.'

'Naruto! This place is a mess! Don't you ever clean up after yourself?'

'Why should I? It's not like anyone's here to punish me if I don't.'

'You could…live with me, you know.'

'I would never ask you to take pity on me.'

'It's not pity! I just can't stand watching you live this way! I just…look, what I'm trying to say is… You don't have to be alone anymore, okay? Just, please, come live with me…'

'Thank you, …. But, I can't abandon this place. It's…too important to me. It…reminds me, every single day, of all the trouble I've brought to Konoha. I'm sorry, but, I can't just leave.'

Shaking his head, Naruto listened to the montage of voices that attacked his brain as he examined the front-half of the house. Two voices he recognized, and one he didn't: the pink-haired nurse had been the girl scolding him for not cleaning; the final voice, belonged to the dark-haired man sitting on a small bed in the final room. He looked up when Naruto entered, and stood.

"Remember anything?" he asked.

"Mostly things about being alone," the blond replied, looking down at his feet. "Did I…live alone?"

"Yeah, you did."

Naruto nodded: "Do you?"

Sasuke was slightly taken aback by the question, but he answered anyway. "Yes, I live alone too," he put his hands in his pockets.

"I…remembered something," he spoke tentatively. "I brought trouble to Konoha, right?"

"You were a very big prankster when we were younger," Sasuke grinned, "but nothing illegal, if that's what you're asking."

"Is there…anything else? Something bigger?"

"Bigger?"

"Yeah, like, did I lie to everyone, or hurt a lot of people or something?" The blond suddenly looked very afraid. His blue eyes swelled with tears of frustration and helplessness and he bit his lip to keep from pouting. Slowly, his body began to tremble. "If I…hurt people, then, then I don't want to remember it!"

"Naruto…" Sasuke spoke calmly, hoping to reel the man's emotions back in check. "You're not a bad person. People just misunderstand you sometimes, that's all. And that's not even your own fault, it's theirs."

"But…I…" he was sobbing now, trying to hold the tears back physically by pressing his palms to his eyes. The black-haired ninja watched his friend come undone, feeling slightly helpless himself. Not knowing what else he could do, he pulled the blond into his arms and began stroking a hand back through his mess of blond hair.

"Hey, everything will be fine," he whispered, shushing the crying man soothingly. "You'll understand what I mean when you remember everything."

"I don't want to remember everything if I'm going to be shunned or hated!" Naruto pounded a fist against the solid chest he had been cradled against. "I'd rather stay like this!"

"…would you sacrifice all of your other memories just to hide yourself from a little pain?"

At the sound of his voice, the blond looked up into the other man's face. "Why not? Are they that important?"

Sasuke flinched, feeling his own tears of frustration welling up inside him, but he forced them down and continued to stare into the tear-filled blue eyes of his companion. "They are important, but not just to you. For Sakura--your nurse--and Kiba, and all your other friends too. What happens to the people that do remember who you are?"

"And you?" he pressed. "What would you do if I never remembered anything again?"

With a heavy sigh, Sasuke pulled away, and Naruto felt his body ache for the contact again. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew that was something he had always wanted from the dark-haired man, but…

"If you never remembered, Naruto," he said quietly, "I think I'd leave."

'He's gone! …'s gone, he left last night! Naruto, please, find him; bring him back home!'

'…! Why are you doing this? Why are you turning your back on us?'

'Because, Naruto, you…'

'Don't die.'

'…are…'

'I'll never let you surpass me.'

'…my best friend…'

'…!"

Again, his mouth formed the name, but the words did not come out. Naruto looked helplessly at the other man standing in the small, cramped bedroom. Their eyes met.

'This is the Valley of the End. Fitting, isn't it?'

'I'm taking you home, …! I don't care if I have to break all of your arms and legs to do it!'

'While I was playing buddy-buddy with all of you…'

'That man…'

'…I could have obtained so much more power.'

'I swore, I wouldn't die until I killed…that man…'

'Stop! Why are you doing this, …?'

'My brother.'

'Because Naruto, you are my best friend.'

"I suppose, then," Naruto whispered shakily, the ghost of a grin twitching at the corner of his trembling lips, "I'll have to bring you back again." Sasuke blinked in shock.

'There it is.'

'This is it, Sakura. No turning back.'

'I won't run away. This time, we'll bring … back together.'

"You…remember…?" he gasped slightly.

"Snippets," the blond's brow furrowed. "That girls name, the pink-haired one, is Sakura, right?"

"Yes…" Sasuke commanded his heart to calm down.

"She and I…went looking for you, after you left…" his head bowed slightly. "We were…so worried about you."

"Do you remember that we…?"

He nodded: "Because…you were my best friend."

"Well," Sasuke struggled to put on a passive face, but knew he had failed miserably, "I still am. That never changed, even after all that time we spent apart."

"Why…did you go? Because of your brother?"

"…you remembered that, too."

"Sorry…"

"Don't be," he smiled thinly, trying to decided whether or not he should be happy or upset. "That's why I left, yes."

"And…did you kill him…?"

Sasuke turned to the door and started walking back up the hall, hands slipping into his pockets. "I told you the answer to that once before."

"But, I didn't remember that part!" he wailed.

"Then, you're just going to have to keep on remembering things until you do, then."

"Ah! You sneaky bastard!"

Sasuke laughed, this slightly more-common ground making him feel worlds more comfortable then that awkward exchange of memory conversation just now.

"Come on. Time to go."

"What? There's more?"

"You don't think this was the only place you hung out, did you, dobe?"

"Don't call me that!"

'Oi, dobe.'

'I said don't call me that, you bastard!'

'Fine then, usuratonkachi.'

'Dammit, I'm going to kill you!'

'Oi, Naruto! Don't stand on the desk! Get back in your seat and pay attention!'

"KONOHAMARU!"

The three young teenagers that had been giggling in the hallway jumped and looked back over their shoulders. The boy, who was apparently their leader, flashed his two friends a toothy grin (he was missing one of the teeth on the top row) and jetted.

"Run!" he darted in between the two men that had stepped into the hallway and out the double doors of the academy. His friends turned and took different routes. An older man stomped out of one of the doors on the side and growled in frustration, holding a rolled up paper in one clenched fist.

"There's never a peaceful generation," he sighed wearily, leaning against the wall.

"What's the matter?" Sasuke called gamely. "You found someone even more troublesome then Naruto?"

"Huh?" Naruto blinked. The man cracked one eye open to glare at them, then jumped off the wall in surprise and rushed over, grabbing the blond in a tight hug and grinning broadly.

"Naruto!" he beamed. "I'm so glad to see you're alright! I heard what happened from Kakashi-sensei, but I still hadn't gotten time off to come see you, I'm sorry!"

"Er…" Naruto glanced over at Sasuke, who nodded. "It's okay?"

"Here, stand, let me see you," the man abruptly let go and clapped the blond's shoulders strongly. "You look just fine! That's good. Can you remember anything yet?"

"Uh, not really," Naruto glanced away uncertainly, then flinched as he was bopped on the head with the rolled-up paper. "Ow!"

"You should be concentrating on getting your memory back instead of just goofing around!" the older man scolded and thwapped the blond with his paper again. "Honestly, is that all you ever do?"

"Oh, come on, Iruka-sensei, give me a break!" Naruto pouted and then clapped a hand over his mouth, whirling to look at Sasuke, who nodded back, grinning. "I…remembered!"

"Then maybe all you need are a few more good licks," Iruka waggled the paper threateningly, his mouth in a frown but his eyes twinkling with happiness. "Come back here if you ever get stuck on anything, and I'll beat some memory into you."

"Thank you, Iruka-sensei!" it was the blonde's turn to wrap the other man in a tight hug. "I'll come visit every day!"

"You say that now, but you won't," the teacher's smile grew tired. "That's okay, though. At least I know you're alright. Is he taking care of you?" His eyes skipped over the smaller shoulder to the figure standing a couple of steps away.

"Yeah, he's helping me," Naruto grinned.

"Good," he nodded at the taller man. "Now, you two go along. I've gotta find Konohamaru."

"He's probably hiding in that patch of bushes by the monkey bars in the recess area," the blond shrugged and this time jumped in his excitement. "I remembered again!"

"And thank you for that nice piece of information," Iruka raised an eyebrow. "I wonder if that's where you hid all those times you ran out of my classroom."

"Eh-heh," the blond rubbed the back of his head nervously, then waved as Iruka went past them and out the academy doors. He whirled on Saskue, his face lit with excitement. "I remembered things!"

"Good," Sasuke turned to go. "There's one more place to take you. It's lunchtime, after all."

"Where are we going?" Naruto asked him.

"Your favorite place to eat," the raven-haired man grinned and pushed open the doors.

"AHA!"

"Aww, man! How'd you find me, Iruka-sensei?"

"It doesn't matter! Get back in that classroom!"

Thwap!

"Owwww! Okay, okay, I'm going!"

"Whoops!" Naruto laughed nervously. "I'm glad it wasn't me, though."

"For once," Sasuke added as an afterthought, nudging the blond's arm slightly with his own. "Let's go."