Sasuke was still in the middle of his preparations, light from the full moon illuminating everything he needed to see, when he felt Naruto's approach. He froze, mind spinning.
The last time he saw the blond, Naruto was face down across from him, unconscious.
Sasuke couldn't move his body, all chakra drained from their fight. He stared at the back of Naruto's head, his words during their fight echoing through Sasuke's mind.
Hatred and anger still swirled through Sasuke's very soul, but they were no longer completely in control of his thinking.
He didn't know what to do any more. Revenge had been his way of life so long he didn't know any other way.
He could ignore Naruto, maybe even kill him before he regained consciousness, and destroy Konoha. He could never waver on the guilt of the elders who had a hand in orchestrating the massacre, but Sasuke was starting to see Naruto's point.
The villagers were just as much victims of manipulation by those elders as his family had been. The villagers who enjoyed peace at the expense of his family's lives were also unknowingly in danger. At any moment, if the elders decided it, more villagers would be treated like his family had. The villagers and his family were equally disposable to them.
As he laid there, wrestling with what to do, he tried to imagine killing the rest of Team 7 like he planned to when he wiped Konoha off the map if he killed Naruto here and now.
He imagined taking the life of his sensei, who had been a voice of reason and source of mentorship he had lacked after losing his family. He tried to imagine killing his female teammate, who had given him love that he hadn't felt or thought he needed since his family was taken from him.
Then he imagined what might happen if he did nothing, just disappearing and never setting foot near civilization again. What then? Would the corrupt elders they unknowingly worked for treat them as they had his family? Would they sacrifice Naruto, Kakashi, and Sakura on the altar of their power? His gut twisted.
The Land of Iron was fresh on his mind. He had already severed the bonds that tied him to Konoha in the first place. He had been willing to kill the three of them there, would have, if not for chakra exhaustion from his fight with Danzo. And yet…
Sasuke grit his teeth. Naruto had another point, a point about how convenient it was for Madara to have all the answers that made his way seem the best way. Sasuke could not deny how his ancestor had egged him on, and that he was emotionally compromised at the time.
Then there was the whole meeting Itachi story Naruto gave him. He still wasn't sure he believed that Naruto had met his brother, but the possibility left him doubting what he thought Itachi would want.
In the present moment, Naruto landed a few paces to his left, and Sasuke barely turned his head to acknowledge him with a blank look. The blonde looked around the campsite in surprise, asking, "Where's Sakura?"
Sasuke turned his back to him, ignoring his question, and resuming his work.
Naruto yelled, "Oi, teme, I'm talking to you."
Naruto then walked up to him and reached for his shoulder. Sasuke spun, knocking his hand away and glaring at him, "Go away, Naruto."
"Sasuke," Naruto started, surprised, "I'm not here to fight or anything."
"I don't want to fight either," Sasuke said coolly, "But I also don't want to talk."
Naruto scratched his head, trying to hide the flash of hurt that went through his eyes, "Well I guess we don't have to talk. I can meditate and search for her chakra. I came to warn you guys that Madara has been stalking you. I tried to get here as fast as I could when I realized he was attacking you."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto suddenly, putting two and two together. Madara had been the one to put them under genjutsu then. Where was the old man now? Was he going after Sakura?
"Naruto," Sasuke asked seriously, "See if Madara is after Sakura. He hasn't come after me since putting us under genjutsu."
Naruto complied, settling into a seated pose on the ground.
Sasuke tensely waited, readying himself to teleport to Sakura with Naruto's directions if she was in danger.
Naruto snapped his eyes open after a moment, brows creased in confusion.
"What," Sasuke ground out, tense and impatient.
"I can't find Madara," Naruto answered, pressing his lips into a frown, "Sakura has someone with her, but she's fine. I have no idea where Madara is though."
Sasuke relaxed marginally, "That's of no consequence right now. If you do sense him though, tell me."
"Sure," Naruto offered, pleased that Sasuke wanted to work with him, even if only a little.
Naruto decided to keep meditating, keeping an eye on Sakura, and trying to figure out who she was carrying on her back.
Naruto was not the most patient man, but he had already waited so long to get Sasuke back, so a little while longer and some silence to build back trust was nothing.
Sasuke, while trying to appear unfazed, was anything but. He had only begrudgingly spent as much time with Sakura at first because he had literally been kidnapped. He was still coming to terms with his feelings for her and desire to stay in her company.
Sasuke was aware enough of himself to doubt he could handle reforming bonds with Naruto right now.
Like Sakura, the bonds he had worked so hard to sever with Naruto were still there despite his best efforts, but the relationship with both looked different now than when he left, years of distance taking their toll.
He had left the battlefield with Naruto settling for revenge on Madara, not restoring his bonds with the people he left behind. He hadn't intended to cross paths with Naruto again if he could help it.
He wouldn't have gone on the battlefield where Sakura worked if not for Itachi being there.
He wasn't sure how to shake the blond, but he needed to think of something before Sakura arrived. He wasn't sure Sakura would be as eager as he was to get rid of him. He also didn't want to argue with her about it.
Was there anything that Sasuke could use to distract Naruto? The dobe was easily distractable at times and absurdly loyal. Surely Sasuke could think of someone that needed Naruto's help, so the blond would go running to their side.
He frowned. The problem with that plan was the dobe being like a boomerang. No sooner would Sasuke be rid of him, than Naruto would track him down again.
Think, Sasuke commanded himself.
What would keep Naruto away for a long time? Time enough at least for Sasuke to get the answers he needed.
"What's the status of the Allied Army," Sasuke finally asked, hoping for some piece of information that would give him an idea.
"I thought we weren't talking," Naruto asked, genuinely curious in his friend's sudden interest in talking.
Sasuke turned to glare at him. He didn't have a good excuse, and the goal of talking was to find a way to get rid of him, "I don't want to talk about relationships, bonds, or feelings, but you might be useful to me if you have information I need."
Naruto cocked his head to the side, "How is the status of the Allied Army useful to you?"
Thinking quickly, Sasuke answered, "They sent a team after me already; it'd be nice to know if they're well-organized and prepared to do so again."
Nodding, Naruto accepted what he said, "They're still recovering when I left. My clones saw every battlefield. I still have a clone at the main headquarters arguing for you and Sakura right now."
Grinning, Naruto added smugly, "You're welcome."
Sasuke bristled, "I didn't ask for your help dobe!"
Fighting down his annoyance, he added in a quiet voice, "Thank you for standing up for Sakura."
Naruto's grin turned into a broad smile, "I'll never abandon you guys. Believe it!"
Sasuke focused on the last of his preparations. On one hand, he was disappointed Naruto hadn't given him intel he could use to send him away, but on the other, he was genuinely thankful that Naruto was working on Sakura's behalf.
He didn't want her to lose everything else for him, being branded a missing-nin for joining him.
He was also grateful to Naruto for not asking questions about what he was doing.
Sasuke knew he could pull Orochimaru from Anko's cursed seal like Itachi had done to his. He also knew that Orochimaru was likely the only person who could access the souls of the four previous Hokage and bring them back.
He pulled from Kabuto's mind the items needed for such a ritual. The mask was easy to procure. It barely took him an hour to track it down and bring it back. The seals, parchment, and ink were no problem either.
The hardest part was trying to pretend he was still ignorant of the five Zetsu spores on his body. He hadn't noticed the bi-colored Zetsu plant them on his person, but once Kabuto revealed to him that Zetsu could do such a thing, Sasuke looked for them.
He wasn't entirely sure they could be used as the sacrifice, but he also didn't see any reason why they couldn't be. If Orochimaru was unable to use them, then he would just have to go from there.
Sasuke was broken from his thoughts by Naruto's voice, "It was a draw, you know that, right?"
Sasuke blinked, trying to process what he meant. A moment later, "You don't mean our fight? I won that."
"I do mean our fight. It was a double knock-out, a draw," Naruto excitedly explained.
"How do you figure that Dobe," Sasuke said with a slight sneer, "I was conscious, and you weren't."
"Please," Naruto said, "You were out first. I was crawling toward you to head-butt you with the last of my strength when I passed out too."
Sasuke stared, scrunching his eyebrows, processing Naruto's words. He thought back on their last attack, the strange moment when they spoke without words, seeing one another's true thoughts. He was awake the entire time after that, right?
Understanding dawned on him, realizing there was the briefest of moments he closed his eyes from exhaustion while they were still falling. He couldn't remember the impact…
Naruto was right, he realized with a sickening feeling. They still did not know who was stronger.
They spoke with their eyes, chakras spiking. There was an unresolved question between them, and each wanted to answer that they were the strongest. Each took a half step forward toward the other.