Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N

This story is entirely fan-made and fictional. Any acts that you might find offensive, disguising, inhuman, wrong or just don't like, we are not liable for. You are reading this story of your own free will and not being forced, if you don't like something we are not forcing you to stay and read it. Please leave the page and re-frame from reading the chapter and or story. All Copyrighted Characters belong to their respect owners. We don't claim anything that is not our own creation and are merely using them for fan made material.

We accept constructive criticize and help but being rude and disrespectful will not be tolerated. This is done for the fun of writing not to make every little person happy, while making people happy with are stories is great we are not here for Money, Fame or Fortune this is done for the simply joy of writing.

Chapter 11

"Konoha won't welcome us back with open arms, Dolt."

Sasuke rubbed his eye as it started to itch. Their talks were going slow. Things were not at all working how anyone wanted it and with Naruto being as stubborn as a mule, it was only going to get worse as classes started and Sasuke would be forced to attend them. God forbidden Ozpin let Naruto loose to his own devices. Some part of the school would be fucked up by some means and Naruto would somehow either skate by without being caught, which would be funny and a testament to his own sneaking skills, or would get caught and be forced to clean up his mess. Either way, Sasuke was banking on this going well past the desired time limit and him being forced to leave Naruto along with Glynda and Ozpin in their office as they discussed his future.

Shame that Naruto was still being stubborn, the dumb bastard.

"You're a real bastard, you know that, Sasuke?" Naruto looked livid. For thirty minutes these talks had gone on with more heated words and insults being thrown around by Naruto towards Sasuke. Ozpin had all the time in the world, and probably more if the grin on his face was any indication. Glynda was another story. Neither shinobi was sure if she was livid by the wasting of her time that these two were using up or their choice words. She had remained oddly silent through it all. "How can you say that they won't welcome us back with open arms? Why are you still hung up on that?"

Sasuke glanced back at the clock that was in the corner of the room. If he looked at Naruto right now he was going to punch him. "If we go back, we do more harm than good."

"That's your excuse and your stupid believe!" Naruto growled. "I swear to god that I'm going to break every bone in your body and find a way home today!" Sasuke made a disbelieving chuckle and shook his head. "You doubt I can do it?"

"I doubt you can do either of those." Naruto bristled, ready to prove him wrong on at least one of the two declarations. "Look, fighting won't solve anything. And is this really that bad of an offer?"

No. No it wasn't that bad of an offer. Any sane person would take it. But Naruto was hardly sane when it came to things like this. He was thirteen years old. He was being given a chance to come to Beacon Academy, becoming a student and finding a team next year. Ozpin was even promising to find him help for school work to get him caught up on everything there was to know about Remnant. Who wouldn't pass up this chance? Naruto just happened to be the one person in the world that would and was passing it up. To him, this was the ultimate betrayal to Konoha. As a ninja of Konoha, he had a duty to protect it and remain faithful to their cause. To go against it was to turn his back on the teachings and his friends. This was worse than abandoning his friends. This was abandoning his village, his home, his nation, and his dreams. To Naruto this was more than just a way to live and be useful for their time they'd have here. This was a declaration of abandonment that wouldn't go without punishment.

But the worst thing wasn't even losing his dreams.

No the worst thing was that he was breaking a promise to Sakura. How could he so blatantly turn his back on her? If he joined, that was proof of his broken promise. He vowed to bring Sasuke home. He was right here, sitting next to him, smug as could be, and not wanting to leave. He was even trying to talk him into joining a school to make his life better and do the right thing this time around. No one was even given the golden chance like this. Naruto was being given a second shot at life to correct mistakes from his past and live the life of a normal thirteen year old boy. And he was turning it down all because of his pride and devotion to a village that would turn children into killing machines for the slaughter and made money off of their standings in the Chuunin Exams where their lives could very well end.

How fucked up was that?

Naruto grabbed Sasuke's collar and dragged him out of the chair. "Look you bastard," he snarled, his eyes flickering between red and blue, "I'm not joining not because I don't intend to stay here, but because it means I'll have abandoned the village just like you have! You think you can threaten me with Sakura's wellbeing?! What sort of a person does that to his own teammates?!"

Sasuke broke Naruto's hold and glared at him. For once, Sasuke had become angry. He glanced to the two adults in the room for a brief moment. He could see Ozpin's curious look, the one eyebrow slightly arched, his fingers stapled together and hiding the lower half of his face. He could see Glynda pushing her glasses up after they had slid down just enough when she lowered her head and tilted it in a way that begged for more information.

There were things Sasuke had neglected to inform them about. Among the many things he had kept from them, Sakura was his biggest secret. What would Ozpin have thought of him if he told him he knocked out his female teammate when she begged to go with him? Would he have thought it noble to keep her away from their blood fighting? Would he have thought it terrible to do the unthinkable and attack his own teammate, knocking her out and leaving her to question the path he was following, never knowing that his path would be a dark and twisted one had Naruto not stopped him?

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair, a slight nervous tick he picked up from watching Emert do it too many times when put on the spot by a teacher. "There was another teammate we had," Sasuke told them. Ozpin gestured for him to continue. "Her name was Sakura Haruno. She was the one that alerted our village to me leaving. She confessed to me that she wanted to leave with me. I told her no. She said she'd call the guards. I thanked her and…" Sasuke stopped there and looked away, ashamed at his own previous actions. If she had followed them… would she be proud of him? Would she want to stay by his side?

"He attacked her," Naruto finished with a scowl. Glynda adjusted her glasses again, pushing them up slowly and a little further up. Her expression was one of quiet rage. Sasuke had seen her angry plenty of times at people like Ruby, Yang, and on rare occasions Emert or Jasper. But this was a different sort of rage. She looked unhappy by both his reluctance to give them this information and that he would attack a fellow teammate. Both were unacceptable to her and nothing short of inhumane to her. "She woke up on a bench and warned our leader about it. I promised to drag him back home to her."

"And look how that ended up for us," Sasuke told him bitterly. He ignored Glynda and focused on Naruto. "I didn't ask for you to come after us! I wanted to leave because I wanted to kill my brother by any means necessary! I was doing it for power!" Sasuke told him loudly. Naruto bristled and looked ready for a fight. His shoulder locked, his knuckles became white. His jaw was set. If he had a kunai in his hand he might have stabbed Sasuke right there. Same could be said for Sasuke. He was angry. His Sharingan flared to life and his hands shook with rage. "You never understood anything about me! You were born alone and will probably die alone!" Sasuke looked at the clock and marched off. "I'm going to class," he told him. He stopped at the elevator. "Naruto, I want you to know that I'm not sorry you're here. If anything, I'm happy that you're here. You're my friend!" And with that declaration, he left, leaving behind a stunned Naruto that seethed with rage.

"You fucking bastard!" Naruto marched for the elevator.

"Naruto," Ozpin called out quietly. Naruto turned sharply, his face twisted into a look of rage. Ozpin gave him a warming smile. Naruto was not pleased. "I want you to sit down or stand. I don't care which. But I want to talk to you about this and your future here at Beacon. So please… try to listen to what I have to say. I will give you time to adjust, to think, to plan on what you want to do with your life while you're here. I want to give you all available options that I can come with for you to better your life. Even if you don't join my Academy, I want you to at least understand that I can provide you with options to learn and live and work for us. So please… just calm down."

Naruto snorted at him and crossed his arms. He was going to break something soon. Or failing that, he was going to find Sasuke and break every bone in his body. How dare he say he couldn't achieve that!

"You have expressed your desire to not join my school, to which I am both saddened and happy. Most people would want to join no matter what. They seek power and knowledge, believing it will free them of their earthly shackles and allow them to rise higher than the rest. There are those here that have come to prove a point to family and friends. Those that have joined to right wrongs and see change in the world. And then there are those that are here because they have no other way of living life without a battle to fight on. Sasuke is one such person. He wants to change his life, and while I am reluctant to admit he has made great stride in his attempts, he has fallen more times than I dare to admit to him."

Ozpin paused and waited for Naruto to say something. He looked broken. Ozpin could see that he was at an impasse. What road would he take and how much pain would he endure before his choice was made?

"If you do not wish to join, I will not force you. But I ask that you please consider another option I would have available for you. One that we both get a mutual use out of." Naruto glanced his way with darkened eyes. Glynda shivered under his killing gaze. Qrow could give a good killing gaze when angered enough, but this was different. This was more than just a desire to maim and kill. It was something else. She wasn't able to put her finger on it. Ozpin seemed to have an understanding and continued. "You know nothing of our world. Your knowledge is limited to our enemy and the use of my school. There are people here that seek jobs for various uses. Some have taken jobs as assistants, private combat tutors to those with skills similar to their own, and security detail." Naruto's jaw clenched. "In exchange for your services as any of these, I will give you lessons about our world for the duration of your stay. Should we find a way to send you home tomorrow, you will have at least some knowledge of our world. But I do wish that the longer you stay, the more you would learn about our world. We've had months to try and figure out how to send you home with no luck so far. So please… for your sake, consider learning about our world. It will help you in the long run."

Naruto blinked slowly and his aura of destruction spiked. Ozpin could feel his killing intent clear as day. He wasn't happy about learning. Or perhaps he was just angry about not being able to go home now? Ozpin had an inkling that he was mad because he didn't know what to do. Cut off from his people, his friends, and probably even someone of great importance to him, Naruto would act wild. Perhaps, what was wrong with him wasn't that he was suddenly free from the shackles of his world, but that in his freedom he was at a loss for what to do. Ozpin could think of no crueler fate than someone that had lost their purpose. Ripped from the world they knew and loved and thrust into another without even the slightest bit of acceptance would drive anyone a little mad.

"I'm not having anything to do with your school," he said defiantly. Naruto looked at Glynda and dared to say something. He remembered her well. She saw his power. Naruto marched out of the room.

Ozpin smiled. Glynda wasn't happy. "You're just going to let him go like that?"

Ozpin took a sip of his coffee and looked deep in thought. Glynda checked her Scroll. Naruto was head out of the school and going to the forest. He had his weapons, his battle clothes on, and a pack slung over his shoulder. He wasn't slowing down either. "Give him some time," he told her softly. Ozpin checked his master Scroll and narrowed his eyes as he caught sight of Sasuke avoiding class in favor of going to his room to vent. The doorframe had a crack in it from how hard he had slammed it and the cameras in the hallways could pick up the sound of his voice coming through the door. He was berating himself for his words towards his friend. "Perhaps it would be best to have the other students stay away from both of them."

Glynda pushed her glasses up and looked worried for a moment.

"As much as I want them to resolve this peacefully, I feel that this will not end until they have settled their differences their own way." He grabbed his cane and marched towards the door. His shoes clicked as he swung his cane out and let his power settle. If they fought… if the worst came to pass… he would get involved. But only if the worst was to truly happen. If they fought like they did the day they arrived he feared for his students. Sasuke held back a large amount of his power and skill. His speed was beyond human, even for Ruby. His strength was superior to Yang's. His eyes were sharper than Blake's. His combat prowess greater than even Pyrrha's. If he truly fought with all his might, Ozpin had no illusion that Sasuke could beat every first year student at the same time. So if Sasuke fought Naruto, someone who was on equal footing with him, the outcome would be disastrous. "Make sure that if they fight, no student sees it. Though I doubt we'll be able to hide it, I would like them to keep the friends they have."

"You're asking a lot here, Ozpin."

"I know." He sounded sad. Glynda shut her eyes and could only obey.

(-)

Classes ended and the teams returned to their dorms.

For team JSPR, upon returning to her teams' dorm, they were greeted with the sight of a destroyed bed and scattered papers. Sasuke's desk was broken and his chair was scattered among the room. In the corner of the room sat the former Uchiha, his head down and his knuckles bloodied and bruised. He didn't acknowledge their presence. Emert looked around and shook his head. He put his bookies on his bed while Jasper threw his at his desk. They slid off and hit the ground with a thud. Persia kept her books close to her chest as she looked at the scowling form of Sasuke.

"Let's talk," Jasper demanded quietly. Sasuke grunted. Jasper walked over to his books on put them on his desk. Emert was busy trying to clean up the mess Sasuke had made in his fit of rage. Sad as it was, they all knew this was going to happen. It was why they had chosen to avoid Sasuke and Naruto during their trip to town to get him gear. With Sasuke's story about his friend, it was clear to them that they had still had things to work out. "So what's wrong?"

"I don't wanna talk about."

Jasper looked at their door. There was a burn mark of some kind. Sasuke had either blasted it with his fire abilities or tried to break it down with his lightning hand ability. In either case, the door proved to be far stronger than the seething rage of a former Uchiha. "That's fair and all, but I think we deserve to know why you felt the need to destroy your bed, your desk, and your chair." He paused and looked back at the door. Poor thing… "And the door," he added shortly after taking his eyes away from it.

Sasuke said nothing, opting to remain quiet and stubborn. Persia hissed at him and hauled him to his feet. He avoided her piercing gaze. "Look, Sasuke, you're our leader! Act like one! We want to know what's going on!"

Emert put a hand on her shoulder and motioned for her to leave. She looked furious enough to punch him. "Jasper, take Emert and go outside. I got this one." Jasper nodded and took Persia away. The last thing he heard before the door shut was him knocking on team JNPR's door and Nora greeting them loudly. "Look," he began, pulling at his shirt and removing it, "I know it's hard for you to move on like this. I think it was clear to us when you should us Naruto in the hospital that you were having a hard time with all of this. You're best friend was in a hospital bed because of you. You hate yourself for what you did. I get that. I hate myself for things I've done as well. That's what life is all about."

Rolling his one eye, Sasuke removed his eye patch and rubbed the scar where Naruto had clawed at him to remove it. "I don't wanna talk about it."

"Then don't talk about it. Let me talk." Sasuke looked at him funny. Emert threw on a plain white shirt as he moved to his desk. He pulled out his sketchpad and flipped to the back of it. He pulled out a photo and handed it to Sasuke. "Not all of us are saints, you know that right? No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. That's what makes us human… or Faunus. I had a friend once. Long… long time ago. We were inseparable. We used to spend our nights outside and look at the stars and talk about going there. We wanted to see what the world was like and have fun while doing it. His name was Gray. He had great power. He was everything I wasn't. His family was weak and he was powerful. My family was strong, I was weak. We became friends when he saved me from a Grimm attack. He smiled at me and we became friends after that. He taught me how to fight. I taught him how to have fun. To him, fighting was natural as breathing. He was born with great power, Sasuke."

Emert could see him in his minds' eye. The red hair, the piercing onyx colored eyes, the dark skin, the sword that slew a thousand Grimm with one swing. He could see him standing there in all how glory. A sad smile came over his face.

"One day we were playing outside. I was teaching him how to climb trees. We were little. I was always in them. I loved them to death. Still do. Give me a tree and I'll climb it. He never climbed anything short of a small hill. I took him to the top of a big red wood tree. The base was so big that not even my entire family combined could wrap their arms around it. If you got to the top of the tree you could see for miles. It was a breathtaking view. That was why my parents lived there because my father climbed it and took my mom there when they were younger. They wanted to live there. So they did."

"One day we went out and he was teaching me how to counter attack people by using their weight and strength against them. We were children. We didn't think it through for where we trained. He threw a punch at me. I grabbed it and did as he told me to. I threw him over my shoulder. He landed and we returned to training. But as the day turned to night we forgot about how dangerous my home was. Grimm were not strangers to my parts of the woods. One of them showed up. Tired, beaten, and lying on the ground… I was an easy target for it." Emert rubbed the metal gauntlet he wore. Sasuke had never once seen him take it off. "Gray jumped in front of it and fought it off when it attacked me. I did what I could, but I wasn't like him. I wasn't stronger."

There was a tingle in the back of Sasuke's mind as Emert stopped short of his elbow end let his hand rest there.

"Gray killed the Grimm that showed up and I was happy. We survived. Gray turned to me with a smile and called me a scared puppy. I laughed at him." Emert shook his head. Sasuke looked at the photo. It was a younger version of Emert and the boy he was describing. He looked almost identical to Emert, only with red hair and sporting a lion tail. "Another Grimm showed up and…" he sighed and Sasuke watched as a single tear slid down Emert's face, "it got him. It was a baby Deathstalker. It cut his entire right arm off. I don't remember what happened after that. I remember pain and seeing red. Gray said something to me. But I woke up some time later."

There was a metallic click. Sasuke watched as Emert removed his metal gauntlet. His arm came with it.

"When I woke up I learned that in my rage I not only killed the Grimm, but it took my arm as well. Gray's family was destroyed by it. Gray vowed it wouldn't get the better of him, but I knew it did. His family didn't have the money to get him the treatment that mine could get me." He put his gauntlet arm back on and flexed the fingers. "When I finished my treatment I went back to him. I showed him my new arm. He was happy for me. But I wasn't happy for him. I was sad. His life was stolen because of me. If I had been stronger. If I had been faster. If had simply paid attention and not stayed out and forced him to continue training with me, he'd be here at Beacon with me."

"I fail to see how that correlates to me."

Emert nodded and took the photo. "Gray became distant and one day he just disappeared. When I found out that he was gone I left from small job and went to find him. I found him." He looked at the ceiling and licked his teeth. "Do you know what he was doing?" Sasuke appeased him and shook his head. "He was killing himself." Sasuke blinked twice. "I stood at the base of the tree and he stood at the top of it with a rope around his neck. I asked him why he was doing this. He said because his life had no more value to it. I pleaded with him to stop and see what he still had. It was too late. He made up his mind and before I could stop him, he jumped. I watched my best friend commit suicide because he looked to me and didn't like that I got something out of it when he didn't. If I had given him more attention or given him more space, rather than show what I had to him, he wouldn't have killed himself."

Sasuke ran a finger over his eye patch in thought. "So you think that's what's going on between Naruto and me?"

"Yeah," he confessed quietly. "I know that our age difference doesn't really amount to much. A nine year old can have more life experience than a ninety year old can. I know that both of your lives have been struggles. You lost your family. He had no one. You had everyone in your village practically in the palm of your hand. He had no one but himself. And despite that, you turned out to be someone that didn't care about the world. He cared more about the world than you did. And right now, for you and him, you're living the life the other person had. You're pushing us away because you're afraid of returning to some dark path while he's already on it."

"What are you getting at?"

"Don't make the same mistake I did. Don't push him away and think that things will get better because they won't. I walked down that path before, Sasuke, and it cost me my best friend. I don't want you to live my life because no one should go through this. You've made us care about him because some of us know what it's like to be hated for something we don't have any control over. Some of us like him because you make him sound like the ideal version of a hero. You made him someone that we want to meet and be with while making yourself sound like the bad guy."

"I was the bad guy! I am still the bad guy!" Sasuke stood up and punched the door. It didn't give. It took his hit full on. Sasuke put his head against it. "I hated this world and all its people! I still do! There a days I just dream about killing everyone because they're happy and I'm not! And when I sleep at night I dream about my brother showing up and killing everyone around me to remind me how weak I am and that I still need power! No matter how much I smile, no matter how nice I try to act, it's never enough to make the pain go away. It will never be enough!" Sasuke bashed on the door again and gritted his teeth. "I wanted to have him wake up so that he could end my suffering and break this cycle of hatred for me. But when he woke up he was angry with me! He's still angry. I can't do anything to make him better. I can't make him see that what's right in front of him is a good thing! All he sees is something terrible and a betrayal to our village."

"Then maybe you're words aren't the right ones." Sasuke looked at him funny, a scowl on his face. Emert looked at his robotic arm with a sigh. "I told you about Gray because I wanted you to understand that life isn't pretty. I know you already know that, given how your brother killed your family. But there is another reason I told you. I told you this because I think what's wrong with him isn't your words, but his words. You're not listening to what he wants."

"What he wants is impossible and he doesn't accept that."

"Then you aren't listening to him." Sasuke glared at his teammate. "Think about it like this. He's here in a new city, surrounded by people he doesn't know, and the one person he does know is changing and trying to get him to do something he doesn't want to do."

"I'm trying to give him a better life!"

"And that's good and all, but he doesn't want that. He wants his old life."

"His old life was nothing but pain and hatred!" Sasuke stopped and slumped against the wall in understanding. I'm no better than Itachi… He fell down and put his head against the wall. All of his actions up until now had been for Naruto to make his life better and try and seek redemption for a terrible set of wrongs he committed. And he was doing it all for him without his consent. And my final words today to him were the wrong ones. He knew what he meant by them and what he had meant to say. Naruto had heard them the way he had meant it. "I fucked up…" He confessed.

"That's a given."

"No! I mean… I really fucked up now." Emert looked mostly forgiving with the way he squinted and gave a small 'I told you so' smile. "You don't understand…" Sasuke formed his Sharingan and looked around. "I need to find him."

"I think right now you need to rest. And we need to clean up."

"No! I'm serious. I need to find him now before something bad happens."

"What could possible go wrong that it can't wait till tomorrow morning?"

Sasuke chewed his lower lip in thought. Would Naruto be brave enough to come and challenge him right now? No. He'd sit and stew over this. It was his nature. If something like this got in his way, he'd seek a way around it. Naruto was smart. But there were times like this that he'd sit and ponder on the next path to take. His next set of actions would be decided by how he chose to view the world around him. That was his style.

"We'll go find him in the morning. He's not going anywhere." Emert pulled his Scroll out and called Jasper and Persia back. "Don't tell them about my arm," he asked. Sasuke nodded. "Thanks..."

(-)

Blake wondered the forest with one goal in mind: Find Naruto. She had seen him head out and never return during class. She hadn't bothered asking Sasuke about it. Sasuke had been aloof ever since their trip to Vale. She thought it was because he didn't know how to act around his friend. Sadly, she now knew that wasn't the case. Naruto hated Sasuke for his past actions. Not their fighting or his helping hand towards making his life better, but his words towards them. Naruto, for what she could understand, didn't like that someone openly spoke about his life to another person.

Blake could understand why. Naruto had nothing. He didn't like that he had nothing, but was oddly content with it. He was happy with the nothing that he had. Sasuke forced a weapon on him. Made him use something he didn't like. She had noticed it right away as soon as he took the reverse blade sword. He grabbed it without thought and had looked so smug about it. Taking a weapon, any kind of weapon, took more than a few seconds. When she took up Gamble and Shroud, she had spent days looking at weapons. She tested each one to find the perfect one for her. She spent even longer on the name.

She was willing to stand by her words on his choice of weapon. It did speak volume about him. He wasn't a killer. He was someone that would spare all people if given the chance. She could see it in his eyes that he had never killed. She could see that in his eyes burned a deep hatred for Sasuke. But there was sadness, sorrow, loneliness, and even small amounts of fear behind his eyes. Those blue eyes that were so full of joy on the day she first saw him were also ones that had been filled with such burning hatred.

Blake knew what she was doing and she was sure that if Yang was here right now, she'd be making a terrible joke. Truthfully, she would be right. Curiosity did kill the cat. But she wasn't going to die tonight. If anything, she'd walk away with maybe a bruise or even a sore back.

"What are you doing out here?" Blake froze and looked up in a tree. Naruto was staring off into the distance, sitting on a branch with his pack hanging at his sword. His sword lay draped across his lap. It was unsheathed.

"I came to see if you were okay." Naruto blinked and glanced down at her. She looked a little indifferent to whatever problems he was having. With the grace of gymnast, she jumped up and landed on the branch he was on, standing only a few inches away from him. The branch barely moved with her added weight. "And I wanted to know more about you," she added. Naruto blinked slowly, his eyes never once faltering from unforgiving anger.

Naruto remained silent for a long time as she stared him down. After an eternity of waiting, Naruto looked away and said, "I'm not okay," as he sheathed the sword and put it behind his back. He propped it against the tree and put his back on it to keep it in place. He folded his legs so he was sitting in a meditative stance. "Why are you out here? Shouldn't you be in the dorms with your friends?"

Blake's bow twitched at his loud voice. He missed the twitch and stared at her eyes. Blake tilted her head and sat down just like he was. Her balance was rather remarkable and the fact that the branch didn't move to her movements was an added oddity as well. "I can only handle them in small doses," she lied effortlessly. Truthfully, she'd rather be there. But her growing curiosity brought her here. Naruto did not believe her words. "Why did you reject Ozpin's offer to join Beacon?"

Naruto's hand went to his headband. He touched it absentmindedly and suddenly understanding flashed in Blake's eyes. He was loyal to another cause. Perhaps it was a cult? A religious order? …A terrorist group? To join Beacon and become a Hunter would be a betrayal to him. Blake could understand that. She had to watch innocent people die by the hands of someone she cared about. Their final job together was the breaking point. She couldn't' stand it any longer. She wanted out. She got out. But the pain of leaving, the choice to find some place new to go to… that was hard for her. Fear had kept her stagnant for a while. Eventually she decided to take a chance and try to become a Huntress and change the world. There was no other way to do it than to become what she had feared as a member of the White Fang.

"Were they terrorists?" she asked quietly. Naruto's head jerked and he glared. "A cult? Religious order?"

"It's my villages' symbol. It means I'm a ninja, a warrior until death. Sasuke defied us by becoming a traitor. Because of him, we're here now." Naruto ran a finger over his headband and could feel the scratch marks from their fight still. He remembered slashing Sasuke's headband. One defiant act to show the world what he was. His silent seething way to show the world that their golden child, the last loyal Uchiha, was now a traitor. And now there was no one that would know it. No one would understand the meaning of his actions. By casting away his last name, his clan symbol, his headband, and joining Beacon, Sasuke won again over Naruto. He always won. Because he was so fucking damn perfect!

"I'm sorry for that." Naruto scoffed and looked away from her, unhappy and tired. "Sasuke spoke highly of you." Naruto glared at her. "He said you were a powerful person… but truth be told… I don't see a powerful person before me." Naruto blinked, his eyes still full of hate. "I see someone who's lost and unsure of the world around him. Someone who is afraid to take the first step towards a better life."

Naruto gave her a warning glare. She didn't care.

"So my question to you is this. Who are you really?"

The blond Jinchuuriki gritted his teeth and something snapped inside him. The image of the man from before holding the tri-kunai appeared again and his rage rolled over him in waves. He could hear the laughing of Kyuubi in the back of his mind. Naruto punched the tree and hissed a curse. "I'm a tool and a fool! I was someone that all the grownups looked at with fear or contempt. I couldn't make any friends. I just wanted them to accept me or at least not hate me! So I trained really hard to become as strong as I could! And then that idiot, my friend and teammate, Sasuke, decided to leave our village to become stronger to kill his older brother. We fought and I lost. He was going to kill me to increase the power he had… all for revenge! And our village leaders sent us after him to bring him back! I fought him and I lost… Like I always do against him. No matter what I did… no matter how hard I fought… he got the credit…" Naruto put his head against the tree and cried.

So that's why you speak about him so fondly, Blake realized. People gave you credit for things that he did. In doing so, you created this problem and wasted too much time in trying to fix it. Blake could see now why Sasuke would do all the things he did for him. Why he had cried and raged when he thought his friend had died at the hands of the Grimm. She got the story from Velvet. His heart monitor flat lined and Sasuke thought he was dead. All of his work… all of his words… everything he did from the moment they met was for Naruto and now his friend was so lost and confused that nothing but anger burned within him.

Naruto dried his tears with a scowl. "I'm not a traitor… I'm not abandoning my village because he did. I won't become a student here or a hunter. I'm going to stay a ninja. That's my way."

"Then stay that way." Naruto blinked. Blake saw it then. The side of Naruto that was his usual self. His dumb, joyful, happy self that could light up the world and made others want to follow him. "Just because Sasuke wants you to try and do this, doesn't mean you have to. You are your own person. No one can take that away from you. Just tell him. It's not that hard."

"The dumb bastard never listens to anyone. He hated me and Sakura right from the start. Some team we were…" Blake listened with rapt attention. Sasuke never spoke about his past life. He spoke only of Naruto and the one time he mentions how he put Naruto in the hospital. Naruto looked over his shoulder to Beacon and glared at something in the distance. Blake tried to see it but couldn't. "No matter where he goes people will love him. I will always be hated. I'm always in his shadow."

"You don't have to be. Stop chasing after him and be yourself."

Naruto turned to back to her and shook his head. "If people ever saw the real me, they'd hate me. If they knew what I was inside, they'd fear me. I don't want to be hated. I never had friends. I never knew my parents. All the other children for my age were happy. And then Sasuke lost his family and suddenly I thought I had someone that could understand me for who I was." Naruto stared at her for a moment and the image of Sakura filled his vision for the briefest of moments. You were always chasing him. He never loved you… I loved you… I wanted to be with you and you always went to him because he was better than me. "I'll never escape his shadow. I'm the monster. He's the golden child."

Blake's brows knitted together as she scowled at him. "Is that really how you choose to see yourself?"

"Yes," his voice was weak. Blake opened her mouth and shut it. His eyes were no longer filled with hate. He was lonely. "Everything that I've fought for has been taken from me. Back home I was hated and my purposes-in all the world, there was no one who needs me-I've become unnecessary."

Naruto shut his eyes and screamed inside his head. He wanted to break something or failing that, go beat up Sasuke. This was his fault. He was here now because of him and his desire for power. If he had simply stayed in the village none of this would have happened. If he had fought with the desire to kill instead of just hurt him he wouldn't be here. Because of Sasuke he was back in the dark and lonely place. The people who saved him from himself were now gone, nothing but a distant memory. His life was now without meaning.

"Leave me alone. I'm tired." Naruto turned away from her fully and started sleeping.

Blake nodded mutely and left. There would be a reckoning before the two were on good terms again.

(-)

Naruto awoke to the sound of gravel under foot and slowly he reached for his sword. In the blink of an eye there was a flash of steel and sparks. The tree Naruto had been in fell to the ground in two separate pieces. Sasuke stood with his sword drawn. Naruto put his sword on his shoulder and regarded him darkly. The sun was at Sasuke's back, but Naruto could see him clearly enough.

"We need to talk."

Naruto growled and knew just what that really meant. "Fine. Let's talk."

(-)

Blake glanced at her Scroll as it went off. An image of Emert's face was plastered on it. Unhappily she answered the call, a spoonful of cereal in her mouth. "Hello?"

"Where are you?"

She gulped down her tasty morning breakfast. "Cafeteria... Why?"

"Sasuke's missing, along with his weapons." Blake froze. Her blood ran cold as she got up. "We're looking for him now. We're not assuming the worst, but hey, neither of them has been very happy with one another so I think we both know where he's at."

"I'm on my way."

"I'm calling Ozpin and Glynda. Not like they probably don't know already."

Blake nodded to herself. Yeah, she could see them knowing about this. If Sasuke walked out armed to the teeth with weapons, there really wasn't too many places he could go that would require such lethal force short of robbing a bank or committing murder on your best friend. "Be careful."

The line went dead. Blake took a deep breath as she ran for her locker and grabbed her things. She dialed Coco and let them know as well. This was a hell of a way to start to the day.

(-)

There was a certain fear that always grew in the back of peoples' minds that made them dread passing around a corner each day. It was the threat of the unknown. But what was worse than that was the fear of not seeing something that was happening elsewhere. It gave you the illusion of something dark. It was worse than knowing. Knowing was half the battle. Not knowing was the fear. If tomorrow were to end; would you embrace it with open arms or continue on your normal day as if nothing bad was going to happen if you didn't know it was going to end? If you knew it was going to end; would you spend it with your family? Would you call up people you wronged and try to right it all in the hopes of ascending to Heaven, rather than falling to Hell?

This was the fear that drove everyone on Team JSPR, CVFY, and RWBY. Other teams were out there, searching. School was officially canceled. Ozpin called it off to find a stop Sasuke and Naruto from fighting. It left a lot of people questioning what was happening. Some had their doubts that the two were fighting. Others held no illusion that they weren't fighting.

For Ruby, she didn't know what to think. Naruto was a happy person, cheerful and fun. Sasuke was the same way, albeit a little odd at times and certainly rough around the edges. But their hearts were in the right place. It was why she held the illusion that they weren't fighting.

For Blake, she held no illusion that they were fighting. She knew deep down that this was a road they were going to travel. From the very moment she talked to him last night she knew that this was the inevitable outcome. How could she deny it? She saw Naruto's rage. She saw his loneliness and his fear and his sadness. He was alone and far away from home. The lonely boy that had cried to no one and saved them all because it was the right thing to do. Suffering endlessly at the happiness. It was a terrible and cruel fate for him. Blake had seen it coming the very moment Naruto chose his weapon. This was going to happen and she wasn't going to stop it. Not because she wanted to. But because in the end it was going to happen regardless. They would fight and one of them would listen or die.

The three teams followed Blake as she ran through the forest. In a few weeks this place would be brimming with people as they set up shop for the festival. But for today it was a large field hiding two powerful ninja capable of devastating destruction capable of scarring the land and warping reality to their whim.

Blake and Velvet's ears twitched. They both came to a stop and listened intently for the noise again. The others watched in fear as they looked and waited. Velvet heard it first and started running. A moment later Blake heard it as well and started running. Double confirmed, the three teams gave chase. Emert ran up beside the two girls and stopped them. They heard it as well. The sound of metal slicing through air. He yanked them back and rolled out of the way. A tri-kunai lodged itself in a tree scant inches away from where Velvet's head had been. She looked to the weapon that was buried near to the hilt before looking back at where it came from.

Weapons brandished, they didn't have to wait long before a body flew through the air and hit the tree. Sasuke appeared from the speeding blur with a scowl on his face. His sword out, he leapt forward. Naruto met him halfway and drove him back through the tree and sent him into the ground. Sasuke cursed and took the butt of his sword and bashed it against Naruto's temple. The blond staggered back holding the side of his head. Sasuke took advantage of his loss of focus to attack. Naruto got it back quicker than expected, but it didn't matter. With a single swing Sasuke clove through flesh as he grazed Naruto's chest. Blood spurted into the air and rained down droplets on Sasuke's face. Naruto wasn't detoured and slashed at his form. His sword swing was blocked by the former Uchiha.

Neither of them was aware of the others that had found them. Cut up and bloodied, their sight was horrifying to some. To those had expected them to be fighting, it was a sight that they had expected. To those that hadn't expected them to be fighting, it was a scene straight out of a slasher movie where the hero fought against the main villain.

Naruto jumped forward.

Sasuke thrust his sword forward.

Their blades pierced it flesh and suddenly they were both gone in a puff of smoke. Sasuke left a log in place. Naruto simply vanished.

Ruby covered her mouth in fear. "They're… they're really fighting each other."

Weiss put a hand on her shoulder. She, too, was stunned by the sight. Emert took point beside Velvet as she wept for them. Blake motioned into the shadows of the trees. "They're that way," she told them. Emert nodded and looked back to the others. Blake did as well. Yang looked angry and was probably going to get involved. Jasper and Coco looked slightly indifferent, as if accepting and denying this outcome. Fox and Yatsuhashi looked unsure of what do. Persia was the only one to be committed to a decision on the matter. "We need to tell the Headmaster and Professor Glynda that we found them."

"They already know," Emert told her. He tapped his nose when she gave him a funny look. He looked back at the forest and wrinkled his nose for a moment. "Naruto's lost a lot of blood and yet he's still on his feet. This place is covered mostly in his blood. He really does get up from everything."

Velvet ran ahead. The others followed. Ruby dialed Ozpin's number and informed him that they were found.

(-)

I don't want this life!

Then what do you want?!

Sasuke punched Naruto in the head and felt Naruto's fist drive itself into his gut. Naruto leaned back from the force of Sasuke's blow. Sasuke doubled over. They both righted themselves and punched the other again, this time knocking each other backwards. Sasuke brought his sword to bear. Naruto was slow and grabbed his off the ground. In a single fluid motion Sasuke closed the distance and cut him across his back. Naruto screamed and turned, slashing as well. Sasuke avoided it with the greatest of his ease, his Sharingan eye spinning wildly as he predicted each move before it was even made.

Furious, Naruto summoned clones. Each clone wielded the reverse blade sword. Sasuke brought his sword up as he scanned each of the clones. With speed greater than what Sasuke could follow, they charged him. Sasuke twisted and blocked to the few that were to his left but could do nothing to the few on his right side. Sasuke blocked one and felt the cold caress of another blade against his the side of his head to his blind spot. He could do nothing against them as they forced through way through his guard. Grudgingly he backed off and fired a few fireballs at them. The clones were destroyed in a blaze of glory by his attack.

Sasuke narrowed his eye and grunted as Naruto appeared from his blindside and got him with a fist.

I want to go home!

Sasuke grunted and kicked him in his the back of the leg.

This is our home now!

Naruto jerked upright and caught Sasuke with a powerful fist to the chin to send him flipping backwards. Sword in hand, Naruto dashed up to him. Sasuke righted himself and slashed at the right moment to stop Naruto from taking his head. He'd already proven that even with the reverse blade sword he was strong enough to cut through a tree with the greatest of ease. Simple flesh and bone would do nothing against his might with the sword. Shame he didn't know how to wield. But that was a blessing here and not one Sasuke was going to look at with annoyance.

They pushed off and landed a good distance apart. Naruto was one Sasuke before the raven haired youth could so much as get a good defense up. Naruto bashed his sword against Sasuke's and sent him skipping along the ground like a thrown rock. Sasuke grunted as he came to a stop and got to his feet. Naruto was on him in a flash, hitting him hard with a backhand that left him reeling. Flipping backwards to gain some distance, Sasuke threw the last of his shuriken to keep him back. Naruto took one to the leg. He wasn't fazed by it. He ripped it out and tossed it over his shoulder and healed instantly as his red chakra flared around him like a living flame.

Coming to a stop, Sasuke took a deep breath and gathered his resolve to not use the Curse Seal. This wasn't a fight where he was trying to kill Naruto. Though he felt Naruto had a desire to end him right now.

Naruto growled and flashed towards him. Sasuke parried the swung and twisted to follow him. Naruto jumped to the right. Sasuke cursed as he lost sight of him for a split second. He found him quickly but felt a kick to the back hit him. The Naruto in front of him ran at him with the sword poised behind him with a powerful two-handed strike. Grunting, he raised his sword and blocked it. He dropped to one knee and put his hand on the back of his blade to keep it from falling on him. Naruto pulled back for another swing and Sasuke felt his right side get hammered by another kick.

He skipped along the ground and rolled to a stop a good distance away. He got up and spat blood. There were two Narutos now. Sasuke cursed his luck. Having one eye was not helping him here. Naruto was smart and using his blind spot against him. Smart bastard. If the situation wasn't what it was he'd commend him for being that smart. Shame only Pyrrha and Jasper used it against him. No one else was really that smart.

The sound of gravel under foot caught Sasuke's attention. He looked to where it came, sword up in preparation for an attack. He saw his friends and his face grew grim. They were horrified by his appearance.

Naruto charged him and tagged him in the back of the head with a knee. Something reached out from across their blows to breathe life into Sasuke. He disappeared in a puff of smoke and a log fell. Naruto twisted in the air to find him. As the log fell to the ground it exploded and Sasuke appeared from the smoke. He thrust his sword forward and got Naruto through the back. He cried in shock and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The real Naruto charged him. Sasuke growled and threw his sword at him. Naruto batted it away. Sasuke flipped through some seals and his hand was suddenly covered in lightning.

Naruto didn't stop. A clone appeared at his side and helped him form the Rasengan.

Sasuke shook his head. He had hoped Naruto would stop at the sight of his Chidori. Rational thinking was out the window.

They met and struck each other's attack. A high wind kicked up and threw everything and everyone away. When their attacks died out they were blown away by the force of their collective energies. Sasuke landed beside his friends. Naruto landed against a tree. Gasping for air, Sasuke slowly got to his feet and glared at his friend. Naruto showed no signs of fatigue. No doubt that was curtsey of the Kyuubi. But their attacks gave him an understanding of what was going on in Naruto's head. He was angry and he was lost. Somehow, he was in a dark and lonely place.

Sasuke had backed Naruto into a corner and he was doing what any sane person would do in a situation like that: Fight.

Weaponless, Sasuke assumed a battle stance.

"Stop fighting!" Ruby pleaded as she jumped in front of Sasuke. Naruto's red eyes hardened on her. Sasuke looked from Naruto to her and then back to his friend as his fiery aura began to slowly form into the one-tailed state. "Please! Stop fighting! Both of you!" Ruby looked to Naruto with tears in her eyes.

"Ruby," Blake said softly with hardened eyes, "this is how it has to be." She reached out and slowly pulled their leader back to them. Ruby started crying.

Closing his eye, Sasuke sighed. He had hoped to avoid this. They didn't need to see this side of him. They didn't need to see Naruto like this.

Naruto dashed forward. Sasuke's eye snapped open. Naruto swung his sword. In a flash faster than the eye could follow, Sasuke caught Naruto's sword with both hands. Stunned, Naruto froze in place as his mind raced with a thought on what next to do. Sasuke took advantage and removed the sword from the equation and kicked him away.

Let me in!

Naruto rolled along the ground but sprang to his feet and dashed forward with two tri-kunai at the ready. Sasuke sighed as he had hoped Naruto was out of them. Naruto lunged forward to stab him. Sasuke ducked and twisted out of his reach and sprang back up to kick them from his hand. Naruto lost one and stabbed Sasuke in foot with the other. The former Uchiha didn't make a sound as he forced his foot down to rip it from his grip. Naruto cursed and ran for his sword. Sasuke removed the weapon and tossed the kunai at Naruto. It tagged him in the back. Naruto hit the ground and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Shit!" Sasuke whipped around just in time to avoid a swing from Naruto's sword that would have either removed his head or crushed his throat. Naruto spun around with his sword and lunged at Sasuke. The former Uchiha sprang to his feet with his hands flipping through the last of the seals for another Chidori. Naruto couldn't avoid it. Sasuke reached out and grabbed his sword arm with his free hand. With the other he plunged it deep into Naruto's shoulder and bashed his head against his. Let me in you bastard! No reply. Let me in! I'm here for you! I'll listen! What do you want?!

Naruto pulled his head back and kicked Sasuke away, removing his arm. Naruto slumped forward and nearly dropped his sword as the gaping hole in his body began to slowly heal over time. Before long the hole had closed and his wound was gone. Truly, a mystical and remarkable thing that was sure to not be spoken about for days to come. Rather, they would all focus on the one thing that they took from this: They were both nuts and clearly trying to kill each other.

Sasuke held his arm and stared at Naruto as he stood up straight. His left arm was soaked in blood, but the wound had already closed. Sasuke shook his head, tired of fighting him. Naruto couldn't see that or wasn't willing to believe it.

With a loud roar Naruto lunged forward. Sasuke growled at him and jumped over him as he swung wildly at him. He ran forward and got his sword. Naruto was on him in a flash. They crossed swords. Sasuke took a deep breath and shoved him back. He gathered his chakra and swung upwards. He knocked Naruto's sword back and slashed him deep across the face and caught his eye. Naruto screamed and backed up holding his damaged eye. Sasuke ran forward with the opening provided. Something in the back of his mind took control and for a split second again he thrust his sword forward for a life ending stab.

Naruto's blood soaked hand left his eye and reached out. Sasuke's sword pierced his hand and the Uzumaki forced the blade away from his face. He made a fist on the end of the blade and ripped it down, removing it from Sasuke's grip. With a might roar he punched him hard in the side of the head.

I want to go home with you!

Sasuke felt all of his anger fade and let the blow take its course. His body jerked violently as he bounced along the ground and hit a tree. Naruto screamed and ripped the sword out of his hand. With both swords in hand he glared at Sasuke and waited for him to get on his feet. The whispers of Kyuubi were delicious and tempting. The promise of power and revenge. The end to his suffering was the final piece of sweet succulence promised by the demonic fox. Sasuke got up and put his back against the three. He smiled at Naruto. Naruto raged and threw the sword with all his might.

Sasuke never stopped smiling. The sword struck and Naruto dropped his sword. Yang screamed in a mindless rage as she got ready to charge the blond. A calming hand on her shoulder pulled her from her murderous state. Blake had a look of understanding but pointed to Emert as he remained silent and still like a silent guardian.

Naruto dropped to his knees as his anger left and cried.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke said solemnly.

Naruto threw his last tri-kunai at him without looking. Sasuke didn't have the strength to avoid it, not that he couldn't; he just didn't have the strength to do it. It dug in deep to his right shoulder and he grimaced as he walked towards him. His sword had missed his head. Naruto was never going to kill him. He was angry and lost. There were no more words that needed to be said. He walked over to his friend and knelt down to him. Naruto looked up threw bloodied eyes. His damaged eye was solid red. No doubt that was the Kyuubi trying its best to heal its host. The blue eye was now red, but his other eye was blue. A side effect, perhaps?

Slowly, Sasuke put one finger on Naruto's forehead and smiled. I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you.

Naruto's eyes lowered to the ground. I don't want to do this anymore.

Sasuke nodded mutely. I know you don't. I was so caught up in trying to make things better for you that I never took what you wanted into consideration. I'm sorry. I was just trying to do right by you like how you tried to do right by me.

Naruto ran his hand across his face to clear some of the blood. I don't wanna join Beacon as a student.

Then don't. Become something more. I know Ozpin will have other options for you. Don't be a student. Remain as a ninja. That's what you want. Let your allegiance to Konoha stand and make that your crest. Naruto stared at him. I'll help you. I promise. I'll be there for you. Just don't shut me out. I did that to you so long ago and that was wrong of me. I don't wanna lose my source of strength for making me a better person. For once in my life you have someone else looking up to you. Don't let me down. Sasuke smiled weakly. His vision began to go fuzzy. His finger slid from Naruto's forehead. Naruto caught him before he fell."You are so stubborn…" Sasuke told him weakly.

Sasuke sighed and looked to the others. Naruto did as well. There were mixtures of confusion, happiness, and fear in their eyes. Naruto looked away. Sasuke grunted as he got to his feet. He held his major wound as he moved to his sword. With a slow and deliberate ease he sheathed it. Naruto did the same and slowly looked around to his kunai and the damage they had done. His eyes were downcast. The gentle touch of another drew his attention. Velvet was at his side holding his arm and crying. She buried her face in his chest and held him tightly. Sasuke smiled and put his back against the tree.

"Were you two trying to kill each other?" Weiss demanded, glaring at Sasuke as she marched right up to him. The former Uchiha chuckled. "I'm serious! Look at this place! Look at you! You're covered in blood and can hardly stand!"

"Leave it alone, Weiss." Blake turned her back on them as she started walking. "This has nothing to do with us."

"This has everything to do with us! We were sent out here to find them! They ruined our classes because of their desire to settle things through fighting! What has there ever achieved in the past?! Nothing!" Weiss screamed at Blake's retreating form. Ruby moved up to Sasuke and looked him over with sad eyes. He smiled at her. Weiss turned and glared at Sasuke and then to Naruto. "What do you have to say for yourself? You nearly killed him!"

"He was never going to kill me," Sasuke confessed. Weiss looked unconvinced. He shrugged as Ruby picked up the kunai and walked over to Naruto with it. Sasuke studied her closely. She looked to the blond for a moment before handing it back to him. Slowly, he took it and thanked her. "Naruto is too gentle to kill anyone. That's who how he is. That's how he always is. This was just because… I wasn't listening to him. I was doing the wrong things for what I thought was the right reasons. Naruto, don't join Beacon if you don't want to. I don't care if you shut me out. Hate me if you want for dragging you here. But please don't shut them out. Don't shut out the world." Sasuke took a deep breath and started the long march back to Beacon. Coco remained behind with Yang and Velvet. The others followed Sasuke.

Naruto created a few clones and had them pick up the scattered weapons. Naruto sat in silence for several minutes before getting up and walking to Beacon as well. They followed after him in silence.

(-)

Ozpin stared intently at Naruto as he sat in the chair in silence. For hours he had sat there thinking in silence. Ozpin could see the gears in his head turning slowly. He was thinking, planning, trying to understand something his mind couldn't fully grasp until finally something did click.

Seeing his chance, Ozpin leaned back, his hands nearly folded in his lap. "What do you want to do, Naruto? I know you desire a place to stay. I know you know nothing of Remnant. And I know that you desire to stay close to the one person you feel a connection to. So tell me: What do you want to do?"

Naruto's eyes were tired and now forever mismatched. One eye was sold red, a side effect from Kyuubi healing his damaged eye, and the other his normal blue. Ozpin wondered if Naruto would see it as something more. Like a man with half dead eyes that saw the past in one eye and the future in the other. "I want to join as a member of the security force or as an assistant."

Ozpin put his hands together. "I know this is difficult for you."

"No… Not anymore it's not." Naruto reached up and untied his headband. He put it on the desk and pulled out a kunai. Ozpin watched closely as Naruto stabbed it and put a line through his village marking. His final act of acceptance was this. The meaning was lost on Ozpin, but for Sasuke, it would mean something more. He put the weapon away and tied the headband around his head. "I'm not joining Beacon, but I will fight for it. Just promise me you won't try to force me to do things I don't wanna do."

"I can't fully promise that. Promises are so easily broken. But I will make a deal with you. If you tell me you truly don't want to do something, I won't make you do it. But you must give me a good reason not to. Is that fair?" Naruto nodded quietly. Ozpin sat down and called up a teacher. Nearly a minute later a teacher with wild hair zipped into the room. "Naruto, this is Professor…"

"Doctor!"

"…Oobleck." Ozpin gave a sheepish smile. "You will be his assistant for your days while you're here. During his class I want you to take notes, watch the students, and learn as much as you can about our world. I can think of no one better for you to assist than him." Naruto nodded slowly. The two looked at each other for a moment before the good Doctor cracked a smile. "I wish you both the best of luck in your classes later today."

"Right," Naruto put his hands in his pockets and walked for the elevator. Oobleck zipped right to it and tilted his head at the blond. Naruto blinked and suddenly the image of Iruka sprang to the front of his mind. I'm coming home one day. I promise. I promise. I promise. I… I will come back home. I promise.

A/N

So clearly I don't need to state how this end. Naruto might be a bit OCish here but that's because I'm looking at this whole thing from a different and probably a more realistic stand point. Naruto has been ripped from his world to this world by his fight with Sasuke. He doesn't like it here because it's not his home. He understands that what he's doing is selfish, but at the same time, he's sort of got a good amount of a reason to act this way. He doesn't want to be here because it's not his life and Sasuke has, for a while, sort of tried to push him into it. So naturally Naruto doesn't want to do it because in his head this is betrayal to Konoha. He can't see it any other way and Sasuke isn't listening to him. Mind you, Naruto has clearly not really spoken up about it, but to Naruto, Sasuke doesn't understand him.

I suppose the best and probably only real way to understand this from a safe point without probably crossing too many boundaries would be when you had to move from one place to another as a child. Most kids, I included in this, fought against it. In one case I had someone important in my life (I was nine so she was important and kids back then didn't have cellphones), and I was livid when I found out I was moving from Utah back to Texas. So I draw a bit of that into this because this is a bigger version of it where Naruto basically went to sleep and woke up in a different place all together.