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'Please, Sasuke…why?'

Sasuke stumbled blindly into the bathroom, barely aware of his surroundings. That morbid scene played again and again in his head.

He barely reached the toilet before last night's dinner came rushing up in a wave of acid. He wouldn't look at his hands. He just wouldn't.

A hazy, distant part of his brain told him that Kakashi's genjutsu had simply over-stimulated his psyche with the images of Naruto's blood on his hands, but the rest of his mind wasn't listening. It fed him feelings of hot, slick blood coating his hands like burning oil.

'No, Naruto not dead! He's in the next room…He's not dead…not…' but he wasn't even listening to himself now. All he saw were the scarlet drops that fell from fingertips to floor at the edge of his vision. 'It'll be better if I clean it. Just wash it away…Then this will leave…' Trembling, he made his way to the porcelain sink.

Sasuke wasn't even aware of the searing tears that streamed down his cheeks, nor of the pinwheels that never endingly spun in his eyes.

All he could see was Naruto's blood on his hands, as he scrubbed, scratched, scraped, under his nails and between his fingers. He wasn't aware of his own muffled sobs as peeled away skin, still seeing Naruto's blood even under his own.

Suddenly smaller, tanned hands snatched at his own. They pulled his scoured fingers far apart and himself against a shorter muscled torso.

Azure orbs met his own in comprehension and Sasuke found couldn't stand their gaze. He buried his pale face against the other's neck, warm arms wrapped around him in reassurance. Pieces of his heart long shattered were, ever so slowly, mending again.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry…"

They both knew it was for more than just the vision.

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A/n: Ah yes, the long awaited (at least for me) breakdown. This is not a real chapter, obviously. I'm just taking a break from this story, as it is a pet, to work on some other things. Like Noir Et Blanc and a bunch of random one-shots. I really felt like I owed this to you guys though. It'll probably actually take place some time in the next two or so chapters, I just wanted to write it! Thanks for sticking with me.

Please review. Or not. Whatever.