A/N: I'm sooooo sorry! It's been such a loooooong time since the last chapter, ne? -sweatdrops- As usual, partly to blame are myself, and the fact that I was kept busy with schoolwork for the second semester and this summer (summer class! -dies-)

All that's over now, though…as is this fic.

-hides from random thrown items- I'm sorry; this was supposed to be the second to last chapter, but I found that I couldn't break it down properly. So….

Anyway, I want to hear your opinions on the three possible endings I have for this, with each leading to one of three possible sequels (I haven't planned them that thoroughly, though). The details will be in the author's note at the end of the chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, except for the OCs, so don't sue me, okay? Dozo.

Epilogue: Towards Tomorrow

"Glad to see you're up."

Kai blinked, wincing, as bright light surged into his pupils. Once his eyes had adjusted to the sudden invasion and his vision had cleared, he sat up as quickly as he could manage. He could tell that he'd been out for quite some time, and that annoyed him. Dammit... he thought savagely as he remembered what had happened before he lost consciousness. I let myself get careless! And now, I've wound up here, in a hospital...Darn...

And then, suddenly remembering that someone was in the room with him - the person who'd greeted him - he turned his head slightly in order to identify his visitor.

It was Hiromi.

The ruby-eyed girl grinned happily. "None the worse for wear, I hope." It wasn't a question, and she wasn't really expecting an answer. The slate-haired teen turned away, one arm propped up on a bended knee.

"You don't need to be so hard on yourself, you know..." Hiromi said after a time. Kai glanced back at her quickly, crimson eyes widening slightly.

How'd she-?

The auburn-haired teen grinned again, only less happily. She hadn't been ecstatic upon learning that Kai and the others had practically rushed into battle without telling anyone until the situation became dire enough to warrant back-up. "You may not be saying anything, but your face and body language convey the message perfectly, Kai. I'll say it again: you mustn't expect so much of yourself. Whether you like it or not, you're new to this world, a rookie; albeit a powerful one, but that makes no difference. You've little experience in their kind of combat, and your lasting as long as at least one of the veterans is something to be proud of in itself."

"...Yeah...still..."

Kai turned away again, choosing instead to glance outside the window. Nothing but blue sky, white clouds of all shapes and sizes, and the occasional bird. Was it really just hours ago that a full moon hung in the darkened sky, mute witness to their life-or-death battle?

Hiromi rested her chin on her palm and observed the young man in front of her, much like an artist would study her model and then the palette, searching for the correct color and pose to convey a certain mood. He seemed...restless, somehow. Was it-?

"In case you're wondering, almost everyone came out relatively unscathed," she began - an attempt to ease the worry she'd seen creasing the slate-haired teen's brow. "You should have seen Sasuke when they tried to bring him in. Hokage-sama had already healed him - for the second time, so I've been told - and he absolutely refused to be admitted for monitoring. But Sakura talked to him, and he...finally consented, I guess you could say. Naruto underwent a cursory examination, seeing as he was injured earlier, but I guess he's fully recovered now. And...and..." The auburn-haired girl stopped, hesitant to tell him the rest.

For a time they stayed silent, Hiromi glancing at her folded hands in her lap, Kai staring out of the window, motionless.

"There's something else, isn't there?" the crimson-eyed teen asked at length. Hiromi's head jerked up. She hadn't been expecting the stoic boy to say anything! Kai's head was still facing the window, but he was looking at her out of the corner of his eye. Still in a bit of a shock at how easily he'd read her mind, she blinked, something that Kai took as a reply in itself.

"It's about Yuriko." A statement, simple as that, but to Hiromi, it said a lot. She could do nothing but nod slowly, eyes downcast.

"And you won't tell me because..." the slate-haired teen prompted.

"...I...I just...I don't want to...get your hopes up..." The ruby-eyed teen stammered, lacing her fingers together in her lap.

All was silent once more; Hiromi just stared at her lap, feeling as though she were watching someone else play with their hands, while Kai turned to watch her. And then, he let loose an involuntary gasp, which, thankfully, Hiromi hadn't heard. Kai squinted and leaned forward a bit. Were those...tears in his companion's eyes?

In a flash, he understood, and he shook his head at his own slowness to grasp the situation. Slowly, he adjusted his position until he faced Hiromi, his legs crossed beneath the snow-white blanket. And then, after an initial hesitation - he was himself surprised at what he was about to do - he reached out and grasped the girl's hand in his own.

At the contact, Hiromi's eyes widened. She then glanced up, a few tears escaping their watery prison.

"...Kai?"

"When did you notice?" Kai asked quietly, his face somber.

"A...a few days ago, I began to suspect it. My suspicions were confirmed last night, when...when Yuriko broke down when she thought she'd murdered you accidentally."

Are we that easy to read? Kai thought, hoping that only Hiromi had noticed. He didn't think he could stand all four of his teammates teasing him - albeit good-naturedly - about his developing feelings for another human being. In the awkward silence, he cast about his mind for the best way to phrase what he felt he had to say, to ease, somehow, the weight of Hiromi's negative emotions. The ruby-eyed girl beat him to it, though.

"Kai, I know it's wrong, somehow, to still want you for myself. Even after I know that you're engaged to someone, I still-"

The slate-haired teen immediately held up a hand to silence her; he understood what she was trying to say.

"I know, Hiromi, and I'm really sorry it had to be this way." Kai began, hoping that he was going about it the right way. "But, apart from my obligation to my grandfather - a matter of family honor - I now know that I have another obligation to myself to follow through on this."

There. He'd done it. He'd admitted to liking Yuriko, however implicitly it was stated; he was sure Hiromi would be able to spot it. He had no choice now, then, than to continue.

"However, I have you to thank. If we hadn't met, I don't think I would have discovered that I could care for another person on a level higher than friendship."

At this, Hiromi glanced up again. "How do you mean?"

"When we first met, I was surprised that you didn't fall all over yourself trying to impress me, trying to get me to notice you. You were yourself, Hiromi, and I believe that's what drew me to you."

"Wh-WHAT?!" Hiromi blinked once more, shocked. "Y-you mean, you...actually..."

Kai nodded, allowing a small smile to grace his lips; the look on the auburn-haired girl's face was such that he had to react, in some way. "Yes, I did. Once. But I suppressed it. We were still young - you were only thirteen! - too young for any relationship to be so serious that it would last as long as we wanted. And I didn't want to hurt you in that way, so I held back.

"In time, I guess, the feelings subsided, and it was then I knew it was just a passing phase. Not true love, I'm sorry to say...

"But... you were the first person I ever cared for in that way. It was a new experience, and a learning ground for me. I'm not saying that you were...an experiment. You were more than that, believe me."

"I..." Hiromi tried to speak, but failed, her voice having all but disappeared after that first syllable. She wanted so much to say that she understood; she could see just how much knowing he had hurt her was weighing on Kai's shoulders, and she wanted to help lift it. But she knew also that what she wanted to say was a lie, and she couldn't do that. Kai seemed to read her mind this time, too, and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"I'm not asking you to forget your feelings for me; emotions can't be willed away with the snap of a finger or in the blink of an eye. I should know; I thought I could be…emotionless, but…" The teen shrugged. "Look what happened in the end. Also, you don't need to force yourself to understand; you'll only hurt yourself more."

Kai sighed, and then let go of Hiromi's hand. "I told you this because I didn't want to string you along, letting you get your hopes up too high, only to disappoint you in the end. I may not care for you in the way I did before, Hiromi, but I still don't want to see you get hurt. Especially if I know I was the one who hurt you..."

Fresh tears welled up in Hiromi's eyes when she heard what Kai had said. In the short time they'd known each other, this was the first time she'd heard him willingly bare his feelings to anyone, let alone let anyone know he liked a certain someone. While saddened by his words, she was happy, too, that it was she he had chosen to 'confess' to.

"Oh, and Hiromi?" Kai said after a few more minutes of comfortable silence.

"Hmm?"

"Not a word to the others on what I've just told you and what went on here, all right?" the phoenix wielder said, the leader-like quality returning to his voice. "You do know I have Kinomiya and the others' image of me to think of..."

Hiromi nodded, understanding what he was getting at. "Of course, Kai. I'm just...glad, I guess, that you decided to open up, even just a little bit..."

Kai turned away from her, glancing again out of the window, the smile on his features going unnoticed.

"Do you think she's awake?" Hiromi shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She and Kai were standing outside the door to Yuriko's hospital room - she'd been assigned to a single ward - debating whether or not to enter...and risk disturbing its occupant.

In reply, Kai slowly swung the door open, trying to generate as little noise as possible, and then peeped inside. Then he shook his head good-naturedly, something similar to a chuckle escaping his throat, and then he gestured for Hiromi to follow him in.

"I was wondering when you two would come in," Yuriko glanced up as the pair entered. She was sitting up, a sketchpad propped up on her knees. "Why didn't you knock? You know I would have answered..."

"We...didn't want to disturb you..." Hiromi replied, smiling as she went and sat down on one of the nearby chairs. "How long have you been up?"

The auburn-haired girl smiled back, and then gestured to the bedside table, which held a box of colored pencils and three or four blending stumps. "What do you think?"

Kai gazed back and forth at the two girls, bewildered at how close they'd become in so short a time; regardless of Hiromi's initial hostility towards Yuriko - he suspected it was because the ruby-eyed girl had seen Yuriko as her rival in the relationships department - they were acting as though they'd been friends since childhood! But perhaps that was a good thing.

He went closer to the bed, choosing to sit in a rather uncomfortable, strait-backed wooden chair. He was about to reach for Yuriko's hand when the door burst open with a loud, ungainly creak, and Takao and Max scampered in.

"Excuse me!" he said quickly, literally diving underneath Yuriko's bed. Max closed the door, careful not to make any sound, and then quickly crouched down beside the armchair Hiromi sat in, on the side farthest from the entrance.

"What the heck are you two-" Hiromi started, when Max reached up and clapped a hand across her mouth.

"Shhh!" he cautioned, a finger to his lips. "Don't tell her we're here, okay? Oh, crap!" The blonde withdrew his hand, ducking low once more. A split second later, the door banged open again.

"Where are they?!"

Kai twisted around in his seat and saw that it was Sakura this time. Her jade eyes were practically blazing, and she had a half-conscious Naruto by the collar of his black and orange jacket. Instantly, the slate-haired teen sensed that this was what his two teammates were hiding from.

"Sakura-san? What's wrong? Where are who?" Yuriko asked, feigning ignorance.

"Takao and Max," the pink-haired girl snapped, glancing about. "They ran somewhere down this corridor, I know it."

"Well, I haven't seen them," Yuriko answered, trying to suppress a smile. "If you're looking for them, why don't you try the empty rooms? They could be there..."

Sakura narrowed her eyes, as though doing so would instantly make the two she sought instantly appear before her. After a few minutes, she turned on her heel, tightening her grip as poor Naruto tried to get away, and slammed the door shut.

A few more minutes passed before Takao peeked out from his hiding place. "Is...is she gone?"

Max gave him the thumbs-up accompanied by his signature kitty-cat grin. "Yup!" he nodded, feeling relieved and triumphant. At this, the steel blue-haired boy heaved a sigh and crawled out from under the bed.

"Man, is Sakura scary!" he muttered, leaning forwards on his hands, which were on the bed. "When I saw what she did to Naruto..." he shook his head and shuddered. "She's scarier than you are, Hiromi!"

"What happened, anyway?" Hiromi asked, choosing to ignore the comparison. Even here Takao was getting into trouble!

Max grinned sheepishly. "Err...well...let's just say we - Naruto, Takao, and myself - accidentally caused her to drop the medical files she'd been working at arranging for the past few hours..."

"So they were scattered, all out of order?" Yuriko asked, looking amused.

Takao nodded slowly, also looking foolish. "We apologized, but..."

"-She got mad, beat up on Naruto, and after you two ran away, chased you down." Hiromi finished. That was obviously what had happened. The pair nodded slowly, looking sheepish.

"Well, at least I can say my hospital stay wasn't all that boring…" Yuriko mused, her lips upturned in a small smile. "Not with you two, anyway,"

"So the rest of us aren't any fun; is that it?" Hiromi asked as she turned away, looking offended.

For a moment, Yuriko was confused, but realization dawned, and she almost grinned. She quickly hid it, though, and played along. "Yeah, Hiromi; you and the others are about as interesting as a bunch of twigs on the ground."

At that, the ruby-eyed girl seized the pillow at the foot of the bed – apparently, Yuriko had had no need of it – and began swinging at the other girl. "Thanks a lot!" Hiromi may have sounded miffed – a bit angry, even – but there was a hint of a smile playing on her lips. Laughing, Yuriko grabbed the pillow she'd been leaning on and tried hitting back. "What? I'm just telling it like it is!"

It wasn't exactly an all-out pillow fight, but the two looked like they were having fun. Kai quickly moved his chair out of the way just as Takao and Max joined in the fray – Takao using a pillow that had fallen to the floor, Max using the extra blanket placed on one of the other chairs.

Kai shook his head as he watched his companions – except for Rei and Kyouju who weren't present. They can be so childish sometimes… he thought, wincing as Yuriko got a pretty good whack on the head courtesy of Takao. Pretty soon, the pillow fight had gone from friendly thumps on whatever body part came in contact with the 'weapon' to a small-scale war. Yuriko even got up and they moved the fight from the bed to the floor. A few minutes later, the door banged open again, and the fighters stopped short, each one in various positions of hitting their opponents, weapons held aloft.

It was Sakura.

"Uh…oh…" Takao muttered, eyes widening slightly. "Don't tell me she's still mad…"

The pink-haired kunoichi stalked over to the teens who, moments ago, had been targets of her ire, and scowled.

"Uh…Sakura-san..." Yuriko started to say, attempting to move in front of her two friends and to dissuade her fellow female nin from hurting the two, if that truly was her intention. In an unexpected move, Sakura produced two pillows – probably from one of the empty rooms – and whacked both Takao and Max on their heads.

"I thought I heard the sounds of a pillow fight from in here…" she said, sounding stern. "And hey, if I join in, that gives me legitimate reason to hit these two -" he gestured towards Max and Takao – "as much as I want."

"Oh, boy…" Genbu's and Seiryuu's masters exchanged nervous glances – pretending to be worried, of course – and then initiated an attack on the kunoichi before she could do anything to them.

"Hey!"

"It's only a game, Sakura, chill out!"

"Yeah, but I'm supposed to hit you! You guys had it coming since you ruined all my hard work earlier!"

"But it was an accident! I swear!"

"I'm really glad all of you are feeling better now," Yuriko began, staring at her hands twisting the pale handkerchief in her lap. "Especially since I know I'm partially to blame for what happened…"

It was around three days after that grim night of betrayal and bloodshed. True, the enemy had been all but vanquished, but for the briefest time, Yuriko had been among the opposing forces, and she'd never forgotten that. Thankfully, those who'd been injured in that last clash between the dark ninja and Konoha had healed up with no further complications – particularly Sasuke, who'd been impaled twice in quick succession.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Yuriko," Rei remarked, nodding his thanks as a steaming bowl of noodles was placed before him. The neko-jin reached over to get his chopsticks.

Yes, the group had gathered at the Ichiraku Ramen – though they didn't quite fit into the small stall – mainly to celebrate Yuriko, Kai, and Sasuke's speedy recoveries. The others had been injured, too, of course, but not to extent of needing hospitalization and monitoring; their coming out of battle relatively unscathed was also part of the cause for celebration.

"Yeah!" Takao agreed, poised to start wolfing down his pork ramen. "We all know you were being controlled somehow…"

"I know that," the auburn-haired girl replied, taking a pair of clean chopsticks from the stand. "But I'm still sorry for what I did…"

Wordlessly, Kai also took a pair of chopsticks from the stand, glancing at Yuriko's solemn face. Hiromi noticed this, too, and nudged her friend gently.

"Huh?"

"Quit worrying, girl!" Hiromi said, pointing her chopsticks at Yuriko for emphasis – and nearly taking the girl's eyes out with the wooden eating utensils in the process. "What matters is that everyone's safe now, the Shikino are most likely gone, Konohagakure is at peace, and we're all together."

"That's true…"

"And hey," Naruto cut in as he gulped down a large mouthful of noodles and toppings. "At least nothing uh…happened when you guys performed your ninjutsu…" he glanced at his two teammates and made a quick gesture with his free hand. The pink-haired girl choked, and then brought a hand up to cover her mouth, while the Uchiha coughed slightly and looked away. Takao frowned.

"What?" he could sense that the three more experienced ninja were trying hard to mask their laughter. "What's so funny?"

At that moment, Naruto apparently remembered something very hilarious related to the joke he'd silently shared with Sasuke and Sakura, and practically spewed out the mouthful he'd been chewing on all over his second cousin.

"Yuck!" The stormy-eyed teen jumped up and quickly brushed the chewed up noodles off of his shirt; thankfully, there had been very little liquid when the disgusting things came flying out of his 'long-lost' relative's mouth, so it was almost nothing to worry about.

Hiromi and the others were laughing now, too, only they were laughing at how funny Takao looked. Now he'd probably know what it felt like when he did the same to them, back in Tokyo. Yuriko, however, was laughing at both the silent joke – she'd had a part in it, after all – and Takao's appearance.

Finally, Naruto managed to calm down enough to spit out a hint. "T-Takara…"

Takao's face fell, and then he rounded on Yuriko. "You told them what happened back then?!"

"Hey, it made for a great icebreaker!" Yuriko protested half-heartedly, also thinking back to the training session she and Team BBA had had, when everything had gone horribly wrong. "We haven't seen rookies make those mistakes in quite a while, you know!"

"Come to think of it, what we did was pretty funny…" Max said in agreement. Rei grinned, his fangs showing; even Kai had a hint of a smile.

Only Kyouju and Hiromi didn't share the group's mirth. "Why?" the bespectacled teen asked, curious now. "When did this happen? And what happened?"

Her grin a bit wider now, Yuriko hopped off of her stool and went over to the two teens, who were still in the dark about that particular incident. "Remember the day I taught Takao and the others how to utilize their chakra to perform ninjutsu ? Well, something happened while they were training and …"

A few minutes later, laughter rang out from the small stall; somehow, the tale seemed funnier the second time around, for even those who'd heard it first were chuckling.

"So that's why you didn't come to dinner, Takao…" Hilary commented, wiping away the glistening dewdrops that had escaped their prison.

"Well, what was I supposed to do, show off my female side at your expense?" the dark blue-haired teen shot back, though he was still smiling. "I don't think so! Besides, I can perform ninjutsu fairly easily now!"

"That's true…" Naruto said, picking up his chopsticks again in order to hide a mischievous grin. "But you never know when you'll slip up again…Takara."

"Shut up…"

"What do you mean 'It's happening again'?" Kai whispered as he followed Yuriko towards her room.

The auburn-haired girl pursed her lip, unsure of how to answer. "I…I mean just that, Kai. I've a feeling -"

"-and that's probably all it is: a feeling." The Hiwatari heir interrupted. It was hard not be cranky when you've been roused from slumber a mere three hours after your head hit the pillow and you fell asleep.

Yuriko whirled around, purple eyes flashing. No words were needed; it was obvious to Kai that she was a bit put out and disappointed that he for not taking her at her word.

And then she yanked the screen door open – they'd reached her room without Kai realizing it – and gestured towards the hole in the screen door that led to the rear porch. Crimson eyes lingered on the splintered wood and torn yellowish paper, noting that the size of the hole was too large to have been a rock or some other projectile. And then he glanced at the space almost directly underneath the forcefully-made 'window'.

True enough, there it was again, as though they were living through some grim replay of events that had occurred weeks before. It was a dark-furred animal, twitching as it lay in the final throes of death; its blood had pooled around it, glinting dully in what little light remained. Just like last time, a kunai protruded from what must have been the creature's neck, and a small pouch hung from it with its cords. Inches away from the body, nearer to Yuriko's now-disheveled futon, lay a small square sheet of rice paper, any writing unseen because it had been turned over.

"What's… on the paper?" he asked. He knew that the dead animal was something of a bad omen, but was totally in the dark about the paper and its contents from the first incident.

Yuriko took a deep breath and pulled him into the room, at the same time, sliding the door shut. The slate-haired teen heard the whisper of bare feet on the floorboards, the sleeve of a robe brushing his arm as Yuriko stepped past him. There was the low scratching sound, a small pinpoint of light suddenly appeared, only to be dimmed once more. This was only temporary, though, and suddenly, a paper lamp flared to life. The light was low and not very bright, but coupled with what light streamed in, it was enough to see by.

Kai followed Yuriko's example – the girl was now seated on the floor – and waited expectantly. He didn't have to wait long; the next moment, he found himself holding the same sheet of paper that had been lying on the floor. A black circle, encompassing nine smaller circles that, in turn, circled the pictogram that stood for komuso.

"No way…" Kai half-whispered, surprised. He'd seen the emblem before – on the clothing of the Shikino ninja. Kakashi had explained the meaning of the emblem back then: one big circle to represent the clan; nine circles for the nine ways the Shikino disposed of enemies; and the ideogram that stood for the beggar-priest, the virtue of the profession having been twisted by the dark clan. A beggar-priest owned nothing save his begging bowl, straw hat, and the priest's garments he wore day in and day out; the Shikino warped this image into that of a ruthless killer who lived for nothing save to kill. That same pictogram could be traced back to that signifying the Void, the so-called sixth element. At its best, it was the combination of all five elements – fire, earth, wind, water, and lightning – but at its worst, it was an absence of those five. And this was the side the Shikino utilized, the absence of any element whatsoever.

The emblem was also used as some sort of calling card. By itself, it held no meaning for the recipient, but if attached to a dark-furred animal that had been wounded so grievously so the blood would stand out against the fur… it meant that death was forthcoming, either for the one who received the 'message', or for someone close to the recipient's heart.

The crimson-eyed teen looked up from the paper, staring into Yuriko's eyes. They were there, her emotions: anger, confusion, fear… these, he felt, too, but strangely not for himself. And there were questions that had to be asked, yet neither one ventured to ask them. Finally, Kai did; after all, they couldn't sit here all night long, saying nothing. "Do you think the remaining Shikino – if there are any – are just trying to scare you…or do you think this is a real threat?"

Yuriko shook her head slowly. "I don't know, Kai… I honestly don't know. But…" she took a deep, shuddering breath. "But just to be on the safe side, I think I should stay here while you and the others go back to Tokyo."

Kai frowned. "That doesn't sound so 'safe', Yuriko…"

"I meant safe for the rest of you, not necessarily for me…" the amethyst-eyed kunoichi replied. "You know they're after me, and not anyone else."

"Yes, but you need someone with you…" Strong hands grasped Yuriko's slimmer ones, and she fought to squash the flush that was slowly creeping into her cheeks. "I don't want you risking your neck to get rid of these guys, and that's why I'm staying with you…"

It was Yuriko's turn to frown. "I don't care to discuss the matter; you barely survived the last encounter…and I don't want to put you – or anyone else – through any more trouble than I already have.

"That's all I've brought you: trouble," she went on, pulling away from Kai's grasp. "I thought it would be fine once Shinichi, his twin, and the others were gone, but I…I was wrong. This…" She gestured towards the paper and the dead animal. "This is proof of it. Please, Kai, don't stay here. If you do, Takao and the others will want to know what happened, and once they know about this, they'll want to stay, too…" The amethyst-eyed teen looked away, hands shuddering slightly as they found their way to the insides of her kimono sleeves. "I don't think I can handle all of you being in trouble-"

"Quit being so noble," Kai interrupted. In truth, he had an idea of what the girl was feeling, and he knew Yuriko had good intentions, but he didn't think it was wise to act on emotion alone. "Takao, the others, and I have only ourselves to blame; we chose to get involved, that's all."

"The only reason any of you got involved was because I told you what was going on," Yuriko countered. "So if you chose to be involved, it's because you knew what was happening because I told you!"

Kai sighed, brushing a few stray strands of slate gray hair from his eyes. "That may be true, Yuriko, but has it ever occurred to you that knowing you could bring something other than trouble?"

The auburn-haired teen blinked, confused. "'Other than…' How do you mean?"

The crimson-eyed blader-turned-rookie ninja shook his head as he stood up, ready to leave. "Don't be too rash in your decisions, that's all I'm saying." There was the sound of the sliding shouji, and Kai was gone, leaving Yuriko to her thoughts.

"So… the first time you got hurt, it wasn't you?" Naruto asked, flopping down onto the grass and folding his arms behind his head as a pillow. Beside him, tilted his head back and allowed his jet-black hair to blow back in the slight breeze.

"Yeah, it wasn't," he replied, breathing deeply. It seemed almost unreal that not even a week ago, that large clearing just outside of Konoha had been the site of a bloodbath which he and his friends had taken part in. Not a trace of the battle was left now, and the ground seemed to shimmer innocently in the fading sunlight.

"Don't forget, Naruto, the Sharingan allows me to sense ninjutsu and genjutsu before they take effect. So it was a simple matter of creating a shadow clone that wouldn't disappear after taking a hit." Creating the clone had been the easy part; maintaining it…now that had been the problem, but the young Uchiha had somehow managed not to give himself away, even when Naruto and Sakura had been under threat. That event still hung in Sasuke's mind: how he had allowed his best friend to be skewered by that evil ninja while he struggled to prevent his clone from disappearing… all to keep up the illusion and to find out what purpose the black dome had served.

But, somehow, Sasuke knew Naruto had understood. Their relationship had been improving ever since the jinchuuriki managed to persuade him to leave Orochimaru a few years before, to the point that they were no longer friends but brothers.

"Hey, Sasuke?" Naruto's voice, quieter than usual, suddenly interrupted his thoughts, and the obsidian-eyed teen turned his head slightly to glance at the blonde.

"Hm?

"The next time Sakura-chan is under threat, it's your turn to take the blow, all right?" Naruto grinned cheekily; and Sasuke knew it was one of his joking comments. "I mean, I don't take kindly to having a hole punched through me like what that Shikino guy did…"

"Shut up, usuratonkachi; I'll do whatever I want…" the Uchiha replied, playing along with a forced grin on his face. He was remembering how his friend had looked when he, Sasuke, had used the Chidori on the boy; how many times would he allow Naruto to get hurt?

"Nice sunset, huh?" Once more, the blonde burst through the grim silence of the world of thought, the smile still on his face; this time, it was one of contentment. Sasuke glanced towards the horizon, where the sun was slowly sinking, throwing the surroundings into contrast – mostly dull oranges and shadowy purple.

One sentence, so deceiving in its simplicity, yet it held so much meaning. Because of the life he, Naruto, and Sakura led, it was rare that any of them could take in a scene such as this. And so to be able to take a break and relax, even for a while… Sasuke shook his negative thoughts away; that was in the past now – all of it. And he smiled, too, at peace for the moment.

Just as the setting sun brought another day to a close, it held the promise of tomorrow.

And that was exactly what was in front of them.

A/N: Gah! OOC Kai! –tears hair out-

Okay, I'm calm… Hai, owari (Okay, we're done). Heh. I only noticed today that this fic is a little over a year old now. XD

Anyway, this is where I need your input. Right now, there are four different possible outcomes of this little discussion, and they are: a. Kai finally agrees to leave Yuriko in Konoha; b. Yuriko and Kai stay in Konoha while the rest go back to Tokyo; c. everyone stays in Konoha; or d. everyone goes back to Tokyo.

Each conclusion will affect the setting and plot of the sequel (whether its still a crossover or not, and where it happens), so choose carefully!

PS. Sherbet Mayhem, I know that there weren't many scenes featuring the Naruto characters, but that's because this was first and foremost a Beyblade fic; the idea of a crossover with Naruto came much later. But depending on the choice that wins, the next fic might have more Naruto in it this time around. –grin–