AN: Hello! You're going to notice in this fic that I took some liberty and changed how a few things worked in this fic (A certain jutsu in this chapter)
("Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.")
-oOo-
"Gotcha bastard." And then Sasuke was falling, instinctively reaching for a kunai from his pouch and launching it in the direction of the other boy. Sending chakra to his feet, Sasuke landed horizontally on the side of the statue he'd been falling from. He saw a figure of the other quickly running towards him, with several others following behind him. Sasuke activated his sharingan in preparation, knowing that the fight had just begun. (He's going to move left, deliver a roundhouse kick, that clone will aim a punch at my head, and that clone is going to throw a few shuriken my way.) Sasuke focused everything on avoiding, dodging, and counterattacking (Jump, kick, punch, flip, kunai, kick, kick, turn, drop, jump, punch) trying as hard as he could to ignore the emotions flooding through his mind and matter because now of all times was the worst time for his emotions to start making him weak, weaker than he already was on a regular day. The clones were coming in groups rapidly, but Sasuke was ready. He grabbed the collar of one clone's jacket before bashing the clone's head against that of another clone approaching him causing them to poof out of existence. While delivering a nasty drop kick to the side of one clone's head he threw a slew of shuriken at three other oncoming clones. They too disappeared. Putting his hands together Sasuke formed the proper seals before letting a fireball lose from his mouth burning two other clones. Sasuke was starting to get sick of this.
"Are you just going to hide from me? Or are you going to come out and fight?" Sasuke yelled toward the sky, getting into a position so that he'd be able to counter an attack from any direction, red eyes shifting. From the corner of his eye, Sasuke saw Naruto's silhouette against the sun, running towards him. Preparing himself for a punch, Sasuke ran towards Naruto's approaching figure, meeting him halfway. He grabbed onto the fist Naruto was sending his way, fully prepared to launch the teen towards the water below, but Naruto overpowered him (Why did I think he wouldn't? He always has) sending him flying off the side of the monument. Jumping back and forming seals with his hands, Sasuke let out several small fireballs from his mouth, aiming them at Naruto who easily dodged them. Naruto took out several shuriken and threw them towards Sasuke, but with the aid of his sharingan they posed no threat to him as he aptly dodged them. Naruto ran forward and Sasuke became lost in the flurry of punches and kicks being delivered and that he was delivering until suddenly, a punch landed solidly in his gut, sending him flying off the side of the monument and down into the water.
As water enveloped his body, Sasuke swore he saw something flowing off of Naruto's body, but before he could a good look water was covering his eyes and his body, and his back felt like it was on fire from where his body had made contact with the surface. Immediately, Sasuke pulled himself above the water, dodging where Naruto was about to land on top of him just in time. As he rubbed the water out of his eyes Sasuke could immediately feel something was…off. Opening his eyes, he didn't see Naruto. He saw something else almost entirely.
(The Kyuubi)
Naruto's whisker like marks on his cheeks were darker and thicker, his eyes were an even deeper red and his pupils had become thin slits. His nails were claws, and his sneer was fanged.
But the largest difference was the red chakra leaking out from his every pore, enveloping him in a cloak of red bubbling chakra. The cloak had two long ears and a single tail that randomly lashed out. This was what Sasuke was there to prevent from happening, and what was he doing? (Fighting and failing.)
Thinking quickly Sasuke tried to analyze Naruto's new apparent method of attack as Naruto got down on all fours. The chakra must be restricted to Naruto's immediate area, so as long as he stayed far away from Naruto, used long ranged attacks to keep them distanced, and kept his sharingan active, he should be fine.
Sasuke was proved wrong when Naruto's newfound chakra formed an arm, grew towards him, grabbed him, and threw him. As Sasuke crashed against the rocky cliffside he realized that not only could Naruto's chakra grow and now nowhere was safe, but also that his sharingan hadn't been able to predict the moves on the chakra which moved independent from Naruto's body. (Almost as if it has a mind of its own) Just as Sasuke was pushing himself off the rocky cliff he was pushed back, letting out a groan of pain at the arm pushing against his throat. Opening his eyes, red met red, and Naruto (Or was it the Kyuubi?) squinted his eyes at him. Naruto looked up and down his body, eyes shifting.
"Why do you care?" He whispered, sounding honestly confused. "Is it because you have something to prove to the people of the village? Is that it? Have you been using me just like everyone else all this time?" His voice was becoming increasingly angry and he pressed his forearm harder against Sasuke's throat. Sasuke coughed, blood coming out with the sound his throat made. He hated this. Did Naruto honestly think that was the only reason he was trying to bring him back? (Have I really been that cold? Surely he must realize that I-) Sasuke's thoughts were cut off when the arm pressed even further into his throat and Sasuke gasped for air, hands clawing at Naruto's arm trying to make him let him go.
"Well?" Naruto said. "Why. Do. You. Care?"
And in that moment a thousand different responses flowed into Sasuke's mind. (Because I want protect you, to rebuild myself, because I care about you, because I need you or else I wouldn't be sane, because I don't want you to ruin your life) But all he could feel was pure anger at the accusation. As selfish as he was, he wasn't that much so, and the fact that that was what Naruto seemed to think made him feel… (Hurt.)
Sasuke had never been good at sharing his emotions. Ever since his parents death he'd dealt with them by putting on a stoic and aloof mask. The only person who could make him break was Naruto, and he hated that that was the case. He despised himself for all the times he'd let down his guard in front of him. He was supposed to be the strong one in their friendship, his duty was to protect the other and, by extension, the lives of an entire village. Yet he'd broken down and cried in front of Naruto more than once. As Sasuke tasted salt on his lips he realized this was one of those times. Sasuke opened his mouth to speak, but then he felt his body shaking. He squeezed his eyes shut, feeling an unbearable pain in his left eye (Like being stabbed repeatedly in the eye, like someone's trying to tear my nerves out through my eye socket) before opening them.
"Because…" Sasuke began quietly, tasting blood on his lips trickling down from his eye. "Because I'm your friend!" He shouted, (God, that sounded weak) and suddenly Naruto was skidding across the water and Sasuke realized he was surrounded in a burning, indigo skeleton.
Sasuke knew this was one of his clan's techniques (Susano'o), and due to the curse of hatred, it was directly related to the user's emotional state and the feeling of loss until they learned to gain control (Do I feel like I've lost Naruto? Is that it?). He had to know this of course, because the Uchiha was a powerful clan, and he had to know everything there was to know about being one in order to survive what with all the drawbacks of using the sharingan and the people who sought after their eyes and bodies for power. In addition, he had to be a good little Uchiha and take care of the jinchuriki because nobody else wanted to and nobody else should need to. It was supposed to be the way he could redeem himself. But even if that was partially true, Sasuke still hurt. He wasn't doing this just because
Sasuke reached up and wiped at his eyes. Looking down at his hand, he saw it was covered in crimson. He would've winced at the mental image of his face he was provided if it weren't for the all consuming rage that was filling him. How dare Naruto think he was doing this out of an obligation? Did he even understand how much Sasuke was hurt by the very idea? This entire time, had Sasuke been reading into every interaction they'd had? Had Naruto always thought Sasuke was doing this for the village and not for him? Gripping his hand, Sasuke noticed that the skeletal hand did the same and he saw Naruto's form getting up from where he'd hit the rocky cliffs on the opposite side of the water. As Naruto's form recovered Sasuke began running towards him. He could see it. He could see it all. Even the chakra's movements that had confused his eyes at first were easy to predict with his new sharingan. In the back of Sasuke's mind he wondered if it was normal to get the mangekyō sharingan at such a young age and just over the very thought of losing someone, but too much adrenaline was pumping through his body for the thought to really register. As he ran towards the now fully standing (Or was it technically crouching?) Naruto, he barely noticed the slight look of shock on the other genin's face.
"What the hell are you?" Naruto yelled, already summoning a clone wrapped in the same chakra as the original, beginning to create a rasengan in his right hand.
"Haven't you heard? I'm the destroyer of the village!" Sasuke yelled back, bitterness lacing his tone (How many times had those very words been whispered in his prescense?) as Naruto began running towards him, rasengan in hand. Sasuke didn't even attempt to dodge the incoming attack as it collided with the rib cage surrounding him. Sasuke felt the impact slightly, but he didn't show it. "That's not going to work." He sneered. "Playtime is over Naruto." Sasuke said, as a skeletal hand reached out and grabbed Naruto's struggling form, lifted him up, and bashed him against the cliffside.
-oOo-
Naruto screamed.
It might not have been the most intelligent move considering a beast larger than most buildings in the village was standing right in front of him and the last thing he wanted was that huge, nine tailed demon focusing its lethality on him, but what was an eight year old boy renowned for never shutting his mouth supposed to do in this situation?
As quickly as it had started it had ended. His mother stood up and brought down chains that wrapped around the beast and buried themselves into the ground. The demon snarled, but relented. Naruto could feel himself shaking as he ran over to his mother who was now collapsed in the arms of Mikoto.
"Mom!" Naruto said as loudly as he could without attracting the beast's attention. "Mom what's going on? Why isn't the thing inside of you?" He questioned while running towards his mother and Mikoto. Kushina looked up suddenly, seemingly surprised at the sight of her son. She bit her lip and looked over at Mikoto nervously. As if asking for help. Mikoto just narrowed her eyes back at Kushina, who sighed before turning to Naruto. (Why are they looking at each other like that?) Kushina took a deep breath before beginning to speak.
"Naruto…You know that the seal has been weakening?" Kushina began carefully. Naruto nodded his head vigorously. That was what an Uchiha was for, keeping the beast in check. Kushina smiled but it didn't reach her eyes. "And you know how cousin Karin is supposed to be the next jinchuuriki?" She continued. Naruto nodded his head again in affirmation. He knew his cousin well, as they often played together. She was the purest Uzumaki of his generation, which meant she was best suited for containing the beast. "Well…" Kushina continued. She took a deep breath before finishing. "Your dad and I decided we want it to be you instead."
Naruto did not do a good job of containing his surprise. "Why would you want it to be me?" Naruto said, his confusion and shock clearly showing on his expressive face.
"You'll learn when you're old enough." Mikoto said calmly but quickly, her eyes giving away a sort of urgency. "Now hurry up, we have to begin the sealing." She said, getting up with Kushina, who leaned on her shoulder for support.
"Now? Right NOW?! But! But what about my Uchiha? Who is going to-" Naruto began.
"Sasuke is going to." Kushina answered before Naruto could finish his sentence as they made their way towards where Fugaku and Sasuke were sitting. Naruto gawked at his mother's back. Naruto and Sasuke were friends yes, but only because their mothers were best friends. They played together and liked doing things together, and on the way here they'd held hands (but that didn't count because we'd both been terrified) but Naruto was sure that before being linked permanently, people were supposed to be at least a little bit closer to each other? Sasuke on the other hand, looked as determined and calm and completely okay with the situation. At least, as much as someone his age could be. But Naruto noticed he looked a little scared in his eyes. Kushina looked towards the entrance to the clearing worriedly. "Naruto, Sasuke, lie down. We need to do this quick." She said. Sasuke carefully lied down as Naruto flopped on the ground. "Good. Okay boys… this could hurt a little bit." She muttered in an attempt at soothing as she put her hand under Naruto's shirt and on his stomach.
And then Naruto was screaming, and he knew nothing but pain.
-oOo-
As Sasuke got ready to throw Naruto's struggling form across the length of the lake something stopped him. Naruto's chakra had formed a hand and was grabbing onto the skeletons arm, trying to pull it off. When that didn't work, the chakra hand began to work on pulling off the individual fingers. Sasuke tried to hold on, but Naruto's chakra was too strong, and Naruto slipped through his grasp. Growling Naruto began to run towards him, the chakra reaching out and trying to grab Sasuke, but Sasuke easily predicted the movements and dodged them. They fell into a steady rhythm of punching and kicking and grabbing. Almost like they were two normal ninjas having a fight, only they weren't.
Sasuke jumped back onto the water trying to get away from Naruto's approaching form, but as he did so, Naruto started to change. Sasuke hadn't noticed until now, but Naruto had been steadily growing chakra tails throughout the whole battle, and now a third one was beginning to appear. Sasuke tried to look into Naruto's eyes and cast a genjutsu, tried to get inside and make this all stop but all the happened was his left eye hurt even more. Clapping a hand down on his burning eye, Sasuke looked up through fingers and a fiery ribcage to see Naruto, panting, his hands forming a cross, the seal for kage bunshin. Sasuke expected him to summon as many as possible to finish him, but instead only one appeared. Naruto held his hand out and the clone began making the scratching motions that Sasuke knew meant Naruto was creating a rasengan. As the yellow chakra began to form a spiraling sphere in his hand, a sense of urgency overcame Sasuke.
(Both of us are exhausted. This will be the end of our fight.)
Bringing his hands together quickly, he formed a chidori in his right hand. Susanoo'o was beginning to flicker away and Sasuke would later look back and know that from the moment the third tail had emerged he'd lost, but right now all he could think of was stopping Naruto.
So Sasuke ran forward, chidori in his hand, chirping with electricity, towards a fast approaching Naruto, and they each thrust forward their right palm and their hands collided.
As their hands connected the world seemed to pause. Everything but them became white light and Sasuke had the fleeting feeling of weightlessness. Looking into Naruto's eyes, he saw some sort of emotion that looked almost… apologetic.
And Sasuke would cling to the idea that Naruto didn't want to do this - didn't want to be hurting him - as suddenly everything turned to black.
-oOo-
(Sometimes it is so much easier to hate and be hated than it is to love and be loved)
-oOo-
"Ah!" Sasuke gasped as he sat up in bed.
He'd had the dream again. But that shouldn't be a surprise. Since Naruto had left Sasuke's dreams were either the ones where he was Naruto as he ran away, or a recount of the last fight they'd had.
It was always the worst when that dream played the entire way through because he could feel the feeling of losing each time, over and over again.
(The feeling of not being good enough)
Sasuke turned groggily to look out the window, and saw that the sun was in the middle of rising. (What time did the sun rise where Naruto is?) God, he shouldn't have gotten attached. There was a reason his mother was dead, and that was because she'd become too empathetic to whatever trouble Kushina had been in. Sighing, Sasuke got out of bed, and walked into his house's kitchen. The house was quiet, something Sasuke had long gotten used to except for the days when Naruto had slept over. (Seems like a childish sentiment now.) Pouring himself some cereal Sasuke quietly ate his food. It tasted like nothing. Sasuke walked into his bedroom to change. He grabbed his forehead protector and tied it around his forehead and pulled on a dark blue shirt, and his tan pants. He glanced at the other forehead protector lying on his bedside table, next to the photo of Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, and him. He picked it up and looked at it contemplatively. After a few seconds, he slipped it into his ninja pack. Nobody had to know.
With that, Sasuke set out. He had a lot of important questions for his first day out of the hospital in two weeks.
-oOo-
Naruto stopped on the branch of a tree. Fourteen days. Naruto knew it had been that long because he'd been counting. (I really should've thought this through.) Naruto was mostly lost. He'd done a few odd jobs in the first (and only) village he'd come across to get some money, but it hadn't been a lot, and nothing had been keeping him in the small town just as nothing had been keeping him in Konoha. "Except for literally everyone dobe." He practically heard Sasuke saying. Naruto shook his head to clear the thought of Sasuke from his mind. He really did miss the asshole but… (You promised! You promised to yourself you wouldn't go back and you wouldn't let the thought of Sasuke change your mind! You're an idiot, but you're an idiot who doesn't break his promises) Naruto internally groaned. That last bit had been something Sasuke had told him once. It seemed no matter how hard Naruto tried he couldn't forget about Sasuke, or any of his other friends for that matter.
But this was more important. Getting away and never looking back was more important than friends, despite how much he cared about them.
He would keep telling himself that until he believed it.
In the meantime, he had to keep distancing himself. He didn't know where he was going other than West ("Usuratonkachi! Think things through for once instead of acting impulsively!") but he couldn't stay here long. Sasuke had been right. He had risked a lot to come after Naruto considering he hadn't gotten permission from Tsunade. But Sasuke had gone back (probably). The punishments for actually leaving permanently and without permission were far worse. Naruto was a missing nin now. (A fucking criminal.) Even if Naruto wanted to go back (which I don't) he'd be in big trouble. He was lucky that word hadn't spread yet, or else he was sure the village he had just been in wouldn't have been nearly as hospitable.
Reaching into his jackets pocket he pulled out a food pill. They were disgusting, but they were all he had. He was lucky he hadn't thrown them out way back when Sakura had first given an entire bag of them to him. As he munched on one he cringed at the taste, but felt relieved by the feeling in his stomach.
He got up. It wasn't safe to stay still. As he began jumping across the branches of the trees he couldn't help but wonder how Sasuke and his friends were reacting. (Probably business as usual. I bet the bastard is just scheming how to get me back and gain the love of the dumb village.)
Naruto refused to think Sasuke had been telling the truth when he'd called him his friend, because even Naruto's willpower wasn't strong enough to keep him from going back if that was the case.
-oOo-
Sasuke walked calmly into the Uzumaki district. The Uzumaki's lived separately from the rest of the village in their own little corner of the village so that they could be better protected from people who might to wish to capture them to be used as jinchuuriki. While anyone could be a jinchuriki, Uzumaki's were sought after more often because their bodies were better as vessels and their sealing jutsus were top notch. When someone figured out that an Uchiha's sharingan could contain and control a tailed beast, they created a seal that required that an Uchiha be linked to the jinchuuriki. It wasn't a common seal. As far as Sasuke knew (And I know a lot. I'd better after all my research) the seal was only used on Uzumaki jinchuurikis after the destruction of their village and after the clan had been relocated to Konoha.
Naruto and Sasuke had been linked. Actually, they still were. And not only were they linked, they had been (Still are in a way) best friends. The seal alone meant that they would be able to sense when the other was in danger or hurt, either emotionally or physically, but their friendship had somehow strengthened the seal, which was why whenever Naruto was in emotional turmoil the seal on Sasuke's neck would flare in pain, and vice versa.
Lately the pain in Sasuke's seal hadn't stopped.
Sasuke reached up to knock on the door of one of the houses in the district. He did not want to be here, but he had to if he was to figure out where Naruto might be. (Just don't give her any ideas. Don't say anything more than necessary, and be concise and quick). Sasuke took a deep breath as he prepared himself for the yelling that was sure to happen as the door was opened by the red head he'd come here to see.
"Hello Karin." Sasuke sighed.
"Sasuke?" Karin squawked in shock. Sasuke rolled his eyes (Here we go...) "What are you doing he-" But Sasuke cut her off.
"What do you know about Naruto leaving the village?" Sasuke asked, grey eyes narrowing as they looked into red. Karin bit her lip nervously.
"Maybe… You should come in to talk." She said ominously. Sasuke sighed (Of course we have to talk) as he followed her into the house.
Today was going to be a long day.