Chapter Text
Tobi had just left, and the guesthouse they’d been staying in had a massive hole in its wall. The villagers were shouting at them while Captain Yamato was trying to reassure them that he was going to fix it all right away. Naruto was half-listening, sitting on the roof of the building. He wasn’t really processing the commotion around him at all, his mind trying to wrap around all the new information that Tobi had told them about the Uchiha massacre. Kakashi-sensei had said that they couldn’t know if Tobi was telling the truth or not, but the more he thought of it, the more sense it made.
Sasuke was walking the path of darkness, not because he was evil at his core or something, but because life had been so terribly unjust to him. Itachi was forced to kill his family but left Sasuke alive.. so that he could be killed by Sasuke.. Sasuke had succeeded, only to learn the truth was even worse than he previously thought. That the Konoha elders were the ones behind the massacre. It was a sickening pill to swallow, though Naruto felt somewhat grateful that at least the Third Hokage had been against it. He had never met Danzo or the other elders, but he knew by now that they certainly had a lot to do with his own mistreatment by the whole village, as the despised Nine Tails brat. Naruto felt like maybe he was beginning to understand why Sasuke had become like this. He needed to see him. Needed to talk to him. He needed to be with him, be there for him. Tobi had said Sasuke had chosen the path of darkness on his own, but Naruto didn’t entirely believe that. Circumstances way beyond his control were what had pushed him onto the path.
“I guess… the only thing left to do is just ask him” , Naruto thought out loud to himself from his seat on top of the roof of the guesthouse. He became resolved in wanting to truly understand Sasuke. He started the meditation needed to achieve Sage mode, deciding that it was up to him now to find Sasuke and talk to him.
Naruto was jolted back to reality from the depths of his thoughts when suddenly Captain Yamato told him to come down. Sakura, Kiba, Lee and Sai had shown up.
“Naruto.. We need to talk” , Sakura said. Her face was serious, some unreadable emotion hiding behind her mask of relative expressionlessness. People always thought Naruto couldn’t read others emotions at all, but he had definitely gotten better at it over the years. All of the mental effort he spent trying to understand Sasuke was paying off. He didn’t like the feeling he was getting from Sakura.
. . . . .
Naruto couldn’t believe his ears. She’s lying , was his first and immediate thought. Maybe I heard wrong , was the second.
“What did you just say, Sakura…? Did I hear you right…? Maybe… say it again?” Naruto asked, dumbfounded. It could not be right.
“Naruto… I said, I love you!” Sakura repeated herself, the slightest blush on her cheeks. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. Naruto swallowed. Definitely heard her right. The whole thing was setting off alarm bells in his head. This wasn’t possible. Sakura-chan had always been in love with Sasuke, even more than… Wait what was that thought? Even more than who? Him? In love with Sasuke?! Naruto shook his head, trying to get rid of the thought. That can’t be… He was just confused. He had been chasing after Sasuke for years, and he was definitely Naruto's most precious person. That didn’t mean he was in love with the boy. Did it? But why, why wasn’t he happy that Sakura was confessing to him? He had always had a crush on her, even before they were team 7. He knew Sakura better than anyone, they were good friends after all, but this. This was not like her at all. Suddenly Naruto realized he had had a crush on her, past tense. He no longer saw Sakura in a romantic light. He cared for her a lot, but love? As a friend, sure.. But the thought of kissing her or hugging her didn’t excite him anymore, like it had all these years. What about kissing Sasuke? Naruto blushed. They had kissed once, by accident so many years ago.. Back then he had just been humiliated and wanted to die. But now, the thought didn’t seem so bad. Sasuke was all he ever thought of, even more than becoming Hokage or even just becoming a Chunin. Sasuke occupied his dreams and his waking moments, he was practically always thinking about Sasuke.
Shit.. maybe I do lov…like.. Sasuke? Naruto thought to himself. Shit shit shit shit.
Sakura continued to speak, unaware of the revelations that she had just caused to happen in Naruto’s head.
‘’Sasuke doesn’t mean anything to me anymore! I was totally wrong to like him in the first place” , Sakura said, looking a bit pissed off that Naruto was barely paying attention to her confession, “You ought to listen carefully when a girl confesses her feelings to you!”
Naruto stared at her for several, long seconds with a shocked expression. He honestly still couldn’t believe his ears. What was she playing at? All of that was such an obvious lie. Sakura would never give up on Sasuke so easily. It had been only a few months since the last time they had both resolved to bring Sasuke back together. Naruto refused to believe Sakura was being serious. He started to feel a bit angry.
“But why? Why tell me..? If this is a joke, it’s not funny, Sakura”, Naruto said, trying to keep his voice level. He wanted to cry. “What is going on?” he asked. The fact that Sakura had decided to spring this on him in front of 5 other people was making him feel a bit nauseated. A real love confession should always be just the two of you alone. Not like this, some grotesque display of public humiliation.
“Nothing, really. It’s just that I finally woke up. I can’t continue to love a rogue shinobi, a criminal. I’m not a child anymore… I can separate fantasy from reality ”, Sakura explained. Naruto wasn’t buying it. She didn’t care until now that Sasuke had gone rogue or committed crimes. It’s not like Sasuke had killed anyone aside from Itachi, as far as Naruto knew. The worst of her speech was yet to come though.
“So, Naruto.. You can forget your promise to me. You can stop chasing after Sasuke”, Sakura finished her confession. Sakura was smiling, but the smile was faker than Sai’s fakest smile could ever be. Naruto's face cycled through shock, then hurt, then anger. He couldn't believe this is what this was all about. She wanted to trick him into giving up on Sasuke. Thinking just because he had always had a crush on her, that he would jump at the opportunity to date her, or whatever she was planning. As if Naruto were that stupid. He didn’t want to cause an even bigger scene in front of their comrades, so he reigned his anger in and took a deep breath.
“ What’s happened to you, Sakura-chan? You just suddenly start liking me?” he asked, knowing that she was lying but wanting to hear her excuses anyway. She was putting him in this awkward situation, might as well let her feel the awkwardness too.
“I told you, nothing’s happened! As for why I fell in love with you, it’s obvious..” , Sakura said, but Naruto could tell her heart wasn’t in it. Her face looked sort of pained, and she still wouldn’t look him in the eyes.
Naruto was thinking of their past, of all the times Sakura had insulted him and praised Sasuke. All the times Sakura had ignored him and went to Sasuke, always ‘’Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun!”, over everything and anyone else. The time in the Land of Waves, when Sasuke had almost died. Protecting Naruto.. He felt a weird sense of superiority at that moment. Sasuke had been ready to sacrifice his life for Naruto’s sake, not Sakura’s, not Kakashi-sensei’s. His . He thought of all the times Sakura had cried over Sasuke, when she had begged Naruto to bring Sasuke back to the village. Even back then though, Naruto had wanted to save Sasuke by himself, without being asked to. Naruto had wanted to save Sasuke, for Sasuke’s own sake more than anyone else’s. Sakura suddenly stepped forward and hugged Naruto. She went on a long speech about how Naruto was always by her side, how he was the hero of the village now (Is that all it takes for you to like someone?), how everyone loved him now, her included. About how she saw his true self. (Sakura had never seen his true self. Only Sasuke had seen him.) She talked about how Sasuke kept hurting her. That Naruto couldn’t dispute. Sasuke did hurt them all by leaving, but it was like Sakura wasn’t even considering how much Sasuke was hurting. Sakura had always had this selfish love, only thinking about Sasuke in relation to herself. Unlike Naruto, who was always thinking of Sasuke, how he could help Sasuke, how Sasuke was feeling, what he was thinking, what he wanted to do. He and Sasuke were equals. Sakura could never understand their bond.
“But Naruto.. I’m able to be close to you like this, and you give me comfort” , even now Sakura was only thinking of herself, “ So right now, from the bottom of my heart, I truly care… ”
Naruto had enough. He pushed Sakura away from him by the shoulders, and looked her in the eye.
“ Quit it, Sakura-chan! This joke is not funny ! ” he almost shouted. Sakura looked at him with her eyes blown wide, looking slightly hurt, but if she was serious, she should’ve looked a lot more hurt.
The fake smile was back on her face as she spoke, “What are you so mad about? I just told you I like you instead of Sasuke. You know the saying right, ‘women are as fickle as autumn weather’?”
Naruto squeezed her shoulder and looked at her with a stern expression.
“I hate people who lie to themselves!” he simply said. That’s all there was to this. Sakura was not only lying to him, but to herself too by the sound of it. Naruto knew her better than this. She loved Sasuke, just as Naruto did. He couldn’t deny it any longer. He loved Sasuke.
Sakura started shouting at him, accusing him of hating her and making excuses. Naruto wasn’t having it.
“Why would you come all the way here just to say this to me?” Naruto asked.
Sakura got even angrier at this.
“ Just?! Just?! You think it’s so easy for a girl to profess her love?! And what do you mean, came all the way here? Of course I’d come all the way here! You’re always talking about Sasuke this, and Sasuke that, and chasing after Sasuke. Getting yourself into dangerous situations! ” Sakura shouted at him, her emotions getting the best of her. Naruto listened intently, trying to understand her true intentions. It really did seem like she just wanted him to give up on Sasuke. But why?
“ You’re the Nine Tails jinchuuriki, targeted by the Akatsuki! Why don’t you worry about your own skin for a change!” Sakura continued in a loud voice , “You see, I.. I’m trying to tell you that you don’t have to chase after Sasuke to the point of putting yourself in danger !”
Naruto was starting to understand where she was coming from. It wasn’t really malicious, she was simply worried about his wellbeing and safety. It felt kind of nice to have Sakura worry about him like this. But it still left a bad taste in his mouth.
“ I came here because I want you to return to the village right away! That’s all!” Sakura finished shouting, and they were both silent for a few seconds.
Naruto’s head was spinning. He had only realized his own, true feelings about Sasuke a few minutes ago. Sakura was trying to trick him into giving up on Sasuke. But Naruto had known for years that he could never give up on him. Sasuke was something so special to him, he couldn’t even think of the right words for it. Sasuke was everything to him. Sakura was a fool, he thought, for thinking that he would just give up on Sasuke so easily. Because of a flimsy, half-hearted love confession, too.
Naruto sighed.
“ It just sounds like an excuse. I mean, I get where you’re coming from, Sakura-chan ”, he said, but was interrupted by Sakura shouting at him again.
“ So why don’t you understand? I don’t care about Sasuke-kun at all anymore now that he’s a criminal !” Sakura yelled, and Naruto couldn’t help but think to himself: Is that how shallow your love for him is?
“So the promise between us doesn’t stand anymore, either!” Sakura finished talking.
Naruto looked away from her, and his face was contorted with pain. She didn’t understand him at all. It was never just about the promise.
. . . . . . . . . .
“But it’s not just about that promise. It never has been. I’m finally starting to understand why Sasuke has become obsessed with revenge, why he’s causing so much damage. You just don’t understand him like I do. Sasuke loved his family and his clan. You guys could never understand what he went through. I can’t really understand it either, but I know more of the loneliness and pain that he felt, than anyone else. Sasuke is not evil!” Naruto said.
“Why did he ally with the Akatsuki after defeating Itachi then?!” Kiba accused.
“That’s not what really happened.. the truth is-”
“Naruto!” Kakashi interrupted him. They had agreed not to speak of Tobi’s revelations to anyone yet, at least not until they somehow confirmed their validity. Naruto conceded to this, and changed the topic slightly.
“ Anyway, it doesn’t matter, even if there’s no promise between us anymore. Because I want to rescue Sasuke for my own sake !” Naruto said, resolute. Sakura stared at him, some kind of realization dawning on her face. Could he be... she thought, aborting the train of thought before it could be fully realized. No way.
“Hmph! Enough of this, I’m going home!” she proclaimed, while turning away and starting to walk back in the direction they had all come from. She had known it probably wouldn’t go too well, but she hadn’t expected it to be such a disaster. But she had made up her mind. She had to kill Sasuke. I’m so sorry, Naruto! she thought to herself.
Kiba, Lee, and Sai all followed after her. A dozen seconds after they’d disappeared from sight, Sai showed up.
“You’re a clone”, Kakashi simply said upon seeing the boy.
“Yes. I wanted to tell you the truth, that Sakura tried to tell you but couldn’t”, Sai said. “Sasuke has a hit out on his life. Your classmates are planning on killing him themselves!”, Sai continued, eyebrows furrowed.
This time Naruto truly could not believe his ears. Not only was Sasuke going to be hunted by practically every capable shinobi, with the intention to kill him, his own friends, even Sakura?! were planning on killing him?! He felt his stomach drop and it felt like the ground was swallowing him whole. This could not be happening..
‘’But.. Sakura-chan! She would never kill him! She loves Sasuke!’’ Naruto shouted while grabbing Sai by the shoulders. He refused to believe it.
‘’Sasuke is just another criminal now. He will cause an international war if we let him live. Sakura knows this too. She’s not a child anymore. That’s why she came all the way here, to try and tell you this”, Sai explained.
“Then why did she confess to me.. Why not just say it?!” Naruto said, his face twisted into a frown and unable to lift his gaze.
“She didn’t want to hurt you”, Kakashi said.
“Yes, she thought that by confessing to you and relieving you of the burden of the promise between you, you would willingly give up on Sasuke. But after you told her you wanted to save Sasuke for your own sake, she just couldn’t bear telling you the truth. It was too painful”, Sai said, “ She was trying to be considerate of your feelings.. Plus I suspect she already knew what you were going to say ”.
“She asked us not to tell you anything, saying she wanted to be the one to tell you, saying it was her duty”, Sai continued.
Naruto was frowning. Why would Sakura play this elaborate ruse on him? What was her real purpose?
Captain Yamato spoke up for the first time since the whole incident had begun: “If Sakura had predicted Naruto’s reaction, doesn’t that mean she never intended to tell him the truth from the get-go? So what is she planning?”
“This is just my conjecture.. But I suspect that..” Sai started.
“She’s planning to kill Sasuke on her own, isn’t she?” Kakashi interjected.
Naruto was more shocked at this than anything else that had transpired so far. Sakura..really wanted to kill Sasuke? Naruto couldn’t even imagine killing Sasuke. Not now, not ever. No matter how much Sasuke hurt him, emotionally or physically, he would always forgive him. He would always want to be with Sasuke, walk with him on the same path. No matter where that path ended up. Only Naruto could reach Sasuke..
“Yes, that’s what I suspect as well..’’ Sai said.
“You’re all lying!” Naruto shouted, “Sakura-chan would never.. She loves Sasuke too much! She wouldn’t kill him..” Naruto’s breathing was starting to fasten, and he felt a bit dizzy. This was all too much.
“Yes.. She does love Sasuke.. And I think that’s why she can’t allow him to continue on the path to darkness. She wants to save him, even if it means killing him”, Sai said.
Naruto couldn’t accept what he was saying. She’s supposed to love him, but instead of saving him for real, she would just kill him? Isn’t that just the easy way out? I want to.. I want to talk to Sasuke.. I want to help him. I want to save him, I want to be together with him. I want to understand him. I want him to understand me. Naruto could no longer hear what his team were talking about, his breathing getting quicker and quicker. It felt like he couldn’t get enough air in his lungs no matter how hard he tried. His vision was starting to get black spots in it. He couldn’t think of anything anymore. He felt like his entire world was shattering inside of him.
That’s when Gaara showed up with Temari and Kankurou.
“ There’s something you need to hear right away. We’re going to tell you about what happened at the Gokage Summit ”, Temari said. The sand trio explained everything to them. Naruto tried to follow the conversation, but the words kept ringing in his ears. Sasuke had been there. He could’ve died. He might’ve killed innocent bystanders. He could have been killed. Sasuke was allied with Tobi? Why.. Why was this all happening to Sasuke? To him?
“Naruto..” Gaara said, “This war is also to protect the Jinchuriki, namely you. I won’t let anything happen to you. If Sasuke threatens your safety, I won’t show him mercy. Sasuke doesn’t see you anymore. He seeks darkness .”
Gaara touched Naruto’s shoulder gently. For a moment Naruto wondered how Gaara felt about him. He had called him his friend. Gaara told him he needed to figure out what he could do for Sasuke, as Sasuke’s friend. Naruto wanted to cry and scream. The Sand ninja left. Kakashi and Sai left to go stop Sakura.
Naruto could feel himself slipping to somewhere dark. He couldn’t stop thinking about Sasuke. Everything Sasuke had done until now. About what he had learned about the Uchiha massacre. Why didn’t anyone else see that what Sasuke was doing was justified? Logically Naruto knew that revenge wasn’t the answer, but Sasuke had plenty of reasons for wanting it. Nobody in the world saw Sasuke as Sasuke anymore, they all saw nothing but a wicked criminal. Naruto couldn’t hate Sasuke, even if the whole world hated him for it. Never.
He remembered all those years ago, when he had told Ero-sennin that he would remain a fool for the rest of his life for Sasuke. How true that ended up being, indeed. Naruto clutched his hand over his heart. He wanted to just rip it out of his chest to make the pain stop. He swayed in the wind. He didn’t even have the strength to stand up anymore, so he fell to the ground. He started breathing even faster, until he was hyperventilating. He sobbed. He couldn’t believe it. Sasuke had turned the whole world against himself. He was so deep in the darkness, Naruto didn’t know if it was possible for him to reach Sasuke anymore. Naruto’s chest felt so tight, so unbelievably painful. His stomach felt like lead, and he had no strength left. He felt so exhausted. He continued to hyperventilate, and sob. Naruto laid on the cold ground until he passed out.