Special thanks to my writing partner, greymatter 1098…

I'm back again. Yay! This fanfic will go through some changes as of this point. They're not too big, but it does include the length of every chapter. From now on, I aim to make every chapter less than 10k words to make the story flow more smoothly and keep up its interest. I got nothing to say really, so let's just get on with this chapter.

Rogue Deity Master: I'm hurt.

JoshPlater: Nice idea, I'll think about it.

"Normal Talking"

'Thoughts'

Flashbacks

Jutsus and Battle Intros

"Beasts and other beings talking"

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters…

It was horrible.

Bodies everywhere, as far as the eye could see.

"Where am I?"

Naruto Uzumaki walked around for a bit, and as far as he knew, this place was the Hidden Leaf Village. Or at least, it was known by that name once before.

Now? It could even be hardly called a village anymore.

He continued walking around, hoping to see someone he could probably ask for answers, but all he saw was the bloody-red sky, shattered buildings, the massive fires that engulfed them, and the bodies of Konoha civilians and ninjas alike either chopped up, burned, or even electrified. He looked at his own self, afraid that he had ended just like them before he noticed that he was still in one piece, unharmed.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Naruto looked up, the sound of flapping wings zooming through the air catching his attention. Hundreds of winged dragons filled the sky, roaring loudly through the vast landscape.

"What the heck is going on here? I need to ask someone what's happening! I know! I'll ask Mika!" After performing all of the seals required, he slammed his palm on the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" he waited for a few seconds, but there was no sign of Mika anywhere.

"Damn it! Is there anybody out there?! I need to find out what happened here!" he had no choice but to resort to plain-out scream for help, since he couldn't even summon his phoenix for help right now. 'Let me try flying up for a better view…' he said to himself before he tried activating his Uchutengan, which didn't work at all, making his efforts pointless.

As if on cue, he saw a black figure in the distance, not far from where he was. It looked like that particular figure was heading towards a certain part of the village that Naruto knew well: The Hokage Tower.

"Hey, you! Are you from around here? What happened to the village?" he tried asking, but the mysterious figure didn't seem to hear and just kept on walking away.

"Goddamnit, what the heck is going on around here?! Am I in a genjutsu or something?!" he ranted to himself

That particular question shifted him towards another scene, wherein he noticed that the mysterious figure from earlier walking towards a group of people, who were barely moving on the ground, meaning that they must be half-dead. Letting his curiosity get the better of him, he rushed over to where the mystery man was heading, and his eyes widened at what he just saw in front of him.

Ino.

Shikamaru.

Haku.

Choji.

Neji.

Kiba.

Lee.

Tenten.

Shino.

All of them were all barely hanging on for dear life, barely alive because of their injuries. He had to cover his mouth to prevent vomiting upon noticing that some of his friends had lost multiple limbs and there was also Shikamaru, who was missing an eye. He was suppressing every bit of him that screamed to go and help them, and yet it felt like something was holding him back, preventing him from moving.

It wasn't until the man approached someone whom he recognized well that Naruto finally reacted out of place. The moment he saw the mysterious figure approach Hinata Hyuuga's half-dead state, Naruto felt something inside him that drove him wild with anger.

"H-Hinata?!" he questioned loudly, and it seemed that his words finally got the attention of the man that he had been following since earlier.

The man glanced at Naruto for a little bit, and the blonde Uzumaki could have sworn that he saw red eyes underneath the figure's hood. "Sasuke?" he asked, saying the first thing that came to his mind when he thought about people with red eyes. "What's happening here, teme? What happened to the village?"

However, instead of answering back, the man rushed towards Hinata and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up and slowly choked the life out of the poor girl.

"NO! Sasuke, put her down!" Without even thinking of a proper strategy, Naruto rushed in to save Hinata and possibly the others, but before he could even reach the one he assumed as 'Sasuke', chakra chains burst out of the ground and bound his feet together, preventing him from moving any further. He was then forced to watch as 'Sasuke' crush Hinata's neck under his grasp, killing her instantly.

"NOOOOOO!" he cried aloud, his eyes wide open upon witnessing his best friend kill his own girlfriend right before his eyes. "SASUKE! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID TO HINATA!" he bellowed, losing any sign of his sanity as he wanted nothing more than 'Sasuke' being dead by his feet.

'Sasuke' dropped Hinata's body on the ground and turned towards Naruto. The man was wearing a black cloak and a hood which kept his identity a secret. "Amaterasu!" the man screamed out, and black flames ignited everywhere around him, burning Hinata's body to a crisp as well as the other remaining Konoha ninja who were barely breathing.

The black flames slowly grew bigger and bigger as it inched closer towards his body. Naruto couldn't even move and he just accepted his fate right there. "YOU'RE GOING TO DIE FOR THAT, SASUKE! AS SOON AS I GET OUT OF HERE, I'LL MAKE SURE YOU'LL BE BEGGING ME TO KILL YOU!" he spat out despite the fact that he was nearing his death.

As if on cue once again, the scene around him shifted itself once again, and he could no longer feel the chakra chains around his feet. The black flames have also disappeared alongside 'Sasuke', Hinata and his friends, the village itself, and the dragons that were inhabiting the sky. Everything went white for a few moments before he found himself in another scenario.

This time, he was kneeling on the ground holding the body of a cloaked individual who was sobbing like hell and hugging his body as if she didn't want to let go. He looked around and quickly observed his surroundings; Sakura, Lee, Shikamaru, Choji, and Hinata were all looking at him and the figure whom he had in his arms and all of them had looks of disbelief on their faces.

Now was the time for a more important thing.

He looked down at the person that he had in his arms and almost at the same time, she looked up, revealing her face.

The same look of disbelief appeared on his face as he was at a loss for words. "I-It can't be… Hina-chan? No… you're standing over there, how can it be you?!"

Hinata managed to smile through tears and caress his cheek affectionately. "Please… protect the future… of the village… and the world… Naruto-kun…"

Her arm went limp beside her as she closed her eyes and her breathing stopped, basking in eternal sleep. Naruto could not stop the tears that flowed from his eyes as he tried desperately to shake her over and over and wake her up to tell him that it was just a bad joke.

"Hinata? Come on, it's just a joke right? You don't mean it, so I'll forgive you! Please, Hinata! Tell me this is just a joke!" he exclaimed enthusiastically, before he felt himself getting pulled away from the body of the lifeless Hyuuga.

"Hina-chan? Hina-chan? Hina-chan… please! It's just a bad joke, right?"

Still, she didn't move again.

"HINATA!"

*Fairy Tail 5th opening - 'Egao no Mahou'

Ai mo yume mo kimi to naraba

A portrait of Team 7 and Team Guy are floating across a grassy field

MAJIKARU ni kawaru sa? Egao no

Cuts down quickly and focuses on a dark figure in the middle of said grassy field

mahou o kakeyou!

Team 7 [Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura], Team Guy [Neji, Tenten, Lee], and Team Darui [Darui, Killer Bee, Omoi, Karui] all bump fists together

mondai darake no

PAWAFURU na sekai ni

Team 7 arrives in Uzushiogakure (Naruto grinning, Sasuke looking alarmed, Sakura acting defiant)

chotto akogarete ta

Team Guy arrives in Uzushiogakure (Neji looking stoic and emotionless, Tenten excited for a strong opponent to fight, Lee crying anime tears while talking about youth)

to matta jikan

ugoki hajime tanda

Team Darui arrives in Uzushiogakure (Darui looking like he doesn't give a fuck, Omoi smirking smugly, Killer Bee rapping comically while Karui scolds him, causing Darui to sigh and Omoi to laugh)

kimi ni deatte kara

All teams are interacting and talking with each other as individuals and even partners, creating a peaceful aura amongst them

*storm clouds appear and lightning flashes*

doushite umarete ikiteru no ka

Sasuke's face is split into his present and future self while Sakura turns around towards him

muzukashii kotae ha iranai yo

Hiro Uzumaki, Fuuko Uzumaki, and Kenzo Uzumaki appear in Uzushiogakure with evil looks on their faces

waraou nakou sunao de ii

Team Guy simultaneously fight against The Frost Commander, with Hiro successfully fending them off all at once

shinpuru na kimochi

Sakura tries punching Fuuko, who transforms into a shadow and moves away before Sasuke tries ambushing her with Chidori from behind, which fails when she ducks and kicks him away

ichiban daiji

Karui is shown fighting with a sword, Omoi using his Raiton, Bee using his tailed beast chakra with his right arm turning into a tentacle, and Darui using his black lightning

kanashii

The portal gateway in Uzushiogakure appears for a brief moment

yoru ni

Kenzo is standing on top of Satsuki while they are flying in the air, grinning evilly as he looked at his opponent

nagasu namida

Mika flies towards them while carrying Naruto, a Rasengan ready in his hand as he attacked, but Kenzo easily dodges his attacks

tsuyo sa ni kaeru sa?

Kenzo and Satsuki then chase them through the sky with a sadistic look before Mika threw Naruto towards the enemy

egao no

Naruto flies straight towards them with his Meteor flaring, locking eyes and glaring at Kenzo

mahou kakeru yo

The lone figure in the middle of the grassy field from earlier turns around, revealing himself as Ichiro while he grinned widely

*ending tune plays*

Team 7, Team Guy, and Team Darui stand in front of the portal gateway and witness it slowly open, with bright light coming out from it

"GAH!"

Naruto woke up with a start, just like how it had always been whenever he was at the hospital. He didn't know why, but he was starting to get used to waking up on a hospital bed that he didn't even need to wonder where he was, and he could just recall what exactly happened that caused him to end up here.

'I'm at the hospital… am I back in Konoha or something?' he thought to himself before looking out the window for some kind of confirmation. Just a simple at the Hokage Monument gave him his answer before anyone else could. 'Okay, I'm at the village… now, what was happening before I passed out again? Last I remember, me and a few of my shinobi friends were supposed to —'

Realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Sasuke! Oh, fuck! I remember now! Damn it, where the hell did that teme go?! Did he run away again? Wait, I don't think so… I remember him being clearly confused when I last saw him. But if that damn bastard ran off on me again, I SWEAR I WON'T LET HIM REST UNTIL I FIND HIM!" he exclaimed loudly before he got slapped on the cheek.

"Keep it down, Naruto-kun or you'll wake up the whole hospital with your voice…" a threatening voice said, causing him to turn his head slightly to face the menacing source.

Hinata Hyuuga was standing at the edge of his bed, wearing her usual clothes but instead of looking embarrassed and flushed like she always was, she had a serious look on her face. A scary aura could be felt flaring around her and it was a clear sign that she was unhappy with something.

"Hina-chan, is that you?" he asked, unsure if he was still dreaming or not. Earlier, he just witnessed the girl die in his dream (which could be considered a nightmare) and he was still a little triggered about it.

Speaking of which, the dream that he had before he woke up was something worth investigating. He remembered every detail of it; the skies, the dragons flying above, the village destroyed, a mysterious man who looked like Sasuke, and surprisingly Hinata. He remembered the girl's exact words towards him, but he didn't even know what exactly did she mean by it.

Anyway, that was a story for another time because he was going to get it.

"You made me so worried about you, Naruto-kun… I told you to be careful out there, didn't I?" she said in a sweet but menacing tone that caused the blonde to shiver in fear.

'Holy shit… I never thought she could be this scary…' he thought to himself as he prepared for the worst.

Luckily, he was not the only one having problems right now.

For the third time today, Sasuke rolled in bed to try out a new position so he could get some sleep. He had finally gained consciousness yesterday, but he didn't speak of it to anyone because the last thing he needed right now was someone checking up on him every few hours to see if he was all right or not. He needed rest right now, and possibly a good memory if he wanted to remember what happened before he woke up in this place.

'Again, let me see if I can recall… I remember sitting and some valley, and Naruto became unconscious all of a sudden…' he leaned back on the bed and put his arms behind his head. 'Then… I carried him all the way back while searching for help… but I definitely think I passed out as well. I was feeling weak that time… but why? And what the heck did that mean when the dobe said that I wasn't myself? Ah, who am I kidding? I'll ask him as soon as I get out of here… but in the meantime, I'll —' he was then cut off from his thoughts when the door to his room opened, as a familiar face walked inside.

"Sorry I'm late, Sasuke-kun… I had a tough time trying to convince my mother that I —" when she opened her eyes, Sakura couldn't stop herself from screaming in surprise at seeing who was just in front of her. "Sasuke-kun! Y-You're awake?!"

"Sakura?!" the Uchiha almost fell off the bed in shock upon seeing his pink-haired teammate walk inside the room. "Sakura…" he muttered in a quiet voice, taking in the fact that nothing bad whatsoever happened to her while he was 'out of himself'. He would never admit it in front of others, but he actually did care for her, and only recently he began to see her as more than a friend.

Unfortunately, he wasn't going to be able to get the sleep he was longing for since earlier.

"Sakura, what happened around here? What exactly happened after I talked to you that night?" he asked. "I don't have the slightest idea on what it is and I can't fucking remember it… can you please tell me —!"

SMACK!

"OW!" Sasuke screamed out in pain, holding the top of his head as it started to let out steam. He looked at Sakura, who had a tick mark on her head while she was clenching her fist tightly. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!" he complained, as he wasn't in the exact mood for fun and games.

SMACK!

"Urgh… CUT IT OUT, I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!" he said, holding up his pillow to block her punches in case she tries to hit him again.

WHACK! POW! BAM!

The pillow nearly got torn into pieces, but Sasuke managed to keep it in his grasp. He tried to inspect if there were any sign of damages to it firsthand, but it only got him in a more vulnerable position.

WHAM!

A large red handprint appeared on his face as a tick mark suddenly showed up on his head. "WOULD YOU GIVE ME A BREAK ALREADY?! I NEED TO TELL YOU SOMETHING IMPORTANT!"

"No." she simply said with narrowed eyes, speaking for the first time ever since she stepped inside the room before cocking her arm back once again, ready to punch Sasuke in the face again.

Sasuke groaned loudly and grabs both of her arms, holding them together in his hands. The pinkette tried breaking free for a few times, before she started calming down eventually after half a minute, even though she was still seething in anger.

After noticing that she finally calmed down even for just a little bit, Sasuke took this chance to explain things and perhaps gain her trust again. Even he could point out that Sakura didn't trust him right now, at least not fully. "Look, I'm sorry okay? I didn't know what came over me that evening."

Her brow twitched. "Sorry? You're sorry? You leave the village and nearly get everyone in the recovery team killed trying to save you and all u have to say is you're sorry? Geez, why did I even expect more from you?!" she grumbled.

Although he was a bit surprised that she didn't mention anything about what between the two of them, it didn't led him to going out of focus. "Sakura, you don't understand. Let me explain things, okay?"

"Tch… don't worry, I understand you perfectly! What's wrong is that you're messed up in the head. Do you have a screw loose or something? You can't even decide what you really want. One moment, you're cool and the next thing you know you turn crazy. But do you know what's really crazy about it? Under that Uchiha coolness, you're just an angry little brat who's so hung up on the past that he can't see everyone willing to help him moving forward even if it's in his face. You know, I've been waiting to say these words to you… heh, you're an insensitive j —"

Before she could speak further, Sasuke grabbed onto her shoulders and looked directly into her eyes. "Sakura, I won't deny everything that you said isn't true. But hear me out on this… I had no control over my actions that day. I didn't even know where I was."

She rolled her eyes and pushed him away, despite her inner self telling her to hear Sasuke out and listen to his words. "Oh great, a new excuse. What? You have a split personality now? I'm not really surprised."

"Sakura, please just listen to me! I can't explain things with you interrupting me over and over!"

"I don't have to listen to sh —"

"I WAS UNDER A DAMN MIND CONTROL, OKAY?!" he bellowed, reaching his breaking point in his conscience so that the pinkette would hear him out. He tried his best to stay calm so he could explain his story smoothly and without flaws, but Sakura forced him to.

"I don't care about —" Now her attention was really earned; she made a confused look for a brief second before she looked at Sasuke. "Wait, what?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Sasuke internally cheered thar he got Sakura to listen to him. "Someone, I don't know who, was controlling me. I had no idea of what I was doing the entire time. Whoever it was, he made me attack you and leave with Orochimaru's goons. One moment, I remember talking with you about me leaving and the next thing I know, the dobe was a mess in front of me and passed out."

She scowled at the Uchiha. "You're lying. How did you even know that you attacked me if you had no idea what you were doing?" she questioned.

"You didn't know it, but I've been awake ever since yesterday. I just didn't say anything and pretended to be asleep whenever someone visits me. I've heard from them what happened when I 'left' the village." he explained, causing her eyes to widen slightly.

"And what makes you think I'm lying? When have I ever lied to, Sakura? Cite one time where I did, I'd love to hear it!" he sarcastically said before reverting back to his original tone. "Even when the truth was too painful for people to hear, I've always been straight to the point with you and others, especially if you remember what happened during the Chuunin exams. You have to believe me."

"Sasuke-kun… I don't know what to believe in anymore. Look, I want to hear you out okay? But… I don't think I could trust you again?" she confessed, looking down on the ground.

He gritted his teeth. He was losing her trust with his own words and he couldn't even show her any proof. "Damn it! I wouldn't do that you! I'd never hurt you."

"But you still did. And it almost led you to meeting your own end at the hands of Orochimaru."

"That wasn't me! At least… I didn't do it voluntarily. No matter how much I got annoyed from you back then, I never laid a hand on you or any other girl, even if my ridiculous ego says otherwise."

Sakura kept her gaze on the ground. "I don't know who you are anymore, Sasuke-kun and I don't know how to feel about that. I thought I loved you but —!" before she could even say anything more, she realized that she about to go too far and caused her to clamp her hand over her mouth to keep it shut.

"I… I mean…" she tried to say in an attempt to save herself.

Too late. Sasuke was already looking up at the pinkette with a surprised look on his face, taken aback at her sudden choice of words. Was it for real though? Did she have the same feelings just as he does, or was this just because of her annoying attraction to his looks and coolness?

"You're not trying to be a squealing banshee again, are you?" he asked rhetorically, earning him a scoff from the pink-haired kunoichi.

Sakura clenched her fists, but she managed to calm herself down. "I'll punch your face real hard if I hear you say that to me again…"

The Uchiha turned his head to the side, a smirk forming on his lips. "Heh. You really have changed. This only proves that I really was blinded by revenge to see the real deal behind people. Wait, did you change your attitude just because I told you that you were annoying in the exams?"

"Huh?" she questioned first, before she realized what he was trying to ask her. "Well a part of it, I think… hearing you come up with that insult was like a trigger in my mind. It made me think about my actions towards you and other people, like Naruto-kun… you and Naruto-kun hitting me in the face that day was like the final trigger, and that's probably everything. Changing my own self helped me a lot when we were up against that Sound group in the forest… even in the 3rd round of the exams while I was training with Haku-sensei."

He smiled, although he didn't show it. "Sakura…" he softly called out.

Sakura turned her head towards him, but she didn't say anything.

"Those words that I told you during the night I was about to leave the village? They're true. Everything I said, I meant it."

Her eyes widened.

"I want you to know that I never really wanted to hurt you that day or anything, but thank you for being honest with me. You were one of the people I thought about when those four Sound douchebags told me their deal… you, the dobe, and Kakashi-sensei gave me enough reason to stay in the village."

She looked at him with eyes of concern. "Sasuke-kun…" was all that she could mutter in response, as she was frozen in place.

"I'll say it again if you want me to. I was wrong back then. I should've never embarrassed you in front of everyone, but it looks like it only helped you grow to be a better ninja from what I see. After I saw how you acted underneath your annoying fangirl attitude, you were like my mother when she was still alive. You both have a caring heart, but you can be serious like hell at times." he said with a chuckle. "If you want me to admit something embarrassing, she used to cling around me all the time when I was a kid, kind of like you in a way.

The pinkette could feel her heart fluttering every time he spoke about her, and she was doing her best not to act like a fangirl and scream what she was feeling out loud. She didn't want to lose her reputation as well as her new image in the eyes of other people.

"So that's why… if you want to… I'll give this a chance and work things out with you. It's not like I'm doing this just because you're like my mother and because I want to rebuild my clan… truth be told, I've grown to like your company ever since the Chuunin exams. I wish to get to know you a lot more than I do now, Sakura."

Sakura simply remained silent and stared at him blankly, although there was a tinge of pink staining her cheeks.

The Uchiha looked at her and saw the expression on her face, leading him to think that she was having a hard time making a decision. "Hey, you don't need to answer now, if you don't want to. I just wanted to —"

"Yes."

"What?" he asked, hearing something come out from her mouth.

Sakura smiled slightly, looking to the side as a small blush appeared on her face. For some reason, she wasn't as embarrassed as she thought she would be.

"I'll go out with you. After all, the same old pink-haired fangirl is still here, you know… I'm just keeping her at bay to save my reputation."

"Really?"

She nodded. "Truth be told, I was really hurt when you outright said I was annoying but at the same time, it felt like it woke me up from a stupid dream."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. This was something that he needed to find out more about. "What do you mean?"

The girl shrugged and chuckled slightly. "I really liked you honestly, but I was just being a fangirl for the fun of it… I wanted to stay quiet about what I felt. When you insulted me in front of everyone that day, it got me to look at you as a fellow ninja and not as the person I admire the most. I mean, who wouldn't be attracted to you when you look like that? Probably only Hinata since she has Naruto or even Gaara's sister who won't give a fuck… so, I wouldn't mind the aspect of dating, even if we're not at the ideal age."

"Well, that takes care of that…" he said with a small smile, amused with her explanation. "Should we tell sensei and the dobe though?"

She shook her head furiously before crossing her arms. "Absolutely not. I'd die of embarrassment if that Naruto keeps on teasing me about you. Let's just keep it to ourselves for now, okay? We'll tell them about us when the time comes."

Sasuke smirked. "Whatever you say… I don't want to get punched again anyway…" he finished, looking out the window with a smile. A few seconds later, he then noticed Sakura walking towards the window and the both of them were smiling as they watched what was going on outside the hospital. Silence overtook everything for a few more moments until a certain somebody made his presence known.

BURP!

Being shinobi, the two teammates wasted no time in turning their heads to look at whoever the hell burped inside the hospital room. Their jaws dropped upon seeing Kakashi Hatake just standing outside the door, holding an empty bottle of soda while he was smiling.

He started rubbing the back of his head as he realized that he was caught. "Oh! Hehe… what's up, you two? How you doin' Sasuke? Well, it looks like you two are busy, so I'm just gonna…" before he could even think of anything else to say as an explanation, he took off, running down the hallways to prevent the impending destruction.

"SENSEI!" Sakura and Sasuke screamed out from inside the room that it could be heard throughout the whole hospital.

Five days later…

It turned out that Sasuke's injuries were not that fatal nor severe, and thus he was discharged a lot earlier than Naruto did. As soon as that happened, he began to visit his blonde teammate with Sakura any chance that he could to do one of two things. Apologize for whatever happened while he was not in control of himself or ask what happened while they were fighting.

Naruto, being the knucklehead that he is, could only remember small parts of their battle; it included him tapping into the Kyuubi's power, Sasuke utilizing a 'new form' of his Sharingan for some time, as well as the fact that his Curse Mark was now gone forever. He also kept sputtering out that he wanted a rematch with Sasuke because of the fact that there was no clean winner between them, which the Uchiha simply ignored.

Of course, Naruto accepted Sasuke's apology because he could tell that he never intended to leave the village out of his free will. Upon knowing that the Curse Mark was now gone, Sakura started screaming out in joy and hugged Sasuke tightly, accidentally revealing to Naruto that there was something going on between them. It prompted Naruto to start teasing them about their cute new relationship, leaving Sakura with no choice but to knock him out cold.

He also visited the other members of the Recovery Team inside the hospital and did the same thing, apologizing to all of the members and saying that he had no idea of everything that was happening when he left the village. It was a bit hard trying to gain back Kiba and Neji's trust, but in the end, all of them understood his reasons and forgave him.

It made Sasuke curious on how he was able to use the Mangekyo Sharingan; from what he learned from his mother back then, it only awakens when a close friend or a family member of Sharingan user dies, and the abilities that it grants to the user are extraordinary. From the moment that Naruto said he had 'new eyes', he immediately knew that it was indeed the Mangekyo. However, he had no idea on how he had acquired such eyes because nobody ever told him about it, but he trusted Naruto's words.

After all, how could one almost defeat Naruto at his current state without a few tricks of his own? Shouldn't Naruto be able to defeat him easily with his Uchutengan? More so, without the Cursed Seal? Surely there must be a reason why Naruto was demanding for a rematch from him, right?

He thought that if he could do it again, he could train himself on how to use it properly and efficiently, and possibly kill Itachi with that power.

But he had to keep his curiosity on hold for now.

Hokage Tower; Council Room…

"Sasuke Uchiha, you are being charged for the assault of Sakura Haruno, a fellow villager and Shinobi, and leaving the village without the knowledge and permission of Hokage, with intent on desertion, and placing the lives of several Konoha shinobi at risk as well as the attempt to kill one of them." Tsunade's voice boomed out across the room, full of seriousness underneath it.

"How do you plead?" asked Koharu, eyeing the Uchiha suspiciously.

Sasuke, who was sitting on a lone chair inside the room, looked at everyone around him; the clan heads, the civilian council, the advisors, and the Hokage herself. Every single of them sent him glares and suspicious looks, making it look like he had nobody on his side.

It was ironic, because he was supposed to be one of the more respected people around Konoha due to his status in the village. Now, it would seem like the world was against him and he had no one to turn to.

Until his eyes went to his fellow ninjas just by the door.

The whole Recovery Team, including Lee, got discharged from the hospital just yesterday and they were invited to Sasuke's trial today to give their testimonies since they were the ones who suffered the most in the rescue mission. Sakura was also with them, since this whole fiasco started when he was with her that evening.

Just when he thought that he had nobody by his side, all of his friends, one by one, gave him reassuring looks that showed their support for him. Each one of them either grinned, flashed a thumbs-up, smiled, od simply nodded. Naruto in particular, didn't do any of those. Instead, he tapped on his chest with a closed fist, indirectly telling his friend to follow his heart.

It made the dark feeling inside Sasuke's heart wane and eventually subside, letting him retain his calmness for now.

Sasuke took a deep breath, and finally faced the Hokage, looking at her straight in the eye.

"Not guilty."

Yes, this chapter ends here. Problem?

No more spoilers, because at this point, I think they're irrelevant and nobody even likes them. I do hope you like the opening I came up with, though. Because it's a direct clue to what's going to happen in the last arc of Part 1. I did say no filler arcs, right?

Sasuke and Sakura are now together. Yay. Look, as much as I dislike this damn ship, they need to get together for this fic. It'll make more sense if they are together and as we progress through this arc and next arcs that follow.

Next chapter: A New Mission

Like it? Hate it? Don't care? Leave a goddamn review.

Goodbye... and good night! BANG! *too sweet gesture*

-Lance