Hey, guys! I want to just touch basis with three quick things!

1. Thank you guys so much for the reviews and helping me catch things I normally wouldn't have gotten! I appreciate that.

2. I gotta agree with some of the reviews I got about the last chapter. It was a bit unnecessary for swearwords so I went back and changed some of the lines that had the F and S words in them. May not have gotten all of them, but I tried. ^^

3. I wanted to address a complaint that has been popping up. People have been complaining about the fight being way too long. Well, I do understand why and I will try to do my best, but guys... this is Anime. You know, where fights are like 50% Flashbacks, 40% Talking, and 10% fighting XD. I think the reason it feels super long is because it's in text format. When it's a Manga comic book, or an Anime Episode, it goes faster and you don't need to describe in such detail cause you have a visual example. With writing, you kind of need a driving force. Besides, the Part 1 Naruto vs Sasuke fight at the Final Valley was pretty long in of itself, especially the anime. Imagine having to write and describe all of that in a text format, right? Once again, I will try to shorten it, but I'm right now focused on the dialogue and relationship of Naruto and Sasuke which happens DURING the fight.

Nevertheless, let's roll this thing~

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"All right, when?" Naruto growled.

"You mean when did I cast my genjutsu on you? At the moment one of your clones managed to grab me," Sasuke answered, "You had looked into my eyes, and I managed to catch you before any physical damage got me. Once you were caught, your clones became like lifeless dolls, and it became easy for me to take care of them."

Dumb, dumb, dumb! How cocky could he get? Naruto internally shouted at himself; you never look an Uchiha in the eyes when fighting him, or you can get trapped in genjutsu. He remembed when that clone had grabbed onto Sasuke, he had shot him a smirk, while he looked directly into the Sharingan's glare. It made perfect sense now...

"Frankly, I was hoping it would be strong enough to take you down, but... you managed to break it before I could just grab you and bring you back to the village," his opponent said.

If only words were enough to express just how much Naruto hated when Sasuke rambled on about how inferior he was to him, it would really help. This guy just wouldn't die! Fine then, if near one hundred clones wasn't enough, then how about double? No, Triple! Immediately, he brought his hands to form the sign-

"You really meant it."

Blinking in surprise, the boy looked up to see the bangs of his opponent's face blocked the views of his eyes. But he slowly realized that the water underneath Sasuke was slowly beginning to stir...

"During that genjutsu... you really meant it. You honestly were trying to murder me, weren't you?"

Immediately, his eyes widened. Did... Did Sasuke's skin slowly have something black moving along it? It began to slowly move over his arms and half of his face, like it was on fire. Remember, Naruto was unconscious when Sasuke had received the curse mark from Orochimaru during the Chunin Exams. He had never seen this kind of change, or how Sasuke was merciless breaking Zaku's arms. How this purple chakra that suddenly wrapped around Sasuke now was doing so back then while he had been knocked out in battle.

"H-His chakra... I can feel it all the way from here! It's so... so dark... I can feel his-!"

The area shook, as the wind flew against his face. Unconsciously dropping his hands from the sign to help make shadow clones, Naruto's eyes trembled at what he saw happening to his former friend. He felt his breath suddenly get tighter, yet faster. Gritting his teeth, he tried to roar at his enemy, but it came off as more of a terrified shriek.

"W... What... WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU!?"

He knew the answer to that question. For so long, it was an Avenger. He mustn't lose here until his goal was complete. To Itachi, killing him was the reason for his existence. He had trained for years to get at this goal. But now... it was completely different.

He slowly gazed up at Naruto, his Sharingan glowing red as he slowly brought his arms up in front of him like he did to use his Chidori against Gaara back at the Chunin Exams. He slowly bent over as the purple chakra began to get more intense. The entire valley began to light up even brighter from down below. As water from the body water began to splash both of them, he finally spoke.

"I'm your friend," Sasuke said, barely through clenched teeth.

Naruto looked at him in a dose of awed stupor, but gritted his teeth and closed an eye as water shot into it from the impacted of his chakra.

"And I care about you, idiot," he continued, "You may not think so, but I do. And I absolutely refuse to just stand by and let my brother and whatever hellish people in the Akatsuki get a hold of you! And the fact you treat this like a game and how you're willing to march off into death, and kill the people who care for you in such an animalistic fashion..."

Briefly, dropping his head, Sasuke sighed a deep and growlish breath as he finished, "All right, Naruto... you want to play by these rules? We can. If you're not gonna listen to reason..."

Immediately, Sasuke brought his head back up, his eyes filled with such intensity and determination, and yelled, "I'm break every single bone in your body and personally drag you back to the village myself!"

The face he made, the chakra spiraling around him, the voice that shouted this angrily... those eyes... Naruto couldn't stop shaking. He hadn't remembered fear this horrible ever since his first big mission in the land of Waves, where Zabuza Momochi had stood in front of him, threatening to end his life. How? He was just in control of this fight several minutes ago. How the hell did Sasuke take control away from him? When did he get this evil? And what the hell was up with these new markings- Oh, shoot...

"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

Naruto must've stayed stationary two to three seconds too long before he caught on that Sasuke began weaving signs. Before he even moved, bits of fire were shot at him.

"P-Pull yourself together, Naruto! It's a simple Fire style jutsu; you're fine!"

With his mental coaching getting him back into the game, Naruto immediately dodged to the side. Feeling the heat of the flames soar past his left, he immediately looked in front of him... to the person who was no longer there.

"What the-!?"

Suddenly, a dark prescence shot out from underneath him. Slowly, glancing down in the speedy moment that slowed down due to fear, he saw Sasuke, as low to the water as possible, slowly rising up with a fist. His eyes glowed red as his black curse marking darkened the furious face focusing on him. Naruto could only watch as a punch was sent hurtling into his face...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Pakkun! How much further?" Kakashi yelled as he looked towards the dog.

"We're not going to be there for a while, Kakashi," Pakkun said to him, "It's gonna be a while before we can reach them!"

The Jonin, his ninken, and now Sakura who had joined them, had been traveling who knows how long after them nonstop. Kakashi worried about his entire squad the entire journey there.

It wasn't like Kakashi didn't care. It's just Kakashi thinks everything is okay. Kakashi thinks it will always be okay. But that fight between Naruto and Sasuke that he stepped in against was not okay. Not even close. And Kakashi doesn't like it when things are not okay.

He looked over towards Sakura. Her eyes and mouth struggled in the war of emotions between bursting into tears, angry that she could go faster, and determined to be a strong ninja. It wasn't the first time Sakura struggled to keep her emotions in check. He knew she cried at the Land of Waves when Sasuke seemed to be dead. He found out she cried during the Forest of Death when Sasuke's new power turned him into a sadistic beast for only a few small, but eternal moments. And that made him worry even more. Now Kakashi knows that nothing is okay, and he's failed all three of them.

First was Sasuke. After so long with his obsession for revenge, this kid has been nothing but training for that day. Arguebly, despite the other two being a migraine in of themselves, Sasuke was the one he consistently worried about. He feared that one day, the kid's lust for power would be greater than the bonds he placed over the past. Although he knew there would never be a chance that Sasuke would just let his revenge go, he hoped it was soften him up somehow... so he didn't come back completely obsessed with killing or unable to connect to the people he made bonds with. But that day on the rooftop... despite it being the greatest incident to come out of the team, there was a silver lining. Sasuke had changed into a young man he hoped for. A man who could admit he was jealous, and that there was a problem, and value his connections with his friends and the village over his revenge. But it made it more worrying somehow.

Next was Sakura. The girl who always was the one barking at Naruto about how he was a screw-up, when at least he tried to do something, and how she always defending Sasuke's every breath like he was God himself and could never be wrong, though that was not the case. Meeting her at first made him roll his eyes; not that she wasn't a good person, she was, but... she was the kind of person who always made him wonder why she went into the ninja academy if all she cared about was boys. But she grew to be the more intelligent member of his squad, and helped the two boys catch up. But she always was watching from the sidelines, and feared not only would she catch up, but not be able to stop the two from going at it. And the fact she almost died getting in the middle of those two when they fought... and if what she said Naruto screamed at her was true...

Which finally leads up to Naruto. There is no need for an explanation for why he worries about Naruto. Though a goofball, he is still the son of the man who helped him become who he was, and he promised that man, Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, that'd he somehow find a way to be the one to watch out after Naruto. But it seemed all the pain, chaos, strife, and bitterness could even affect an inspiring and cheerful person. To see Naruto turn into this hateful-driven way that he would've expected Sasuke to have been scared him. Especially after what happened.

After he promised Sakura and Sasuke everything would be okay and went after Naruto that day, he was shocked to see the boy and his current actions. He was at his house and just stabbing a kunai repeatedly into the wall, seething in rage about Sasuke. All he did was ask if Naruto wanted to talk, and the boy had lunged at him with hate in his eyes. It didn't take him long to tie him up and for him to calm down so he could talk. Or shout. He had to admit, it was more like shouting than talking when Naruto opened his mouth. But what came out of his mouth had shaken his confidence a bit that everything would be okay.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP? I DON'T CARE IF YOU'RE OLDER THAN ME OR HOW STRONG YOU ARE! YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE PAIN I HAVE! YOU HEAR ME!? NOTHING!"

Naruto slowly grinned sadistically at him, lowering his voice, "Suppose I took you as a baby and everyone who ever loved you die, and then was throw into a place where people hated you for just being alive, or if I killed everyone you loved; how do you think you would feel? Don't you think my feelings are justified!?"

Kakashi slowly let out a sigh, and replied, "It's true I may not know what it's like to be alone from the start... but... I know what you're going through in the sense of losing everything... All my friends and the ones I loved were killed and taken away from me."

That sentence alone put Naruto into a state of silence; as if the words that he could use to retort were a fire and Kakashi's words were water that put them out. Kakashi took a breath and watched as the boy slowly calmed down and looked down.

"You may scream at me and say that I know nothing because I'm older, but we both know that's not true. I've been in this world longer than you have, kid, and it's not always going to be a good life. And there are people like you who go through such horrible lives that I wish never would happen. And there will be times when you're a ninja that you will lose people who you love to death... but at least... we have people who we've made new bonds with. And I know it's hard to accept or believe it... but Sakura... and even Sasuke... do care about you, even if they don't do it in a way you want."

With that, he had untied Naruto and had left him there to think about it. But before he left to go after Naruto and Sasuke, Tsunade had told him reports that several Akatsuki agents sent by Sasori had found and targeted Naruto around the same time he had left him. Damn Akatsuki... like vultures they were...

"Kakashi!"

The sudden voice of Pakkun shook the Jonin and Genin out of their thoughts as they turned to the dog.

"I'm picking up two scents right now, and they're close!"

"Is it Sasuke and Naruto?" Sakura asked for, surprised how close they would be if it was.

Pakkun shook his head and answered, "No, but it smells like two of the other Leaf Ninja that were with Sasuke when they started their mission."

Sakura turned to Kakashi, quickly saying, "Kakashi-sensei, I know we wanna go look for those two, but if Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, or Neji are down there, they could be battling the enemy still or hurt!"

"You're right," the Jonin said, "Let's quickly go down there and check to see if they need assistance. Worse comes to pass, we'll get a medic team out here asap. Let's move!"

With that, the trio slowly changed course to take a small detour to whoever the Leaf Ninja were...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

(runs out of the room) See ya next time!