In the Heavenly Screen...
The ruins of the Valley of the End were shrouded in moonlight, the broken rocks and dried-up riverbed appearing particularly desolate under the silvery glow.
Sasuke slowly opened his eyes. The moon hung high in the night sky, its cool light shining on his face. He tried to move his fingers, and a sharp pain immediately shot through his body, causing him to groan involuntarily.
"You're finally back."
A familiar voice came from beside him. Sasuke turned his head sharply and saw Naruto lying not far away, his golden hair covered in dust and blood, but his blue eyes were still bright.
"Naruto..."
Sasuke instinctively tried to sit up, but the intense pain made him gasp.
"It hurts..."
Naruto remained lying flat, gazing at the starry sky, his tone calm. "As you can see, we're in the same boat. If we move around too much... we'll bleed to death."
Sasuke silent for a moment, then finally gave up struggling and lay back down on the ground. The night wind blew by, carrying the smell of gunpowder and blood, but he inexplicably felt a long-lost sense of peace.
Why did you...?
Sasuke's voice was deep and hoarse, as if emotions that had been suppressed for too long had finally found an outlet.
"You'd go to such lengths to get in my way?"
Naruto didn't answer immediately, but listened quietly.
"I threw myself into the darkness, gaining immense power to sever everything," Sasuke continued. "Everyone has tried to cut ties with that version of me... but you never even considered severing your bond with me."
His voice trembled slightly, as if he were confused, or perhaps angry.
"Why... why would you go to such lengths to get involved with me?"
Naruto smiled slightly; the blood at the corner of his mouth had already dried.
"You understand now... when your body can't move, your tongue becomes exceptionally fluent..."
"Stop talking nonsense!" Sasuke interrupted him, his voice unusually impatient. "Answer me now!"
Naruto turned his head to look at Sasuke, the moonlight shining on his face, making him appear exceptionally gentle.
"Because we're friends."
Sasuke's pupils contracted slightly, and countless images flashed through his mind in an instant—
"We're friends!"
"I will never give up on you!"
"Because we're brothers!"
Every time, Naruto answered him the same way, without ever changing.
"I've heard that before." Sasuke's voice turned cold. "What does that mean to you...?"
Naruto remained silent for a moment, then turned his gaze back to the night sky.
"I can't say for sure... To be honest, I don't know either."
His voice was soft, yet carried an unwavering determination.
"But... seeing you like that, carrying such a heavy burden and looking so lost, I don't know why, but it hurts me."
Sasuke was stunned.
"It hurts so much... It's not unbearable, but I can't just ignore it." Naruto gave a wry smile. "But right now... my whole body aches, I'm completely helpless. It hurts so much..."
Sasuke didn't speak, but simply gazed at the moon. Naruto's words echoed in his heart, like a blunt knife, slowly cutting through his frozen emotions.
(Does it hurt...?)
He never imagined that anyone would feel pain because of his suffering.
A night breeze swept by, carrying a slightly cool scent. The two lay there amidst the ruins, neither speaking a word.
Gradually, exhaustion and pain took over, and Sasuke's eyelids grew heavier and heavier. In the last moments before he fell into unconsciousness, he seemed to hear Naruto whisper something—
Welcome back, Sasuke.
Under the moonlight, their breathing gradually calmed, and the Valley of the End finally returned to silence.
This time, however, they were no longer enemies.
They were just two wounded... friends.
Real Shinobi World
The silvery light of the Heavenly Screen flowed like water across the lands of the Five Great Nations, reflecting millions of faces with different expressions.
Iwagakure
The Explosion Corps members, having finished their training, sat around the Training Ground, their Kunai (Japanese halberds) lying on the ground. "Hey, is this really a human body?" Kurotsuchi kicked at the rubble beside him. "That level of explosion only resulted in serious injuries?"
Kumogakure
In the Raikage's Office, documents lay scattered on the floor in Mabui's hands. "According to calculations, the explosive force is enough to destroy a significant portion of Kumogakure..." Darui scratched the back of his head. "These two monsters..."
Sunagakure
On the high tower of the stronghold, Temari's fan snapped shut. "Gaara was right," she murmured, gazing at the Heavenly Screen, "Naruto... he really made the impossible possible."
Kirigakure
On the hot spring street, Qing looked up at the Heavenly Screen and sighed, "Lord Mizukage, they..."
"Shut up." Mei Terumi's red lips pressed into a thin line. "Let me finish this drink quietly."
Konoha
The Training Ground of Team 7 was eerily quiet. Sakura knelt beside the swing, oblivious to the medical kits scattered on the ground. Moonlight shattered into crystalline specks on her trembling eyelashes.
(I've been wrong all along...)
(Saying she likes Sasuke-kun...)
(Yet they never truly understood the pain he carried...)
Ino's Sensory Ninjutsu clearly detected her friend's disordered Chakra. She gently pressed her hand on Sakura's trembling shoulder. "It's not your fault," the blonde girl's voice was gentler than ever. "The path they walked... was too lonely."
In the shadows cast by the trees at the edge of the Training Ground, Kakashi's copy of "Icha Icha Paradise" remained unopened for a long time. A slight smile played on his lips beneath his mask. (This is... the weight of bonds...)
Inside the izakaya, the moonlight reflected off the sake bottle in Tsunade's hand. "Jiraiya..." she suddenly raised her cup to the air. "Your disciple... is far superior to you."
Wild Forest
Naruto was leaning against a large tree. The Military Rations Pill that Karin handed him was crushed to pieces in his palm. "Naruto..." The red-haired girl hesitated, as if to say something but then stopped.
"I'm fine." Naruto looked up at the sky, his azure eyes brighter than ever, "Because this is... my Ninja Way."
A secret base
On the cliff, Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils narrowed slightly. "Heh... what an interesting bond..." He licked his lips with his long tongue. "Sasuke-kun..."
Beneath the waterfall, Sasuke's Chidori suddenly veered off course. In the instant the lightning exploded on the water's surface, he saw his reflection in the water—a reflection of himself lying in a pool of blood against the Heavenly Screen.
(Does it hurt...?)
The Kunai landed with a clatter, startling several night birds.
The moonlight quietly enveloped the entire Shinobi World, and countless people reconsidered the meaning of "comradeship" that night.