Naruto sat alone atop the Fourth Hokage's likeness on Hokage Rock, gazing into the distance, his eyes steeped in pain that would not fade. He slowly closed his eyes and sighed. "I thought you'd left. I didn't expect you'd still be willing to see me. Don't you hate me anymore?"
As soon as Naruto finished speaking, a figure appeared behind him. It was Sasuke, who had disappeared from the inn. Naruto had not seen him since that night and had thought it would be a while before they met again. He had not expected to see him so soon.
Sasuke silently walked over and sat beside Naruto, looking out over all of Konoha. "I wasn't planning to forgive you this soon," he said quietly. "Whenever I think about how you set me up, I want to kill you. But I couldn't stop myself. Before I knew it, my feet had brought me here."
Naruto turned to look at Sasuke. "I didn't want to do it either, but it was the only way to hurt you as little as possible. I really didn't want to, but for your sake, I had no choice. All I can say now is that I'm sorry. But I don't regret what I did."
Sasuke fell silent for a moment before saying quietly, "I know you were thinking of me and trying to do what was best for me. But I don't want there to be a next time, because I don't know whether I could forgive you again. I don't want our relationship to end up like our future selves' and go through what they did."
Naruto remained silent for a long time before speaking. "All right, I promise. But you have to promise me something too. If either of us ever truly loses his