The sky was dark and overcast. Rain had been falling day and night for three full days and three full nights, with no sign of stopping. Even in the height of summer, the rain-laden wind still chilled one to the bone, bringing a cold that pierced the heart.
Naruto slowly opened his eyes and felt that he was lying across a broad back. The light in his blue eyes had almost completely vanished. That liveliness and vitality seemed to have been utterly stripped away.
His gaze was dull, his face utterly lifeless.
"Teacher Kakashi, Big Brother Kei..." Naruto's voice was incredibly weak, as though he had lost all life in him. It no longer held its usual energy. That heartbroken voice made Ueno Kei's heart twitch faintly.
"Naruto..." Ueno Kei parted his lips slightly, not knowing what to say. Kakashi, carrying Naruto on his back, wore an equally complicated expression. Naruto, once cheerful, driven, and optimistic, had become so dejected and dispirited. Honestly, as Team 7's jonin leader, Kakashi felt deeply derelict in his duty.
Truly, Ueno Kei had never realized that Naruto's feelings for Sasuke ran so deep. Even when Sasuke had ruthlessly tried to take his life, even when he had worn that savage expression and severed their bond without hesitation—
Naruto had still begged Kei and Kakashi to spare Sasuke in the end. At that moment, Ueno Kei truly did not know how to describe what he had felt.
Time rewound to two hours earlier.
When Ueno Kei rushed to the Valley of the End with all his strength, Sasuke and Naruto's battle had already come to an end.
Naruto was covered in injuries, and the white robe on his body was already tattered beyond recognition. His frail appearance made Ueno Kei's heart ache terribly. Naturally, Sasuke