One More Light

Chapter 16

Naruto arrived around lunchtime, having apparently raced Gaara's clone across the village in a game of tag. Gaara smiled as his clone dissolved, warmed by the joy in Naruto's face and the clarity in his eyes. Naruto was out of breath, finally starting to realise how abused and unhealthy his body had become.

He felt so much better after his pep talk with Kurama and was looking forward to whatever the day would bring. "So Gaara, what are we doing today?" Naruto asked inquisitively, noting the surrounding, the enclosed cave mouth and the sand siblings.

"Think of it as a different kind of training Naruto. We will be forming chakra bracelets that react to our emotional state and provide a grounding point. You will be forming yours by combining both yours and Karama's chakra into this pile of sand. Focus on it and let your mind wander. It will react accordingly and form what you need."

Naruto focused as he was asked and Gaara turned to his own pile of sand, doing the same thing. Both ninjas closed their eyes and let their memories fill their bodies. Gaara watched memories of a childhood of being feared and abused, never having anyone. He then felt the bloodlust that drove him to kill, he was feeling overwhelmed by these emotions until he saw his memories of Naruto, their fight and their friendship. Temari noticed the change in Gaara's chakra and signalled for Kunkuro to brace himself. As Gaara walked through his memories of Naruto, the sand exploded, leaving behind a glowing bracelet, shaped in interlocking rings.

Gaara looked over to find Kurama's red cloak surrounding Naruto and a body language that made his heart sink. Naruto looked so defeated as he poured his memories into the sand. Gaara noticed tears rolling down his cheek and couldn't help but reach for him. He was halted by his siblings who shook their heads. This was something Naruto had to do on his own. He needed to walk through his pain and find the way out.

'We can do this Kit.' Kurama urged Naruto forward through his memories. The countless beatings, the shunning, the torment and then finally the pain. Naruto halted once again as he watched his first encounter with self-harm. Even now, he felt his body shake with anticipation. As he watched a younger version of himself drag the kunai across his wrist, he felt the relief. He didn't want to keep moving, he wanted to stay in the moment forever.

'You need to let this go, Gaara is waiting for you. He is everything you deserve in a friend, don't let him down.' Kurama urged, surprising himself with how fond he had become of the Kazekage brat.

Naruto shook his head, trying to clear away the euphoria that was preventing him from thinking straight. 'You're right. He's waiting for me. Let's go Kurama.'

They walked through years of abuse, neglect and self-harm. They were once again stopped by the pain of Sasuke's betrayal and Jiraiya's death but after a moment, Naruto was able to keep moving forward, feeling the reassuring chakra of Kurama wrapped around him. They final memory he had to work through was trying to kill himself when Gaara confronted him.

'Why was I so scared? All he wanted to do was help me. Why did I want to die in front of him? That would've been so cruel. I'm sorry Gaara.' Naruto whispered as he walked through that memory and found the way out. The sand exploded with so much force that Gaara had to throw up a shield around himself and his siblings. Naruto watched as the sand fell like snowflakes around him, revealing his bracelet, formed from beads as black as night, infinity symbols the colour of star light and two seafoam green teardrops.

Naruto picked up his bracelet and slid it over his wrist. He noted the comforting cold it provided in contrast to the desert heat. He turned in time to see two tears fall from Gaara's eyes. He wasn't sure why Gaara looked so concerned and wondered if he was forced to watch their earlier encounter play out, wondered if the Kazekage was mad at him for attempting such an act before his very eyes.

Naruto felt a wave of despair wash through him and felt his bracelet react by tightening around his wrist and sending a gentle breeze, light as a caress, along his arm. Gaara reached out for him, but Naruto felt more in control, noting the shaking had stopped almost as soon as it started. He stared at his bracelet in wonder and spoke with such adoration and gratitude. "Thank you Gaara."