My not so Distant Memory

I will never let go of you again

"Goodbye Sasuke-san. I'm happy to have been able to spend time with you and decorate the shelves together. I hope whoever you were searching for was able to keep their promise."

You might not remember anything from our pasts, but the truth is, you have never stopped trying to find me.

He pulled his hands back, to the other's surprise, with a small sigh. He then bent over to eye level and leaned forward, and captured Naruto's lips in his for a soft kiss.

"Yeah. Although I didn't know it then, you were always by my side."

~

"What?! You're staying behind here?!"

Sasuke resisted the urge to cover his ears as he winced at the volume of Orochimaru's outburst, although he couldn't blame him for being surprised. He was still getting over his decision himself.

"Yeah. I was able to find a conclusion to all of my visions, all thanks to you being willing to bring me to this place. Sorry for all of the trouble I put you through."

Orochimaru let out a long sigh in defeat.

"Ugh. I can't believe you were already thinking about living here. And here I am still upset about what the hell happened to the disintegrated weapon. Such a good sample has gone to waste."

He immediately perked up after, however, and flashed Sasuke a thin smile.

"Well, it's alright. I still have Kabuto and the Sound 5, at least. For some reason, I can't help but feel satisfied knowing that the two of you are together, even if I am a little irked about you ditching me with no prior notice. But you better be sure to tell me about what happened in those visions later! You owe me at least that much!"

As Sasuke turned to take his leave with Naruto by my side, he spared one last glance at the man behind him. In the silhouette of the snake's face, he saw the sly man that had been his mentor for three years. He couldn't help but smile at those catastrophic memories the two of them had made together. They definitely weren't happy ones, but they served as a good learning experience for him, that was for sure. He would surely miss his pasty acquaintance.

"Sasuke-kun!"

As he was about to turn the corner of the hallway, he looked back to see Orochimaru calling to him one last time.

"I take it you were able to finally keep that promise you had made?"

"Yeah."

~

The walk along the lake was a very pleasant one. The sun filtered through the trees and glistened on the water. A small breeze rippled little waves that lapped at their exposed toes. As Sasuke walked behind the overly energetic boy in front of him, he couldn't help but smile.

Naruto's memories are extremely vague and sparse, and we have no idea whether or not he will ever gain more, just like how I did. But that doesn't matter to me anymore. As long as we were able to keep our promise, and can walk towards a better future, together this time, I am perfectly happy staying by your side.

In front of him, Naruto spotted something of his interest and bent down to pick it up. He turned back to show his new companion, with a smile on his face. In the soft sunlight, Sasuke could see the reflection of the old Naruto. He was in an orange tracksuit this time, but his smile was still exactly the same.

He looked down into the blonde's hand and saw the jade-green rock he had collected. He gingerly plucked it out of his palm and held it against the golden sun.