A/N: its been done before so no points for originality. i'm going to write a full story in the naruto world soon and i wanted to start off with this. enjoy this one-shot

Tears at The Final Valley

Once more, with a Chidori through my chest I wonder how we came to this point. My friend, my trusted comrade, my brother; Sasuke... How did it end up here?

It's funny really if you think about it. We christened this place with our first serious fight, that for once wasn't stopped, and a Chidori through my chest. Now we're rechristening it with our last fight. Same circumstances... Bet you'd laugh if you heard me using that word in a sentence, probably say some smart-ass thing like:

"Don't hurt your brain, dobe."

And my weak comeback would probably be:

"Fuck you, Sasuke!"

I should actually say we re-rechristened this place. I mean the first two people to fight here christened it well enough. After all they did create this waterfall with their jutsu. There was a time when that fact impressed me.

It's funny; they say the more things change the more they stay the same. And they don't know how right they are about that. A Hero and An Avenger. An Uchiha and a Hokage. I think of it like that, 'cause it could have easily been reversed. I could be the one after revenge and you could be the faithful friend. Of course I'm not sure if you'd appreciate the situation as much as I do... After all, every sentence you've spoken out aloud in my presence lately, cause we can't really call it talking can we, ends with the word 'Jutsu'.

Is there just something wrong with Uchiha? On some fundamental level? Are you hardwired to betray those closest to you? Maybe you all just missed a few too many hugs then became traitorous bastards... Maybe it's just your family specifically. I mean both you and Itachi betrayed those who held your trust. Maybe your family's line is tied closest to Madara? You know? In a straight line, not branched off and vaguely related like most...

All I know is after I killed him and you took his Rinnegan eyes, it's become so much more difficult to kill you. I'm just glad those eyes never fully manifested for you. Sure you have better reaction time and your jutsu is stronger but that's a fair trade off right? I can still keep up. Imagine if I had to deal with 7 emo-assholes instead of one? Still...you kept your Mangekyo's jutsu, so all's well. For you at least. A Mangekyo Sharingan with the added benefit of wider sight, and stronger jutsu, courtesy of the Rinnegan. And a crap load of jutsu in your arsenal.

Though I gotta thank you, a few of them really helped me improve the village's defences a helluva lot... The rest of them, hell all of them, kept me on my toes... I've faced down the most notorious shinobi with no fair and no injury because of how hard I had to work to keep up with you...

Who would have thought all those years ago, academy days, two kids with barely any C-Rank techniques would come to be awarded the Rank X as a shinobi... People knew you'd go far. You were the Uchiha Prodigy... Though you don't deserve that title. Not hard to be a prodigy when you're the last one left. But that's just the bitter Dead-Last in me talking.

Heh makes me wanna laugh you know that? They had to invent a rank for us, that's how much our power grew... But then again, what else could they do? I mean we both single-handedly took on the bingo book's contents. Funny enough we split them down the middle unknowingly. 24 S-Ranks, 90 A-Ranks 14 B-Ranks. And that was just Iwa and Konoha's books. We did split Kumo, Ame, Suna and the smaller villages' books too. Oh and of course akatsuki... We are the two most dangerous shinobi alive. And we can't even kill each other...

We've been trying for 10 years after all. Well you've been trying for 10. Me? I've only seriously tried for 7. That was when I realised you truly were too far gone to be saved... When you did that to us... To her... Ended a life which had not truly begun... After years of devotion to you, you took away Sakura-chan... Killed her before she could even think to defend herself. Though she seemed content to die by your hand. I should also bring up how you killed Sai. But even after all these years I don't care about him. Logically I should feel bad for the death of a comrade... even though he was only briefly one... Did you know his secret mission was your assassination? My word changed his mind. And that change brought about his death.

Died fighting for an ideal inspired in him by yours truly. An ideal he didn't have the time to fully grasp or understand. And kami knows I feel bad enough for the countless I've sent after you believing in that same conviction...at least they died believing in a better world right? Should mean something, right?

Yeah. Sounds hollow to me too... With no authority I still asked of everyone if they could spare you if they came across you. I thought you could still be redeemed. I thought you were still my Bastard Brother.

'It's Orochimaru's influence' I said. 'He's just lost his way' I said. 'It's the loneliness that drove him mad, and I can bring him back from those depths... 'I said,' after all I did the same for Gaara... '

Kakashi-sensei always used to say I have an ability to convince people to my way of thinking simply because it was pure and right and I could get through any hard exterior...wade through any darkness. Seems you are the only one immune to it...

Speaking of Kakashi-sensei, did you know he went the same way as his father? He felt he had failed too many of his trusted comrades... So you and I are what's left of Team 7... By the way, and I hope you don't mind, I outlawed team 7. In future when they assign teams they'll skip from 6 to 8. But they tell the genin team 7 is still active. Deep cover operatives they say. Maybe we shouldn't lie to our genin so much; by 'we' I mean the village.

But...

My words are hollow now, barely a shell of what they once were. I let go of the exuberance and enthusiasm. They say it's part of the reason I'm a Hokage now. They think its cause I've matured and calmed down. Truth is, I lost a big part of me every time we fought and I can't help but feel that this is my last piece. After this there'll be nothing left... Maybe that means it's our last fight?

Maybe that means you can finally come home? Heh, there I go again. The sentimental fool still lives on in me, ne Sasuke? If I'm to be honest, what I told you all those years under the samurai bridge was true. I just didn't realise the extent of it at the time. I told you we would fight again, and that we would both die. I don't know about you, but after each fight...each failed attempt... I die a little inside. And maybe that's a little dramatic but it is what it is. Against my best intentions I'm becoming an Emo-Bastard.

Sometimes I think about it all... And they aren't good thoughts believe me. We had a few years of mild dislike of each other, then a year and a half as a genin team, then 3 years of trying to save you. Then this, 7 years trying to kill you. What you said here 10 years ago when it all began was true. I have always been naïve... Well it stopped 5 years ago, but still. It was true. Thinking that after spending 18 months listening to you say; 'Hn' and fight with me that we were the best of friends. We barely knew each other.

Who knew that little kid I saw on the pier once would grow up to try to kill me?

What we did know was that someone had experienced a similar pain that we had. We took pleasure in that we weren't alone. And while it is sad that it came at another's expense, I can't help but wonder what if we tried to get to know one another beyond the loneliness, arrogance and cockiness, could things be different? It did work for me and Gaara...

I guess it's time I stop reminiscing now, ey Bastard? You've ensured we're both warmed up. Now the real fight can begin. Now the last fight can begin. Maybe you can take me with you. That way I don't have to explain to the elders why I left the village. Don't have to apologise to Tsunade-Baa-chan. Don't have to tell Hinata why I couldn't take her on our first date. Don't have to look at Konohamaru and realise Moegi and Udon were some of your victims and they only tried reasoning with you because they thought of what I would have wanted. Don't have to put on a fake smile for what's left of teams 8, 9 and 10. Don't have to look in the mirror when I get back and see the last ten years of my life were a pointless waste...trying to save you from the darkness you've long since embraced...

Anyway, you just pulled your arm from my chest, guess it's time we end this right?

Weird how much you can think of in the space of one Chidori to the chest.

One last fight between the two of us. Maybe they'll write about us? Remake the statues at this place in our image...

Maybe I owe you two more words- two last words- before we die?

I think I do.

"Goodbye, Teme."

A/N: Thoughts? reviews? oh and if i get atleast 5 reviews asking for it, i'll add in sasuke's point of view. So... fingers crossed? maybe we'll have a two shot instead