Chapter Text
Sasuke had a hard time finding his breath again. Which was probably normal since the fight between him, and Naruto had been pretty brutal. Now that they were lying on the rock next to each other, both clinging to their life, Sasuke had a hard time remembering why that fight had been so important. Sasuke was pretty sure they both lost an arm, but he was so tired he couldn’t even feel the pain of this loss. He could hear Naruto breathing next to him, even if it was faint.
The sound finally registered in his brain and panic seized his heart. What would he do if Naruto were to die? He had tried so hard these past years to do just that, but now that it had the chance to become a reality, Sasuke realized he never wanted Naruto to die. Naruto was the only person he had left in this world. His family was dead, and he watched his brother die twice. He couldn’t even fathom what he would do if Naruto died too.
Sasuke used all the energy he had left to inch himself closer to Naruto. The blond teenager’s eye was badly bruised and every laboured breath he took made blood bubbles at the corner of his mouth. He was blinking slowly at Sasuke, but his gaze was unfocused. It looked like Naruto was trying to tell him something. His lips were moving but no sounds were passing them.
“No. No. No…” Sasuke muttered as he gripped the front of Naruto’s jacket. “You can’t!”
Naruto had still his eyes on him and tried to smile at him with the last force he had. There was probably someone looking for them by now, but at this rate they would be too late to save Naruto.
What if you could have another chance?
A voice whispered in the wind. Sasuke had no idea who it belonged to and at this point, he didn’t care. He was more intrigued with what the voice was whispering.
Maybe if things had been different all those years ago. Maybe you two wouldn’t have ended up like this today…
Sasuke had no idea what the voice was trying to explain, but they were running out of time. Naruto's breath was getting more unstable by the minute.
What if I could send you back? To that time… what if you could change something?
“I don’t care who you are! I don’t care what you want! But I’ll accept your offer if it means Naruto will survive!” Sasuke screamed at the wind.
There was still no one he could see around, and he was pretty sure the person addressing them wasn’t even corporal. The voice did seem to come from directly inside his head.
That’s what I thought. You should brace yourself. The trip won’t be pleasant.
And with those final words, Sasuke felt the air shift around them. Sasuke tightened his hold on Naruto’s jacket. He felt pressure inside his head. If he hadn’t been hurting from everywhere, he would’ve probably passed out with this new kind of pain. But as of now, his body was numb. Sasuke was certain he kept his eyes open, but he couldn’t see anything. There was a floating sensation for a few seconds and then they dropped. When he finally could see again, he was still lying next to Naruto on the rock. He still had a tight grip on his friend’s jacket.
But there were noises around them now. The noises of a battle. Panic raised in Sasuke. The voice had said if they sent them there, Naruto would survive. Being in the middle of a battlefield was the opposite of making sure the blond would survive. The sound of battle was getting closer to them. Sasuke wanted to protect his friend, but he was too hurt and out of chakra to do anything. He closed his eyes and hoped they would be ok.
He opened his eyes a few seconds later when the sounds of the approaching battle stopped at once. He maybe should’ve been more shocked with the fact that the first Hokage, the second Hokage, Madara and another Uchiha he didn’t know were looking down at him and Naruto with varying degrees of surprise. But it wasn’t his priority at the moment. For now, he just wanted Naruto to be healed.
“Who are you?” The unknown Uchiha asked him with a frown.
“He’s clearly an Uchiha! You’re telling me you don’t know everyone in your clan!” The second Hokage exclaimed.
They had stopped fighting, but none of them had dropped their weapon. They were all ready for any eventualities.
“We have no idea who that kid his.” Madara said.
“I don’t care about any of that.” Sasuke said. “I need you to heal him.” He said looking directly at Hashirama.
It was well known that the first Hokage had been able to use medical ninjutsu without even using hand signs. If anyone could help Naruto, it was him.
“What? Why would he do that for you?” Tobirama exclaimed raising his weapon a bit higher.
“There’s no time to explain right now.” Sasuke argued. “Just heal him.”
“What if I refuse?” Hashirama asked sounding genuinely curious.
“If he dies you won’t have to worry about your petty clans’ war.” Sasuke assured them. “Because I’ll be the one killing all of you.” He threatened with a dark look.
He heard Madara and the other Uchiha gasped. Sasuke knew what he said must have shocked them. He was clearly an Uchiha and had threatened to kill not only the Senju but also the Uchiha if his friend, who wasn’t even from his own clan, died. He also heard Tobirama protests and how they would never bow to the will of an Uchiha like that. Sasuke didn’t care about any of them. The only answer that mattered was Hashirama’s. So, he kept his gaze on the man that would become the first Hokage.
“I’ll do it.” Hashirama finally said shutting up the other men around him.
“What? Think about it, brother! This is not a wise decision!” Tobirama protested.
“I won’t let two teenagers die!” Hashirama argued right back. “Let’s have a temporary truce until these boys heal and explain how they arrived in the middle of this battlefield.”
“You think we’ll agree to that!” The unknown Uchiha exclaimed.
“That’s enough Izuna.” Madara intervened.
“But… Brother.”
Sasuke blinked slowly had that. So, this was Izuna Uchiha. Madara’s younger brother. The one who had been killed by Tobirama just before Hashirama and Madara agreed to found the village together. It seemed like they had been sent back in the past and their appearance had prevented the younger Uchiha death… at least for now. He could feel his consciousness slipping from him but used all his energy to stay conscious just a bit longer. Just long enough to hear their decision.
“I’ll agree to this truce and I’ll agree to heal these boys, but the Uchiha will stay with us. You can bring the blond one with you.” Madara said to Hashirama.
“That seems fair. Once they’re both awake and out of danger will meet together and try to gather some explanation from them.”
Sasuke wanted to protest. That he wanted to stay with Naruto. He didn’t trust any of them enough to leave his friend alone with them. But his last bit of energy was fading and fast. He lost consciousness just as Madara and Hashirama shook hands on their deal.