The sky was just starting to lighten.
Naruto slowly opened his eyes, waking up with a long yawn.
Still groggy, he blinked a few times and realized that it was quiet too quiet. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, peering out the window.
It was still dark outside. Just a faint glow on the horizon hinted that dawn was near.
He looked around his messy room. The same old wrinkled sheets, clothes tossed in every corner, and a small mountain of empty instant noodle cups stacked by the wall.
Everything was as familiar as ever.
But for some reason, Naruto felt an odd heaviness in his chest.
Last night, he didn't get to enter that dream again.
He hadn't seen his dad. Hadn't trained with him. Hadn't heard his mom call his name.
Instead, he just sat there as an audience member, watching Sasuke's dream play out from the sidelines, not even knowing what he was doing there.
It all felt strange and a little unfair.
Last night, Naruto had tried to act calm in front of Kakashi and Sakura. He pretended like it didn't bother him, brushing it off with a few jokes.
But now, alone in his room, he could no longer hold back the uneasiness that had been growing inside him.
That dream where he saw his parents again…
Was that really the last time?
"No... don't!" Naruto shook his head fiercely, trying to chase away the horrible thought. "I'll see them again. I will!"
Memories from that night came rushing back.
His father gripping his hand, patiently teaching him how to shape the Rasengan, guiding him again and again until he got it just right. His mother smiling gently nearby, handing him a towel to wipe the sweat from his brow.
That kind of warmth… he didn't want to lose it.
He remembered the bowl of char siu ramen his mother had cooked. The flavor still lingered in his mind. It was richer, more comforting, more full of love than anything he'd ever had at Ichiraku.
In that moment, as he watched his father's encouraging smile and his mother's busy, caring figure… he had felt like the happiest person in the world.
After tossing and turning in bed for what felt like forever, Naruto still couldn't fall back asleep. Frustrated, he threw off his blanket and let out a long sigh.
"Ah..."
He dressed sluggishly, barely caring about how he looked, then grabbed his things and wandered out of the house. His feet automatically led him toward the usual meeting place for Team 7.
It was still early morning in Konoha. The streets were quiet, wrapped in a cool stillness.
Only a few breakfast shops had their lights on. There were barely any people outside yet.
Naruto walked along the roadside, his steps slow, his eyes clouded with thought. Even the usual stares from passersby didn't bother him today.
Those glances pitying, cold, sometimes filled with disdain had always stung before. But today, they barely registered.
Before long, he reached the clearing where Team 7 usually gathered for missions.
It was silent. Not a single person was there yet.
Naruto looked around and finally realized he'd arrived way too early.
He gave a tired smile, then slumped onto the ground and sat down cross-legged. His gaze drifted to the sky as it slowly began to brighten, turning pale above the treetops.
What if… what if I can never go back to that dream again? What if I can never see my parents again?
That terrifying thought crept up on Naruto, weighing heavily on his chest.
Suddenly, he slapped his own cheeks with both hands, making a crisp smack sound in the quiet morning air.
"Snap out of it!" he muttered to himself.
He took a deep breath and clenched his fists.
"No more moping around... Mom and Dad wouldn't want to see me like this."
A faint glimmer of determination lit up in his eyes.
On the other side of the village, Sasuke was slowly waking up.
A sudden chill touched his skin.
A cold droplet of dew had fallen from the tree canopy above and splashed on his face.
Sasuke blinked, startled, and sat up as the sensation jolted him fully awake. The morning air was damp and cool, and the soft rustling of leaves filled the silence around him.
He looked around in a daze.
Gone was the cozy dining room.
Gone was the warm smile of his mother.
No more tomato stew, no more gentle hands patting his head.
Only a forest clearing and a damp sleeping mat.
His heart sank.
The dream was over.
He sat up abruptly.
The grass beneath him was cool and slightly damp, and his back had been resting against the cold surface of a stone wall.
As his eyes adjusted to the pale morning light, Sasuke looked around and found himself on the rear mountainside behind what remained of the Uchiha district.
Behind him stood the ruins of the old mansion, still silent and crumbling.
Sasuke froze.
A gust of wind brushed past, rustling the leaves and chilling his skin, but he didn't move.
So... it really was just a dream.
He lowered his gaze.
But even though he knew that, the warmth of the dream clung to him, refusing to fade.
His mother's gentle hands.
His father's stern voice.
That long-forgotten family meal, filled with laughter and peace.
The dream hadn't blurred upon waking. On the contrary, it had imprinted itself into his heart more clearly than any memory in recent years.
"...It felt so real," Sasuke murmured to himself.
He had dreamed of his parents before.
But those dreams were different.
They were drenched in blood and shadow, echoing with the screams of that night. The memories came like knives in the dark, cutting into him again and again.
But this dream…
This dream was warm.
There was no fear. No hatred. No death.
Only his mother's embrace.
His father's presence.
And a version of Itachi who smiled and ruffled his hair.
For the first time in years, he had felt safe.
Like he was really home.
Sasuke could still recall the aroma of yesterday's lunch the rich miso soup, the tangy tomatoes, the warmth of home.
He pressed his lips together, his expression growing tense as a storm of conflicting thoughts began to swirl in his heart.
Was it really... just a dream?
In that dream, Itachi hadn't been a murderer. He was the older brother Sasuke once adored calm, capable, and kind. Trusted by their father. A respected officer in the Konoha Police Force, working alongside Fugaku with quiet dignity.
Sasuke frowned.
The Itachi in that dream was just like he remembered from childhood. Not the cold-blooded killer from that night. Not the monster who had painted the Uchiha compound with blood and burned their love to ashes.
No...
The dream Itachi was the one who patted his head and smiled.
Who gently corrected his stances when they trained.
Who brought him sweets from missions.
That familiar version of his brother tugged at something deep inside his chest, reopening wounds he thought had long since scarred over.
His mind dragged him back again.
That night.
The moon hung low, a cruel, blood-red crescent.
Corpses scattered across the stone paths of the compound, faces frozen in disbelief.
Blood. So much blood. So much silence.
In the darkness, the cold silhouette of Uchiha Itachi loomed above him.
"Foolish little brother… if you want to kill me, then hate me, resent me, and live your life in disgrace..."
That voice, low and icy, slithered into Sasuke's ears like a ghost's whisper. Even now, it sent a chill down his spine.
Sasuke's expression turned grim.
He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists so tightly that his nails nearly pierced his skin.
That warmth, that laughter, that version of Itachi… it was all a lie.
Just a beautiful illusion.
"This is nothing but a false dream," Sasuke muttered through clenched teeth. "I, Uchiha Sasuke, will never lose myself in something so fake!"
He shut his eyes hard, burying the fleeting softness in his heart.
He didn't want to forget what happened.
Didn't want to forgive.
Didn't want to heal.
Not until the truth was dragged out and the pain was paid back in full.
…
…
Meanwhile, at the Hyuga residence
The soft morning light poured through the paper sliding door, casting a gentle glow across the room. Hyuga Hinata slowly rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up on the futon.
Last night had felt no different from any other. She had fallen asleep quietly, and by the time she opened her eyes again, it was already early morning.
She sat there, dazed, letting the silence settle around her.
Was that really just… a dream?
…
At the training ground where Team 7 usually gathered, Sasuke jogged in and immediately spotted Naruto sitting alone in the middle of the grass.
Naruto was hunched over, idly plucking at weeds, eyes unfocused. He seemed lost in thought, a shadow lingering in his usually loud and energetic expression.
Sasuke stopped in his tracks, his breath catching slightly.
A sudden realization struck him like a lightning bolt.
Last night… he had entered that strange dream.
Then… what about Naruto?
If Naruto had been there too… if he had seen it all from that movie-theater-like space they had appeared in before…
Then…
That meant Naruto had watched everything.
Everything from last night.
And not just Naruto. Kakashi-sensei… and Sakura too!
Sasuke's calm exterior wavered for a moment, a rare flicker of panic flashing in his eyes.
Last night, he had been completely immersed in the dream. The emotions, the warmth, the tears… everything had felt so real that he hadn't spared a single thought for the outside world.
But now…
Now it felt like his dignity was hanging by a thread.
"They… they saw that…?" he muttered to himself, horrified.
He had completely forgotten… that the dream could be seen.
He hadn't held back his emotions at all. He hadn't controlled his behavior even a little.
Which meant…
They had seen everything.
Sasuke's mind reeled as that realization hit. His expression twisted with horror.
Naruto… that idiot Naruto… had probably watched it all from start to finish!
And not just Naruto. Kakashi. Sakura.
Sasuke clenched his fists tightly, his ears turning red with shame. The memory of everything he'd done in that dream came flooding back in unbearable clarity.
He had cried. Actually cried.
He'd hugged his mother and clung to her like a spoiled child. He'd grumbled about his father but still accepted his scolding like a little boy. He'd laughed during dinner and refused to leave his mother's side all afternoon.
And worst of all…
He had smiled. He had smiled like an idiot the entire time.
"Hateful…" Sasuke growled under his breath, his forehead in his hand, his entire face burning.
He, Uchiha Sasuke, would rather face his brother in a life-and-death battle again, would rather take on a thousand kunai from an ambush, than walk up to Naruto right now.
It wasn't that he was afraid.
It was just… he wasn't ready to be mocked.
Or worse understood.
The proud genius of the Uchiha Clan stood frozen under the pale morning sky, trapped in a strange battle he'd never prepared for.
The battle of embarrassment.
The enemy… was Naruto's dumb grin.
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