Den of the snake -

2 9 : To Forever And Beyond

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This was it!

Everything that had built up. Every conflict, every fight, every battle, everything.

Everything was leading upto this. For the first time in the history of ninja, the fate of Konoha, would be determined by the people, and not by bloodshed. Every man and woman had been given equal rights, to choose who they believed to be the one, rightful and true Hokage. And the village had never seen anything like it before. 

The simmering conflicts between the two opposing sides, that had taken placed step by step, in the last four years, letting the tensions toil and rise, all of it would be either be forgotten or taken one step further, all because of the simple scroll in Gintoki's hands.

It did not matter how powerful you were. It did not matter if you possessed the rinnegan or the powerful sage jutsu. It did not matter if you were godlike beings with powers that could topple entire continents alone. 

The one thing that mattered was how the people saw you. How you were in their eyes. For the first time, ordinary and powerless people, would be the ones deciding the fate of the powerful ones. 

As Gintoki stepped inside the room, the air shifted, with anxiety at it's highest. It was silent enough that everyone could hear the multiple beatings of different hearts. The two former rivals, even though remained calm on the surface, were also so much nervous that they needed comfort from the ones around them.

With the Uchiha unintentionally seeking out his lover's hand and holding it tightly, bracing himself for what came ahead. The byakugan princess also noticed the sweat leaving Sasuke's palms, and she realized that the Uchiha was more nervous then she had previously thought. And she wanted nothing more then to be a source of comfort and strength for him, and instantly tightened the grip around his hand. Making him turn to her and meet her eyes. And the moment the mis-matched pair of red and purple orbs met lavender ones, the Uchiha felt a strange sense of relief flowing through him, seeing the way she gently smiled. Almost as if he could read her thoughts.

No matter what happens, we face it together.

The Uchiha heir slowly nodded with a very small smile, his fear and nervousness receding and lessening.

On the other side, the Uzumaki was in the same boots, his knees were feelings heavy and it felt like the room was running out of oxygen to breathe. And his friends around him, sensed the uneasiness in Naruto's posture. He almost couldn't keep his gaze on the man holding the scroll, and turned his eyes towards the ground. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning around, he met the eyes of the Nara genius, smirking at him.

"Eyes up, Naruto, stay sharp. Don't tell me the hero that saved the world is getting scared?" Nara's faint voice, was loud enough to knock back sense into Naruto's head. Realizing the truth to Shikamaru's words. He lifted his eyes with a renewed fire and bravery in his cerulean blue eyes. He was the man who took down men like Madara and monsters like the Akatsuki, he could not let something like this get to him.

As the Uzumaki glanced towards the Uchiha, their eyes locked and they could clearly see the turmoil in each other's souls. The two rivals were always exceptional at reading what was in each other's hearts, this time wasn't an exception.

Naruto's eyes shifted downward and saw the way the raven-haired kunoichi was holding the Uchiha's hand. And he could see the bond between them. An invisible chain that was holding the two together. A binding that was keeping the two together in even the most crucial moments. And it unconsciously brought a smile to the Uzumaki's eyes, to see his former rival so in love. It was strange to compare this man with the man he grew up with. He had changed from a man who only knew anger and hatred, and who's life was devoted to revenge and vengeance, to a man who had a look of peace and serenity in his eyes.