After Pain
Chapter 2: For a Friend
Chapter 3: Anbu
Chapter 4: The Hidden Leaf Jounin
Chapter 5: A Worthy Opponent
Chapter 6: Kakashi Hatake
Chapter 8: The Right Moment
Chapter 9: The Quiet Before the Storm
Chapter 10: A Man of Many Shadows
Chapter 11: A Leaf on the Wind
Chapter 12: The Konoha 11
Chapter 13: Epilogue
Chapter 13: Epilogue
Sasuke watched the water pool on the roof of his cell, slowly forming into a drop, until finally it fell onto his arm. It was raining outside. The people of the sand village would be celebrating out there, running under the rain. He shifted sideways and the clank of metal reminded him that his arms were chained so as to make it impossible to make hand signs, but not be too uncomfortable. He had almost forgotten. He had no idea how long he had been here. He never asked and when they tried to offer that information he asked them not to. That would only make it more difficult to bear this imprisonment, and if it got too difficult he might start unconsciously planning to get out.
Another drop fell, this time on his forehead.
Naruto had had a brand new forehead protector made for him. Sasuke shook his head. Some friends you chose, others you had just because you couldn't run away from them any longer. But he was finding, in here, with only his own thoughts to keep him company, that he didn't mind.
"It's good to have people who value your friendship," Kakashi had said last time he was here. "Even if they're not the coolest people."
Perhaps that was true. These insistent friends kept him sane in here. They kept him connected to life in the leaf. He had not expected anyone but Naruto and Sakura to bother making the three day trek to the sand village just to see him, but they had. Kakashi, despite being Hokage and warning him every single time that his Hokage duties would probably keep him away, visited quite regularly. He told him things that he found interesting, like all the changes that were being made to Leaf Village political life and the Academy training methods.
Kakashi also told him a lot of things that Sasuke didn't necessarily want to know. He told him about how Shikamaru always kept an eye on Asuma's baby son, and how Sai and Ino were engaged now. He told him about Kiba's dog Akamaru getting injured and named all of Kiba's sisters dogs which had passed to Kiba after her death. He told him that Neji was doing well as the Hyuga clan leader and that Hinata was happy after having given that title up and moved on to be her own Shinobi.
He did not need to tell Sasuke that. Hinata was another person who visited regularly no matter what was going on with her life. He smiled. She told him things that Sasuke should have no use for, things that he would scoff at if they were outside, but here in prison with only Hinata for company he didn't mind hearing about her feelings when she visited her parents graves or the way she felt about her younger sister. He didn't even mind it when Hinata told him all the details of how she and Shino were developing a new program for the Ninja Academy to make sure that young Shinobi were happy and healthy and enjoying their childhood despite their abilities.
Hinata was the only person brave enough to ask Sasuke about his own feelings and she was the only person in front of whom he would cry. Others, like Shikamaru, the Jounin commander of the Hidden Leaf, preferred to come and give him news over a game of Shogi. Even with his Sharingan Sasuke had not yet managed to defeat Shikamaru at that game, but he consoled himself on his many losses, by making Shikamaru uncomfortable in other ways.
"You have a visitor," his guard said in that monotone voice that did not betray any of his thoughts.
Sasuke sat up and straightened his shirt. There was a kind of pattern to their visits. If he had read the pattern right this would be either Sakura or Shikamaru. It was Choji, a huge grin on his face.
"Want some chips?" Choji asked, throwing him a bag anyway. Sasuke had never realized how much he enjoyed food until Choji's visits to him in jail. The sand village food was good, but there was something about familiarity that made food better. Choji had a story to go with everything he ate. These chips, as Sasuke had learned on a previous occasion, had been his favorite back when he used to sneak out of class with Shikamaru, Naruto, and Kiba at the Academy. They had all been friends even back then while Sasuke had been too busy trying to gain more power to impress his father.
He ate a chip to avoid thinking about that particular relationship.
"Why are you here again?" he said in that sour tone that he only used out of habit now.
"You know," Choji said, eating about fifty chips in one breath. "You remind me of Shikamaru when he pretends to still be lazy."
"He is still lazy," Sasuke said, surprised.
"Sure," Choji said. "He's the Jounin Commander of the Hidden Leaf and he makes the three day journey to visit you on foot every month, but he's lazy."
Sasuke grinned. "He doesn't just come to visit me, you know."
Choji's chip-eating became almost frantic. "But he does," he said, gulping down a huge mouthful. "He's proposing to her today just so he doesn't have to keep making the journey up here to talk to her when you're out of jail."
"And you were saying he wasn't lazy?" Something in his brain told him that Choji had just revealed something important, but Sasuke was too busy thinking about the fact that Shikamaru valued his friendship, their talks, enough to make this journey, but wouldn't be bothered to do it for the woman he loved. Maybe there was a statement directed at Temari in that, maybe he didn't want to let her have too much power over him, but it made Sasuke feel as if he had really gained a friend.
"What about you?" he said deciding to get his mind off those thoughts by taunting Choji.
"Oh I proposed a long time ago," Choji said. "Shikamaru said if I didn't work up the courage to do it right away I'd keep hesitating and be miserable my whole life."
"You can stop talking about me now," Shikamaru said, strolling in.
"Did she say yes?" Choji asked, throwing the chip bag over his shoulder and opening another one.
Shikamaru sighed. "Actually, she said 'It's about time you lazy idiot.' Women are very troublesome."
Sasuke was saved the necessity of replying when what seemed to be dozens of people poured into his cell. Naruto and Sakura and Ino and Kiba and Shino and Neji and Hinata. Even that former Anbu Sai. "Well," Shikamaru said as Sakura and Naruto undid his handcuffs. "You'd better start thinking about your future, too, the Sasuke retrieval squad is here to take you home. We even brought Shino along this time."
Shino turned to glare at Shikamaru and Sasuke found himself laughing.
"I'm not late, am I?" Kakashi sensei said, strolling in coolly as if he just happened to be passing by.
~~~~~
Hope you all enjoyed this little tale. Please let me know in a review if you made it all the way through.
Another drop fell, this time on his forehead.
Naruto had had a brand new forehead protector made for him. Sasuke shook his head. Some friends you chose, others you had just because you couldn't run away from them any longer. But he was finding, in here, with only his own thoughts to keep him company, that he didn't mind.
"It's good to have people who value your friendship," Kakashi had said last time he was here. "Even if they're not the coolest people."
Perhaps that was true. These insistent friends kept him sane in here. They kept him connected to life in the leaf. He had not expected anyone but Naruto and Sakura to bother making the three day trek to the sand village just to see him, but they had. Kakashi, despite being Hokage and warning him every single time that his Hokage duties would probably keep him away, visited quite regularly. He told him things that he found interesting, like all the changes that were being made to Leaf Village political life and the Academy training methods.
Kakashi also told him a lot of things that Sasuke didn't necessarily want to know. He told him about how Shikamaru always kept an eye on Asuma's baby son, and how Sai and Ino were engaged now. He told him about Kiba's dog Akamaru getting injured and named all of Kiba's sisters dogs which had passed to Kiba after her death. He told him that Neji was doing well as the Hyuga clan leader and that Hinata was happy after having given that title up and moved on to be her own Shinobi.
He did not need to tell Sasuke that. Hinata was another person who visited regularly no matter what was going on with her life. He smiled. She told him things that Sasuke should have no use for, things that he would scoff at if they were outside, but here in prison with only Hinata for company he didn't mind hearing about her feelings when she visited her parents graves or the way she felt about her younger sister. He didn't even mind it when Hinata told him all the details of how she and Shino were developing a new program for the Ninja Academy to make sure that young Shinobi were happy and healthy and enjoying their childhood despite their abilities.
Hinata was the only person brave enough to ask Sasuke about his own feelings and she was the only person in front of whom he would cry. Others, like Shikamaru, the Jounin commander of the Hidden Leaf, preferred to come and give him news over a game of Shogi. Even with his Sharingan Sasuke had not yet managed to defeat Shikamaru at that game, but he consoled himself on his many losses, by making Shikamaru uncomfortable in other ways.
"You have a visitor," his guard said in that monotone voice that did not betray any of his thoughts.
Sasuke sat up and straightened his shirt. There was a kind of pattern to their visits. If he had read the pattern right this would be either Sakura or Shikamaru. It was Choji, a huge grin on his face.
"Want some chips?" Choji asked, throwing him a bag anyway. Sasuke had never realized how much he enjoyed food until Choji's visits to him in jail. The sand village food was good, but there was something about familiarity that made food better. Choji had a story to go with everything he ate. These chips, as Sasuke had learned on a previous occasion, had been his favorite back when he used to sneak out of class with Shikamaru, Naruto, and Kiba at the Academy. They had all been friends even back then while Sasuke had been too busy trying to gain more power to impress his father.
He ate a chip to avoid thinking about that particular relationship.
"Why are you here again?" he said in that sour tone that he only used out of habit now.
"You know," Choji said, eating about fifty chips in one breath. "You remind me of Shikamaru when he pretends to still be lazy."
"He is still lazy," Sasuke said, surprised.
"Sure," Choji said. "He's the Jounin Commander of the Hidden Leaf and he makes the three day journey to visit you on foot every month, but he's lazy."
Sasuke grinned. "He doesn't just come to visit me, you know."
Choji's chip-eating became almost frantic. "But he does," he said, gulping down a huge mouthful. "He's proposing to her today just so he doesn't have to keep making the journey up here to talk to her when you're out of jail."
"And you were saying he wasn't lazy?" Something in his brain told him that Choji had just revealed something important, but Sasuke was too busy thinking about the fact that Shikamaru valued his friendship, their talks, enough to make this journey, but wouldn't be bothered to do it for the woman he loved. Maybe there was a statement directed at Temari in that, maybe he didn't want to let her have too much power over him, but it made Sasuke feel as if he had really gained a friend.
"What about you?" he said deciding to get his mind off those thoughts by taunting Choji.
"Oh I proposed a long time ago," Choji said. "Shikamaru said if I didn't work up the courage to do it right away I'd keep hesitating and be miserable my whole life."
"You can stop talking about me now," Shikamaru said, strolling in.
"Did she say yes?" Choji asked, throwing the chip bag over his shoulder and opening another one.
Shikamaru sighed. "Actually, she said 'It's about time you lazy idiot.' Women are very troublesome."
Sasuke was saved the necessity of replying when what seemed to be dozens of people poured into his cell. Naruto and Sakura and Ino and Kiba and Shino and Neji and Hinata. Even that former Anbu Sai. "Well," Shikamaru said as Sakura and Naruto undid his handcuffs. "You'd better start thinking about your future, too, the Sasuke retrieval squad is here to take you home. We even brought Shino along this time."
Shino turned to glare at Shikamaru and Sasuke found himself laughing.
"I'm not late, am I?" Kakashi sensei said, strolling in coolly as if he just happened to be passing by.
~~~~~
Hope you all enjoyed this little tale. Please let me know in a review if you made it all the way through.
No comments:
Post a Comment