Chapter One

"In this world, nothing is absolute, which leaves everything open for rectification."


The silence that lingered around us pressed on my eardrums. The time must be at least midnight, judging from the bright lunar light that shone down upon me and my comrade. The tension in the air was thick; you couldn't not be on your guard around these parts, and we had to be around these parts a lot. You kind of get used to it, actually. But your instincts will always keep you on the edge. That's just another part of being an assassin.

My comrade sighed. Plucking at a dried blood stain in his messy golden manes, he gazed up at the stars; the stars that cursed him with his dreaded fate.

Some people - actually, a lot of people - would wonder why I even so much as looked at him. Wonder why I didn't cast him aside, knowing his story. But that's just it. Because of hearing his story, knowing it inside out, I can't help but embrace his powers and help him put them to good use. Not only because I am part of his story.

After all, knowing his fate and mine, one can only conclude we're not so different.

Naruto was born on October 10, 2000, known in these parts as 'The Day of Reckoning'. The story has it that every year on that day, one unlucky new-born falls victim to an ageless curse. Some people shrug it off as a fairy tale, but I know it's not.

Hell, I know it's not.

How?

Because I've seen it with my own eyes.

From the tip of my finger sparked a tiny flame, illuminating the rough winding road that lay ahead of us. Though small in appearance, it bathed my features in light, casting long shadows behind us. The dark bangs of hair that framed my face bent under the light midnight breeze. I had inherited quite a few distinctive features from my ancestors, along with the trademark Uchiha hair color. I stared into the flickering flame, reminiscing my history with my best friend.

When I first met Naruto, he appeared to be a kid like any other: goofy, innocent, a bit lazy, and always carrying a big smile on his face. It was not until I found out he was born a 'Child of the Ten' (a horribly overused nickname, I couldn't help but notice), that the problems started.

At first, my parents shunned him because he could be 'the cursed one'. Then the rumor spread around town, and before we knew it, angry mobs were gathering on his doorstep. His parents always convinced the mobs that Naruto was curse-free, as his father worked for some exorcist... thing. It slowly died out, and soon enough life was back to normal. We became friends, and hung out with each other more and more.

Ironically enough, it was Naruto's tenth birthday when he was declared public enemy number one.

I came to visit for his birthday when I got caught in this maelstrom. I didn't know by then, but when I came to his place I found Naruto's parents torn to shreds in a pool of blood, with Naruto crying over their remains. He kept repeating the same sentence over and over: "I didn't mean to, I didn't mean to..."

I couldn't fiigure out what happened or what Naruto had to do with it, but I sure as hell knew that we were no longer safe here. When on a safe distance hiding in the forest, I got the whole story from Naruto.

He was the one who did it. He was the one who killed his parents.

He was the cursed child.

Young and foolish as I was, I didn't abandon or shun him. Which I wouldn't have done anyway. We were friends. We were going to make things right. Together.

"Hey, Sasuke. How long do I have to drag this fucker around?"

I looked into Naruto's blood red eyes. "Chill out. We're nearly there."

I soon learned that Naruto had a demon sealed within his soul. The demon would lie dormant for most of his life, but on the tenth day of the tenth month of the tenth year when the child would turn ten years old, the demon would burst out on a complete rampage.

Naruto killed his parents in blind rage, and he didn't even fully know it. All he knew was that he did it, and that he was going to get in trouble for it.

"Seriously, Sasuke. How much further? My shoulder is getting sore."

"Shut up, dumbass. We're here."

"Finally," Naruto, now 21, said tossing the lifeless body off his shoulder. It hit the cold soil with a dull thud, as we looked up to a shabby old door. There was a single black rose on it, although barely visible, worn over time and weather. Naruto knocked on the door, which opened up to reveal a pitch-black square hole. He picked up the body again and we entered.

Welcome to the headquarters of the Order of the Black Rose, or Black Rose for short, the most prestigious assassin bureau you can find.

I am Sasuke Uchiha, elite assassin and one of the highest-ranking members of the Black Rose at merely 21 years old.

The Order was founded by a guy named Jiraiya. We suspect Jiraiya to have been very close to Naruto's parents, as he immediately opened up to the blonde the moment I brought him in. My brother, Itachi, told me about the Order. He said it was the perfect place for 'people like us'.

There wasn't a single member of the Black Rose that I could rightfully call 'normal'. There was always some extraordinary hook or twist to every one of our recruits; demons, vampires, werewolves, mutants and freaks of nature were embraced instead of cast aside, their powers put to use instead of feared. For example: an advanced genetic mutation in our visual perception allowed Itachi and me to anticipate on situations that had yet to happen. In addition, we moved faster, reacted quicker and struck more precise. With proper development, we could even see the life force of human and creature alike.

Having dreamt of scorching evildoers with the flames of retribution and command the searing beauty of the flame, I was more than delighted that the apocalypse had ignited the essence of magic inside the human body as well. Being brothers, Itachi had taught my to control my fire and develop it into a lethal weapon of immense power.

There were only a handful of members within the Black Rose outranking me. Of course, you had the big boss, Jiraiya. His right-hand man was Kakashi, a suspected vampire with silver hair and insane powers. He was trained in the classical ways of the Ninja, the ultimate assassin, and could bend lightning. A feat that was both extremely dangerous and extremely useful. He was Jiraiya's replacement as the head of the Order when he was absent. He also taught Naruto how to control his tenant.

Tsunade was about evenly ranked with Kakashi. She was the head of the medical and research department, and supplied us with better cures and antidotes than any hospital or medical laboratory could ever do. Her assistant was Shizune, a good-looking woman whose breath turns poisonous at will.

Last but not least, there was Itachi. In charge of the new recruits, and under his command we rose to the most promising and flourishing assassination bureau in the world. He was also the field commander, and current holder of the most hits record. Every contract that seemed impossible went to Itachi, and so far, he didn't fail a single one. He even tracked down and assassinated the world's most renowned terrorist leader in 2012.

That it caused the officials to burst out in global nuclear warfare was not our problem. Well, not really. It was just as the old folks predicted: mankind would ultimately destroy themselves in their own arrogance and ignorance. So here we were, mutated assassins banding together in a futile attempt to make the best of it.

It was that or moping around and wasting your days away, like the rest of the population.

Back to the present day, that same Itachi just arrived to pick up our hit. He complimented Naruto on his handiwork and sent the body off to the lab for ID and section. Naruto just growled at him, turned to me and beckoned to the bar.

On bartending duty was Kiba Inuzuka, at twenty years rightfully earning his title of prodigy of some native tribe with a more than freaky affilation with wolves and dogs. The apocalypse turned the Inuzuka clan into one of the most ferocious werewolf tribes in the new world, and Kiba willingly offered his services to Jiraiya and the Black Rose. I nodded briefly to the brown-haired adolescent, who in turn smirked back, flashing his feral teeth.

"The usual, I suppose?"

I nodded again as Naruto sat down next to me with a sigh. "Sometimes I wonder why we're still working this hard for our money. I mean, fuck, this world has turned to a living hell anyway, why not make use of it and go Viking?"

"Because we have some dignity," I replied matter-of-factly without looking up.

"Yeah, killing people for money is totally honorable," Kiba sneered. "But I guess we're not as brutal as the Moon's Eye."

"Agreed," I said taking my beer from Kiba. I snorted, briefly thinking about the rivaling assassin's order, The Disciples of the Moon's Eye. "Every one of their kills ends in a fucking massacre."

"Incapable of handling your jobs much?" Naruto snorted. Kiba and I snickered.

I downed my beer and was about to order another when Itachi popped his head into the bar. "Sasuke. Can you go pick up the contracts from the Red Light district tonight?"

"Why me?" I argued, turning to glare at my brother. "Karin works that district tonight, can't she just bring 'em in when her shift is over?"

"I sent Karin off on some special op with Anko yesterday. They haven't returned yet. I need those contracts." He shot me a stern look. "Do me a favor, will you?"

Itachi left without another word. I rolled my eyes and sighed while I ordered another beer. Naruto muttered something to Kiba and snickered. Kiba's smirk turned a tad dirtier. I looked at Naruto questioningly. He shrugged.

"I said Karin and Anko are probably long done with their contract, they just took a day off to spend with each other. I mean, we all know the two of them swing both ways." He sighed. "What I'd give to see those two get it on..."

"What I'd give to live one day without your stupidity," I retorted without batting an eye. Given, both females were more than just pretty. But Karin was a slut, and - Well, so was Anko.

Notorious for having a brief affair with Kakashi, Anko Mitarashi actually was a vampire, a sexy mistress with a thing for S&M. Rumor has it she was the one to turn Kakashi, but then again, we're still uncertain if Kakashi's a vampire in the first place (it would make sense, considering the face masks he started wearing). Anyhow, her vampiric stealth, speed and blood lust made her a force to be reckoned with.

Karin was a succubus, a diabolical mutant with a thriving lust for two things: sex, and blood. Her contracts often resulted in a, quoting Karin herself: "A wonderful orgasm and a blood fest beyond your imagination." As Naruto not-so-subtly mentioned earlier, she swings both ways. Whenever she's in for a little experiment, she hooks up with Anko (much to Jiraiya's delight and Tsunade's dismay). No one really knew what her background was or how she got the job, but she was terrific at what she did and that's all that counted.

Anko and Karin worked the Red Light district. Once the most shunned neighbourhood of the city, the Apocalypse caused it to flourish like never before. Important political figures no longer dined in fancy restaurants or lounged at high-end meeting spots. Brothels and sleazy bars were where the most important decisions were made these days. Since politicians and other authorities made up the majority of the hit list, Jiraiya would've been crazy to not have a few of his hitmen in the area. And frankly, it wasn't that surprising that Karin and Anko volunteered.

"Earth - or what's left of it - to Sasuke!" Naruto shouted in my ear. I instinctively hooked him in the jaw, with Kiba cracking up while watching the scene unfold. The blonde demon host scrambled up from the floor, snarled and assumed a fighting stance. I glared at him.

"Knock it off, Dobe. We've got work to do."

"Correction, you've got work to do," Naruto replied while sitting back down on his bar stool. "I ain't goin' nowhere. I'm done for tod-"

I cut him off by flashing a contract in front of his face. "This one is assigned to you in particular." He cursed, I smirked triumphantly and Kiba started to laugh again.

"Duty calls, demon boy." It was a risky nickname, but for a group as close-knit as ours, it was normal. Kiba, for instance, was often referred to as 'mutt' or 'dog breath'. Everyone called Karin 'slut', but she embraced it. Her own thoughts: "Well, I'm not denying it, am I?" and thus it stuck. I was often referred to as 'prince Sasuke', because of my confidence in my abilities. It was mockingly taken for arrogance. I didn't mind; it was good to be able to fool off a bit, because frankly, this world of ours was serious enough already.

Naruto flipped off the werewolf prodigy and snatched the contract from my hands, reading it over and getting up with an exhausted sigh. I gave the blonde an encouraging, though sarcastic pat on the back, and got up to tend to my respective duty as well.


[Author's Note]

Let me know what you think, and if there's anything I can work on for the good of my writing. Flamers: get a life. But you're welcome to try, because I need a laugh.

Signed,
VictimofYourOwnCreation