Hey guys.
So, I've been on a NH streak lately and I realized that's not fair for SS. I had intentions of making a SS fic for quite some time, but damn is it hard to write a fic for this pairing.
In any case, it's finished now. Had to rewrite this thing over and over. Sasuke's a really hard character to use...
In any case, enjoy.
-o-
He looked at the forest as he sat on the top of the giant walls. The wind breezed through the leaves with serenity. It was warm enough for him to stay outside and look over the area surrounding the village. He didn't hate this. And since he had to stay in the village for a while, he didn't mind getting used to it.
"There you are." He heard a familiar voice approaching. He looked over to his left to see his… teammate? He wasn't really sure what to call them with him constantly leaving the village.
"Sakura…" he said, acknowledging her presence "Why are you here? I thought you were busy with stuff around the village."
"I am." Sakura replied, as she simply sat down beside him "Since Naruto isn't here, Kakashi-sensei had me keep an eye on you."
"Oh…" Sasuke said, remembering the few times he had come to the village after the 4th Shinobi World War "So that was why Naruto didn't leave me alone all of those times…"
"That's part of the reason, yes…" Sakura said, as she inspected the scenery "Do you just stay here and do nothing while you're on the village?"
"It isn't like I have anything to do here." Sasuke replied "I only come here every once in a while to tell Kakashi what I saw."
"Hn…" Sakura subtly nodded "He told us you've found something concerning Kaguya…"
"Yes. But there's a lot missing." Sasuke said "It's one of the reasons I'm leaving the village once Naruto gets back."
Sakura sighed and silence ensued. It was like they had nothing else to talk about. And in truth… they really didn't. Sasuke-kun spent a lot of time away from the village. He was never in it for more than a couple of days before he went off to continue his journey of atonement. He barely spent time with anyone at all.
"You…" she heard, her thoughts were interrupted.
"What?" she turned to Sasuke.
"Aren't you going to ask me what I found about Kaguya?" Sasuke asked.
Sakura hugged her legs "What use is there? You'd probably say something like 'It is nothing of your concern' or whatever. Might as well not even ask."
His face barely changed, but he was somewhat surprised by Sakura's response. He still remembered how she wanted to accompany him on his journey of redemption, and yet here she was refusing to ask him anything about it. She wasn't wrong, though. If he didn't find it necessary to tell her what he found, then he wouldn't tell her anything.
"So you aren't going to ask me anything?"
"There are things I'd like to know. And not just about your current journey…" Sakura said "But if you're willing to tell me anything then do it yourself. Because being shunned… is getting annoying…"
Sasuke went back to looking at the trees outside of the village. How ironic. He had been calling Sakura annoying ever since they were drafted into the same team and now, after all had been said and done, the annoying one was him. Still, it wasn't like he couldn't relate to her. For most of his childhood he followed his brother everywhere he went to get him to train him, or to accompany him on his missions, or just to know what he was up to. And pretty much every time, Itachi refused his requests.
Sighing, Sasuke looked back at Sakura "Fine… You win."
"Eh?"
"Ask me whatever you want." Sasuke said "I won't refuse to answer."
Sakura looked at Sasuke "Really?" she sounded more bewildered than anything else.
"Yes." Sasuke replied.
"Well… There's something I really want to know…" Sakura said, hugging her legs tightly "I want to know… why you wanted to destroy Konoha after defeating your brother…"
"Right off the bat…?"
"This might be the only chance I have to hear it from you." Sakura said "It won't change anything. You still did all those terrible things. But at the very least… I want to know the reasons that brought you to such a decision…"
"Sakura…" Sasuke said "Don't misunderstand what I'm about to tell you. This is not a justification for my sins."
Sakura was somewhat surprised at Sasuke's response. Even though he said that he wouldn't refuse to answer, she thought he'd rather not tell her anything about his darkest time.
"First things first." Sasuke said "What do you know of Uchiha Itachi?"
"So Itachi does have something to do with it… Naruto spoke of the Truth about Itachi when he confronted you at the Land of Iron." Sakura said.
"Yes. For you to understand my reasons, you need to know the Truth about Itachi." Sasuke replied "Even though it's debatable whether my reasons are understandable in the first place…"
She decided to ignore his last remark "… I know that he massacred the Uchiha Clan, which was your family, and that he joined Akatsuki, who were after Naruto. To me, he was simply the person who brought pain to both you and Naruto. To me, Uchiha Itachi was an enemy."
"Yes. Itachi murdered everyone in the Uchiha Clan, except for two people." Sasuke said.
"Two?" Sakura looked at Sasuke in surprise.
"Yes. I was one of them, but there was someone else he didn't kill." Sasuke's voice had no tone to speak of. It was like he was reading stuff out of a newspaper "That person was Uchiha Obito, who was presumed dead and impersonating Madara at the time. Obito assisted Itachi in the Uchiha Clan Massacre."
"Eh? Why?"
"Apparently Obito resented the Uchiha Clan. In any case, Obito's involvement has little to do with my decision to destroy Konoha. I was only stating the facts about that night." Sasuke explained "I decided to destroy Konoha because of the reason Itachi destroyed the Clan."
Sakura had a feeling she wasn't going to like what was coming next "… And…?"
"Itachi was trying to prevent a Coup d'état from the Uchiha Clan."
"What?"
"The Uchiha weren't trusted among the Elders. The tension was high and a civil war could break out. The Kyubi's attack on the village that ended with the Fourth Hokage's death was the final drop. The Uchiha were suspected to be the culprits when in actuality Obito orchestrated the whole thing by himself. Because of the accusations received, the Uchiha planned a coup d'état." Sasuke explained "Itachi, who was an ANBU, was entrusted to be the Uchiha Clan's spy."
"Except Itachi did the reverse and provided Konoha with information instead." Sakura concluded. If Itachi tried to prevent a coup d'état by the Uchiha by killing them, then it means he was siding with Konoha.
"Yes. Itachi had lived through the 3rd Shinobi World War. So he attempted to avoid a 4th one at all costs. If the Uchiha went through with the coup, Konoha would be weakened and the other nations could take it as an opportunity to wage war." Sasuke said "The Third Hokage tried to buy as much time as possible, but in the end, the Konoha Elders decided to wipe out the clan."
"Wha…? You mean Itachi was actually ordered to…?"
"Yes. Itachi massacred the clan on the orders of the Elders." Sasuke answered "But on one condition."
"Which was…"
"To spare his little brother." Sasuke said "Itachi agreed to kill everyone in the clan in exchange for saving me… He started living in the shadows, and joined Akatsuki to keep the village safe from the organization. He planned to die at my hands, and so he did."
"So… Itachi was trying… to protect you…"
"That's why I decided to destroy Konoha. He had to endure all of that for the village. It was Konoha that did this to him." Sasuke said. He looked at Sakura, who seemed to be wrapped in her thoughts "It was only after reuniting with him through the Edo Tensei and confronting the previous Hokages that I saw just how wrong I was. And even then, I only tried to mimic what Itachi had done. To become the enemy in order to keep peace…"
"That's what you meant by 'revolution'…" Sakura contemplated.
"This is also part of the reason why I never stay in the village for too long. I committed crimes, but my reasoning behind them was even worse." Sasuke said, sitting up and looking out at the forest outside of the village "I'm still not there yet. I can't have one yet."
Sakura looked at Sasuke. She now knew his reasoning behind his previous desire to destroy Konoha, but now she had no idea what he was saying "What are you talking about? What is it that you can't have yet?"
"A place to return to." Sasuke replied "And until I can have one, I will keep travelling. I will continue seeing the world with my eyes…"
Sakura stood up as well "A place to return to…" she repeated "I wonder if you'll really come back to that place once you're done with your travels…"
"Hmph." Sasuke gave a faint smirk "We'll see…"
-o-
And that was it! Thanks for reading!
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