MARS

MARS

By Itoshii Ketsu

This is the first portrait I drew. The model was a 17-year-old boy. I titled it "MARS." MARS signifies two things—one is the planet, the other is a soldier—The God of War.

"Um, hey, you!" A dark haired guy with electric bluish eyes called to a timid girl with bluish hair and big lavender eyes. The girl looked up, recognizing who the man that called her rudely indirectly. He continued, "The University's Medical Center is supposed to around here somewhere. Do you know here it is?"

The girl quickly flipped the page of her sketching room and drew a map with the pencil she was holding. The black hair stared at her confusedly. She thrusts the paper at his face. "Eh?" He looked at the map, "Hey… wait!" He stared at her running away figure, "What was that all about?"

SLAM

"Hinata?" a woman with the matching hair color asked when she heard the door. Then she saw her daughter, "hat's wrong? You look upset."

"I saw someone I don't like at the park." The girl said, taking off her shoes at the doorway.

"Someone you don't like?"

"He goes to my school. He's just some jerk."

"What'd he do to you?"

"H-he didn't do anything," Hinata said with a blush, "He just asked for directions. He probably doesn't even realize that we go to the same school." But, I know about him… he smokes cigarettes behind the teacher's back… and that kind of stuff.

--

Hinata walked out the school cautiously, just to spot the guy at the park making out with some girl. She worriedly put her face in her hand. I don't like him…

--

"So you lost consciousness… Kakashi?" a 17 year old boy asked his trainer.

Yeah, it was a huge crash at the opening race for the Grand Prix. The doctor said it's a miracle that I'm even alive." Kakashi said as if his leg wasn't amputated. He laid in his bed, smiling at the boy who was so worried about him. "So, what's going to happen with the Grand Prix now?" the boy asked.

"I'm retiring, of course. Even if I anted to keep racing, I can't with this body." The teenage boy looked at him in distress, "Your leg, is it really gone?"

"Yeah, it's gone, my right leg is history from the knee-down. To be honest, I thought I was done for this time. I lost control on a corner. My body was floating in the air, and the next thing I knew, everything was dark.

"Were you scared?"

"No, I actually don't remember. It was like I was dreaming."

"Sasuke!"

"huh?"

"Quit looking at me like that!" Kakashi scolded, "You ere totally spaced out. It's sick to be so into hearing about someone almost dying!"

"No, it's not that. I was just trying to imagine what it's like to die." Sasuke explained casually, "I mean, you really experience it and then BAM! You're gone from this world. That's why it's so interesting."

"Hey, Sasuke! You came to visit!" a beautiful woman with long straight black hair came into the room with a bouquet of flowers in her hands.

"Hakuko…"

"It was kinda hard to find this place, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, but I had someone draw me a map on the way here." Sasuke reached into his pocket for the crumpled piece of paper that eccentric girl had gave him at the park.

Hakuko flattened it, "And you just crumbled it up?!" she said rudely at him, "Hey…"

Sasuke looked at her, "…There's a draw on the back… Wow! Look, it's really beautiful!" She handed the drawing to Sasuke. He stared at it sympathetically; the drawing was of a mother and child, the mother holding the child happily and protectively. The picture lets out a warm glow in his heart as Sasuke stared at it.

--

"See? Now it won't get crumbled."

"Thanks. How much as it? I'll pay for it." Sasuke offered.

"Don't worry about it, its just a folder." Hakuko assured, "But I'm surprised. I would've expected you to just throw it out."

"Oh, yea…. I don't have any artistic talent, so drawing like this is amazing to me."

Oh, Sasuke… you ride pretty fast on your motorcycle. Kakashi says you're either incredibly talented or incredibly stupid"

"What?! Is he trying to piss me off?!"

"It's his way of giving you a compliment," she dropped a black key into his palm, "See? Here's the proof."

"The ducat monster?" (A/N: the famous Italian motorcycle) Sasuke exclaimed with awe."

"He's giving it to you." Hakuko explained.

"No kidding?! Are you serious?" No way!! This is unbelievable!!

"Kakashi can't ride it anymore, and it's too heavy for poor me. It really is heavy when you ride it naked (A/N: riding a motorcycle with the cowls removed.) The bike tends to lean if you push it too hard."

"What kind of riding are you doing on the highway?!" Sasuke scolded incredulously, 'You should only be maxing it on the racetrack!" Despite his sarcasm, Sasuke looked at the key in his hand that is not his gratefully. "So I guess I won't get to see Kakashi on the track ever again."

Hakuko sniffled and her eyebrows arched. She lifted her hand over her eye to cover the visible proof that she is crying, Sasuke reached toward her with his hand, "He's still alive… He lost a leg, but at least god let him keep his life." He hugged her, comforting her.

"Sasuke, please promise me you won't do anything crazy." Hakuko said.

"I'll be OK. Besides, no one would cry over my death." Sasuke assured.

"I don't ant to hear you say that! If you died, Kakashi and I would be devastated! There's always someone who cares, Sasuke, someone whose life would simply stop." Sasuke stared at her with amazement and realization, "You just don't know it, or you haven't met them yet." There's someone out there…

--

"Hearing Sasuke say that it'd be fine if he died… I can't stand seeing him be so cold. I wonder if he's not afraid of death." Hakuko explained to her husband.

"It's one thing if he's not afraid. But with Sasuke, it's something even worse," Kakashi said seriously, "It's all just a game to him—if he dies, it's game over, if he lives, he's lucky. I could never ride the way Sasuke does. It's as if he has fun gambling with his life."

--

Sasuke stared at the sketch with regret and sympathy for himself.

--

"He's only 17, how'd he get like that anyway?"

-X-X-X-X-

"Good morning!"

"There's been no answer lately when I ring the bell."

"What? You got blown off again?"

"No way!"

"So, during spring break, when I was at work…"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" a girl with short black hair apologized after accidentally knocking down Hinata's pencil case. All her different types of pencils fell on the floor, the lead breaking.

Without saying a single word, she bent down and picked it all up. "I apologized didn't I?" the girl asked herself worriedly. The other girl assured her friend, "Oh, don't worry about that. She's totally expressionless. No matter what happens, she stays blank." Not really… It's not that I don't feel anything… I just feel like, no matter what I say, no one will ever listen. This classroom is so strange to me. I'm just different no one pays any attention to me.

But that's OK… it's easier that way…

--

SCREEECH!!

The teacher looked out his window, and just as he expected, it was that motorcyclist that irritates him so much, Uchiha. "Yo Uchiha! Do you have permission to ride your bike to school?!" He yelled.

"Gimme a break!" Sasuke groaned.

"What were you doing during the opening assembly?" The teacher continued yelling.

"I had a cold." Sasuke said casually.

"Liar! I bet you were ditching class." The teacher accused, and he as right. Who would want to go to the opening assembly anyway?

Sasuke ran his fingers through his hair, pulling them back, revealing his whole face, "Why did you ask me if you already knew the answer?" He replied with irritation.

"Yo, Uchiha!" One of his classmates joked when Sasuke entered the classroom, "I thought you got held back!"

Hinata looked up worriedly, it can't be possible that we would be in the same class to could it?

"Hey, Sasuke's in B-Class too. Awesome!" some girls said behind him. Sasuke turned around, not the least bit bashful hearing this, "Yeah, hi." The girls giggled excitedly at his greeting.

"Oh, Sasuke!" a girl with long blond hair and tight revealing clothes waved. Then she ran up to him and hugged him tightly. "I can't believe we're in the same class 2 years in a row! Our destinies must be intertwined."

Sasuke, again not even embarrassed to have a girl hugging him, ordered, "Hey, hey! Let go!"

Somewhere in the classroom, they heard some girls muttering and murmuring around: "Harumi still hasn't given up on Sasuke?" "He was going out with a senior, wasn't her?"

Sasuke ignored them, "By the way, where's my seat?"

"Over here, in front of me." a guy with a black hair style shaped like a pineapple answered nonchalantly, pointing to the seat in front of him, and next to Hinata.

She stared at the empty desk nervously, "Oh boy, we're in the same class again!" Sasuke cheered sarcastically. "I guess we're just stuck with each other." The other guy muttered.