EDITED (08.04.09): I just fixed some parts and added more detail. I'm actually a lot happier with this version. It seems deeper for some reason xD Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy reading :)
Disclaimer:I don't own Naruto.
Author's Note: As promised, here's my birthday gift to you guys. Oh and it's dedicated to Sasuke's birthday as well :)
Note that this is set in the Academy days. I think there a few errors in relation to the anime and manga…but hey itis semi-AU, so I can get away with it xP
Enjoy ;D
THEN THERE WAS YOU
By: Gabbeh
"Did you hear?"
"They said that the whole Uchiha Clan was murdered, by their own prodigy no less."
Whisper. Whisper.
"He spared his brother though."
"Who?"
"Uchiha Sasuke."
-
-
He ignored the stares coming his way. Stares that conveyed emotions he just couldn't face. He hated feeling pitied and looked at like he was some weak little boy—
—You're too weak to be killed. The voice of his brother screamed in his mind, making his head spin. A young boy could only handle so much.
He fixed his gaze on his miniature feet and willed himself to continue his walk back home.
No…it wasn't a home, but merely a large compound where he could clearly remember the dead bodies of his relatives lying on the streets.
It was a compound where one of the most prestigious clans of Konoha used to live. He remembered his childhood; most of the happy memories he had happened inside it. Everyone he loved lived there – people who truly understood him.
But they were all gone now.
No one understood him anymore.
And he believed that no one ever will.
-
-
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Will you go out with me?"
"Of course he wouldn't want to."
"Heh, why not Ami?"
The girl merely smirked and flipped her hair.
"It's because he only wants to go out with me. Isn't that right, Sasuke-kun?"
He looked at the crowd in front of him lazily, his palm supporting his cheek as usual.
"Hn."
-
-
He always felt alone.
No matter how many people surrounded him – mostly girls, he concluded, it still felt as if he was by himself.
Their presence didn't really matter.
It made no difference…because at the end of the day, he would still feel alone…and unloved.
What is love?
This question rarely came to his mind anymore, being more preoccupied by his goal of killing his brother.
Although, he knew, no one truly loved him…nobody alive, at least.
For who could love someone as tainted as he was? His past, his feelings didn't matter to anyone – because no one bothered to look beyond those guarded, emotionless onyx orbs and find the lonely boy locked inside.
The boy who used to smile everyday like it was the normal thing to do.
The boy who saw the beauty in life.
The boy who believed in love.
He was locked away, now unseen behind the cold facade of a mere boy trying to become a man.
-
-
He had no real friends and no home.
But he had a goal. A purpose to live. It was the only thing that pushed him to get up every morning.
To kill that man.
He trained hard. The images of his relatives etched into his mind as a reminder of what his purpose of living was.
He believed that it was too late.
No one could save him from being an avenger.
No one would be able to stop him from killing his psychopath brother.
No one can persuade him that nothing good ever comes out of revenge.
He truly believed he was alone.
Until she came…
"Class, settle down." Iruka said, sighing as he watched the girls groan in protest while they made their way to their seats. It was the same routine. They would crowd in front of the Uchiha's desk every single day.
He cleared his throat. This gainedalmost everyone's attention. He rolled his eyes at the hyperactive blonde boy who was talking non-stop about being a Hokage in the future.
"We have a new student." He stated. Now this caused everyone to face front. There rarely were any transfer students in the Academy. It was the middle of the year and catching up with the school's curriculum could be difficult.
"You can come in now."
The door opened and a girl with pink hair, emerald eyes and an abnormally large forehead entered. Sasuke watched as she smiled, her eyes observing the room. He raised an eyebrow when her smile brightened, particularly when her eyes landed on him.
He just looked at her with the same blank stare. Maybe they were all the same after all…
Iruka asked her to introduce herself and she complied. "My name is Haruno Sakura. I love cherry blossoms and I guess it's pretty obvious I got my name because of my hair color. Yes, its natural. Umm…I enjoy training, especially with genjutsu. I'm pretty good with controlling my chakra."
There were whispers around the room. "She's lying." A few of them said. At such a young age, not many people would even be able to cast a particularly easy genjutsu.
And she didn't seem to be someone who would be able to anyway…
"Where are you from?" Someone asked.
The class watched as she merely smiled and Iruka intervened, saying that they should start with the lecture. He told her where to sit – it was the only other empty chair besides the one next to Sasuke.
She nodded and walked over to the seat which was across the Uchiha's and took out her notebook and pencil. Since she was in front of him, Sasuke was able to observe her more carefully.
He noticed that her belongings looked second-hand – the notebook was tattered and several pages were clearly just ripped off, while the pencil was smaller than what was usually tolerable.
Again, she ignored the whispers around the room.
They didn't seem to bother her anyway.
"Hello Sasuke-san." She greeted, sitting on the seat beside him.
He looked at her skeptically, wondering how she knew his name – He never saw her in Konoha. Then again, he didn't really go out to socialize anyway. "Hn." He replied his usual answer nonetheless. They were going to have an activity and the class was asked to pair up.
Naturally, girls went to Sasuke to ask him to be their partner, and being the stoic child that he was, he declined. In the end, everyone else had a partner except him and Sakura. And so, Iruka had asked them to work together.
"But, Iruka-sensei! These questions are sooo hard!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes at Naruto's comment while Iruka continued to pass the sheet with questions. Sakura just smiled at the blonde boy's antics. They seemed to entertain her for some reason. That was unusual because barely anyone acted like Naruto even existed. Then again, there wasn't anything usual about her anyway.
Soon enough, a paper was handed to them. Sasuke took it and wrote their names on top.
"Anyway, these papers are still due 2 weeks from now, so you have all the time to do your research." Iruka said as he walked to his desk in the front of the classroom.
Meanwhile, Sasuke scanned the items. Seeing as most of the questions were just moderate in difficultly, to him anyway - he began answering. She, on the other hand, was looking at the words he scribbled down.
Her brows furrowed.
She tapped him on the shoulder. He didn't seem to notice. She did it again. No reply. Her eyebrow was twitching by then. Slowly, she lightly poked his right shoulder. His response was immediate.
His eyes darted to her while his left hand touched where she had earlier – it was as if he was punched directly on that small spot. She sighed. "Finally." She breathed out. "What do you want?" He asked, his tone showed that he was obviously annoyed.
"Well, your answer here is kinda wrong." She pointed out, tapping on the written question with her index finger. "Instead of-"
"I don't need your help."
Her eyes slightly widened as she looked at him. He looked back at her with his emotionless face and watched as she averted her eyes to the paper instead, looking so deep in thought.
Anytime now…and she would go away.
He was quite surprised when she looked back at him with a smile.
"Ah, but Sasuke-san. This is a two-man activity. In a real mission – teammates should work together to accomplish the assigned task. It means that we were made to do this together for a reason. If not, Iruka-sensei wouldn't have asked us to work in pairs, ne?"
He opened his mouth, but she beat him to it.
"Sometimes you need to let people in your life. No one can survive on this world alone."
He meant to reply…to say that she was wrong.
But nothing came out, because deep down he knew…
She was right.
She sighed, stretching her arms as her back rested on a cherry blossom tree's trunk. She looked around and smiled. Maybe I could get used to living here after all. She thought, closing her eyes once again.
Then she heard footsteps. Her eyes opened, only to be greeted by about 5 girls that were standing in front of her. "You must be Sakura, correct?" A girl asked. She nodded, looking at them carefully.
"Well, my name's Ami. Nice to meet you." She said, reaching her hand out to the pink haired girl. Sakura knew better than fall for the girl's insincere greeting, but she smiled and shook her hand nonetheless. "Nice to meet you t-"
"What were you doing with Sasuke-kun earlier?" Ami asked. The friendliness in her tone was now gone.
-
Sasuke stopped walking when he saw the scene in front of him. His eyes narrowed. He took a step forward…then stopped.
Emotions must be hidden…
They make youweak…
He made no move to help and merely watched the scene unfold before him.
-
Sakura looked at the group behind the girl as they watched curiously.
"Well, we were doing the activi-"
"Don't lie. You were flirting with him." One of the girls said. Sakura's eyebrows furrowed. "No, I was n-"
"Hah, by the end of the session you were smiling your head off and Sasuke-kun was smirking at you." Another stated, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Sakura sighed. "That was because I told him something funny."
"So you were flirting with him."
She rolled her eyes. So saying something funny is flirting now? Geez.
"I told you, I wasn't." She said, standing up and wiping off dirt from her red dress with the Haruno Clan symbol at the back.
Ami stepped closer, coming to Sakura's eye level.
"I bet you're lying."
The pink-haired girl's eyebrow rose as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "What do I have to do to make you believe me then?" She asked.
…
Sakura sighed, turned around and walked away.
Ami smirked.
"Fight."
-
-
Sasuke's eyes slightly widened when he saw the scene in front of him.
Ami's arm was outstretched…and Sakura was holding the clenched fist that was aimed at her stomach, looking as relaxed as ever.
He had seen Ami's attack coming. It was a mere punch to the gut – but he didn't think that Sakura, who had her back turned, would be able to stop it.
Well…he was wrong.
-
-
Ami's mouth was hanging open as she froze on the spot. It was only when Sakura released her hand did she come to her senses. She instantly ran away, her friends following close behind her. "Freak!" They all shouted, but none of them dared to look back.
Sakura watched their retreating figures with an eyebrow raised.
It was then that she spotted him.
She simply smiled and walked away.
"Hmm…" Sakura continued to walk as she looked around. Her eyes softened when she realized no one lived in this compound anymore.
Well…except one.
She tightened her hold on the strap of her bag. Finally, she saw a house that seemed occupied by someone. She walked faster until she reached the door.
Knock. Knock.
She looked up at the sky and then groaned when she noticed it was cloudy – it was sure to rain in a few minutes.
Knock. Knock.
She didn't even bring an umbrella.
Just great.
Knock.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Make that 10 seconds.
Finally, the door opened and she was surprised to see a very pink Sasuke. He had droopy eyes and looked as if he just came out of bed – which was strange because it was already 5 in the afternoon.
He raised an eyebrow at her drenched form.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, watching as her body shivered involuntarily. If she wasn't so wet, she would have laughed at the way his voice sounded. It was as if he pinched his nose while talking.
"U-uhmm…could y-you l-et me in first? It's k-kinda cold out here you kn-know." She said.
Oh…right.
He opened the door for her and she walked in. He immediately closed it and then averted his eyes back to her.
She was soaking wet.
He covered his mouth when a fit of coughs came. He put a hand in front of him when she made a move to come closer – signaling that he didn't any help.
He never wanted it from anyone.
Besides, she was still wet.
"Wait here." He said when he managed to compose himself.
In a matter of seconds, a towel was thrown to her and she caught it, thanking him. She watched as he sat on the sofa in front of her, closing his eyes.
"Umm…I only came here to give you your assignment, plus the notes I copied for you. You can sleep in your bed now if you want…I'll just leave them here." She stated, taking the sheets of paper from her bag and placing it on top of the table.
He raised an eyebrow at this. She took notes for me?
"I'm not sleepy. All I did was sleep the whole day anyway." He said. She chuckled at this. "Of course. Are you hungry then?"
"How did you know where I live?" He suddenly asked. She rolled her eyes like it was the most absurd question in the world. "I asked Iruka-sensei. Besides, I figured you would have wanted to get them now anyway instead of all your homework piling up when you go back to school."
Funny how she was the first person to actually do anything like this.
And he barely even knew her.
"So are you hungry or not?" She asked again.
His stomach grumbled.
She couldn't help but laugh at this, while he merely sighed. "I'll take that as a yes then." She said, walking to the kitchen. He raised an eyebrow and followed her, curious to what the girl was planning to do.
He smirked in amusement when her eyes almost popped out of their sockets as she opened the cupboard. There was food filling the whole cabinet. Although, her eyebrows furrowed when she noticed that they hadn't been touched.
She glanced at him but didn't speak – she already knew the answer. Of course, being the last Uchiha – the only one residing in Konoha now, at least – he was sure to get some help from the officials.
Actually, she heard that he was assigned a guardian – until he could be old enough to manage living on his own. They said he refused, even if he was only at the young age of 10.
He believed he could take care of himself.
He needed no one.
She shook her thoughts away and smiled at him. "So what would you want to eat?" She asked, inspecting the food. "Nothing." He said plainly. She rolled her eyes at this and got the ingredients she needed.
She started the stove and cooked. He just watched from beside her, his eyes darting from her to the food she was making.
"I thought you might want chicken soup. You know, my mom used to let me eat it when I got sick." She said.
"Used to?"
She had used past tense. Did that mean her mom was gone like his own?
He doubted it.
She just smiled at him. "I guess it's ready then. Could you get me two bowls please?" She asked, turning off the flame on the stove. He nodded, not forcing her to answer the question – and for that, she was grateful.
"Achoo! Uhm, excuse me."
He looked at her slightly pink face. "You're going to get sick." He stated flatly, handing the bowls over to her. She laughed and poured the soup in. "Nah, I don't think so. I feel fine." She reassured him as he placed the bowls on the table, together with a spoon for each of them.
Cough. Cough.
"I don't think so." He pointed out, watching as she continued to cover her mouth. "Hmph." She snorted in between coughs. He smirked at this. When her coughing fit ended, she held her spoon and began eating.
He looked at his own bowl, unable to stop the tugging of his lips. It had been a while since he had this soup. After all, the only person who ever cooked it for him…was his mother. He started eating, and he found himself staring at an empty bowl a few minutes later.
He felt warmer for some reason.
And he had a feeling it wasn't just because of the soup.
-
-
She did get sick.
Surprisingly, he volunteered to bring her homework and copy his notes for her. Iruka had stared at him in disbelief when he asked for her address.
Nonetheless, he reached her apartment and knocked on her door. She opened it a few seconds later, looking pretty much like he had when he was sick.
Then he realized…
She lived alone too.
"Woah! This place is awesome! I never even knew it existed until now…"
He just watched her look to the front, the lake amazed her more than he thought it would. He smirked. He liked that about her – she found happiness in things, no matter how small they were.
"I've been practicing here for fire jutsus since I was a small kid…"
She grinned at the distant look on his face. She knew – he was reminiscing of the times when he practiced here before…when they were still alive.
"Want a demonstration?" He asked, seeming to be shaken off his earlier thoughts. She shrugged. "Sure. We came here to practice, didn't we?"
He smirked as he began to form hand signs.
Ever since they died, he never brought anyone here. This place was mostly known only to the Uchihas…so he was basically the only one who used this as a training ground for the past few years.
It was his sanctuary. He came here to be alone - away from the suffocating aura in his house, away from all the stares that annoyed him.
And yet like he felt more at peace when she was there.
Maybe he should bring her here to train more often.
He never had a close friend before – so he didn't exactly know what good would come out of having one.
Now he knew vaguely just why people wanted friends to hang out with…or simply talk to.
They make a person feel like they're needed.
And with her, he actually felt like he was worth something.
He wasn't the young prodigy.
He wasn't the handsome boy with the piercing eyes.
He wasn't the sole survivor of the Uchiha massacre.
He wasn't the younger brother of Uchiha Itachi.
He was merely Sasuke.
"Hopefully we'd be able to finish this test unscathed, ne?" She said to lighten the mood. He merely crossed his hands in front of his chest. "Hn." He replied.
This was it. The final exam in the Academy. She sighed, looking at her hands.
She nearly jumped when a hand touched her elbow. She turned to him. "You're shaking." He stated, looking at her with his emotionless eyes. No one else noticed it, but she saw the concern in them. She managed to force out a chuckle.
"I guess I'm just a bit nervous, that's all." She said. "Well, don't be." He said, releasing her arm from his grasp. She rolled her eyes at this. "Easy for you to say."
Her breath hitched when the door to the examination room opened. Iruka stepped out, followed by an uncertain Ami. They watched as she walked stiffly, stopping when she noticed them.
Her expression changed like someone had turned on a switch. She smiled brightly at Sasuke. "Good luck, Sasuke-kun!" She exclaimed happily. Then she turned to the girl beside him. She smirked at her anxious face.
"Heh, good luck to you as well, forehead. You're going to need it…badly."
She flipped her hair and walked away.
"Haruno Sakura."
Her eyes widened when Iruka called her name. She stood up, almost robotically and took one last look at Sasuke. He nodded at her and she smiled when he held her hand and gave it a light squeeze.
"Here goes nothing."
He watched as she walked to Iruka who gave her a reassuring nod as they both entered the door. He closed his eyes, knowing that she would ace the test for sure.
She was strong.
"I can't believe we finally graduated!" She whispered excitedly as they both walked down the stage. "Congratulations on being the top students Sasuke, Sakura. I'm proud of both of you." Iruka said smiling as they found their way back to their seats.
"Thank you, Iruka-sensei!" She exclaimed happily. Sasuke smirked. "Hn." The ceremony went by in a flash. Soon, they were all standing up and everyone was leaving.
She had a sad smile on her face as she watched her classmates being hugged by their parents, looking as happy as ever. Even now, after everything she worked hard for...she didn't have her parents to share her victories with.
Sasuke held her wrist. "Let's go." He said, lightly tugging on her arm.
Her smile brightened.
Because she remembered she had the next best thing.
"Sure! I can't wait. This is the first time you're treating me to a restaurant after all!" She said laughing. He turned his head to the side. "Che. I treat you to Ichiraku all the time." He said in a matter-of-factly tone.
She shook her head. "Well, this one's different!" She pointed out, dragging him to the direction she wanted. He just smirked, but his eyebrows furrowed when she stopped walking.
"Wha-"
"Hey, that's Naruto, right?" She asked, referring to the boy sitting on one of the swings. His head was downcast, and she swore she could feel his sadness from meters away. "I didn't see him in the ceremony earlier…" She murmured.
"He wasn't eligible to graduate."
Her eyes widened. "What?! Th-that's unreasonable." She said, looking at the blonde sadly. Sasuke just shrugged. "The dobe didn't pass the test and-"
"Stop calling him that. He's been through enough." She interrupted. He watched as she continued looking at Naruto, her face deep in thought.
Finally, she started walking again, dragging him with her. He raised an eyebrow. "The restaurant's this way…"
She didn't reply and merely walked closer to Naruto. She stopped in front of him and he looked up when he noticed her shadow cast above him.
"Hey Naruto!" She greeted. He forced out a toothy grin. "Hey Sakura-chan! Sasuke-teme!" He replied with a hoarse voice she barely recognized. She couldn't help but let her smile falter when she noticed his blood-shot eyes.
He must have been crying.
"What are you guys still doing here?" He asked, watching the other people leave in the background. Sasuke raised an eyebrow when he saw Sakura's determined face.What are you up to?
"Come on! You can eat in the restaurant with us." She exclaimed, pulling him up from the swing. Naruto's eyes widened and he shook his head, eyes averting from Sakura to Sasuke.
"Nah, it's okay. You guys must be celebrati-"
"Well as they say, the more the merrier. Right, Sasuke?" She said. He seriously didn't believe that, but he couldn't help but nod at her delighted face anyway. "See! It's settled then!" She said, fully pulling Naruto up on his feet.
Sasuke thought he never saw the blonde boy happier.
Since it was Naruto, that's definitely saying something.
Sakura linked her arms with the blonde as she continued to grip Sasuke's wrist. "Let's go then! Sasuke's paying, so I guess you can order whatever you want, Naruto!" She said laughing.
Naruto laughed with her. They watched as the Uchiha's eyebrow twitched. "But you promised we could order anything anyway, right Sasuke?" She said with a puppy dog pout.
He sighed and nodded, smirking when she embraced him in a bear hug. "Thanks Sasuke-kun, you're the greatest friend ever!" She exclaimed, then once again linked her arms with Naruto. They walked side-by-side, with her in the middle.
The link.
And he realized she was the one who tied him back to reality.
After so many years of isolating himself from everyone, he formed bonds.
Bonds that meant so much to him, even if he seemed nonchalant.
Because of her, he opened himself once more.
And he learned to trust again.
Blood on the floor. Blood on the walls.
Everywhere.
He gasped for breath, looking at the dead bodies unbelievingly.
No…it wasn't possible.
He ran to his house.Surely kaa-san and outo-san weren't dead. They can't be…
He quickly opened the door.
Aniki! He exclaimed, relieved to see his older brother, but then his eyes widened when he saw what lay below him.
Kaa-san… Outo-san…
He looked at his brother with scared eyes, expecting him to be as horrified as he was. Instead he saw the Mangyenkou staring back ruthlessly. So he did what a frightened boy would do...
Run.
You are weak.
Hate me.
And when you have gained power…
Kill me.
He bolted upright, gasping for breath as he stared at his shaking hands. That dream again. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists to stop them from shaking so much.
Still, his irregular breathing and fast heartbeat didn't stop.
He tensed when he felt something move beside him. Sakura sat up on her own sleeping mat and scratched her tired eyes and blinked them until her vision was no longer blurry. He relaxed, remembering that they were on a mission.
The pink-haired girl looked at him.
"Are you alright? You should sleep you know. We have to wake up early to get a head start tomorrow and-"
She stopped talking when she felt someone wrap his arms around her waist. "Sasuke?" She called out. He didn't reply. That was when she noticed him shaking. Her eyes softened as she wrapped her arms around him.
"It's alright. I have nightmares too." She said, patting him on the back. "This one's different." His voice came out muffled because his head rested on her shoulder.
She closed her eyes. He never told her in detail what happenedthat night.
But she understood.
So she held him tighter, assuring him that she would never go away. A smirk formed on his face, and she felt it. He was content with her just holding him. He was able to sleep peacefully after that…
Because she was there.
Her presence was different from anyone else he knew.
She understood him, listened to him, loved him.
She proved him wrong, in more ways than one.
He wasn't alone.
Author's Note: Phew, done…finally xD So umm…chapter sequel, epilogue, good enough or delete? It seems rushed, but I hope you guys still liked reading it. I've been thinking of making a chapter sequel – that would be slightly following their genin days in the manga, but of course, with different results…although I'll only be releasing that one when I finish one of my other stories. What do you guys think? :)
A review would be a really good birthday present…no matter how belated it is ;D
- Gabbeh