Silence of Time
Disclaimer: Still nothing. Dang it.
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"The heart dies a slow death. Shedding each hope like leaves, until there are none. No hopes. Nothing remains."-Sayuri (Memoirs of a Geisha)
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The once emerald green leaves had faded, the color no longer vibrant, the old trees losing their strong, russet color. The sky was a stormy gray with no clouds, and the scent of ash had yet to wash away after years of rain.
His footsteps were silent as ever. It was effortless now. His trained, tired eyes looked on at the crumbling ruins of his childhood home…looking, but not seeing. His rough traveling cloak fell to his ankles, the hood concealing pale, aristocratic features. His feet wandered down once-familiar paths, his eyes no longer recognizing them. They took him past ancient homes, long-since withered flowers, high mountains that had once held proud faces, now weathered and unrecognizable.
Without realizing it, he felt the change in the texture of the ground beneath his feet. No longer was it ash and dirt, but worn wooden planks. Sasuke lifted his gaze and saw the last person he expected (wanted?) to see seated with their legs hanging off the pier.
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Naruto tensed slightly, then relaxed for some unknown reason when he noticed who it was behind him. He turned his head and his best friend (enemy?) stared right back at him. They looked each other over, noticing the changes that the weary roads and wearier years had wrought in the other.
Sasuke's obsidian eyes had taken on a slight slate gray tinge at the rims, his face still withholding traces of its handsome features. The ebony hair hung limply, his clothes travel-worn and dirty. His body still hinted at the panther-like grace that he had always had, strong muscles hidden beneath the long sleeves.
Naruto's brilliant, sapphire eyes had dimmed slightly and his face held tired lines that hadn't been there before. The naturally tan skin looked paler and the whisker marks had faded so that they were barely noticeable. He wore a white coat, red flames licking the edges and characters once elegantly stitched on the back now worn and unreadable. A slight jolt came through Sasuke's body when he noticed this, a jolt that he wasn't sure where it came from.
A silent agreement was made and Sasuke moved forward a half step. A drained smile formed on Naruto's lips as he moved over to make room for his old friend.
"…What happened?" Sasuke asked quietly, as though afraid to break this terrible, mournful silence.
"The village began to fall apart. More and more people were leaving, enemies began to attack from all side, treaties being broken…it was scary." Naruto's tone matched the brunette's.
"Something worse happened though…didn't it?" It didn't take a mind reader to see the pain in the blonde's eyes.
"Mm. They…they took everyone. Hinata was killed along with Sakura-chan in the hospital. They were trying to protect the kids in there. Lee was trying to get to the hospital with an aggravated leg wound to protect the girls, but…"He trailed off, not needing to explain further, "Neji died with Tenten. They fought over a hundred ninjas, killed them all too before they got overwhelmed. Shino and Kiba…well, we never found their bodies, just pieces. They died together too though. Ino was out with Shikamaru and Chouji. They're all gone now though. All the sensei were fighting together. Asuma would have been real proud of his son. He died shielding some Academy students who were trying to help."
Sasuke's heart was feeling steadily heavier as Naruto spoke, like boulders were falling in and not coming out. The part that (scared? He hadn't felt fear in so long that he forgot what it felt like) him the most was the expressionless mask that was his friend's face and the dead-pan voice that flowed softly from his lips.
"I take it you became Hokage?" Sasuke didn't need to gesture at the coat.
Naruto nodded, his eyes not lighting up like Sasuke had been hoping. It wasn't natural for Naruto to be so empty.
"I found out who my dad was too. Everyone saw his face every single day." There was a bitter edge to his voice now.
Sasuke didn't say anything out of confusion for a little while, then realized what he was saying. "Yondaime?"
Another nod. They sat in silence until the hazy sun set beneath the still (far too still) lake horizon. No words were needed when grief-stricken silence stretched far too tightly between them. Then where they were sitting dawned on Sasuke.
"Nothing's changed…has it?"
"No. Nothing ever will."