This is sort of a spin-off of the original story – only with the Naruto characters and personalities, so the plot isn't mine…sorry…
Hope you enjoy it anyway!
-the title is the same-
Voices of a Distant Star
I have loved many things.
Like the clouds in the scorching Summer heat,
and rain that freezes the skin;
The scent of cool Autumn breezes,
and the gentle softness of the earth during Spring;
The cosiness of a convenience store at the dead of the night;
The slight chill in the air after school;
The smell of the blackboard duster;
The roar of the faraway truck,
echoing deep in the night…
I wanted us to experience them together, always—
because only you had opened my eyes to these simple wonders…
-line-
CHAPTER 1The world.
A slender figure of a boy sat in a narrow pilot cockpit, the iridescent glow of the ozone layer beneath him breathtakingly beautiful. He wasn't paying it any attention, however, as his dark eyes watched the smaller and duller glow of a mobile screen. The pale fingers of his right arm pressed the buttons on the small device with practiced ease. The other, equally pale, arm was slid absently, out of habit, in a raised metal case of the cockpit – the controls. The phone seemed to beep brightly with every push of its buttons.
Until just a while ago, the world vaguely meant a place I could reach with my mobile.
The boy's dark eyes looked at the message one last time, reading it quietly to himself. He was always one to be careful.
But now…He frowned slightly and bent closer to the tiny screen to retype a phrase or two. The phone beeped again.
Now, as the distance between us widens…
His thumb finally pushes the green button. His face grows blank again and his shoulders relaxed by a margin.
Even a text message…The frown appeared again. This time, there was not only deep annoyance, but also a small hint of sadness swimming in its depths. Pale, pink lips pursed itself with the feeling. They parted to let the hushed words whisper, "I can't believe this…"
Even the text message is taking an awfully longer time to send…The boy sighed and slumped into his seat. "Well, it can't be helped, I guess…" – work stuff gets priority on the network after all…
He turned to finally notice the surroundings, his dark hair framing his alabaster face almost ethereally with the ozone's glow. Yet, his mind wasn't thinking anything close to beauty. His dark eyes were thinking of something deeper even as they took in the picturesque view.
The world's borders are disappearing, bit by bit…Anyone may have wished to be in his place. He was a pilot, one of the few specially chosen to protect the world, and would be deemed a hero if he were to return victorious in his fights. He was in a position many envied and would have taken without a second thought. Then again, he wasn't just any simple person having such far-fetched dreams for far-fetched places. He was slightly aware of his pale-gray mecha – a mechanical robot specially designed for use in battle for human pilots against the aliens that threatened to invade the planet – hovering quite aimlessly in the endless space, with a few stray clouds of the atmosphere circling its lower limbs like ghostly bracelets.
There are times when I lose track of where I am.
The boy looked down after a long while. His dark eyes were absent as they noted that the message had finally been sent. Without a second thought, he pressed the exit for the program.
-line-
Year 2047; the era of machines and the latest technology, and the time of change and fast-paced lifestyles. Except that the world wasn't really that filled with machines and high technology. And change – it was rare and far in between. Life was carried out almost in the same routine. Every morning, as the sun rose from its bed of horizon, the people would awake. Working adults would hurry off to their respectful destinations and school children would dawdle or rush their way to the old buildings built just for their education as housewives and kindly mothers waved after them. Fashion was a mere entertainment, and people only wore what they felt comfortable in. The world had finally attained a level of peace for itself and – for now, it seemed – would lull in it for quite a while more. The usual beggar would be quite the shock in such a society.
And this of course applies to the small town of Konoha, where change was even slower than the other parts of the world. Perhaps the only things that proved that it was quite the futuristic society would be its few towering metal skyscrapers that weren't really metal but a more sophisticated material that was stronger than metal but lighter and more sturdy than any concrete. Some were there for surveillance sake while others were for living in. It is on one of these buildings that we find a blonde boy sitting quietly with a plain book in his hands. Its cover read something of equal normalcy, 'English for High School Entrance Exams'.
Blue eyes that seemed to be a reflection of the sky itself followed the words he read, his lips silently mouthing them. The snow fell, ignored around him, in its light floating way. The sudden melodious tune that rang from his dark pant pocket of his uniform made him start. Still, the boy didn't say anything. His tanned hands simply took the small phone out. He had a message.
To the only dobe that I've ever known, you must be well.
The boy's azure eyes didn't shift as it read the message. His book lay forgotten on the cold ground.
It should be winter where you are, so it must be cold…
Nothing stirred around the boy.
How're you coping with your studies? Going smoothly, I hope?
He finally turned away from the phone's screen to look to the skies.
You had better do well. Remember my tips to you and you'll do just fine.
The phone lay warm in his hands – absent, but not really forgotten. The snow still fell about him like soft tears.
-line-
The thick clouds of the barren planet parted like wispy smoke in the wake of a pair of mechas that had suddenly rocketed from the sky.
I arrived at Mars yesterday.
The mechas now streaked across the sky, white residue of the clouds trailing like jet streams.
Flew over the Olympus Mons, Valles Marineris and also passed by the Tharsis ruins.
Huge towers of misshapen rock bent over the hard grounds of the planet. A pale-gray mecha stood, seeming small and unimportant under the large objects – which were actually destroyed buildings melted under the planet's harsh sun. The mecha stood still and unmoving as it surveyed the scene. Its joints didn't even groan as it rose gracefully from its settled form on its metal haunches.
They're far vaster than they looked in the textbooks…
The empty valley seemed to yawn to the empty space in an attempt to swallow it in.
It's true. The Solar System doesn't belong to the Earth alone.
-line-
The blonde boy pulled another book from his schoolbag. His eyes were hidden by his golden bangs. His thoughts were silent.
We're starting training tomorrow.
Tanned fingers flipped slowly through the book, his actions almost reverend. The silence still lingered.
Don't give up, Naruto.
The boy's lips turned up into a soft smile as he touched a certain picture in the book. The words under it clearly read, 'Tharsis Ruins'. His voice was gruff as he whispered, "You saw this…? Wow…"
The smile abruptly disappeared and the boy grew quiet again. As the sun set and the sky turned dark, the still from of the blonde boy still hadn't moved.
-line-
Not too long ago, Uchiha Sasuke and I were in the same class. We were friends…
Sort of.
-line-
The Social Study teacher was droning. And it was quite a feat, considering that it was the best teacher in the school – Umino Iruka.
"Ever since the first expedition to Mars in 2036 discovered evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence, the world has been in a state of excitement," Iruka intoned as he scribbled the main points on the board. A few of the students, mainly the girls, were copying them down and diligently listening. The others either dozed or attempted to look attentive. Iruka was quite known for his temperamental personality. He seemed quite absent today though, and half the class was already in dreamland. Still, the soft-spoken man continued, "You've all heard of the Tharsis Ruins. The first expedition began their analysis of it right away. Even now, the remarkable Tharsian technology they found there is still being studied…"
Near the back of the class, one Uzumaki Naruto was being one of the few students diligently hanging on to the teacher's every word. He liked the man, and besides, he didn't want to slip back into his slacking lifestyle.
"Though that first expedition met with a tragic end, at the hands of the afore-mentioned life forms, they still continue," Iruka finally ended the talk and gathered back his wits that named him the one and only temperamental teacher. The class straightened and started in their seats as the man banged the book he was holding on his desk. A decidedly friendly smile spread across his face. His brown eyes flickered in concern to his favourite blonde sitting near the back. The boy had been the only one that had not reacted to his sudden change. He sighed and looked back to the class.
-line-
But Sasuke…
-line-
Naruto had suddenly found his eyes drawn to the empty seat just to his left. He barely heard Iruka's announcement.
"This may come to a surprise for some of you but a student from this class…"
-line-
…is no longer on this planet.
-line-
"Oi, Naruto!"
The familiar voice made him turn. Naruto forced a small grin and greeted the brunette. The other boy grinned back, looking almost dog-like with the small action, and fell in step with him on the short way to collect their shoes (1). The Inuzuka babbled enthusiastically about random things before suddenly asking, "What's your number for tomorrow?"
It took Naruto a moment to grasp what the question had been about. It finally clicked and he replied easily. "Fifteen."
The blonde blinked as the other now stopped and froze in an exaggerated shock. "No way! You serious? Just my luck…I'm right after you!"
Naruto frowned. What was wrong with him being before his friend? He decided to make the question known.
"Nah, it's just that you've gotten so smart suddenly in Junior High…I don't think I'll even stand a chance if I sit behind you! You'll probably take all my luck away or something! Besides, you're gonna make me look bad when the results come in," Kiba explained sheepishly with his usual banter. Naruto grinned and hit his friend playfully on the head.
"Hey, hey, you're just being silly! If you wanna be smart like me, you gotta study, you know?" he retorted and laughed at the other boy's flailing hands.
"Stop that! You're gonna make me even more stupid!" Kiba huffed indignantly as Naruto pulled his shoe from his box. "And study? Bah, I hate studying! I wish someone else could take the entrance exams for me…"
"You know that's impossible," the familiar dry voice cut any more of Kiba's ranting. Naruto greeted the lazy looking boy brightly. "Hey Shika."
Shikamaru nodded simply to the blonde and didn't bother to answer. It was too troublesome for him. Naruto didn't mind. He had been friends with the genius long enough to understand his behavioural patterns. His head suddenly snapped up at the mention of a particular name.
"Sasuke's one lucky guy! I bet he's probably enjoying himself, flying around in a mecha!"
Shikamaru looked at Kiba in bored interest. "Hm?"
"Yeah, you know the human-piloted machines they use to scout out Thrarsians – a robot!"
Naruto silently placed his shoes on the floor as the conversation went on. It had apparently attracted the other students as well. Now, stout Chouji joined in, in his hands a bag of chips as usual. "Really? But why was he chosen anyway?"
"Maybe 'cause his cool?" Ino put in cheekily and leaned against the bored-looking Shikamaru. Sakura now waltzed in and added chirpily. "And also probably 'cause he did so well in everything!"
Naruto continued putting on his shoes quietly at the banter. Kiba was pouting. "They should have picked me then!"
The group burst into laughter. Ino stuck out her tongue. "If they had chosen you, we would fear for our lives about now!"
Naruto still kept his silence as the small group roared to life yet again.
-line-
Apparently, Sasuke was selected randomly in some country – and because of his family.
-line-
Kiba glared and crossed his arms. "Well, it's gotta be a lot better than having to bury our noses in books. I'd take aliens any day!"
As their attention was elsewhere, Naruto slipped out. The last he heard was Sakura's romantically dreamy voice.
"What I wouldn't give to be up there…"
-line-
Exams and stuff; they can be a bore. And Sasuke, lucky?
Yeah, I think so too…
I guess.
-line-
The sun shone clear down the sky and the clouds were few. It was definitely a nice day. Naruto wasn't caring about that as he cycled back home, though. He was thinking of a certain raven. His orange scarf flapped freely behind him.
Come to think of it, Sasuke was smart – and athletic. He had been popular and had been blessed with good-looks. He had seemed snobbish, but that was only a front for his quiet, lonely nature. Even so…
Naruto frowned at the jumble of thoughts. He had hated the boy before but gradually got to know the real him. They had grown rather close soon after. Still—
Even so, he was just a Junior High kid, like me. It's kind of crazy sometimes…
Naruto started as a loud rumble shook his very being. Just a few dozen kilometers from him, a spaceship pushed through the atmosphere. It was probably one of the prototype crafts Konoha's mechanics were testing judging from its rather small size. It didn't stop him from being awed, though. He blew a small cloud of misty warm air as he watched it fly. The Lysithea had definitely been much bigger. He paused in his route as his thoughts ran back to the recent past. Sasuke's voice still rang clear in his mind.
Hey dobe, look at that spaceship!
-lineflashbackline-
Naruto was in awe. He had never seen anything so big before. He felt small under it and wondered how it could stay flying so high in the sky with its immense size and weight.
"Look!" Sasuke's voice was heard above the engine's deafening roar. Naruto turned to look at the slightly smiling raven. Naruto couldn't help but smile back. Sasuke was the rare one to smile, and when he did, it seemed even more contagious than his own wider one. A strong gust of wind whipped their hair about their faces and Naruto's smile grew at the strangely attractive view of Sasuke looking wild and excited. As usual, Sasuke knew more about the spaceship than him. Sasuke knew anything more than him.
"That must be the Lysithea, of the UN Space Force," Sasuke's voice was lost for a moment as he turned back to the low-flying ship. His white shirt flapped against their constricting school vest to try and fly with the wind. Sasuke was the only guy in school who really bothered with wearing the school vest and Naruto could see a little now why he always had to wear it. He almost laughed with the thought. It was forgotten as soon as Sasuke spoke again. "The crew members are called cosmonauts…"
"Well, it's huge…" Naruto commented, still in awe, and moved to unlock his bike. "It must be for the third Tharsian expedition. I wonder if they've decided on the crewmembers. Don't you think it'll be cool if someone from Konoha was picked?"
Naruto hadn't noticed it then but Sasuke was quiet. The other boy hadn't retorted to his 'nonsense' yet. Perhaps if he had…
"Let's stop by the convenience store."
-line-
It was raining. Naruto hated rain. He despised it. Still, he had gotten stuck in it – with Sasuke, nonetheless – and both had run for the nearest shelter. They found it in a small bus stop that they had always passed on their way home. It was then that he had finally noticed Sasuke for something more than just the school's ace student as he watched Sasuke dry himself. He was quite astounded, really, when he found himself gaping at the smooth skin of the slightly shorter boy or how perfect his profile looked from the side or how sexy the other moved without even meaning to seem sexy.
And when Naruto had been noticed – here the blonde clearly expected a snide remark – the wet raven-haired boy merely smiled. Naruto had blushed but to put up with the awkward silence that followed, and while waiting for the rain to pass, he decided to draw a Tharsian. Sasuke's playfulness was revealed that day – Naruto really couldn't think of the Tharsian being a cute 'ghostly-looking' octopus – and somehow, they bonded truly after.
Naruto had allowed the other boy a ride back home on the back of his bike for the first time when the rain passed. They were still having fun, until a group of four mechas roared over them. Naruto had pointed it out and smiled. He knew Sasuke would comment, either way. And though he hadn't expected the other to whisper quietly how beautiful the machines looked, he had agreed. There was silence after that and Naruto had started when Sasuke had unexpectedly bent down to his ear.
"Naruto?"
It was even more startling to the blonde to hear his name being said so quietly by the raven. Sasuke must be serious to have said it that way. He never used Naruto's first name unless it was something really important.
"You know, I…I'm…"
The quiet voice made Naruto shiver a little with ominously. He didn't really like the feeling in his gut.
I'm going to pilot one of those…
And Naruto's eyes had widened.
-lineflashbackline-
Mizuki, the school's guidance counselor was carrying out his job properly that day and not slacking off as usual. It was near the end of the school year and as per his job description, he was to 'help' the students in their choices of High Schools. He thumbed through the papers on the table and looked to the blank looking boy sitting across the table from him . He couldn't believe that the same boy had been the mischievous, loud-mouthed prankster in his elementary years – as reported according to the papers. The boy looked too solemn for it. Then again, people can change within a snap of a finger…
"Right, so we'll keep Anbu High as your first choice. Sure you don't want to apply one more school, just in case? You shouldn't have problems getting into your first choice, but still…" Mizuki looked up from the papers when he heard the boy mumble something though the boy's face was still blank. "Huh?"
"Sasuke…he wanted to go to Anbu High so much. He wanted to follow in his dead brother's footsteps and studied even harder than I did…" Naruto sat in the hard school chair, unsure why he was telling the school's counselor – but a stranger still – about all these. His eyes glazed over as he thought about the raven sitting in the library alone during lunchtime just so he could understand the classes better, and how he always had that small, barely visible smile when greeting the blonde; a smile just for him. His blue eyes slid to the side as his thoughts turned darker. "The inefficiency of the military irks me. Why couldn't they have informed him earlier? Then he wouldn't have had to study so hard…"
…and I wouldn't have had to feel so bitter…
"If he had started the training right away, all of that would not have been necessary," Naruto told the man. Mizuki cocked his head in thought.
"Hang on," he interrupted the student abruptly as something came to mind, "I think Sasuke…Uchiha Sasuke chose to stay on in school."
Naruto started and looked up to the man in shock. The man smiled and scratched his head apologetically as he went on, "If I remember correctly, the candidates receive the notification way in advance and get on with life as usual for a few years."
-line-
The train crossing traffic light clanged noisily as its thin barriers lowered before the only pedestrian there to cross the tracks. His blonde head hung low in deep thought.
Most of them join right away out of curiosity or ambition, but Uchiha wasn't like that…
Snow was falling again in its usual fine powder, as had been the past few days.
Was he informed?
The train finally screeched past on the tired tracks, the freezing gusts of air throwing the powders of snow into a whirl.
Let me see…I remember now…Didn't your generation have to take some compulsory test when you were babies? That would be about the time the Tharsian Expedition began. Maybe he had known since then.
The blonde didn't even look up as the barrier rose once again in its noisy clamour. Small clouds of breath wisped about his face and the snow resumed its gentle fall. Pale orange sneakers with related screaming orange crunched against the cold ground.
Sasuke…
What is it like to live a life that has already been carved out for you?
The boy pursed his lips and stuffed his hands deeper into his pant pocket. The image of a dark-haired boy, cheeks flushing quite prettily from the recent run, swam into view. As usual, the boy had been stoic, with his usual blank face on. Noticing the blonde, though, the mask fell away to allow the familiar small smile that seemed especially reserved for the said blonde.
You're a natural athlete, Sasuke.
The blonde remembered distinctly what he had told the other boy that day.
Don't let it go to waste when you're in Senior High, you hear me? You tend to do that, you know. Go join some club or something…
And that day when the rain had fallen so heavily over them that they had had to seek shelter in a small bus stop—
Would you want to see a real alien, dobe?
He had answered so casually—
Me, I don't think I'll be interested in that…
They had laughed; Sasuke had laughed. They had had fun…
Hey dobe, think we can get into the same Senior High?
The memory of him sitting so comfortably with the other in the classroom faded with the last of the raven's voice in his ears. The blonde realized that he had stopped in his tracks. He was standing before the small, familiar bus stop. It's top was laden with snow but it hadn't changed much.
'Lucky'…?
The phone was held in his hands again.
No. He definitely wasn't.
And with that, Naruto pulled the scarf higher around his face and sat in the cozy bus stop, the phone beeping with every button that he pushed.
Don't call me 'dobe', you teme. By the way, how is it going?
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A pale-gray mecha hovered over the still surface of the planet's strange, glowing water. A boy sat in its cockpit, as still as the mecha itself, the surroundings around the mecha crystal clear from the high tech screens activated in the mecha's inner walls.
Has the training started? I bet you're slogging yourself away again, as usual.
There was distinct beep from the boy's side. A crisp voice reported suddenly, "Target at six o'clock."
The boy looked up as a flash of light glinting off metal caught his eye.
As for me, nothing's really changed.
The metallic object whistled lowly as it flew through the planet's dull air.
It's the same old life, day in, day out.
The boy's dark eyes followed it sharply. "Gotcha."
The mecha swerved in its direction and let out a barrage of bullets. The loud sounds filled the deadly air.
Oh right…
The bullets raced towards the metal.
It has started snowing here…
At the last minute, it turned and dodged them. The boy spun his mecha swiftly, black bangs lifting in the lack of gravity as he turned to prevent it from escaping his sights. The boy's eyes narrowed. He wasn't going to miss a second time.
Though, like an intermittent electronic fault, sometimes the snow comes, sometimes it doesn't.
The mecha aimed its gun and shot. The multiple bullets raced to the object again almost eagerly.
Don't think there'll be enough snow to build a snowman. I'll be bored…
This time, the bullets hit the metal surface and pierced deeper. The target instantly exploded. In the cockpit, the boy watched passively. His breath was slightly heavy with the pass of adrenaline rush and his mecha was still again.
We had the meeting session with the school's guidance counselor today. It looks like I've got a pretty good chance of entering Anbu Senior High.
The crisp voice filled the silent cockpit again. "Today's training session is now concluded. Crafts one to eight are to report back through the East Gate. Repeat…"
Let's go to Anbu High, Sasuke.
A melodious ring dispelled the other contemplative silence that followed. The boy's dark gaze slid to the phone resting just to his left. He reached automatically for it.
Together, you and I…
He sat on the edge of his cockpit, ignoring the open waters that were stretched under him a few hundred meters below. His pale fingers pressed the small buttons. Quiet came as he read the text in the phone. He had a message. After a long while, the boy finally looked up, his dark bangs covering his eyes in an unreadable expression. Still ignoring the height, he pulled his knees in a thoughtful gesture. He cradled the phone gently. "Sure…"
-line-
Naruto stepped out the small bus stop, his footsteps clearly imprinted in the slow falling snow. His gaze was turned upwards to the darkening sky.
The next spring…
He sighed, the warm mists making a small puff of cloud. He should get home soon.
I got into Senior High…alone.
-line-
Sasuke did not return.
…to be continued…
(1) in case no one knows, the Japanese have a major rule of having to take off your outside shoes when entering any building at all – though this doesn't really apply to those rich, multi-billionaire companies, it seems…
-:line line line :-
uhm, wadeya think?
Remember, it's a spin-off. The words are not fully mine…so don't sue me!
Oh yea, disclaimers apply, of course.
