Okay, so I know that a lot of people won't like this story, because it's like a 'what-if' type of plot. If Sasuke came back after training with Orochimaru... blah blah blah... but I really wanted to do a plot like this one, because being an outcast to society really is intriguing, even if it may be a bit cruel, and I thought this would be how he deals with it.
I hope some of you might enjoy this, and if I get enough reviews, I just might continue it!
A soft breeze blew through the trees as a dark haired boy watched the sunrise. He liked this time of day because no one was awake to bother him, no one could whisper behind his back when he walked through town. Ever since coming back to Konoha after being a missing-nin, people hadn't been of the friendlier sort. Instead people stopped and stared as he passed, or went stiff. Either way, they feared him. He had contemplated resigning as a ninja, since he technically wasn't one anymore, but had decided against it. It was the only thing he could really do, and without it he had nothing left. So his decision made, he still carried his kunai, shuriken, and katana with him. Not the greatest choice for a would-be criminal.
Sasuke Uchiha. The name struck fear in the hearts of ordinary citizens, and disrespect to the ninja's who knew him. He clenched his fist, his nails almost drawing blood from his palm. He was peaceful only at sunrise, when no one else was there to hate him. But he still carried the anger of the daytime, when everyone was out living their daily lives.
Soon shops started to open as people went about their business. Sasuke watched the villagers scurry about, worrying over tedious things, and scoffed. He never did think highly of the capabilities of humans. Human himself, but he felt like a monster inside. Not quite like Naruto or Gaara, but like something entirely different. Maybe the villager's words had gotten to him, after all, he was a missing-nin. And that's why Tsunade had assigned him a 'guide'.
Hyuga Hinata, the shy and uselessly quiet Byakugan girl. It had been a good choice on Tsunade's part though, considering that Sasuke had decidedly become mute, except for those rare moments of absolute necessity or in an emotional outrage. Of course, her father hadn't been too happy about the arrangement, but it was final.
The only people who were happy about Sasuke's return – because everyone else surely wasn't – were Naruto and Sakura, but even then, it wasn't the same as when they had been Team 7. Even though they didn't like the silence that Sasuke had given them, they smiled at him. They (or rather, Naruto) had treated him to ramen on occasion, and they both tried to act as if nothing had happened. But everything did happen. Sasuke reminded them of it everyday with the pain of not hearing a word from him.
Sasuke knew that their actions, even if done in good nature – were all an act to pretend nothing happened. He knew it with all his heart and wanted them so badly to stop trying so hard, but even they were hopeful. Even they had wants, and he respected that even if he didn't comply, they deserved something.
"I thought you'd be here." Hinata sat down beside him on the cliff that overlooked the village. Hinata didn't stutter when she was around Sasuke, because she knew he wouldn't pelt her with cruel words of not being enough. After all, he never responded to anything anymore.
Sasuke heard her, but ignored her and continued to watch the villagers sell their wares, hang clothes to dry and a million other things. Hinata took this silence as she always did and pulled out a map. She had figured out long ago that if he would say where they'd be going, he'd at least show her by way of a finger on a map.
She placed the map in front of him, unrolling it carefully. "What do you want to do today?" She asked quietly.
Sasuke crossed his legs and regarded her blankly before resting his head in his hand. He looked contemplatively over the map of Konoha before pointing at the Hokage's building.
Hinata nodded. "I guess Godaime-sama wants to talk with you?" She asked as she rolled the map back up.
They stared out to the horizon until the sun rose fully into the day. Hinata was used to this routine that played out everyday. She would come to the cliff, knowing Sasuke would be there. Then she'd watch the sunrise with him and ask him where they'd go that day. Sometimes he followed her around while she did errands for Tsunade, or she followed him while he did what he wanted.
Sasuke had few places he liked to go. The training grounds were one, so he'd never lose his only abilities. He also had taken a liking to the hot springs, as when he was a missing-nin, there had been few and far in between bathes. And lastly there was the Hokage's office. Sometimes Hinata would meet up with him and Naruto for ramen, or Sakura for drinks of some sort. But that was rare.
"I wonder what it might be." Hinata wondered aloud. "She usually just wants to check up on you; after all, Orochimaru was her teammate right?"
Sasuke knew she didn't mean to be blunt, but knew that she was better company than some of the others that had been nominated. Hinata always treated him kindly – something that he didn't usually get anymore. Hinata was also the exact opposite of himself, so with that fact alone it was easier to be around her. Unlike Sakura, Hinata was genuine and wasn't afraid to express her feelings. Sakura always hid hers; trying to feel comfortable under the pretense that she enjoyed Sasuke's company.
It was amazing how much Hinata could change when she knew she wouldn't be ridiculed by what someone else thought.
"I'm… sure it's nothing…" Sasuke said, his voice rough with disuse.
Hinata smiled. "Don't be so negative." Hinata said softly. "I'm sure that one day you'll earn a mission. Maybe not something higher up, but something at least."
Sasuke couldn't help but feel grim at the comment, and after a couple more minutes of watching the sky change into its day colour of blue, he got up. Hinata followed and together they made their way to the Hokage's office.
---
When they got to the Hokage's office, Hinata knocked twice on the door then opened it. Tsunade saw no need to say 'come in' when she knew who it would be. Hinata always rapped on the door the same way.
"Good morning Hinata, Sasuke." Tsunade greeted them duly. "I have a request to make of both of you."
She gestured for them to sit down, and they did. Sasuke folded his hands in his lap and Hinata crossed her legs awkwardly. Their silence prompted Tsunade to start speaking again.
"So, since I called you on the pretense that I need to talk to both of you and not just Sasuke, let's start." She eyed Hinata over folded hands that were propped up on the desk. "How exactly is Sasuke as a citizen of Konoha?" She asked.
Hinata glanced at Sasuke, who still had a look of indifference. "Er… he's hasn't caused any trouble, and he's p-perfectly f-fine with the exception that people t-tend to st-stare at him while we're around t-town." She stated, her stutter coming back into play.
"Has he done anything out of the ordinary that could cause trouble to Konoha and its allies?" The Godaime asked.
"N-no, he hasn't."
Tsunade sighed. "Alright, good." She turned her attention to Sasuke. "Don't worry, I'll only be asking you yes or no questions." She assured him before starting. He nodded in understanding, remaining as indifferent as always. "Is Hinata a good guide for you?"
Sasuke nodded again, smiling for a fraction of a second.
"Does she treat you the same as everyone else and not any different?"
He nodded again.
"Alright, that's all for now. Thanks for dropping by for this." Tsunade paused before adding, "The only reason I do this is because everyone wants me to. I respect both of you enough to not do anything stupid, even if you were against us for a time Sasuke, I don't worry over the details of you being here now. Remember that. Though I will say this: I hate that you took Orochimaru's footsteps, but I'm glad you haven't turned out like he had."
Sasuke smirked in response and got up; bowing his head, knowing that meant he was dismissed. Hinata got up with him and muttered a small 'thank-you' to the Godaime. Tsunade could only smile – mother-like in the presence of the two young ninja.
---
When they got outside, they sat on a nearby bench while Hinata started unrolling the map again. "It's nice of her to keep believing in the good in people, isn't it?" She asked rhetorically as she set the map on his lap.
Sasuke nodded slightly, looking over the familiar map before pointing to the training grounds.
Even though Sasuke knew he wouldn't get any rigorous or dangerous missions, he still felt the need to train incessantly. This was one thing Hinata had noticed about him earlier on as a guide. He never even had to look at his targets anymore, no doubt with the power of his Sharingan. Hinata shivered slightly in memory of his last training session three days prior. When Sasuke looked over to her in confusion (it was a very hot day) Hinata shrugged.
"It's cold?" She said quietly, her face turning a slight pink.
Sasuke smirked, knowing she meant no harm in her fright, and continued throwing shuriken at the tree, hitting his desired target every time. Three days before, he had lined Hinata up with the tree, bending the throw of his shuriken to go around her. It was needless to say that Hinata was scared stiff, but albeit believing in Sasuke to not hit her once. And he hadn't.
Usually Sasuke showered and cleaned up after training, but today he had a date with Naruto and Sakura. They wanted to show Sasuke a new restaurant that had opened while he'd been gone. Sasuke had brushed off their requests for two weeks already, and finally decided to go after Hinata mentioned she'd never been there either. At least he wouldn't be stuck in an awkward silence with his old team. Hinata always had ways of starting a conversation on solid ground, so Naruto and Sakura wouldn't be trying to grasp a safe topic for the time they spent together.
Hinata followed Sasuke to the Uchiha compound, which hadn't changed a single bit since he left. She waited outside his room while he changed into fresh clothes, and then they started making their way to the restaurant. Sasuke had no doubt in his mind that it must sell ramen to get Naruto so psyched up about it.
When they got there, the waiter faltered for a second before telling them that Naruto and Sakura had already made reservations before, and led them to where they were now. When they got to the table, the waiter hurried off, not wanting to stay too long in the presence of someone so foreboding. Hinata would have liked to comfort the rising anger in Sasuke, but fell quiet as they sat down. She also knew that he was quite impatient with his old teammates as well.
"Hey Sasuke!" Sakura smiled at him. She had dropped the formalities of '-kun' since long ago. As she handed them both the menus that lay waiting for them, she tried conversation. "I'm sure you'll like this place. It's pretty good. I went here a lot with Ino and Tsunade while I was training to be a healer."
Naruto was still focusing on the menu, looking at the variety of ramen. "Wow, there's so many!" He exclaimed. Sasuke had the ghost of a smirk. Hinata was the only one who noticed it, and took it as a good sign.
"R-really Sakura?" Hinata asked.
"Yeah, it was for finally getting through a week's training. Tsunade decided to reward us because we had improved so much." Sakura explained. "Last time I went was with Ino on a lunch date though. The stir-fries are good here."
Naruto and Sasuke seemed to be ignoring the conversation. Naruto was too occupied with the choices, and Sasuke was just being anti-social using the menu as a vice. Hinata glanced over at Sasuke, asking him quietly whether he wanted anything. He shook his head slightly, his bangs falling over his face, before turning back to the choices.
When the waiter from before came over to take their orders, only Sakura and Hinata had decided. They asked for five more minutes, and the waiter willingly ran off to check on a different table.
"This one is good, Sasuke." Hinata pointed out one of the dishes. "I've visited the country that makes that before on missions. Everything from there is usually mildly spicy and rather good."
After that, Sasuke picked one of the dishes from that country, while Naruto and Sakura only exchanged confused glances – she hadn't stuttered, and Sasuke had listened. Naruto also chose his, and they ordered together. After that, there was silence. Hinata was thinking up a good topic to talk about, as Sasuke relied on her for that, but found that they were mostly used up on other occasions. And she didn't want to talk about missions either; it would only get Sasuke irritated at his lack of them.
"H-have you b-been shopping w-with Ino lately?" Hinata reverted back to her nervous stuttering.
"Yeah, last week I bought this gorgeous mini-dress with her." Sakura gushed excitedly, before realizing that the guys wouldn't join in on any conversation about clothes. "And we also went to stock up on some healing stuff at the market. There's actually this crystal you can buy that amplifies your chakra…"
Hinata smiled in relief. She had gotten something going. She listened to the descriptions of all the items that Sakura bought for her healing abilities that Tsunade recommended, while Naruto made comments on how they helped in some of their missions. Sasuke listened only out of necessity for something to do.
Soon their food arrived though, and Sakura stopped talking as much. Their one-sided conversation turned to the rest of the Rookie 9, which had grown out of the 'Rookie' moniker, and the other teams. Hinata contributed a little when they talked about her team, and Suna.
Hinata breathed a sigh of relief when their lunch was finally over. It was hard not to be awkward when you were already so quiet. As they parted ways – Naruto and Sakura were going to meet up with Kakashi – Sasuke put a reluctant hand on Hinata's shoulder.
"Thanks…" He said, though you could hardly hear it.
Hinata smiled. "You're welcome." She said. "So, where do you want to go next? I have nothing to do, so whatever you want goes."
Sasuke just walked over to the nearest bench and sat down. She followed suit and just admired nature for a while. Hinata had noticed too that Sasuke liked doing nothing. He wasn't lazy like Shikamaru could be, but he liked the peace. And after awhile, he could really ignore all the stares he got, and he could relax. Hinata liked this about him. She knew that they could've been doing anything else, but peace didn't come all that often for them.
Sometimes they got into disputes on the streets with people who thought Sasuke had wronged them. Hinata hated it when that happened. It was really frustrating because they'd pick on her too, for just being associated with him. It was times like those when Sasuke talked – or yelled – at others. It was also times like those when he got the chance to let out his anger. Whether he did it to protect Hinata or not, she didn't know. But he did it.
After some time, Sasuke got up and sighed. She knew he was probably tired. She checked the watch she had taken to wearing. It said it was three in the afternoon. Hinata wondered idly what they'd do for the rest of the day.
They walked aimlessly for a while. Sasuke had proved more than once that he still knew his way around Konoha, and frankly didn't need a guide, but soon he got used to the fact that some one needed to watch him.
"Oh, there's Temari!" Hinata said quietly. "She's probably with Shikamaru. Whenever she comes, he ends up being her guide. Kind of like you and me." She explained timidly.
Temari noticed them and waved them over. Hinata rushed off, leaving Sasuke to follow her duly.
"Hey Hinata! What do you think of people who are extremely late and have no respect for a woman's time?" Temari asked commandingly, giving Shikamaru a pointed glare.
Hinata could only smile amusedly at the desert girl. It was a known fact that the two weren't dating, and refused to ever be like that, but sometimes…
"I think Shikamaru needs an alarm clock." Hinata answered without stuttering.
Temari grinned at her. "Good, you've gotten rid of that annoying stutter. And you're right." She turned back to Shikamaru, who already looked bored. "Well? I can't just stand at the gate all day waiting for some lazy ass to finally come get me! I am not a very dependant person you know!"
Shikamaru yawned before answering back. "Then why didn't you just leave and get lost by yourself, troublesome woman."
"Because I wanted to give you hell for it!" Temari smirked triumphantly. "Now, let's ask your darling mother what she thinks." She said mockingly, grabbing his wrist. His eyes widened and he was about to shout 'No!', when she started dragging him off.
"Think we should help him?" Hinata asked. Sasuke only smirked, folding his arms over his chest.
The day passed by slowly, like every other day, but Sasuke was used to it. So was Hinata. She had suggested he stay over at her house, since being lonely at the apartment the Hokage had given him was depressing, but he shook his head. He knew the reaction he'd get from her father. He knew there'd be a tense atmosphere as soon as he got there. But the gesture was nice at least.
Hinata led him to her house anyways, knowing the consequences. She stopped caring about the rivalry between their clans, and was more worried about the betrayal to Konoha. But she truly believed that Sasuke was no longer a threat.
"Hello Father." Hinata bowed as they entered the room. Sasuke followed suit, in proper tradition. "I've brought Sasuke over for dinner. I hope this doesn't interfere with anything." She said, forcing her voice not to stutter.
He glanced at Sasuke and nodded stiffly. "It does not." He answered, not wanting to say any more.
Hinata nodded back, and took Sasuke's hand. "Let's go to the kitchen."