He mourns. He sobs. He yearns. He has fallen from grace, has descended into sin, and only one person can get him back from the depths of darkness.
But that person was long gone.
He had pushed him away. Had fought him to the death at the Valley of The End. His bitter sorrow re-surfacing, clawing deep wounds through his pale skin.
He can barely recall what had happened. He only remembers the sound of the waterfall drumming in his ears, the splash as it came into contact with the pool below. The two statues, representing great, fallen ninjas guarding the cascading water.
He doesn't understand. He never did and now, he never would. He ran, ran, ran, from that place he used to call home. What was it again- Konoha.
Yes, he was admired. He was feared. He was respected. But he threw it all away. His friends, comrades, team-mates, and most of all, his love.
He lifts a small, battle-scarred hand to brush the soft raven hair off his face, his fingers coming into contact with the wet skin.
Wait- wet?
He rubs his cheek gently, just to make sure. It was indeed wet. He pulls his fingers back and realizes he had been crying. The great and powerful Uchiha…crying?
Oh, he had gotten his revenge. But he had never gotten over his sorrow. His pain. His sadness.
But he could not afford to sit down and cry like a baby who had had his candy stolen. No. He was. He was teenage who had everything taken away from him by the village he had once sworn to protect with his life.
He had seen. He had heard. He had felt the pulsing anger of the citizens that had come to hate the Uchiha for everything they had done. Their blood-soaked history just wasn't popular among the Konoha villagers.
But he knew better.
The tears simply refused to stop falling. When Team Taka had been nothing but an event that had happened in the past, he often found himself wondering…why had he taken Karin in when all she could do was replenish his chakra?
Of course, deep down, he knew why.
She reminded him of his blond savior. After all, they had been from the same Clan, right? The…Uzumaki Clan.
But in the end, he had struck her with his powerful blade, stabbing her straight through the stomach to kill his opponent. That crafty Danzo.
He would never forgive. He would never forget.
But here he was. Lost, alone, helpless- and he hated feeling helpless.
After the Ninja War was nothing but an awful memory, people had begun to stop searching for him. Had stopped trying to take out their anger on him. He wasn't even sure if anyone remembered.
Well, anyone but him.
Oh, he was certain the blond fox Jinchuruki remembered him. For he could re-call said blond so easily.
His laugh, his smile, his constant optimism. His strength, his sorrow, his pain, his cheerful personality. It all added up to one thing. Naruto.
And how he contrasted with him.
His darkness, his cold attitude, his silent strength and quick reflexes. His pure onyx eyes that never seemed to allow happiness to light them up. His pessimism towards life in general. How it all centered around revenge.
And he was okay with that.
What he wasn't okay with was when that fox kid turned famous.
He had become a hero with thousands upon thousands of adoring females. Most who had once worshipped him.
But it wasn't the girls that bothered him.
Fresh pain invaded his body as he remembered witnessing something he had not needed to see amongst the colorful foliage of a nearby tree.
The day his dobe got married with that weak little Hyuga girl.
Those wounds were the most painful. The most blinding, white-hot pain that sent him screaming in silent agony and left him weak and trembling.
The day they had declared their love for each other.
And he could only watch as she replaced him in the hero's mind while he tended to the dying embers of his love. The only thing that had kept him sane. The only tie he had to the world that was now severed.
A sword plunged into Sasuke's chest by his own trembling hands, piercing straight through his body.
And as he drowned in his own blood, the last thing he remembered seeing was the familiar face of the dobe and his new girl at the foot of his cave, watching him.
And the last thing he ever heard was the shocked cry that came out of his blond secret lover.
He smiled and allowed himself to be taken away by the blackness. Waiting for his punishment. His torture to begin.
And he was perfectly okay with that.