"Finally," I said, "You're freed from those damn, tainted eyes."
~FLASHBACK~
I scanned the horizon before me, seeing the orange, setting sun fade behind the rolling hills, turning the sky a pinkish purple. The wind blew quickly and quietly, my hair flying from the side of my face to behind my ears. I walked slowly to a shallow hill not far from where I stood, the dying, green grass tickling my bare feet. I was on top of the hill now, facing toward the vast extent of grasslands going west, in the direction of Sunagakure.
I had nothing to live for now; no standards to live up to, no village reputation to live by, and no one to watch me live the life I was supposed to. I had nothing much to begin with, but now there wasn't the "much". All of what I was told to call family – my mother, father, two sisters, aunt, uncle, seven cousins, sister-in-law, and unborn niece – had died. My brother, though, was living somewhere up north last time I heard. The "last time I heard" was four years ago. Half of my dead family was killed by the Kyuubi over 10 years ago. My father, uncle, and three of my male cousins died at war; while one of my sisters was raped and killed at thirteen. A year or so later, my aunt committed suicide, taking her two-year-old daughter with her. About a week afterward, my brother got married, and my last male cousin, who was ten at the time, fell out of a tree at the ceremony, broke his neck, and died later that day in a hospital. My mother decided to put my youngest female cousin, who was three, up for adoption, since she couldn't handle four children alone. The orphanage she was at was set on fire later that week. My sister-in-law, who was seven months pregnant, was stabbed seventeen times in the stomach while she was out buying groceries. With too much pain and bad memories, my brother left town without a word. When I was twelve, my sister and last remaining cousin, who were fifteen and fourteen, decided to try some drugs a kid had offered them. My sister accidentally took too much, and overdosed. By the time I was fourteen, money got tight and my cousin was diagnosed with severe depression. When my mother caught a disease, which she couldn't afford to cure, my cousin couldn't take it anymore and overdosed, too, though this time on purpose. I stayed with my terminally ill mother until she died three days ago. I had no job, no money, no talent, and only the education of a thirteen-year-old.
Should I just end it all, like so many in my family had done in the past? Should I go to the next town, and hope to beg for food or shelter? Or go to where my brother was last seen, and hope that he doesn't turn me away? Maybe I should just stand here, until someone whisks me away to heaven...
I heard grass crunch a little ways away, and I turned slowly, not having reason to be afraid. I mean,
if I was killed or set on fire, who would miss me? Who would bury my corpse and weep for their loss? No one. If I were to die then, then that would be that. There was nothing in life I had to take care of... for it was gone already.
As I turned, I moved a few strands of hair from my face a behind my ears to get a better look at this person. I saw a tall man with black, long hair tied back, but with stray strands hanging on either side of his face standing in front of the mass of trees leading to a deep forest. He wore a black cloak with red clouds and long, wide sleeves, and an upturned collar, hiding his mouth. His eyes were deep onyx and he stared at me, almost questioningly. He stepped further from the forest, and closer to the little hill. He stood in a slightly defensive stance, as if expecting me to attack. A little amused, I spoke softly, "I won't attack, you know." His gaze softened a bit at my voice, but his stance didn't change. Then, I added, "Or escape."
He brought his feet together to stand normally, and said, "What are you doing out here alone?"
I smiled, "Admiring the view. Sunsets are beautiful this time of year, aren't they?"
He softened a little more, "Do you know who I am?" I shook my head slightly, and looked out at the almost completely set sun. "Are you not scared of these cloaks?"
I look back at him, "No. Should I be?"
I knew that if he wanted me to be scared, he would've hurt me by now, which he hadn't. So I said, "Who are you, sunset stranger?"
"Uchiha Itachi, Akatsuki member responsible for the Uchiha massac-"
"How old are you? Sixteen?" I looked at the sun again, but I saw him nod from my peripheral vision. I knew who he was, I didn't need to hear his past crimes.
He took a few more steps towards me, until he was right behind me, looking over my shoulder, "You look young. Fifteen, I suppose?" This time it was my turn to nod. He sighed a little. "So, what are you really doing out here alone?"
I chuckled, "Dying, most likely..."
"Dying? Why is that?"
"I have no where to go anymore, really. No one to live for but myself. I'm not sure if I even want to live anymore."
He was silent, like he understood what I was talking about. Suddenly, he spoke softly in my ear, "How about you live for me?"
I smiled. Live for him? He barely knew me, yet he wanted to keep me from death. I sort of wanted to know why, but he seemed like me: one who didn't like to elaborate on their past. This I accepted, understandingly. I looked back at him, "...Alright."
