A little moment that popped into my head while in class. :P
Title: The Constraint of Leaden Laws
Word/Prompt: Conscience
Warnings/Notes: A reeeeally short piece. Happens right after Sasuke collapses beside Itachi's corpse; Kakashi finds him.
Rating: PG
Summary: A moment of inner reflection, leading to a decision.
He prided himself on being a man of necessity, a tool of practicality; there is nothing unneeded to which he paid much thought, and even less to those he deemed complete wastes of time. As such, the dilemma of selecting what one being perceived as "right" proved to be, to him, one of the greatest unnecessary elements of achievement. The patronage of such a notion leads many to a falsely gratifying concealment of goals.
The world is not a kind one, at all must realize that in the field of decisions, moralities and otherwise begin to blur; sorting through the muddled lines only served to complicate the basic selection of choices, where the real substantial solutions lie singularly on the end results. There is no real definition of what is right or wrong, but only the ultimate assessment of whether or not the ideal outcome was achieved, and if the consequences suffered was worth the act.
It is with this in mind that he lifts his beaten, broken student from the muddy ground, untangling a battered fist from the brother's cold, stiff fingers; the same thought which spurs him to brush the ebony hair from loosely shut lashes, and to heft the limp form onto a knee.
He does not wipe up the blood or bandage the other's wounds; does not check for broken bones or any fatal injury. His mind is not clouded with the overwhelming musk of death nor the weighted scent of dark grief and bleak sorrow at revenge found wanting; instead, it is fixated on the distant memory of badly suppressed smiles, fiery determination in onyx eyes, the sting of bitter betrayal, and the stifling constraint of honoring leaden laws.
He remembers a boy and the man who failed to save him.
Sighing in resignation, Kakashi loops his arms under Sasuke's body and, bracing the younger man against his chest, prepares for the long journey home.
- End
Sentence Prompt: The Hokage has ordered that Sasuke was to be killed upon being found. Kakashi is torn between doing so and otherwise.