Silver I

Raise my hands;

Paint my spirit gold,

And bow my head;

Keep my heart low.

'Cause I will wait I will wait for you…

He stared with disbelief at the messy pink hair, glittering green eyes, and porcelain skin. It was as though an angel of war stood in behind him. She had put up quite a fight at first. Now her escape attempts were reduced to inquisitive tugs on the rope and fidgeting with the knot around her wrist. There was no hint of chakra use. All of her fighting had been hand to hand combat.

He had hoped when his eye had managed to roam across the gray of the tree branches and sky and spotted a surprising splash of pink. Too many times his heart had spiked at a false alarm. Something had told him that this was different. So he pursued. It had taken him nearly a day, but he managed to track her down. She had been running from him the whole time, keeping just out of his reach. If he had taken a break for even a moment he would have lost her.

Once he had finally cornered her, his spirits crashed. Those beautiful green eyes he had spent only a scant few months staring into held no recognition for his face. Hesitancy knew no home in her attacks. It never appeared to dawn on her that at one point they had known each other; that they had been everything once.

Still, he had determinedly tied her hands and now spent the day and into the night dragging her back to Konoha. He had always hoped to find her and now that he had, he would not release her without getting his fair chance to have her back for good. Where there was a will, there was a way. As it just so happened, he knew where a lot of will resided in his hometown.

As they made their way through the forest, he felt her gaze burning through his back. Nerves made his muscles tense, his mind paranoid, every sense on edge. He had only been married to her for eight months before she had disappeared in the dead of the night. She had been gone nearly five years. Naruto had sworn that she was kidnapped, swept away by shadows. He had feared the worst when a year had gone by without her return. Doubts planted themselves deep within his heart when no body was ever found. She was a well known ninja, the apprentice to Tsunade herself. If someone had kidnapped her, surely they would have bragged about it by now? If she was dead, surely someone would have brought back the body? Could she have run away?

It was only two years ago that rumors of a pink haired wild woman started spreading. She never stayed in one spot for too long. The last few years that she was gone seemed to fall away. His search, which had dwindled to constant scouting on every mission (and he went on a lot of missions) now took on an obsessed quality. He no longer took official jobs, just went away for months searching. With all the work he had taken on, he had no need for money for quite a while. It was just him in his lonely little home. He would come back to rest up and to make sure she had not wondered home while he was out. The longer he stayed in town, the more sure he was that if he had been searching for her that day he would have found her.

He was still pondering what to say to her when he realized that it had been dark for quite some time. Unwilling to take his eyes off of her for even a moment, he pulled her around while he set up the fire. Once it was done and they sat together, there was silence. The air felt heavy and still. When he could take no more, he sucked in a breath and held it all for courage. Shoot for the basics. "Who are you? What are you doing in the forest?"

He looked at her while he waited for the answer. There was no immediate laughter, no angry stare. There was no recognition of how she should answer the question. He was just about to wonder if she had maybe suffered some kind of damage when she refocused and looked at him helplessly. Apparently, she had not been listening. With far less bravery this time, he asked again. Surely she remembered something? Anything?

"My name is a secret. I have been in the forest for as long as I can remember. The people I have come from believe that giving a person your name gives them power over you. I'm sorry; I cannot give so much to a stranger." She suddenly seemed proud, regal. Confidence oozed from her pores like she owned the ground beneath her. Despite his renowned skill set he managed to feel small in those emerald stones.

"Then I assume you will understand when I do not tell you mine." Only a slight nod was received in affirmation. This was reminiscent of the girl he remembered, yet vastly different. "I have been sent to seek you out. We'll have to talk to my leader and see what we are to do." What she is to do, and if she could manage to heal this broken memory.

"I do not know what you want from me, but I need to return to the People. If I am gone too long, they will search for me. And when they find me, I would not want to be your village. They are very protective of their own." Although she said the words with confidence, her face flushed just slightly. Did she not trust the loyalty of her people as much as she pretended? Would they come back for someone they could not possibly know very deeply?

"We are protective of our own too." All hopes he may have had that she actually did know anything receded as she had no response. With the last of his will giving out, he turned away to try and think through the puzzle in his mind.

He had always imagined finding her. It would go one of two ways, depending on if it was a nightmare or a dream. She would either jump into his arms and tell him how much she had missed and loved him as he led them home… Or she would look at him with anger and hatred and tell him that she had left for a reason. That he should never have come to find her. Whether there was a daring rescue, or simply stumbling across her in the woods, there were only two outcomes.

After the rumors of the wild haired woman had reached Fire Country he had nearly resigned himself to her willing abandonment. Now that he had found her, however, he still could not be sure. She still could have left on her own. Anything could happen outside the gates of the cities. Or she could have been kidnapped as Naruto said. He would not know unless he got her to Tsunade.

By the time he had turned back around to check on her she was asleep. He could not help the fond memories that flooded his heart. She still slept the exact same way after all this time. Her pink hair may have grown, her clothes may have changed, she may remember nothing, but in her core there was something of his wife still there. Without caring, he sat beside her. Idle fingers smoothed the tangled mass of hair on her head and slid down the curve of her cheek. There were so many moments he wished he could share with her.

The next morning, he woke to the feel of someone staring at him. He did not have to open his eyes to see who it was. The faintest hint of candy tickled his nose. He could almost hear her laughing and telling him to get out of bed. Even still, he did not relinquish his hold. He would enjoy every moment here until she batted him on the nose like she had every morning since they were married…

Something about the thought jarred his eyes open. The woman he saw was not the one he expected. The well groomed, fair little lady did not greet him. Instead he saw a rough and gruff warrior, inspecting him like one inspects a questionable lunch. Such a realization tore through the last sleepy moments of his dream and hurled him with a ferocious snarl into reality. A reality where his loving wife did not know him and possibly did not want him. A reality where his loving wife no longer existed in this stranger before him.

He was sure he gaped like a fish out of water. Instant questions filled her expression, but he could not face them. Vaguely he murmured some sort of apology as he busied himself with cleaning camp. It would be a long while before he would be able to look at her again.

She made some off handed comment about him visiting cold places. Although he was sure it had something to do with what he had said, it did not seem to matter much right now. And then she said something that sent a chill racing down his spine.

"Many people can say many things. How do you know that I do not already know who you are?"

"Why would you know anything about me?" Absolutely no expectations presented themselves. He would be disappointed by whatever came out of her mouth next.

"Gossip, to put it simply. How many people do you think run around with mismatched eyes and silver hair?" And immediately he knew she was lying. If she had heard anything at all about him, she would know that he had been searching for her.

"Then you have heard nothing. If you had… Well, we would not be talking about this right now." That was all he said. It was all he could say. Begging her to remember would do no good, and trying to remind her would not either.

He spent the rest of the day not looking at her. By the time they reached a suitable camp a good portion of his hurt and shock from the morning had worn off. So when she spoke, he was willing to listen this time.

"You have an air to you. The People call it éadóchas. It makes you seem so much… Older." It was an observation that she had always pointed out before. Apparently memory loss brought no changes in that regard.

"What does that word mean?" It was a language he had never heard spoken before.

"I do not know exactly how to translate it. It is deeper and more than sadness. It is as though you have been to heaven and fallen." The description was so adequate, it nearly made him drop his fire stick.

"That is a fitting description, then." The quiet settled in again.

As he continued setting up camp he noticed her getting more and more restless. If any of the woman he knew remained, she was becoming uncomfortable due to the sheer awkwardness of their silence. Ignoring her fidgeting, he looked her over. There were no obvious signs of mishandling or torture. She seemed mentally sound, despite her obvious lack of memory. There were no definite signs of marriage or child-bearing. If anything, her body was more lean and toned than before, a mark of a true weapon. Most people did not leave their weapons to child-rearing. And he could not see her in any situation leaving behind children.

"So, the people you speak of… What is your place in them?" He felt the words leave his mouth and immediately wanted to swallow them back up. What if the answer was… disheartening?

"I am the mother. I keep peace for the people and teach them." Even with the awkward phrasing, this did not sound like the answer he was hoping for. Cold numbed his lips as the color drained from his face.

"I'm sorry I asked." With only the one answer, he had asked enough questions for the night.

"What about you? What is your place?"

"I am a ninja. I fight; I bring war to make peace. I rescue. I survive." He had assumed this was obvious. A civilian not recognizing him as a ninja rarely happened. Yet, she was not really a civilian was she?

"Sounds dreary." Defeat fell like bricks from the words. More than likely she had been hoping for more information on what she probably thought of as her opponent.

"It is." He could not handle more of this conversation. With silence he turned and stared at the roots of the tree opposite him. Though he was not tired, there had to be more hope in silence than in talking.

"Are you not worried I'll run away?" An idea struck him. It may be his only hope.

"Of course I am. But I can not baby sit you all night. At some point I have to sleep. I just happened to get tired before you tonight." Holding his breath he turned and looked at her, pulling his mask down. With just a small fraction of power, he applied the Sharingan.

She gasped, taking in his features. Hope bubbled up in his chest like a poisonous brew. Each feature got extra attention as she carried the small power of the Sharingan to its end. Her brow furrowed as she stared at his mouth and he wondered if she remembered kisses, conversations, moments forever carved into his memory. Raising his eyebrows inquisitively, he saw the moment she returned from the Sharingan effects. And still, no recognition. The rising tide of despair almost spilled over, yet he managed to turn away just in time.

"Anyway, if you think I won't track you, then you are mistaken. I have not searched this long for you to just disappear again." His voice seemed too weak to even carry to the gnarled tree knots.

"Why were you looking for me?" There was no good answer for that. How does one tell a stranger of forgotten love? She did not ask again.