Hey there! Here's chapter 2. I hope you keep enjoying.
The Blond Man
金髪の男 (Kinpatsu no otoko)
Above him, Sasuke could only see clear blue water moving away as he plunged deeper and deeper. Little by little, the water became darker until the blue was replaced by a cold gray.
The cold was entrenched in his skin, his flesh and blood. Then the pain came... a pain so excruciating that made everything around him look red. Sasuke opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out. His body writhed in pain as he descended deeper.
Part of him wanted to ask for help but he subdued that part. Nobody would come. He knew no one would save him and he always managed well on his own, he did not need anyone. Sasuke was strong, he could save himself.
And his pride would never allow him to be saved by someone else.
The pain increased and he felt himself being pulled deeper. Sasuke felt the panic build up painfully in his chest and a feeling he would never admit, even to himself.
Fear
A light woke Sasuke, making him squint. His whole body ached, his arms, legs, chest, back... but what bothered him most was a throbbing pain in his head that made him want to be unconscious, only to not feel it.
Slowly, Sasuke opened his swollen and red eyes with difficulty. When his vision became clear, he realized that the light came from a light bulb in the ceiling. He was lying in something soft and covered with a sheet and a blanket. There was something in the smell of the bedding that made him feel safe and comfortable but he could not understand why.
Ignoring these unnecessary thoughts, Sasuke tried to get up. Only very self-control prevented him from screaming with pain. It was as if all his muscles had been beaten. The most that Sasuke was able to was to sit down.
"You shouldn't move" a deep and unknown voice said.
Sasuke looked to the left. A young man sat in a chair near a window. Sasuke thought that man couldn't be many years older than him... he was tall, slender and slightly muscular; he had spiky blond hair to his neck and blue eyes. The same eyes that Sasuke saw before he collapsed.
The memories returned in a flash. Sasuke remembered the fight against the blond man, how the ninja avoided all his attacks and how he ended up fainting... in his arms.
"You!" the Uchiha cried.
Filled with rage, Sasuke jumped out of bed and prepared to attack. The pain was so strong that he was unable to suppress a scream. The young raven lost strength in his legs and fell back into bed, panting.
"I told you not to move" the blond man said, still seated in his chair and staring at Sasuke calmly.
Sasuke closed his eyes and tried to avoid howling with pain. He could not lift up without every move becoming a torture. He never felt a pain like this, even when using the Susanoo; the pain usually disappeared once the jutsu ended.
"What... did you do to me?" Sasuke asked gruffly, staring at the blond man with a gaze full of anger, pain and hatred.
"I didn't do anything" the man replied with the same calm voice tone.
"LIAR! You did something to me and now I cannot move! Spit it out!"
"The only thing I did was to bring you here" the blond man said. "Right now, you're in my living room."
Sasuke looked around and realized the table in the center of the room, sofas and a small closet full of books. He also noticed that his bed was actually a sofa bed.
"You fainted during our struggle," the blond man continued. "After that, I brought you into my house."
Sasuke stared at the man with a sneer.
"I suppose I should be grateful, eh?" Sasuke scoffed.
The blond man stood up and leaned against the wall. Behind him the rays of the sun had disappeared behind the mountains, it was almost dark.
"No. I don't expect gratitude from you" the blond replied.
Sasuke noticed the Hirai-hate in the man's forehead, almost hidden by his blond bangs, but the symbol of the leaf was still visible. As he remembered his old village, Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"What the hell do you want from me?" Sasuke asked. "Who are you?"
"It doesn't matter."
"You are a Konoha shinobi. Do you know who I am?"
"You're Uchiha Sasuke" the man replied, although there was a slight hesitation before speaking.
"If you know who I am then you also know that I've defected from Konoha" Sasuke said, trying to ignore the growing headache.
"I know you want to destroy Konoha" the blond man said without losing his cool. "I know you want to avenge your clan by killing all the villagers. You want to avenge the sad life and death of your brother Itachi. "
Sasuke blinked. He did not expect the ninja to know that much. Obviously, his old team would have informed every one of his objectives.
"If you know that then you really are an idiot" Sasuke said, staring at the man with contempt. "You should have killed me when you had the chance."
The blond closed his eyes and sighed before turning to stare at the young Uchiha.
"Killing an unconscious opponent is loathsome" the Konoha ninja said. "That's not how I was raised."
Sasuke laughed. It was a laugh of derision, contempt and slightly crazy.
"Another idiot... I'm always being chased by idiots who believe that their precious village is a haven of virtues. Don't mock me! Konoha is a hotbed of intrigues and lies. You have sacrificed my clan and my parents to get your damn peace and used my brother as executioner of his own family! So don't speak of loathsome! You're the ones who deserve contempt!"
The blond man's blue eyes were hard. Strangely, Sasuke felt frozen inside.
"Your brother made his decision," said the ninja. "He could have refused the mission; he could have allied himself to the clan and overthrow Konoha."
Those words made Sasuke's sneer fade.
"Shut up! You know nothing! My brother was forced by the elders... by Danzo! They used his ideals of peace to make him kill his own clansmen!"
"Itachi loved Konoha, he loved peace... He wanted to believe that your clan was honest and honorable. When he discovered that your father wanted to overthrow Konoha and incite a civil war, he was shattered and very disappointed. "
Sasuke remembered when Itachi had thrown a kunai against the symbol of the clan in front of their father and other members of the police.
"I've had enough; there is no hope for this pathetic clan."
Refusing to accept the man's words, Sasuke buried himself in his familiar hatred.
"Don't you dare talk about Itachi. Konoha always despised my clan! They were afraid of our skills... they knew that we are superior! So they left us out and rejected us. But soon it will all end. When I kill you and destroy Konoha, the name of the Uchiha will finally be cleansed."
The blond continued to look at him without showing any emotion.
"Are you saying you will destroy Konoha on your own?"
"Do not underestimate the power of the Uchiha" Sasuke said with a sneer. "My strength is more than enough."
"Fool."
Sasuke blinked in surprise and his smile faded. The blond man spoke softly but his eyes were cold and hard. The way he looked at him, made Sasuke feel oddly small and frail.
"What is this feeling?" the Uchiha thought.
"You think you can you destroy Konoha alone? You think you're strong enough to kill all the ninjas who will defend the village with their lives?"
Sasuke regained his composure and tried to ignore the pain.
"I killed Danzo... alone! I don't need anyone to kill those insects that are much weaker than he."
The man continued to stare at Sasuke. The more the Uchiha looked at the man's face, the more it seemed that he had seen him somewhere before.
"Imagine you could do it," the blond man said. "Imagine you destroyed Konoha and killed everyone: the ninjas, the students at the Academy, your former colleagues, your former sensei and your former teammates, the civilians... everyone to the last child. You really think this would end? If you attack Konoha, Suna would intervene and attack you. "
"I'll kill them too!" Sasuke said immediately. Anyway, he was eager to kill Gaara too; he would never forget the humiliation of being defeated by him just so he was defeated by Naruto instead.
"You are an international criminal" the blond said. "You attacked the Kages during the summit. Even if you destroy Konoha, all other villages... all nations will try to kill you. The whole world is against you. "
Sasuke suppressed the tiny tip of fear he felt.
"That's why I allied myself with the Akatsuki" the young Uchiha shot back. "Madara takes care of the rest!"
For the first time, the blond man appeared annoyed.
"Uchiha Madara is dead."
Sasuke's eyes widened.
"What?"
"Madara is dead. He died during the war... Akatsuki disappeared with him. "
"What are you talking about?" Sasuke yelled, enraged. "The war has not even started. Do you expect me to believe these lies?"
The blond man shrugged indifferently.
"Believe what you want. I won't waste my breath trying to convince you. But I can tell you that the war is finished and that Madara and the rest of the Akatsuki were eliminated... almost six years ago. "
Sasuke gaped for a few seconds, but regained his composure quickly.
"That lie is ridiculous" the Uchiha said. "You could have made up a more believable fable. If you expect me to believe in you, you are more stupid than I thought."
"Whatever."
Sasuke was losing his patience. The indifference of the man was... disturbing.
"I don't care about the Akatsuki" Sasuke said. "As long as I can destroy Konoha, nothing really interests me. I don't need anybody. "
The blond ninja sighed.
"Very well... you don't need anybody" the blond said. "People are just disposable objects to you. You got rid of Orochimaru once you learned everything you could from him. You forsaken Taka by the time you thought they were a burden to your ambitions and you planned to kill Madara as soon as he helped you get the power you sought after and helped you to destroy Konoha. "
The man's voice was calm and collected, but his eyes were unforgiving. Sasuke experienced again that feeling of weakness and timidity... It was like he was getting a lecture from a parent.
The headache increased again, causing Sasuke to close his eyes. Suddenly he felt a strong desire to curl up against the bed in an attempt to escape that man's words.
"Shut up..."
"Power and arrogance have blinded you" the blond man continued. "Just like your hatred. Your goal is futile; you will never get what you really want. "
"I told you to stop talking" Sasuke said. The pain was getting worse and worse.
"What you really want is your family back, but it won't happen. You can kill whoever you want... you can destroy the entire world that it will never bring them back. "
"Shut your mouth!"
"You're expecting to get peace of mind when your family is avenged. That won't happen... You're gonna be empty because you threw out everything and everyone to get the power you wanted to have your revenge. You've got nothing left! You have no friends, you have no allies, you have no home, no family... you have nothing. "
"Shut the fuck up! Shut up! "
"You're less than human. You're a weapon ready to be discarded when its purpose ends. You're nothing but a puppet controlled by your emotions. Madara only had to press the right buttons and you acted exactly as he wanted. He tamed you like one of his falcons."
"Shut up!" Sasuke yelled.
The blond man continued to stare at him coldly.
"You are nothing."
Like a rabid animal, Sasuke threw himself against the blond man. To his amazement and horror, the shinobi grabbed him with great ease and pushed him against the wall, holding his arms behind his back and immobilizing him.
"I'll kill you!" Sasuke growled. The pain he felt was unbearable but not as much as his injured pride. "I'll fucking kill you!"
"You may be stubborn but you're not stupid" the blond man said. "You should know that you are not able to attack me, much less defeat me. In your condition, even an Academy student could beat you! "
"Fuck you!"
The blond ninja continued to press Sasuke against the wall, even though he could never fight back. The young Uchiha was exhausted from just getting up.
"Why don't you kill me?" Sasuke asked, trying to look at his captor. "I am a threat to your village. Why don't you kill me when you have the chance. "
"I told you once and I repeat: I do not attack wounded and sick ninjas. When you are healed, we can fight. "
"Stupid loser" Sasuke sneered with a grin. "You're making a big mistake to underestimate the power of Uchiha, Konoha's dog."
The blond man remained impassive.
"Believe me, I won't underestimate you. I never underestimated you... I always knew how great you are. But you can be sure of one thing... I won't let you demean me. Never again. "
The anger and contempt in Sasuke's black eyes were replaced by surprise. The blond man's voice had become very familiar. For the first time, he noticed closely the blond hair; the deep blue eyes... the whisker marks on the cheeks.
"It can't be..."
The realization hit Sasuke.
"Naruto?"
So, the blond man's identity was revealed. I am aware that Naruto is a bit OOC in here, but there's a reason for that. To those like me who got fed up with Sasuke constantly putting Naruto down, this will be very pleasing. I would say Naruto's Namikaze genes are being revealed here, if he wants he can be very cold. But don't worry, it won't be for a long time.
Also, Naruto is 22 in here, while Sasuke is still 16.
I hoped you liked it and feel free to review.
