Threads of Fate

Chapter 1


What is it that you call you own?

You have nothing.

You aren't strong.

You aren't right.

You aren't needed.

Nobody wants your revenge.

Nothing but a lie.

Nothing but words.

You are alone.

Are you really?


Even before opening his eyes, Sasuke knew that something was different. He couldn't tell what exactly had changed but he sure as hell didn't like it. He felt an uneasiness rumbling inside his stomach. It was subtle, but concerning, regardless. Was it the fact that he wasn't lying on the stone table where Madara had performed the surgery, but on something soft, a bed, whilst feeling a blanket on top of him? Or was it rather that he could hear birds singing outside and see light behind his closed eyelids even though he should be several meters underneath the surface, where only darkness should have its domain?

Under normal circumstances, he would have sat up immediately in order to find out what the heck was going on but in this very moment he decided not to move at all. It was … weird, but something inside him that he couldn't quite bring himself to terms with, told him to do nothing, for now. It was an instinct, probably, and as a shinobi, he had learned to listen to these kind of things. Because of that, even though he couldn't understand why exactly, his eyes remained shut. What for he waited, he didn't know. But something was bound to happen, eventually. That much he was sure of.

He listened into the silence that surrounded him and ignored the chirping he noticed earlier. Alone with his thoughts, he started to think. He didn't know how long he had slept after the surgery. Madara had told him about this war of his, and Sasuke was aware that it should have started by now. Someone must have found him, still drugged and defenseless and taken him outside. His still tired mind was able to understand that. But what about this Zetsu? Wasn't he supposed to prevent situations like this? There would have been several people needed in order to trick him, right? Wasn't he told that–?

Then, he understood. What if the war was already over? That had to be it! How could the hideout have been taken over, otherwise? The anesthetic in his blood couldn't have lasted that long, but a mere 24 hours could have been more than enough to decide this quarrel, provided the hidden villages lived up to their reputation, of course. He couldn't help but smirk at that. Madara had overestimated his strength, hadn't he? Sasuke would still be in the cave, had this played out otherwise. Which meant that he was now... where exactly? Konoha was too far away, after all. Also, he was alone, that much his numbed senses were able to tell him. But than a few chakra signatures came into the range of his narrowed field of awareness. Alerted, he wanted to get up but decided against it as confusion swept over him. His eyebrows furrowed when he noticed that these people's chakra felt somewhat familiar. He couldn't tell who he was dealing with, though. But to his bewilderment, his body did. His heartbeat quickened as well as his breathing. What was going on? He could feel sweat on his skin and then he even stated to shake! With that, nervousness began to get the better of him. Just where did he know these signatures from?! He searched his memories for something familiar, but no matter how hard he tried, he didn't hit pay dirt. Anger about him not being able to control the situation started to turmoil inside of him. With gritted teeth, he decided that it was time to act. He would probably be confronted with these people sooner or later. However, he would be the one to decree when exactly this meeting was to take place.

He hasty sat up, feeling dizzy for a second. With a quick movement he removed the bandages from his eyes and opened his lids.

What he saw made him stare with gaping mouth.

He had been moved, that much he had already deducted. What had actually happened, however, he wouldn't have dared to even dream of.

The room was lightflooded. Blue curtains swayed gently in the wind, slightly touching a small bookshelf that was standing beneath a window. To its right there was a TV, an old one, its display reflecting the sunlight, while a neatly tidied desk was situated at the wall to his opposite. He saw a wooden door with marks scarring its surface, a kunai still sticking inside. He also noticed an opened toytrunk with rounded shuriken, bricks and even a stuffed dinosaur. It was a toy he recognized. Just as he recognized this room with all its furniture. As he turned his head, he could even see the Uchiha emblem painted on the wall. He couldn't help but stare at it as the memories started flooding back. There were faces he didn't want to see, words he never should have heard, and experiences he never wanted to make. Anger built up inside of him, slowly taking over his mind.

How could they?!

He had underestimated the effects of the drugs Madara gave him, it seemed. They had taken him back to Konoha and not only that but also back here, where everything had started and everything had found its end. The Uchiha compound was separated from the rest of the village so it shouldn't surprise him that they had predestined this of all places. He wouldn't be able to hurt others and, at the same time, feel just how much they resented him and all of his kind. They wanted to break him, for him to dance after their will, to fear them, even! The signatures he felt earlier were probably ANBU that were supposed to make sure he wouldn't escape. He was furious.

It wasn't even the fact that they had captured him that made his blood boiling. Not only had he found himself inside Konoha, of all places, but in this room. His room that he had spent his childhood in. It was the place he had been happy in, once, the place where he had lived with his family, his brother, and the place, where everything had been taken from him. He had lost his mother and father in this house, had been traumatized by Itachi, who also had gone through hell in this godforsaken place! He couldn't think straight anymore and his vision started to turn red, literally. His sharingan activated and were just about to advance to their evolved state.

But before that could happen, the door was opened and Sasuke's mother stepped in.

It had something comical, almost. This seemed like a dream, some twisted … thing that his mind was forcing upon him. Under other circumstances he might had laughed about this but not this time.

He just wasn't a person who usually laughed.

He didn't move, couldn't move, was totally stunned by what he just witnessed. She was dead, killed more than ten years ago and still she was standing there, looking at him with surprise in her features and suppressed sadness in her red-rimmed eyes. For a moment there was silence. They just looked at each other as if time had stopped and caught them in this split second of confusion, hurt and disbelieve. All Sasuke could think of was that his mother seemed just like back then. He was unable to cope with the situation as a whole and so his mind decided to focus on what was right in front of him: his mother, Mikoto, and her face that had always lingered in his thoughts, that had haunted him day after day whilst smiling peacefully, before turning into a blood strained corpse, lying on the ground. He started to feel dizzy, followed by static blurring his sight. A loud, high-pitched buzzing sound tormented his ears as he finally realized that he was having a panic attack. He recognized this feeling. The last time he had experienced it was when he had heard the truth about Itachi. It was no wonder, that his brother's face started to dance in front of his half shut eyes as well.

Suddenly Sasuke felt two slender arms embracing his body. He could feel warmth surrounding him and recalled the scent he was smelling as his mothers perfume, the one she had used for as long as he could remember. He wondered how he fit so perfectly in her arms, how his head felt so small whilst resting at her chest. It didn't matter, he decided, before surrendering to the darkness that swallowed him and the restlessness of his thoughts.


Her eyes were focused on her little boy. Her little Sasuke, and his tired, exhausted form as he was lying in her arms. She felt his warmth against her, saw the blood in his cheeks and the life inside this tiny body of his. She couldn't help herself but pulling him even closer against her own. By itself, her hand began stroking his tousled hair, the other one holding him firm and secure in her grip. Oh, how long it had been since she had been able to feel his presence soothing her tormented soul and his skin under her now shaking fingertips.

He was safe, she reminded herself. He was here, far from harm. Biting her lip, she could once again feel tears blurring her sight, one's of relive this time around. They had become her closest companions these last few days. In truth it had not been long, not even a whole week, but for her it had felt as if every second, every moment had stretched itself to unbelievably lengths. Sometimes she had wondered if time wanted to mock her in her misery. She shook her head, trying to chase the memories away. He was safe.

Now that the realization finally began to sink into her still numbed body, she felt relief swapping over her, like a wave of ruthless but welcomed force, that would slowly but steadily wash away the fears and horrors that had tormented her the last few days; that had kept her awake at night, these long, long nights, where she had been thinking of him, thinking about whether or not he had enough to eat, had it warm; Whether or not he was still alive! She started to shiver all over her body, once again experiencing all her fears and worries. He could have died, she knew. And she wouldn't have known. His mother wouldn't have known. Not being able to protect him, to shield him and his life, that was jet to bloom, that had nothing but started to unfold before her eyes. Clutching them shut, she buried her head in his hair, soaking it wet with her tears. She had wished to be in his place; To take everything, everything, upon herself in his stead. There was no pain she would not have endured for him and even now she would not hesitate. Her live was nothing compared to his. There were many years to come for her little boy, so many things to experience he did know nothing about. Mikoto shuddered upon the realization that he could have been ended without having the chance to see this world, to actually grasp its concept and understand what live, what living, was all about. He hadn't even felt love jet, the calming presence of a significant other, let alone the happiness of founding a family on his own.

But now he was safe. Now she was there, and he was finally home again, safe and sound. He had lost consciousness but she could feel his heart beating in a slow and steady rhythm, could hear his deep breathing and see a slight smile on his tired face. She wasn't a medic but as a former shinobi she could very well tell that he would wake up soon enough and that was more than she could have hoped for. She still knew nothing about what had happened to him, whether there were injuries that lay beneath the surface, unable to be seen by her worried glance, but for now her tormented heart was at ease because she could not see any bruises or scratches on his skin. She had had even looked underneath his clothing to assure herself as soon as she had held his unconscious body in her arms for the first time, several hours before.

At the same time, however, she could not ignore the fact that his sharingan had activated. It had shocked her, of course, but, actually, she should have expected it. The ordeal must have taken a toll on him one way or another, there was no sense in denying it.

She might not be an Uchiha by blood, but as Fugaku's wife, she knew almost everything there was to know about his clan's doujutsu and therefore was also aware of the required conditions for it to awaken. A strong emotion was needed. Whether it was fear, or anger, or even envy did not matter. What mattered was the circumstances to evoke this emotion. And in Sasuke's case it was not hard to assume what feeling he must have felt in a situation like this. Abduction was nothing she wished for anyone to experience, after all. What horrible thing had her little boy have to see out there? … What did he have to feel? She did not want to think about what could have happened. But she had to know, no matter what, even if it broke her. She was his mother after all. Burying her head in his neck she tried to chase away the demons. She wanted to forget the events of this last week, for just a little moment. For just a second she wanted to pretend that nothing had ever happened and he had never ever left her side.

And for just a second, everything was okay.

Several minutes later she could hear Fugaku's footsteps as he slowly entered the room. He was just as tired as she was, deep shadows under his eyes and also in his mind. She knew that he had suffered just as much as she had. When he had been alone with her in those long, long nights, he had forsaken all his facades, all his masks, and she had seen the pain in his eyes. Not only had he suffered with her, together, but also tried everything to bring Sasuke back. The whole police force had searched for their boss' son, he had made sure of that. He had been merciless, despite his own desperation, probably even because of it. She didn't know what she would have done without him, really. All she had been able to, was roll up to a ball in the tissues of her bed and cry herself to sleep, but he, he actually had the power to do something. And in the end, he had brought Sasuke back to her. Even though he wasn't the one to find him, she was inexpressibly thankful for everything he had done.

But right now, he did not dare to cease the silence. She could feel his unspoken question in the tension, that hung in the air, just like a cloud. A cloud, that dared to suffocate him just as she had her not all too long ago. She did not look up from Sasuke's face, his oh so peaceful seeming face, but noticed her husband's presence standing close behind her and the unconcealed nervousness surrounding him. "He is okay", she murmured therefore, but more towards herself than Fugaku, "He is okay."

She could almost see him sigh in relieve and his shoulders being lifted from the wight they had carried up until now. She did not care for now, however, as there were matters of more importance they needed to take care of at the moment. "Where is she?", she asked him, still not lifting her gaze. She was still lost in the depth of her mind, of questions of "if's" and "but's", of reproaches towards herself, and fear, this everlasting fear, that would, never again, let go of her, for as long as she lived. But it was just that, fear, and not reality, for now. That was thanks to her and it was time to let her know just how thankful she was for what she had done. For rescuing her son.

Fugaku came closer, kneeling beside her a second later. He remembered that woman's face, her long eyelashes and dark hair. He did not know her, but she had carried Sasuke in her arms as she was running towards him, while looking as if the devil himself was after her. He had taken his son, full of relieve and gratefulness. He remembered the look in her eyes before she had vanished as fast as she had originally come. He couldn't even thank her for what she had done, or ask for her name.

"She is already gone", he told his wife; His hand laying on Sasuke's face, his thumb gently caressing his cheek.