TITLE: An Accident of Fate
RATING: R
PAIRING: Sasuke/Hinata
WARNINGS: This story contains sex, violence, bad language, improbable dimension hopping for the sake of my amusement, and lots of jokes at Sasuke's expense. Don't read if any of these things offend you.
A/N: Here's the second chapter. Hopefully, it will clear up any questions you have. Tell me if I left anything out or if the explanation isn't very clear! This chapter is fairly long and was really fun to write. Hope you enjoy it :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or its characters.
Chapter Two: The Aftermath
Sasuke woke up with a hangover.
At least, it felt like a hangover. It took far too much effort to crack his eyes open and the stabbing pain it caused was enough to dissuade him from trying again. Had he gone drinking with Team Kakashi? Probably not. No doubt his sadistic father would have dragged him out for early morning training again if that was the case.
Wait... it was coming back to him.
Something about toads. No the toad hermit. He had been spying on them... Hinata!!
Sasuke shot out of bed and stumbled towards the doorway, beyond disoriented, but determined to figure out what had happened.
His steps slowed when he reached the hallway.
The house was silent and a heavy pall hung over it. A chill ran up his spine and Sasuke pressed himself against the wall as he tried to get his bearings. He moved soundlessly over the wooden floorboards as he padded around the back of the house.
Unnerved, Sasuke slid open one of the doors and stepped inside the dojo. His eyes immediately fell on a wide brown stain in the middle of the floor.
His mother-! A stark image of her corpse flashed behind his eyes, his father's body sprawled awkwardly over her chest. NO. No, this had not happened! Itachi had been coward enough to take his own life, but he would never have slaughtered their family! This was a nightmare and any moment he would wake up in bed with Hinata spooned warmly against his side.
This WASN'T REAL!
Sasuke slammed the door shut behind him and ran through the house, past the dusty living room and out the front door. Most of the lawn was brown and it crunched dryly under his feet. A minute later and he was down the road, puffs of dry earth flying up in his wake. The rest of the Uchiha district was unnaturally quiet, empty in a way that was completely horrifying.
It was gradually dawning on him that somehow this emptiness was familiar.
They were dead.
Itachi had hacked them to pieces, had hacked Sasuke's life to pieces.
The conflicting memories were a jumble, shifting like pieces of broken glass in his mind. Sasuke tripped, his legs buckling under him. He scraped his hands and knees raw when he landed wrong, but it barely bothered him. Sasuke kneeled in the middle of the street, his hair hanging in his face as he tried to work out exactly what was real. He was seventeen, the heir to his clan, and a jounin.
Except that he wasn't.
Uchiha Sasuke was twelve years old.
His parents were dead. His brother, who should be dead, was alive. Though not for long if Sasuke had anything to say about that. He was kidding himself though. He hadn't even graduated from the academy yet, he had no hope against an S-class criminal like Itachi.
Sasuke had known immediately that something was wrong with him, but he had ignored it in favor of trying to figure out what the hell was going on. He had honed his body into a weapon and he knew when it wasn't working the way it should. His muscle tone had deteriorated, his balance was way off, and his chakra capacity was pitiful.
Twelve years old. Twelve.
He still woke up in the middle of the night crying like a baby from nightmares so terrible he could barely remember them. It was a result of the trauma he had suffered at Itachi's hands, but that didn't ease his pride. He probably had some serious psychological problems, but he was still the same Sasuke who had made his father so proud, who had strived so hard to regain the honor the Uchiha had lost because of his brother's suicide.
Wasn't he?
He remembered being that boy. He could clearly recall being the Sasuke who had grown up with his parents' guidance, who had gladly shouldered the burden of being the clan heir and all that it entailed. He had gone to the village council meetings at his father's side. To him, the Hokage was not a meddling old man, but someone he would some day work under and would work with to protect his loved ones.
He had a second set of memories though, from a darker life.
Sasuke was also the bitter orphan who had been forced to fend for himself, who lived in that empty mausoleum of a house he had just fled from. That Sasuke spent hours training for the sake of revenge, wondering why he hadn't been killed with the rest of his family and half-wishing he had.
Uchiha Sasuke was not a part of Konoha; it was strange that he so clearly remembered a world in which he was.
How long he spent just sitting there, thinking about his family, he didn't know. It was hard to keep track of the time, as depressed as he was. Everything good in his life, everything that had made life worth living, had been stolen from him with a careless swing of the Chidori.
This was his fault.
He should never have gone after Jiraiya like that. Sasuke knew better than to lose his temper! Somehow hitting that scroll with a high level lightening jutsu had shifted reality two steps to the left and soaked it in blood.
It was possible Sasuke had finally gone insane, but he doubted it. The level of detail he recalled and the knowledge he retained from his jounin status wasn't something that could be imitated easily. Uchiha genius or not, there was no way for him to know Chidori or the higher level fire ninjutsu he was so familiar with.
Performing a decent Katon: Karyuu Enden would probably kill him now.
Sasuke's chakra levels were comparable to a weak chunnin's. It was definitely an unacceptable state of affairs that he would be remedying as soon as possible.
Which meant it was time to get off his ass and stop feeling sorry for himself.
Sasuke was not a weakling. He knew better than to act like one by giving into the despair that was threatening to swallow him whole. He stood up, got his head back together, and went home.
He was going to take a shower, eat a rice ball, and then get dressed.
After that he had a test at the ninja academy to pass. Uchiha Sasuke was going to become the strongest shinobi the Hidden Village of the Leaf had ever seen.
Sasuke found himself sitting in the back of the classroom, his arm hooked over the desk behind him as he watched a few eager students in the front settle their things. The stadium seating meant he had a very good view, but the only one he recognized was Aburame Shino who seemed absorbed in a wasp nest outside the window.
Sasuke was strangely unsettled.
It wasn't something he wanted to admit to himself, but he was nervous. Sasuke was confident that he would graduate the academy with the highest score, that wasn't a worry. Hinata, however, was. Did she even remember him? She had to. The alternative didn't bear thinking about.
He caught himself drumming his fingers and had to force himself to stop. This was ridiculous. Sasuke had spent the last fifteen minutes going over ways to approach her in his mind. He felt a brief flash of regret over the lack of chairs. It would be easy to simply push one at her with his foot and wait for her to take a seat next to him. As it was, with the benches, he would have to actually ask her to sit down.
How troublesome, as Shikamaru would say.
It was still early, so he didn't have to worry about Sakura or Ino bombarding him yet. Hopefully, by the time they arrived, he and Hinata would have settled things and Iruka would have started calling students' names. With a serious test in progress and the other teachers riding herd on the rest of the class, they would have to leave him alone.
That was the plan, anyway.
A few more students tromped in, chatting together loudly. Sasuke ignored them and focused on the small shadow that slipped in behind them. It was Hinata. She was tiny and her hair was cut in a short bob, but it was her all the same.
Her pearlescent Hyuuga eyes scanned the room and settled briefly on him before she flushed pink and ducked her head. Sasuke kept his gaze on her and was pleased when she repeatedly stole glances at him from under her eyelashes as she made her way through the maze of desks.
Hinata started angling towards him and Sasuke felt a surge of hope.
She had never approached him before. She was too timid, he was too intimidating. They had mostly ignored one another and this deviation from the norm was a very good sign.
Smirking, he slid out of his seat and leaned against the edge of the desk while he waited for her to maneuver around a pack of loud boys. For a lack of anything better to do, he settled his hands in his pockets and slouched.
Then there she was, her hands folded nervously as she stood blushing so shyly in front of him. Cute, he thought and then kicked himself for being an idiot.
"You can have the window." Okay, so he hadn't actually asked her to sit down, but it got the point across, right?
Hinata smiled up at him, relieved. "Thank you, Sasuke."
Her words reassured him. This was his Hinata. She had never been so informal with a boy before, had never addressed anyone but him without an honorific. It was subtle, but it told him everything he needed to know.
Sasuke waited for her to take a seat and then slid in beside her. He rested his cheek in one hand and turned to watch Hinata as she stuck her bag next to her arranged her things neatly. Finally, she looked over at him, a small blush still lingering on her cheeks.
"G-good morning."
"Good morning, Hinata-chan."
Her eyes searched his for a moment and then she bit her lip. Her voice was soft when she spoke, but Sasuke had been listening carefully for it. "You remember."
"Yes. So do you."
Hinata's fingers ghosted over knuckles and he caught her hand and held it, their fingers folding together easily. "I thought I was going crazy or that it w-was some strange dream. I'm so glad it was real."
"Me too."
"Sasuke." Her voice was harsh with emotion. Grief and sympathy. "Fugaku-san and Mikoto-san are really...?"
He swallowed and managed a fairly even reply. "Yeah."
"It's not... how could...? I can barely believe it. I'll miss them so much. Mikoto-san was always so kind to me. They took me in and gave me a home. They showed me what a family should be. It's just not right."
"Don't you dare cry."
"Sorry." She whispered, sniffling and wiping at her eyes with a heavy sleeve.
Sasuke squeezed her hand comfortingly before letting it slide out of his grasp. "If your father gives you too much trouble you can stay with me. The house is... it's empty." He hadn't meant to say that last part, but it was too late to take it back, so he let it stand.
It was true, after all.
Her mouth turned grim at the mention of her father, then softened with concern when he mentioned his own loneliness. "I've been thinking. We should probably talk to Hokage-sama about what happened. Maybe he'll know how to fix it?"
Surprisingly, the idea hadn't even occurred to him. It was a good one though. If anyone knew how to put things to right, it was the Third Hokage. "I'm not sure if he can help, but it's worth a try. We can go after the test."
"Okay."
Sasuke slumped back in his seat and stretched an arm out behind Hinata. It elicited a few stares and several jealous whispers, but he ignored them. Hinata was looking at him with a mixture of amusement and dismay.
"You're going to get me mauled."
"If you can't defend yourself from a bunch of little girls, you deserve it." It made her giggle, which was what he had been aiming for, and he sent her a satisfied smirk.
As long as she could laugh like that, things weren't so bad.
Two hours and twelve bunshin later, Sasuke had earned himself a Konoha head protector.
It was a relief to be finished with the academy. There was so much he needed to do, he had no time for childish things. He winced at the thought of all the D-class missions he was going to be stuck with.
He found Hinata perched on a bench outside, waiting patiently for him. "Let's go."
She fell into step with him easily.
They made their way towards the Hokage tower, their shoulders bumping companionably. Sasuke was amused at the double-takes some villagers did at seeing the Hyuuga heiress and the last Uchiha walking so closely together.
They would just have to get used to it.
They couldn't expect Sasuke to be the same person he had been even a day ago. He was no longer looking to the past, but towards the future. Sasuke was going to become a powerful ninja and rebuild his clan so that it was stronger than it ever had been before. No one, not even Uchiha Itachi, would be able to stifle that ambition.
His thoughts must have shown on his face, because he and Hinata were admitted into the Hokage's office with surprising ease. Surely his scowl wasn't that scary. What kind of chunnin started sweating because of a twelve year old?
"Stop that." Hinata scolded softly.
Sasuke cocked an eyebrow. "Stop what?"
"You're radiating killing intent."
Oh. Oops.
Their conversation was put to a halt when the door swung open to reveal the Sandaime. He smiled at them as he entered his office and took a seat behind his desk. "Well, well. What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you two?"
"Good afternoon, Hokage-sama." Hinata greeted him, as polite as ever.
Never one for small talk, Sasuke got right to the point. "Sarutobi-sama, I'm sorry for the intrusion, but we have something very important to discuss with you."
The Hokage lit his pipe and leaned back in his chair, an interested expression on his weathered face. "Oh? Is that so? Please continue, Sasuke-kun."
"There was an incident with a scroll yesterday and there seem to be some... unexpected side effects. It's my fault. Hinata and I were training in the woods and when I discovered someone spying on us I attacked him. The culprit was Jiraiya."
Sarutobi blinked, obviously surprised. "Jiraiya? I didn't know he was in Konoha."
"He's not. At least, I don't think he is. I attacked Jiraiya and I managed to land a hit on his scroll case with Chidori, causing it to explode. When we woke up, everything was different. Hinata and I are five years younger than we were before and while we can recall all the events you'd expect us to, we also remember things that have never happened."
"Did you say Chidori?" The Hokage's pipe had fallen out of his mouth some time ago.
Sasuke's hands flashed through the familiar seals and a hum of light filled the room. He let it die quickly before it drained too much of his chakra, but it was more than enough proof.
"There's no way you could know that technique!"
All he could do was shrug. There was no rational explanation for any of this, really.
Seeing that he wasn't going to add anything else, Hinata finally spoke up. "Hokage-sama, is there any way to fix it?"
The old man sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, Hinata-chan. I'm not sure there's much I can do. Even with all of my knowledge, I've never come across a situation like this. There's no telling what was in Jiraiya's scroll case or what damage Sasuke-kun's Chidori caused. All I can do is try to get in touch with that deviant student of mine and consult him on it, but that may take some time. As it is, I trust you two will keep this between the three of us?"
"Yes, sir."
"Of course."
"Good. Now, why don't you tell me a little about these strange memories of the future?"
So, Sasuke did. He told the Hokage of his brother's suicide, of how Orochimaru had attacked his clan and stolen the body of Uchiha Shisui, and the Sound's attempt to invade Konoha during the Chunnin Exams.
"The civilians were evacuated and the Sound's forces were turned back. Some damage was sustained from Orochimaru's summoned snakes, but for the most part, there weren't that many casualties. You battled Orochimaru to a stalemate and then used the Shiki Fuujin on him."
He lifted his head to find the Hokage staring at him intently. Sasuke's next words were spoken with quiet gravity.
"You would not have won, if Orochimaru hadn't been using an Uchiha body. For some reason, the body transfer went wrong. Shisui's personality was suppressed, but not lost. Once the Shinigami was summoned, he was able to help you wrestle Orochimaru's soul into submission and seal it away."
Sarutobi exhaled a long stream of smoke. "I see. It is a death any Hokage would be proud of."
"My clan was alive when the invasion took place. We were on the front lines. I'm not sure how things will unfold now, but I hope I've told you enough to help."
"Don't concern yourselves with it. We have months to prepare. Any force that attempts to invade Konoha will be surprised indeed." He gave them a kind smile and then glanced at the clock on the far wall. "I'm afraid I'm running late to a council meeting, but this has been most enlightening."
It was clearly a dismissal.
"Thank you for your time, Hokage-sama." Hinata bowed gracefully.
"No need for that! You've both been very patient with this old man. I'm only sorry that I couldn't help you more. Please don't hesitate to stop by if you have need of me again."
"We won't. Thank you for speaking with us." Sasuke inclined his head towards the Hokage before he turned to leave. His hand naturally slipped to the small of Hinata's back as he escorted her out the door.
"Oh and Sasuke-kun?" Sarutobi called after them, a mischievous light in his eyes.
He paused with a sinking feeling in his stomach, "Yes?"
"If you and Hinata-chan feel the need to 'train' any time soon please be discreet about it. The last thing I need is an enraged Hyuuga Hiashi pounding on my door, demanding your head."
He refused to blush! "Y-Yes, Hokage-sama."
Before the Hokage could comment on the way his voice had cracked, Sasuke nodded farewell and made a break for it. He caught Hinata with one arm as she fainted and shut the door firmly behind them with the other.
Sasuke couldn't believe the Hokage had said that to him! "Perverted old man."
"I heard that!" A muffled voice responded.
Of course he had.
"You keep dropping your elbow."
"R-right. Sorry."
"Don't be sorry. Just stop doing it."
Sasuke knew he was being harsh, but he couldn't help himself. Training against someone with the Gentle Fist style was good practice, but Hinata wasn't using it to it's full potential. She was slow and clumsy, all too easy prey for anyone who meant her harm.
They had completed the tree walking exercise with ease. The pond behind the Uchiha mansion had been perfect to practice walking on water, but even mastering that hadn't satisfied Sasuke. So they had decided to spar.
They were both sweating under the blazing afternoon sun. Hinata had long ago discarded her jacket. Her face was red with exertion and her breath was coming in heavy pants. Hinata's stamina was much lower than his and she was having trouble keeping up.
Even though he was in better condition, avoiding her chakra-filled hands had worn Sasuke down as well.
"Break?" Hinata pleaded, taking a moment to shake her hair out of her eyes.
Sasuke glowered, offended that she wanted to quit on him so soon. How was she going to get stronger if she refused to train herself into exhaustion? "No. Keep going."
"I don't think I can."
"Pfft. Fine." His voice was dismissive. "You have to fix us dinner though."
She paused thoughtfully. "Do you even have food in the house?"
That was a stumper. "Rice, I think. I'm not sure. This place is a mess. I need to have repairs done on the whole district. Father would beat me unconscious if he knew I'd let things go this badly."
"Fugaku-san would understand, I think."
Sasuke had to snort at that. Hinata was too sweet. She tended to give people the benefit of the doubt. He greatly respected his father, but he wasn't blind to his faults. The man had been a complete hard-ass.
He followed Hinata into the cool shade of the porch and sprawled down next to her carelessly. Sasuke shut his eyes in relief when a cool breeze washed over him.
"We get put into teams tomorrow. You turned in your ninja registration form, right?"
"Yeah." Did she have to remind him of that? The last thing he wanted to think about was all the stupid little chores he'd be doing on Team 7 for the next few months. Sasuke hated D-class missions. They were a waste of time.
"Our scores came in. I made third place, after you and Shino-kun."
Sasuke waited silently, knowing from her tone that there was more to it than that.
"Father was displeased with me. He had me running laps around the compound for most of last night. I don't think there's anything I could do at this point that would make him happy. It's strange, isn't it? I spent all that time resenting how he easily gave me up, but I can see now that it was the best thing he ever did for me. I don't even feel like a Hyuuga any more."
Sasuke propped himself up on his elbow and frowned at her. Hinata was sitting against the wall, hugging her knees. She looked distant and sad.
"Your father is a bastard. You shouldn't listen to anything he says to you."
"It's hard to ignore him though. I know I'm not worthless, but hearing it so often makes me wonder sometimes."
"You are not worthless."
Hinata gave him a tremulous smile. "Thanks."
He was far from finished. "The Hyuuga are just fucked up. Who would put a curse seal on their own relatives? It's insane! It promotes dissent within the family and it's more of a liability than anything else. They're just lucky they got you as the heir and not Itachi. He wouldn't even need a katana. A few hand seals and the whole clan would be bleeding their brains out their nose."
"He probably does know the seal. I wouldn't be surprised if he'd copied it with the Sharingan." Her brows were furrowed anxiously, but her voice was fairly calm. The likelihood of his brother showing up in Konoha just to wipe out the Hyuuga was fairly slim.
Sasuke snorted and laid back down, one arm folded beneath his head. "It would serve them right. You should run away and come live with me."
"You just want someone to cook your meals for you."
"Don't forget the laundry."
Hinata laughed into her hand. "You're horrible."
"You know it."
There was a long, comfortable silence while they relaxed on the porch.
"We should elope. The sooner we start having kids the better, right? We have to repopulate a whole clan. It might take a while."
"Sasuke!" Hinata cried, scandalized. "We're only seventeen!"
"Technically, we're twelve."
"That's worse!"
He loved teasing Hinata, he couldn't help himself. Her outraged expressions were just too funny! "Don't look so worried. I'm not going to steal you away and force you to be my love slave. Well, not for a few years, at least."
"Love slave? If anyone's going to be the love slave around here it's you!" She lunged at him and he flung himself to his feet to escape. He blocked Hinata's half-hearted punch with one forearm and hooked his left foot behind her knee. She landed easily and did a quick sweeping kick that he had to flip backwards to avoid.
She sprang at him, pressing her attack.
They exchanged a flurry of swift blows until Sasuke, elite ninja genius that he was, tripped backwards and fell off the porch.
He stood slowly, a dark scowl twisting his face. "Don't say it."
Hinata muffled a giggle behind her hands.
"I mean it, shut up."
"Sasuke. You have... in your hair." She managed to gesture vaguely at the leaves sticking out at awkward angles in his cowlick, before she completely lost it.
"Stop laughing! Hinata!"
He charged at her, lifting her up over his shoulder and running like hell towards the pond before she could catch on. "Sasuke! NO! Sasuke, put me down! Don't you dare - kyaaaa!" She hit the water with a huge splash.
Sasuke crossed his arms smugly as she emerged from the lake.
"Suiton: Teppodama!" Hinata brought her hands together in a seal and proceeded to shoot a huge bullet of water at Sasuke's head.
"Shit! Suiton: Suijinheki!"
By the time the water fight had ended, they were both soaking wet and half the pond was on the lawn. It was probably for the best, as dead as the grass was.
It had been good ninjutsu training at least.
They ended up on the porch again, dripping water everywhere as they watched the sun start to sink slowly towards the horizon. Sitting there with Hinata, Sasuke felt strange. There was an inexplicable warmth in his chest. He had been having fun. For seventeen year old Sasuke, it was nothing out of the ordinary, but for his younger self it felt very unnatural.
Sasuke supposed that part of him would just have to get used to being happy.
He was no longer alone. Whatever path he chose to walk, he knew Hinata would be beside him, her hand in his as they made their way through life.
It was something to look forward to.
Now with Ninjutsu translations!
Katon: Karyuu Enden - Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile. It's B-rank.
Suiton: Teppodama - Water Release: Gunshot. C-rank
Suiton: Suijinheki - Water Release: Water Wall. B-rank. (though maybe less since they were standing right next to a lake)
TBC... Don't forget to review!
