The morning dawned clear and sharp.
From an open window a gentle breeze poured in bringing tell of rain soon to come. Careful not to disturb Sakura, Sasuke rose out from his bed, and quiet as a mouse, dressed himself and leaped through the window, disturbing not a single speck of dust.
Grey mist floated amidst the sleeping houses in torn, raggedy banks, parting as Sasuke flew past. The sky above was blue and cold. The scuffle of early feet meandered around the alleys, but Sasuke was but a fleeting ghost.
In the distance he spotted the Hokage Residence.
He headed swiftly towards the village entrance, flitting past the walls undetected by the wall's watching ninja. Amidst the trees it was dim, yet shafts of light from the breaking clouds above shone through in parts, illuminating patches of green. Glittering beads of dew sprung into the air as Sasuke zipped past; only a shadow among the trees.
Every day Sasuke would venture out of the village and do a quick surveillance of the nearby territories. Or perhaps he only did so because he could never feel quite at ease in the village. He felt the history of his life follow him wherever he went, in the eyes of whoever he met. But he could care less. The real concern in his heart would how it would affect Sakura and his daughter, Sarada. But then he smiled, Sarada was like her mother in her fierce stubbornness, but still calm like himself. There was nothing to worry about with either of them.
Once he felt he was far enough, Sasuke stopped and landed softly on the forest floor. The sounds of life were all about him.
A murder of crows cawed distantly, arguing in their hoarse calls. A thousand melodies of a thousand birds filled the air with their high-pitched voices, courting for mates. Armies of stamping, buzzing, cricketing, and beating insects vibrated all around him, their efforts mingling with the croaks of hidden toads. Spring was in the air. As well as the lust.
Sasuke strolled beneath the green eaves.
He had always been a deep thinker, but when he was young he had a purpose. A purpose to kill Itachi, his brother. Then it was to become Hokage. And then it was to live a life to redeem himself from all that he'd done.
And now he wondered how redemption and evil could be measured. Has he redeemed himself? Or has he not? If he has not, then how much longer? Forever?
After a while of walking, he reflected on last night.
Naruto is such a strange man, He thought. How could someone be so burdened, yet still so carefree? Sasuke remembered his smiles, still bright even at night. They'd made a promise to be friends forever basically. And that had filled him with something warm and fuzzy, dare he say it. But it was warm. It was a closeness he'd felt with his brother and young Sarada, but no one since, except Naruto. Is that strange?, Sasuke thought.
Sasuke crossed over to a tree, leaning himself against it. A chilly wind swept the boughs ahead.
Am I supposed to feel that way with Sakura?, He questioned grimly. He'd wanted to tell Naruto his feeling of disconnection to his family, but felt the issue shrivel to dust on his tongue when he saw Naruto's gaze. No doubt he'd been expecting a state of the nation matter. Such things-
Branches from above snapped.
A bird above him cut off mid-song.
Sasuke launched away, just as he heard a great boom from the spot he stood moments before. A great plume of dirt exploded from the site, engulfing Sasuke. Shadows moved in the dust.
As he flew past a tree, he grasped at its rough bough and flung himself high into the sky, out of the brown cloud. Trails of dirt followed him.
The forest stretched out below him and out as far as the eye could see. The sky was clear, and the village gleamed in the daylight behind him. His mind was afire and his eyes locked to the swirling cloud.
Seconds passed, and still no one had appeared from the settling dirt. He looked all about him: above, left, right, below. But still there was no movement. The sun shone warmly down, and soon the cloud was gone, nothing but a gaping hole in the forest below as evidence.
Sasuke landed some distance away, wary. The forest was silent.
He approached the sight, every muscle tensed for danger, every sense on high alert. He hid his presence.
Through the rows of trees he spotted the crash site. But there was nothing. Nothing at all to indicate what had made the landing.
Sasuke reached the rim of the crater and looked down. Nothing.
He let no expression show on his face.
Sasuke cautiously slid down and reached the center. Nothing.
A few seconds passed.
Something clicked.
A single, huge, black shard shot out from the earth, and impaled Sasuke through his still-beating heart. He went up in white clouds, revealing merely an impaled log.
The real Sasuke scanned the scene. But still there was nothing amiss.
Then he noticed the shard was encasing something. A scroll.
And it seemed to be that the shard knew Sasuke had seen it, for then it broke into a thousand black, glittering fragments. The log tumbled off and rolled a distance away.
The scroll lay closed in the pit.