With a laser like focus, Sasuke trained all afternoon. He had nearly forgotten all about the jacket Akiko had been fixing up for him. When he trained, he tended to focus on things past. Bad memories. He used it as motivation to get stronger, but it still effected him negatively. When the sun was nearly set, he headed towards home.

Before he could even place his hand on the door, it swung open and Akiko was standing there with surprised look on her face. "Your home! I almost went out looking for you!" Sasuke blinked then walked past her casually. "I was just training.."

Akiko closed the door and looked over at him. She had been excited to give him the jacket, but now something was bothering her. Sasuke had always been a quiet child. Sometimes getting him to respond was like pulling teeth. However, there was a certain way Sasuke behaved when he was brooding. The expression on his face and his body language was a dead give away. Akiko had learned to spot it quickly in order to snap him out of it. There was no reason for him to wallow in this misery.

"Sasuke...are you okay?"

Sasuke winced a little and glanced back at her. He hated that tone she used on him. It always broke his focus. "I'm fine." The attitude was there. It seemed like Sasuke wasn't even trying to hide it this time.

Akiko furrowed her brow and frowned. This was not going to happen again. As Sasuke attempted to walk to his room she grabbed him by the arm. "You just wait a second! I know that look on your face. I know what you are thinking about. Please, talk to me Sasuke."

The boy pulled his arm away and turned around to face her. "Leave me alone! I don't care about your stupid jacket or if you want to talk! I don't have time for you!"

Akiko could feel her heart drop. She had faced similar situations with Sasuke before. It was always the same phrases from him.

"You aren't my mother!"

"What do you know about it?!"

"I have to get stronger. I can't waste my time with you!"

She really thought they had grown close enough that he wouldn't say these things anymore. However, she had to remind herself that Sasuke was still a child. He was only 12, it wasn't his fault. "...So...is your plan to sit in your room all day and think about the past? Think about it all by yourself?"

The boy narrowed his eyes at Akiko. "I'm a genin now. I'll be going on missions soon enough. You'll barely get to see me at all. You might as well get use to it now."He was trying so hard to push her away, Akiko could see it. "...Sasuke that isnt-"

"You act like talking fixes everything." He lowered his head and clenched his fists. "Meditation and speaking about what happened isn't going to change anything!" He could feel a burning in his eyes and throat. Why did he have to get so emotional in front of her?

"Talking won't change what happened, that is true, but releasing all of the anger you are holding inside helps. It helps to make you realize you aren't alone, Sasuke." Akiko spoke calmly. She desperately wanted to reach out to him, but knew it would only make things worse at the moment. "I'm here with you now, and I'm not going anywhere."

"That is the problem!" He looked up at her, glaring as tears started to stream down his face. "Why can't you just...just...leave me alone!?" He quickly turned from her and ran towards his room. Akiko didn't try to stop him this time. She merely watched as he went and slammed his door.

Sasuke knew Akiko loved him like a son, and they certainly had a bond. Which was the reason why he had gotten so emotional in the first place. He had guilt for speaking to her the way he did. She made him think twice about the path he wanted to go down. It had been a struggle for the past 6 years.

The boy pressed his back against the bedroom door and hid his face in his hands. "Stop...crying...just...stop.." He whispered to himself. After a moment, he took a deep breath. He lifted his head, and wiped his eyes. He refused to let the situation get the better of him. He was just going to go to bed and forget about it.

Before he climbed into his bed he took notice of a folded piece of clothing that had been neatly laid out on it. Sasuke's face fell again when he noticed what it was.

The purple sleeveless jacket, freshly washed. It appeared that the Uchiha symbol had been newly sewn onto the back as well. "This is...it was...the big ...surprise?" He held up the jacket, staring at it as his lip began to quiver. Knowing what the symbol meant to Sasuke, Akiko had gladly sewn it into her 20 year old jacket. "This is...s-stupid.." The boy kept trying to keep himself together about this situation, but it wasn't working.

He buried his face into the cloth, starting to cry again.

"I hate it so much..." He said in muffled voice.

TBC