The Monster Within Us All: Chapter Two
The past year had been a bizarre one for Mito. Being separated from her brother for so long was an incredibly unpleasant experience. In her worst dreams, she often wondered if Naruto had died and that Old Man Hokage was merely lying about him having to live somewhere else, to avoid her experiencing another heartbreak. However, she would always berate herself for thinking so negatively.
If not for the issue of her missing brother, she would say that this past year had been perfect for her. Not too soon after the death of her previous foster parents, she was adopted into a new family. Her new parents were a little older than her previous ones, but they were no less kind.
It took her a while to warm up to them, in fear of the pain she'd feel if she were to lose them. However, with her being the way she was she couldn't help but begin to love them faster than any reasonable person would.
Her new father was Shiro Akihiro; he was a fairly tall and portly individual with gray hair, brown eyes, and rosy cheeks. He wore thick rimmed glasses and could always be found reading the newspaper with them every morning. To top it off, he wore a green long-sleeved shirt and a light green collared shirt underneath it and gray pants with black sandals.
Her new mother was named Eto Akihiro, she was somewhat short and had a skinny build, giving her the appearance of being a weak person. She has neck-length, light-brown hair with part of it held in a small bun towards the back. Furthermore, she had black eyes and wore a white apron dress with a long-sleeved maroon shirt underneath it. However, her appearance was not what warranted the attention of others. No, it was her renowned kindness that made her a staple within the community of Konoha.
What put Mito at ease was that unlike her former parents, the Akihiro's were not shinobi. She didn't have to worry about them going out on a mission and never returning. It did well to put her mind at ease. Not to mention, they were handpicked by Old Man Hokage, and she trusted his word above that of all others. Well, other than her big brother, that is.
Upon thinking of her brother once more, she entered another short bout of depression. She hated the fact that she could never see him and what made it worse was that nobody would tell her anything regarding the situation.
She was pulled from her thoughts when her name was called. She looked up and saw Iruka-sensei looking at her expectantly. Being able to infer the reason for having her name called she stepped forward until she was standing in the sparring ring located in the academy training ground.
She was now focused on what was going on and was waiting for Iruka-sensei to announce her opponent. She had improved a lot in her taijutsu over the year, so she was confident in her ability to pull out a victory against just about anyone.
However, everyone soon dropped what they were doing in favor of looking at the large column of smoke that could be seen rising in the distance.
~Break~
Danzo had an uneasy feeling. He had yet to hear from Takejiro regarding Naruto's progress, which was odd considering just how careful the man was. He was sitting in the office of his private residence and had told his Root ANBU guards that he did not wish to be disturbed.
However, his unease was capped off when the giant pillar of smoke became visible from the direction of Orphanage 8. What could have happened? Has a foreign village attacked? Or perhaps Hiruzen had discovered the true nature of the facility, evacuated the occupations, and burned it down to send a message to him.
His relationship with Sarutobi had become even tenser than ever. The increased tension was due to the Uchiha Massacre and Danzo's involvement in the atrocity. As punishment, Hiruzen revoked Danzo's position as second-in-command, and his Root was ordered to be disbanded. Furthermore, he was sentenced to be confined to his private home for an indefinite period. While he still led Root, which was still as active as ever, it made things much more difficult for him.
He had been foolish in thinking that Hiruzen would allow him to continue doing as he pleased. Perhaps he had become arrogant due to his more recent successes? Regardless, Hiruzen demonstrated his cunning when he all but destroyed any and all influence Danzo held within the Daimyo's Court. It seemed that losing his position as second-in-command had made him lose his credibility.
However, the most shocking development was Hiruzen putting his foot down before the Daimyo. Even Danzo had to admit that it was as impressive sight to behold. Perhaps he had pushed Hiruzen too hard, and it resulted in him reverting to his older self? Regardless, the Daimyo would no longer be sticking his nose in the business of the God of Shinobi and his village.
It was moments like these that made Danzo respect Hiruzen more than anyone else. He had always held the Daimyo's influence upon the village in disdain. While it didn't stop him from taking advantage of that influence for his gain, it didn't mean that he liked it.
Yes, it seemed Hiruzen had regained his spine. If not for Shisui's eye, Danzo was confident that he would have been locked in prison by now. So while it was the Uchiha Massacre that took away a lot of his power, it was the fruits of the endeavor that saved him from a life of miserable imprisonment.
He continued to gaze upon the pillar of smoke rising higher and higher into the sky. If not for the fact that is was so clearly coming from the village outskirts, he was sure people would be panicking.
However, in the midst of his thoughts the lights in his office went out all at once, and it was plunged into darkness. Whoever was responsible had come at a terrible time. He had recently used Kotoamatsukami and therefore would be unable to use it against the interloper.
Was it Hiruzen, here to arrest him? Or was it Itachi, here to make sure he kept his promise of staying away from Sasuke Uchiha? Perhaps it was Orochimaru, simply being, well...Orochimaru. Before he could address the one responsible, he felt a presence that sent a chill up his spine, standing behind his desk chair. The Phantom had a kunai place against the leader of Root's neck and was almost drawing blood. Danzo absentmindedly wondered if his guards had been killed, that'd be a pity.
"Who are you?" he demanded in a stoic voice. He wasn't afraid of this intruder, the fear of death had abandoned him long ago. Or maybe it was because the figure had yet to kill him?
"Hello, Danzo-sama," the figure eerily purred from behind his mask. Upon slightly turning his head Danzo was able to notice that the intruder was wearing the uniform of one of his Root guards.
Danzo responded almost immediately, "I'll ask you once more, who are you?" his tone was as cold as ice and would make even the most seasoned shinobi tremble in fear.
"I can't say," the figured absentmindedly responded. The shadow's voice was oddly soothing. "However, I suppose I would most accurately be described as the monster without a name."
Upon hearing this strange statement, Danzo was immediately able to tell who the intruder was. "Naruto Uzumaki," he said. "So you are the one responsible for that smoke in the sky. I should have known that such a place could never hold you."
"I have dreamt of the end many times," stated the strange boy, once again seemingly ignoring the words of the one with whom he was conversing "And yet, after the events of this day, I have come across something different altogether. A clearer vision of the true ending."
"The ending for you or me?" Danzo asked. One of them would likely die here today, but which one would it be, he wondered?
"The end of everything," the boy calmly retorted, almost before Danzo even finished his sentence. "In the end, humanity is destined to kill one another, until the day comes in which there is no one left. I intend to be the last one standing when that day arrives."
"What of your sister? Will she die as well," Danzo asked. This boy was truly beyond comprehension.
"You speak as though Mito and I are separate entities," Naruto said, and Danzo could practically feel the smile behind the boy's mask. "She is me, and I am her."
"You are insane," Danzo stated resolutely. There was no doubt in his mind that this child was severely ill. It was a shame; the boy had so much potential. However, Danzo was no fool; he knew such a person would never be molded into an asset for Konoha. The child would sooner be the reason for Konoha's destruction.
Upon realizing the severity of his situation, he quickly moved to form a hand sign. None of his jutsu were fast enough to kill the Uzumaki child before he was murdered. His only hope would be to activate Izanagi before it was too late. It was moments like this that he cursed his lack of Uchiha blood. An Uchiha would be able to activate the Jutsu without even needing to weave a single hand sign.
However, before he could bring his hand up, he felt a painful sensation going through the front of his neck. When looking down, he saw that a dangerous amount of blood was leaking. He made to say something, but he found himself unable to speak. The boy had severed his trachea, preventing him from being able to yell. Furthermore, his experience with murder served to tell him that his carotid artery had also been severed. His body would be unable to send newly oxygenated blood to his brain.
At this point struggling for his life was pointless, as the boy had taken a grip on his arm to prevent him from forming even a single hand sign. He felt himself weakening quickly. His body subconsciously attempted to take a breath through his severed windpipe, but it only resulted in him gargling blood and coughing.
"This is what the true death of a shinobi is, right Danzo-san?" Naruto asked. "Never seeing the light of day, toiling in the shadows. That's the way of a true shinobi. At least, that was the mantra you constantly spewed at your underlings. It only fits that you die in such a dark and lonely place as this."
Even while suffering from the pain of having his throat slit, he couldn't help but feel the need to shiver at the boy's voice. No matter what the situation was, Naruto always spoke with that eerie, serene tone. It was impossible to rattle him as he never seemed to get nervous or afraid. In fact, he couldn't even imagine the boy speaking in any other way, as it was the only way he'd heard him talk for as long as he'd known him.
At least when he was younger, there was still a hint of innocence to it. But he supposed he was the one responsible for changing that. He thought he was creating an asset that would lead Konoha long after his death. However, the only thing he succeeded in doing was creating a monster. Which is why it was fitting that said monster was the one to take his life.
"I wonder what the world will think of you?" Naruto asked while maintaining his tight grip on Danzo's chin. "What will they think of the old root, hidden within the darkness? Even in death, will you ever be as revered and respected as the Third Hokage?"
As the life began to leave his lone visible eye, Danzo began to think back on his past. He remembered his childhood, playing with Hiruzen. And he remembered his young adulthood and being jealous when Hiruzen was appointed as the Third Hokage.
Upon thinking back on the death of his sensei, he couldn't help but compare it to his own and felt disappointment. Self-sacrifice, that was what epitomized a shinobi. For what purpose had he sacrificed his life? None, he had simply had his throat slit like a pig while he was sitting in his office. However, he felt like it was a fitting death for one such as himself.
'Hiruzen,' Danzo thought to himself in his final moments. 'It seems like it is my time. But in the end, I could never become Hokage. No matter how fast I ran, I was never able to catch up to you.'
'You are a leaf, upon which light shines. I was nothing but a foundation, hidden in darkness. What do you think of someone like me?' Danzo thought as his eye began to close.
'Hiruzen,' he continued. 'What was I to you?'
And with that, the Shinobi of Darkness died.
~Break~
Kakashi Hatake had seen a great many things during his lifetime. However, none of his previous experiences could have prepared him for what he saw today.
He and his squad arrived at Orphanage 8 about an hour ago. After ten minutes of attempting to quell the fire with many water style Jutsu, it was finally extinguished. They immediately checked the building for survivors and were dismayed when they found none.
It was a grizzly sight, with several charred corpses strewn throughout many of the rooms. However, what shocked Kakashi, the most was the cause of death. The fire had killed none of these victims, so how did they die?"
"I suppose this is the burden of our job," a voice behind him said, a voice he immediately recognized as his comrade, Tenzo. The former Root shinobi continued, "Being forced to see sights like this. Us Anbu have it rough, eh?"
"We could have it worse," Kakashi responded while looking at a particularly young burnt corpse. A child so young had lost their life this evening. For what purpose? Who or what was responsible?
"You're right about that, Kakashi-senpai," Tenzo said in a somber tone, catching on to what his Captain was implying. He continued, "Have we discovered the cause of death?"
"Not yet, but at the very least we should be able to identify the bodies from their dental records. Thankfully, the fire wasn't hot enough to make their teeth unsalvageable," Kakashi observed with a level head. He'd need to put aside his emotions to do his job correctly. However, he couldn't help but wonder what Minato-sensei, Rin, and Obito would think of all of this. Surely, his sensei would have analyzed the situation with a much more level head than he could ever dream of possessing.
"They all killed one another," a wise voice, easily recognizable as belonging to the Hokage said from behind the two operatives. "Everyone within this facility killed each other, the signs are there."
Kakashi sighed upon hearing this. He too had noticed the signs, but he had hoped that he was wrong. What would compel these children to take each other's lives? What kind of Orphanage was this?
"Sir!" an ANBU said while appearing before him. "We have finished collecting the remains and have sent them in for analysis."
"Thank you," Kakashi said. "You and the others are dismissed." Immediately after saying that, his squad, excluding Tenzo, performed a shunshin Jutsu and left the area.
"What do you think, Kakashi?" the Third Hokage asked, clearly valuing his subordinate's opinion.
Kakashi responded after a few moments of thought, "I believe that whatever was going on in this orphanage was not natural. It looks more like a mental institution."
"Naruto was a resident of this orphanage," the Hokage said solemnly, making Kakashi's lone eye widen in shock.
'That can't be possible,' Kakashi thought in dread. 'How could Minato-sensei's son have lived in such a place?'
"W-was he found, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, afraid to hear the answer.
"He was spotted walking through the village not too long after we became aware of this incident. He is alive, but we have yet to find him," Sarutobi said. Kakashi didn't know if he should feel relieved that Naruto was alive or afraid at the fact that his sensei's son was now missing.
"Hokage-sama, I request that you allow me to lead the search party!" Kakashi begged after kneeling before his leader.
"There will be multiple. However, I will allow you to lead one of the search parties, Kakashi." the Hokage said, understanding and admiring Kakashi's sense of duty.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said before he too performed a shunshin jutsu and left the area, with Tenzo following soon after.
Hiruzen sighed upon looking towards the now pitch black night sky. "It seems that I have failed you, Minato, Kushina," he said, in a regretful tone that did well to demonstrate his advanced age.
~Break~
The news was everywhere; apparently, a burning orphanage near the outskirts of the village was the source of the smoke in the sky. Tragically, there were no survivors.
Sasuke sighed upon hearing the news. Such a tragedy was similar to what occurred to his clan all those years ago. Was Konoha simply a bastion of tragedy and death, or was the entire world like this? In the end, no matter how much he thought about it, he was never able to be sure.
What he was sure of, however, was his need to kill his brother. He may not be able to change the world as a whole, but he felt responsible for his brother. How could he live in peace while his brother was out there doing who knows what? No, he would kill him, not only to avenge his clan but also to fulfill what he felt to be his responsibility to society.
His thoughts drifted towards his fellow classmate, Mito Uzumaki. She was the only one who could understand his pain. Only she has experienced the loss of the people she loved. He supposed her brother had too, but he'd rather not think about the blonde haired boy.
The female Uzumaki twin was unlike her brother, in so many ways. While their external appearances were nearly identical, minus the difference in hair color, they were like opposites. She was friendly and energetic, he was introverted and calm, she was near the bottom of their academy class, and he was at the top, at least while he was still enrolled. But most of all, there was one crucial difference between them. She had something that Naruto didn't have, and that was her expression. She had the most wonderful, human expressions on her face.
Sasuke didn't particularly desire to be her friend, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't admire her ability to push through adversity while still maintaining that bright smile. Was it because she was stronger than him, deep down, where it counted? Or was she merely naive? It was hard to tell, but either way, he envied her apparent never ending optimism.
As he was making his way to his apartment, he remembered that today was July 18th. His birthday would be in five days. Not that it mattered to him.
~Break~
Upon realizing that the young Uzumaki boy would not be found through simple means, Kakashi went to the Konoha Archive Library to gain some more information.
What he found, or rather, what he was unable to find shocked him. There was almost no information on this, Orphanage 8. Other than the fact that it was funded by several people within Fire Country, however, their names had been sanitized.
'Whoever they were, they must have been rich,' he thought to himself. The sheer value of the equipment within the facility astonishing. The funds required to purchase and maintain such equipment was likely vast.
He attempted to check for any records of the purchases so he could find where they came from, but there was nothing. This whole process was beginning to frustrate him. Was he wasting valuable time here? The time that could have been used to search for his sensei's son?
However, he soon found information of incredible value. He was not the only person to request access to this information. Within the past 50 years of Orphanage 8's existence, several people had made inquiries. Some names caught his eye immediately; however, the name at the bottom of the list shocked him.
"Sakumo Hatake," he whispered breathlessly. The date of his inquiry was not too long before his suicide. In fact, he visited exactly eleven days before the tragic event.
'Could there be a correlation?' he wondered to himself. 'A relationship between this discovery and the death of my father?' Perhaps he was reaching, but he had always found it odd that his father had taken his own life due to dishonor. No doubt it played a part, but could it have been the only reason?
He put aside his thoughts in favor of getting back to why he came here in the first place. The mystery of his father could wait, but Naruto could not. For all he knew, the child could be in danger of dying.
~Break~
News of the tragic demise of the children of Orphanage 8 had spread throughout Fire Country very quickly. Much like when the Kyuubi attack and the Uchiha Massacre had occurred several temples throughout the vast country were hosting candlelit vigils.
Naruto was walking along with the large group of mourners. His attire consisted of a loose-fitting, light blue kimono shirt with billowing sleeves that nearly reached his fingertips. It was tied by a thick dark-brown Ono-stylised belt. It was topped off with a pair of black Anbu style pants with black shin high sandals.
People who had never even stepped foot into Konoha were getting teary eyed during the head Monk's speech. And in Naruto's opinion, it was very odd. After having narrowly escaped the village he had decided to attend a vigil in honor of his fallen 'friends.' After all, society dictated that it was the right thing to do.
He wondered why people were pretending to care. Was it because, much like his reason for being here, society dedicated it? However, unlike him, who was only here ironically, these people were weeping for those they had never met before. He wondered how many of them would be willing to adopt an orphaned child?
All human beings are unique, with complex feelings and motivations. So why is it, that in spite of all that, they have still united together since the beginning of history? The truth is, humans, joined together due to their mutual fear of death. In spite of all their differences, all of humanity fears nonexistence. Except for him, but he was different.
He noticed a group of children acting out during the procession. Children were always the perfect example of a human's true nature. As children, all people are selfish and are unable to empathize with anyone honestly. It isn't until they experience the feeling of loss that they are truly able to understand the value of life. And when they discover the value of life, they immediately begin to fear death.
After walking with the group of mourning sheep, he had begun to grow bored. He noticed an opportunity to leave unnoticed and took it.
He found a narrow path within the woods and began to follow it, without any particular destination in mind. However, after several minutes of traveling, he felt a faint presence sneaking in the trees behind him. He immediately threw a handful of kunai at his target, but they were easily dodged.
The figure landed on the path behind him, allowing him to get a good look. He wore a short black jacket with red straps over the shoulders, as customary of all Root members. He also wore a high collared, all black outfit with a red sash around his waist and what appeared to be an apron over his pants, and carried several pouches with him and wore a pair of black gloves. Most notably, however, was that except f a small area around his nose and mouth, his features were covered by a mask. He also had a pair of glasses built into the mask, obscuring his eyes.
After processing the information, Naruto was able to identify the man as Torune Aburame. After killing Danzo, he had taken a look through some of his ledgers and files. While there wasn't much information of value, he did learn a fair bit about some of Danzo's more notable soldiers. Torune was one of Danzo's most elite subordinates and would no doubt cause Naruto trouble if the situation wasn't handled properly.
"Torune Aburame," Naruto said in a calm and beautiful tone, for once being the person to initiate a conversation. "I did not take Root Anbu for being men of vengeance."
Without responding the Aburame dashed at him with blinding speed, tanto in hand. Naruto managed to narrowly avoid the strike that would have put him in the market for some new insides. However, the Root Anbu predicted his maneuver and threw a set of shuriken in the direction in which he was about to land.
Seeing as though he had little options, the blonde Uzumaki performed a quick substitution jutsu and hid in the foliage. He needed to think of a plan. Thankfully, Torune likely didn't have much knowledge of his abilities, while he knew a lot about the stoic Aburame. Enough to know that if the man coated any part of his body with his nano-sized venomous insects, he would need to avoid it at all cost.
With stealth being his specialty, Naruto was able to remain unfound by the elite Anbu. However, he could not leave this man alive. Any unworthy person that saw his true face would not live to tell the tale. After thinking that, he made a single hand sign.
Immediately, he could be seen jumping from the tree line and made a move to attack his opponent from behind. Torune seemingly predicted the move and made to counter it with a block. It was effective, and Naruto was forced to jump to the other end of the clearing.
He was in his element, a battle to the death. Testing the value of his life against that of another. However, he had little doubt that he would be the one walking away victorious from this battle.
He quickly weaved through a series of hand signs and launched a relatively large fireball at his opponent. He was very well versed in a vast array of ninjutsu. With his favorite being fire style, for obvious reasons. However, he did particularly enjoy wind style, with its ability to turn single spark of fire into a roaring inferno.
With that thought in mind, he went through another string of hand signs. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough," he said just under his breath.
The powerful blast of wind immediately hit the fireball and fulfilled it's desired effect. The explosion of flames was massive, almost engulfing the entire clearing. The feeling of the heat on his skin took Naruto back to the events of two days ago. He couldn't help but compare the immense satisfaction he felt that evening to what he was feeling now, he found that this battle lacked the same mental intrigue. However, while outright killing a person wasn't as ideal as making them facilitate their demise, a fight was still a viable option in his eyes.
As the fire began to die out, he noticed that there was no longer another figure at the end of the clearing. However, he was confident that the Root Anbu was not dead. His suspicion was confirmed when a felt a presence behind him. The man was very close to impaling him with his blade.
Naruto jumped back and opened one of the small scrolls from his pouch. Upon opening it, in a puff of smoke a chokuto appeared, Naruto's preferred weapon of choice. The blade was made of beautiful, high-quality steel, and was longer than a typical chokuto. The Tsuba (Hand-guard) was made with iron-steel laminate and was black in color, with the Kashira (Butt Cap) being made from the same material. The hilt of the blade was wrapped in black Tsuka-Ito (Wrap) and decorated with white, diamond shaped Samegawa (Ray Skin Wrap). He immediately drew the sword from it's sleek, black wooden scabbard and prepared for battle.
He charged his opponent in an attempt to catch him off guard. However, the Aburame parried his slash and then tried to deliver one of his own.
It was a standstill, as they were both equally skilled in close quarters combat. The Aburame, however, had a trick up his sleeve. A trick that would hopefully, if done correctly, put this monster down. He removed the glove from his right hand in a way to make sure is opponent didn't notice.
As they ran at each other to trade blows once more, it struck. As Torune blocked the blonde Uzumaki's blade to the side, he reached for his exposed neck with his ungloved hand. It had become a dark purple, covered entirely in his venomous insects. 'This would do it,' he thought. 'This is the end.'
The hand connected and he took a tight grip on the younger boy's throat. The insects began to spread immediately, extending all over his neck and down the blonde's chest. However, there was no pain on the boy's face; he truly was a freak. However, Torune looked down as he thought he felt a sharp pain in his chest. Upon further inspection, he saw the end of his opponent's chokuto sticking out of his sternum.
He turned his head and saw a perfect replica of the blonde standing behind him holding the blade. He turned back towards the one he had 'killed, ' and it smirked at him before popping in a cloud of smoke.
'A shadow clone,' he thought. 'The boy tricked me with a shadow clone.'
When Naruto substituted himself into the tree line, he must have created a clone before sending said clone to fight him. Then the real him quietly waited for the best opportunity to land the killing blow. It was so unlike him to fall for such a trick.
'It seems that I let my emotions get the best of me,' he thought. 'Danzo-sama, I failed you.' And with that, he took his last breath.
Naruto allowed his shoulders to relax once he realized the battle was over. Danzo was such a fool. He thought he succeeded in creating emotionless tools, and yet, his opponent died because he had let his emotions cloud his judgment.
He looked at the corpse in utter apathy. He weaved through several hand signs before igniting the body in fire. It would be best for him to eliminate any possible evidence of his involvement. He looked back once more before continuing on his way.
~Break~
Mito was standing in front of a tree that had many slash marks on it. She was sweating profusely, which was rare since she had so much endurance. She tensed her muscles and sprinted towards the tree again. She began running up the tree, but the higher up she got, the slower she became.
She had just made it past her highest previous mark before she felt her foot once again slipping against the bark. She quickly made another slash, to mark her progress, and fell gracefully to the ground.
She had seen her brother practicing this exercise once before. He seemed to take to it much faster than she was now, but she didn't let that discourage her. For a while she was not as elite as her brother in terms or raw talent, she made up for it for her drive to never give up.
"Honey," her foster mother, Eto, called to her. "Why don't you take a break, you've been at it all day."
Mito ignored her. It was one of those moments in which she blocked out all outside noise and focused entirely on her thoughts. She had grown much in these since she was a young child, not just in size, but also in spirit.
Her attire was a sleeveless kimono-style blouse that was yellow in color and held closed with a green obi over a short-sleeved mesh shirt with a pair of dark blue shorts and brown shinobi sandals.
She ran up the tree once more, and she made it higher than she had ever been able to before. However, her vision soon began to get spotty, and her body felt very light. She careened towards the ground at a fast speed and hit it with a loud thud. The last thing she heard was her foster mother screaming her name.
~Break~
Upon opening her eyes, Mito found herself in a bizarre location. For whatever reason, she was back at Konoha Orphanage. She was laying in her old bed and was wearing her old pajamas. She quickly realized something was wrong as she looked down at her body and noticed that she was significantly smaller.
She looked over at the bed next to her and saw her brother lying in his bed, with his eyes glazed over. She made to jump in surprise but found that she had no control over her body. She noticed a man sitting at their bedside reading them a book. She listened intently to hear the words.
The story was about a little boy who wandered the world, looking for his parents. He had never met them before, but he had faith that he one day would. He knew that they must have experienced some tough times. The people at the orphanage told him that his parents likely thought that they were in a situation that made them feel unsuitable to raise him. The matron even gave him a photo of them. As he searched, he came across several couples but found that none of them matched the picture that he was given. Nobody helped him, nobody cared. Soon, he gave up; he believed that no matter how far he traveled, he'd never find them. He cried for five days and five nights during his journey home. As he returned to his village, he passed a coffee shop that was two blocks away from the orphanage and immediately stopped. There, sitting at a table enjoying their day sat his parents. They wore beautiful clothes and seemed to be very happy. He went running towards them but immediately stopped. Seated in a highchair was a young child, a child with hair and facial features very similar to his own. The mother was spoon feeding the child ice cream, and the father was laughing as most of it was getting all over the child's face. They all laughed together, their faces the perfect picture of glee. The boy was dismayed as he walked the other direction, realizing that his parents had not wanted him. He was alone.
As soon as she heard the story end, she awoke with a start. However, this time she was no longer in the orphanage, but in the hospital. She turned her head and saw her foster parents sleeping in chairs situated at the side of her bed.
She immediately realized that what she had experienced was a dream. However, why did it feel so real? It was like she was she was just in the room, hearing that story.
Was, it a memory, or merely a bad dream? Come to think if it, she wasn't even sure if her brain was capable of dreaming up such a depressing story. The message of the story was clear. Those who were orphaned were alone in the world, with nobody to love them. Who would write such a story? Clearly, someone who thought making orphaned children miserable was funny. She wondered what impact hearing such a story would have had on her young, tender, psyche?
But more importantly, how had it affected her brother? He seemed to have been listening to the story with extreme intensity. However, she immediately put the 'memory' aside as being a mere dream.
If she had ever been told such a story, she was sure she would have never forgotten it. Right?
~Break~
Sasuke was sitting in his regular seat at the academy, near the window. Most days he preferred only to ignore any and everything that was going on in the classroom. While he was the same age as most of his classmates, he often felt like he was an adult forced to interact with young children c
The Nara boy, Shikamaru, could be considered the exception to the rule, but Sasuke found his laziness to be childlike in nature. Other than that he couldn't think of a single person in the room with him what had a mature bone in their body.
There were Sakura and Ino; both were two girls so enamored with him that it was irritating. They didn't even know him, and yet they claimed to love him? What crap.
Then there was Kiba, the most obnoxious person Sasuke had ever met. He had this unearned air of confidence that made Sasuke want to put him in his place. And he had, several times, during the sparring training sessions. The dog-boy always made excuses, saying that if he could have used his partner, Akamaru, in the fight, he would have won. Relying on a dog to help you win your battles? How pathetic, and even more pathetic to make such a pitiful excuse.
When going over all the irritating qualities of his classmates, his gaze went over to Mito's desk, and he remembered that she wasn't here today. Apparently, she had fallen and injured herself during training. At least someone other than himself spent time trying to improve themselves. He didn't care that she was near the bottom of the class in rankings, the fact that she put in the work brought her above all these other people in his opinion.
He knew what it was like, trying to train hard enough to forget the pain. He had been in such a state for so long that he even forgot how his laugh sounded. He was confident that if someone ever managed to make him laugh, it would result in an awful raspy sound, caused by a lack of 'laughing experience.'
'Jeez,' he thought to himself. 'Do I ever think positive thoughts?'
His attention was brought to the front of the room when it was announced that the class would be going outside for sparring. Perhaps today would be different? Perhaps someone would be able to challenge him. However, he doubted that would ever happen. Such a thought wasn't arrogant in his opinion. When you toss enough pigs off of a roof, you start the realize that they'll never be able to fly. It wasn't pessimism; it was fact.
After following the other students outside, he stood a little off to the side as he waited for his name to be called. He didn't care enough to watch the other matches. He was only concerned with his development. Development what was starting to be stunted by a lack of real challenges.
After a few minutes, he heard his name called, along with the subject of his previous thoughts, Kiba. The Inuzuka seemed to be eager to prove his superiority. Why he thought such a thing was ever going to be possible, Sasuke would never know.
They stood at the center of the sparring circle, with both of them not wanting to make the seal of confrontation, both preferring to get things completed. However, they both obeyed protocol and made the sign.
Kiba was the one to charge Sasuke, which was unsurprising. The Inuzuka boy's attacks were wild and sloppy as if he were a rabid beast. An obnoxious rabid beast that Sasuke would be happy to put down.
Sasuke spent the next few moments weaving in and out of Kiba's attacks with practiced ease. To those watching, it didn't even look like he was trying. And for once, looks weren't deceiving.
However, in the midst of the battle Kiba managed to graze Sasuke's forehead with his middle and index fingers. Sasuke saw red. In place of Kiba, he saw Itachi, telling him how much of a foolish little brother he was, with the fake smile on his face. It was always what Itachi would call him after poking his forehead.
For once, Sasuke became the aggressor. He unleashed a flurry of powerful strikes that shocked his opponent. One managed to hit the boy's jaw, and another his stomach. The Inuzuka boy collapsed on his back in pain, but Sasuke wouldn't relent. He jumped on top of his opponent and released a brutal barrage of punches against his unprotected head.
Before he managed to kill Kiba, or at least cause him brain damage, he was roughly pulled off. Upon seeing Iruka-sensei's shocked and appalled face, he realized what he had done. Never before had he felt such an uncontrollable rage. He prided himself on his rationality, and yet he brutally attacked a fellow student for doing something they couldn't possibly have known would anger him.
Was this how he would react when he saw Itachi? How could he defeat his brother, one of the most skilled and talented shinobi to ever grace the village, if he fought like such a wild beast. He immediately noticed the irony of it all. He had just finished criticizing Kiba for fighting like a 'rabid animal.'
"Sasuke!" his sensei shouted in anger. "Go home! You clearly have something bothering you today. I won't allow any further infractions from you, do you understand?"
Sasuke nodded and then left the training ground. Passing by his fellow students, he noticed that even Ino and Sakura were giving him looks of trepidation. That's how he knew he'd messed up.
~Break~
As he was making his way to his apartment, he couldn't help but drift his thoughts over to his Uzumaki classmate. What would she have thought of his actions? And why did he suddenly care about her opinion?
As if fate was guiding the steps he found that he was in front of the hospital. For some reason, he decided that he wanted to see Mito. Perhaps, he wished to explain his actions to the only person he felt could understand him.
He approached the front desk and asked what room his classmate was admitted to. The nurse informed him of where to go, and he was on his way. Apparently, both of her foster parents went to work once the realized she wasn't in any real danger. That was good, as he wasn't too interested in meeting them.
Before continuing, he took a look at his clothing to make sure there wasn't any Kiba-blood on it. He was wearing a navy blue, short-sleeved shirt with a high collar, white shorts, and white arm warmers.
Upon entering the room, he was relieved to see that it was, in fact, lacking any other visitors. He approached her bed and received a look that could likely be put in the dictionary next to the word confused. Funny enough, he was probably more confused than her. Why was he even here?
As if she could read his mind, she spoke, "What are you doing here, Sasuke?"
Sasuke merely shrugged his shoulders and took a seat in the chair facing the bed; it was relatively comfortable. It smelled like soap, which led him to believe that Mito's foster mother had been sitting there before him.
"Is there something you needed?" she asked. "Honestly, you were the last person I'd expect to see visiting me here."
"And why is that?" Sasuke asked. He didn't know if he should be offended or not by her question. However, even he had to admit; his visit was definitely out of character and unexpected.
"Well," she said, pausing for a moment as if thinking about what to say. "I know that you and I aren't on bad terms or anything. But I didn't expect for you to end up visiting me before any of my friends did."
Sasuke scoffed upon hearing this. What kind of friends wouldn't visit their injured friend in the hospital? And this was coming from the most introverted and antisocial person in the village.
"Well, maybe you should find some new friends then," he responded.
"Like you?" she teased. Even in such a bad condition, she was still up for teasing? How could he, an entirely healthy boy, be toiling about through the day complaining, while she was here trying to be positive?
"I heard that you injured yourself while training," he said, trying to change the subject. "What kind of training were you doing?"
For once, he was genuinely curious. What kind of training could cause a person to fall from such a height and hit their head? Was she trying to wrestle a hawk mid-air?
Okay, even he found his last thought to be incredibly stupid.
"I was doing the tree climbing exercise," she answered, much to his confusion.
"What is the tree climbing exercise?" he asked. Was Mito a squirrel now? Well, once during lunch, he glanced over at her while she was eating, and she turned her body away, as if to prevent him from stealing her food, and began nibbling on her candy bar like a chipmunk while still looking at him in her peripheral vision. He remembered that he almost palmed his face at her goofy expression. So he supposed her being a squirrel wasn't too far fetched.
"It's an exercise in which you channel chakra to your feet and try to walk up a tree with no hands," she said. "It's tough."
"And dangerous, apparently," he quipped. "I'd imagine you're the first future Konoha shinobi to get brain damage while climbing a tree with no hands."
"Shut up! Why are you such a b-hole?" she asked while crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"B-hole?" he asked. "What are you, eight?"
They stared at each other for a few seconds before they both burst out laughing.
On Sasuke's part, it wasn't much, merely a lighthearted chuckle. But he could hear it! He could hear his laugh in what felt like the first time in forever. And you know what? It was beautiful.
~End~
