Chapter 3
He could feel her standing over him. Though the room was dark, he knew she was there. She was always near him in some sort of way. He wished he could say he minded her being so clingy, but truthfully, it didn't bother him so much. He couldn't help the fact that it reminded him of someone. It brought him almost a soothing comfort of the familiar…
"Sasuke…?" He heard her whisper his name, though he kept his eyes closed and remained still. "Sasuke, are you awake? I need to check your wounds." He could still feel her standing there…feel her hesitating.
"Sa-suke?"
"Sure…Karin."
He sat up, eyes still closed, pushing through the slightest hint of pain he felt in his sides as he sat up to allow the girl access to his body. His breathing steadied as he listened to her shifting around by his bed and the fltt of a match as she struck it and lit a pair of candles she had brought and sat them on the table next to a bowl of water, a few cotton balls, gauze, and an ace bandage.
She was doing this for his eyes, the dim lighting of the room, and he was grateful for the small blessing. His eyes were still sore after his last ordeal. They felt heavy, like grains of sand were set in them, which is partly why he had choose to lay there in the dark with his eyes closed…
He could feel her as she reached out and began to unravel the bandages that were bound about his body and arms; a testament of an intense battle he had endured…
and survived.
"Looks like the injuries on your back are healing nicely. I won't have to have to wrap them today after I clean them" He smiled internally though his outward appearance remained as rigid as stone.
He heard her began to speak again, small talk, it sounded, as she dipped a cloth into the bowl of water she had brought and began to gently cleanse the wounded area on his back. His mind wondered, forcing himself to replay the last known memories his mind had recorded.
Itachi.
The man who had shaped his entire life.
The one soul who had set in stone his only purpose over the last sixteen years was…
"Okay, Sasuke?"
"Hm? Oh…sure, Karin."
"I don't think you're listening, Uchiha." He heard her giggle.
Uchiha.
That name had meant so much to him before.
Before? Before when? Had he ever fully understood what it had meant to carry the Uchiha name without vengeance? She had gone back to talking, the sound of the water resounding in his ears.
His brother had gone beyond that name, he'd thought at the start of this, but now…he wasn't quite sure what he thought now. And then there were these eyes…this power…
"He-llooo, Earth to-"
"Thank you, Karin, for everything. You…everyone, has done a lot for me. I owe you my-"
"Shhh. Sasuke…don't." He felt her warm fingers upon his lips and he lifted his head for the first time since she's entered the room, to look at her. She was smiling, head tilted slightly, the light reflecting off her glasses.
"We did it because we believe in you. I did it because I…I care about you, Sasuke."
Care? That sounded so familiar. But then it sounded so much stronger then. Then, she had said love.
"I'm leaving for awhile."
"What? Sasuke, you can't! You're still not strong enough! What if-"
"It'll be alright. I need to train a bit."
"I-I can help you-"
"No." He looked at her directly and she froze in place, mouth slightly ajar, as she looked down at him a moment before turning away quickly to face the water bowl, gathering her equipment to leave.
"What should I say to the others? You know Suigetsu will probably go off alone if you leave."
"Tell them I went to restore my strength. I'll return in a few days."
She nodded, her side still turned to him as she gathered the last of her things and left.
He knew he would follow, track close behind at some distance. He was sure that he knew that he would know he was there, but he didn't care about the man who had introduced himself as an Uchiha. There was too much on his mind. He needed to leave, think. He needed to put some things into perspective, to think.
When he was prepared to leave, he saw a small bag set beside the door and he couldn't stop the curl of a small smile that had begun to spread across his lips as he lifted it to his back.
Thanks Karin.
XoXoXoX
He took his time as he made his way down the mountainside, pausing on a jutting plateau several hundred meters down, overlooking a grand view before him. His eyes roamed the distance, adjusting to the increasing morning light arising over the horizon of the sky and trees.
A soft breeze rustled his hair, causing a few strands to cross his face as he searched about the area, taking in the scenery and scoping a great spot to continue his hike down the mountain.
His eyes landed on movement in the far distance, barely being able to make out the frames in the glare. There appeared to be two people trekking through the forest trail below, he could see the flash of their clothes through the slits between the trees.
He waited until they neared the end, the trail emerging to the plains. He wasn't sure why he watched them so intently, perhaps taking the moment to distract himself from his own task of climbing down the steep hillside. A brilliant splash of orange emerged from within, walking steadily besides another wrapped in mostly white.
He looks so familiar. An apparition from his past dancing before his eyes as plainly as the trees he viewed below him.
"…Naruto…"
