Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto.

Author's note: Its really late, and i have had this fic in my files for a while. Finally decided to post it for the hell of it. Sasuke Centric, and I did the best I could with proof reading this late, and I'm pretty sure the screen has fried my retinas. Read and Review


Discontent

At first glance, he was still the enigmatic, silent, angst-ridden, but breathtakingly handsome boy he had been before he left. Of course there were little changes, but everyone attributed it to his leaving. His once smooth porcelain skin was now pale and littered with ugly pinkish gray scars that criss crossed over each other in furious jagged lines, and his once mildly intimidating stare had blossomed into a full blown resentful glare.

He himself didn't know why he continued to glare. His brother was dead, and Orochimaru was nothing more than another bad dream to add to his already restless nights. Sure, there were the occasional suspicious stares, and angry taunts that came from some of the villagers who refused to accept him once again as one of their own, but Naruto had explained to him that he would get used to it after a while. Naruto, however, was naive in thinking that he actually cared.

In reflection, his life had no more angry twists, or sorrowful turns for him to travel, but his face still advertised a malicious discontent.

It wasn't so much that he felt particularly angry at anything, rather it was a mild annoyance that he felt every time he rolled out of bed and took a shower. The feeling would follow him throughout the day and gradually further dampen his mood as the day progressed. By night fall he was sick and tired of everything within a five foot radius of his person and looked forward to being back at the Uchiha compound.

Everything had changed when he had returned, but he had not expected anything else. Sasuke knew that if everything had stayed the same there would have been more of a problem. However, much to his dismay, the formalities of the Leaf Village remained intact.

He had been interrogated by Ibiki. Admonished and denounced by Tsunade. Ignored by Naruto. Blinked at and dismissed by Kakashi. And placed on probation by the Anbu. None of this surprised him though, and he took it all in stride. The only person that truly caught him off guard was Sakura's reaction to the entire debacle of his return. She said and did absolutely nothing.

He had expected her to go through a wide range of emotions actually. The first of which being happiness and relief at his return, before quickly turning to anger and disgust at the trouble he had put them all through. Hell, some part of him wanted to see her cry a little bit. Instead, she stood quietly in a tree and watched as he was met at the gate by Anbu, handcuffed, and led to the Hokage tower.

That day had been a very surreal experience for him, and continued to remain so thereafter. It didn't bother him so much though. Shit, after you fight your brother for 4 days and then arrive at a village that wants you dead, soaked in his blood, with broken limbs and various internal injuries, certain things tend to roll off your shoulder.

However, this one particular annoyance refused to budge. He tried to ignore it, but it followed him wherever he went, weighing heavily on his shoulders and grating on his already frayed nerves.

Naturally, it was Kakashi who picked up on his quirk first,and the Copy-nin offered what advice he could, but seemed to have learned his lesson from the first time he tried to talk to Sasuke. Perhaps his former Sensei felt inadequate as a teacher, or he simply didn't see Sasuke in the same light as he once did. He weighed the two options equally, but in the end supposed that it was his own fault.

Kakashi was a great teacher who never taught from pretentious bravado, but from the painful reality of life.

It all revolved around one simple truth: Ninja life was a kill, or be killed existence.

The challenge was to overcome that, and never lose sight of what was important. For team seven, Sasuke supposed that loyalty would have been the thing their were supposed to hold up above everything else. Admittedly, Sasuke realized that he did let his Sensei down when it came to that teaching, but he simply could not bring himself to care anymore.

In the end, half hearted advice was given, and Sasuke once again ignored it.

Surprisingly, Naruto was the next to notice the reason for Sasuke's surly mood. It was during a sparring match, when suddenly Naruto stopped in the middle of it all and stared at him.

The two Shinobi had been fighting for nearly an hour (under the careful scrutiny of Anbu and Kakashi) and Naruto was maintaining the upper hand. Irritation was starting to set in, but Sasuke had matured since his brash younger years and did not let it influence his actions. Sasuke was getting ready to pounce again, when he felt his former teammate stop and his chakra dissipate.

"What's the matter? Am I too much for you?"

The verbal jab was a complete lie. Naruto had diligently maintained the upper hand for the entire bout, but Sasuke had entirely too much pride left in his withered body to let the demon child think anything less.

The yellow haired ninja frowned and shook his head, "No, that isn't it."

The Sharingan faded.

"Then what's the problem."

Naruto shrugged and averted his gaze, "Nothing, I just remembered I had to meet with Old Lady Tsunade and Ero-sennin today."

Sasuke knew it was bullshit, but before he could say anything Naruto disappeared into the trees and he was left alone on the training field. Well, not alone seeing as how the Anbu still lurked in the trees, but alone nonetheless.

His blood boiled, and his fists clenched at their sides. Anger seared through his body and he had to fight to regain control of himself again. In the distance he heard the familiar clink of metal as swords and kunai were made ready, just in case.

Sasuke forced himself to relax, but his mind continued to whir.

Naruto didn't have a meeting with anybody. He didn't want to fight because to continue would have been pointless.

Sasuke didn't have a chance at winning. That sad truth had dawned on him the minute they began the bout, and he felt cool realization trickle down from his head down to his toes. Yes, Naruto was operating on a completely new skill level, and had learned a variety of knew techniques that Sasuke was genuinely surprised at. However, despite Naruto's noticeable improvement, Sasuke still maintained superiority when it came to the technical application of ninjutsus. The Sharingan also held a great deal of weight in his favor, as well as the matter of chakra control.

No, Sasuke would always be the superior ninja, but that wasn't the reason for Naruto's sudden departure.

He stood on the training ground of their youth simmering with rage while Anbu circled around him in the trees, calculating his stance, and sensing his chakra, trying to anticipate his next move. They were quite annoying, but he paid them no heed.

Sasuke knew why Naruto had abruptly cut their sparring match short, and inwardly knew that it was also the same reason that had been fueling his increasing irritation as of late. He had hoped to keep it a secret from his former friends, and the rest of the village in general. In fact, the only other person that new of his secret was the Fifth.

Sasuke sat on the hospital table, clearly annoyed, but Tsunade paid him little attention. He was, after all a missing-nin, and would be receiving no special treatment from her or her staff. She watched through the one-way glass, as the medical staff tended to his wounds and performed a generic physical on him. The physical wasn't necessarily for his health, and if it were up to her she would have been content to let the spoiled brat bleed out on the operating table. However, the safety of the village must take precedence over her own spiteful nature and she needed to make sure he wasn't harboring any harmful diseases or poisons in his blood stream. Orochimaru would be sick enough to turn a child into a biological weapon.

Shizune suddenly appeared by her side with a chart in her hand looking more grim than usual.

"There is a slight issue…" She said softly, her eyes darting from the chart to the sole surviving Uchiha in the other room.

"What?" Tsunade asked, not looking up from the boy.

"He isn't carrying anything, but there is something I think you should know about."

With that said, Shizune passed on an X-Ray and after a moment of perusing it, the Hokage's eyes widened in surprise.

"That won't make him happy…"

A strong wind blew, tossing his already frayed locks, and carrying with it a sudden falling of leaves. Odd, considering it was summer.

"A little dramatic, Kakashi?" Sasuke asked. It had been an unspoken agreement between the two of them that the sensei moniker was no longer appropriate.

The Copy Nin smiled underneath his mask.

"Just thought I would jog your memory a bit."

Indeed, as Sasuke looked at the leaves dancing around him, the scene reminded him of their fashionably late entrance to the Chuunin Exam, leaves fluttering with his former instructor standing directly behind him, their backs facing one another, barely a hairs' width apart. He held out his right hand, and watched passively as a few nestled into his palm. Without so much as a blink, a current ran through his arm and the leaves were incinerated into charred black chips

Sasuke stepped away first and turned to face his former sensei. He had grown considerably taller since his absence, but for some unexplainable reason, he still felt short in comparison.

"I was watching you spar with Naruto.

Sasuke shrugged, feigning indifference.

"He has improved a lot hasn't he?"

Silence.

"You have gotten stronger yourself. Far surpassed anything I could have taught you."

Irritation stirred within him, "Get to the point, Kakashi." He knew that the Jounin was merely skirting around the issue, trying to goad Sasuke into a reaction. He was almost too happy to oblige, not caring how it may have appeared. His former sensei merely gave that small humorless smile he always did.

"How many times did you use Chidori against your brother?"

To be honest, Sasuke was surprised that it had taken Kakashi this long to ask. Memories flashed in his head of the four day battle with his brother, and he could specifically count every blow he landed, and ever successful counter-attack he had made. It was a fight that would not only be ever present in his mind, but it would also forever be burned onto his soul. The scars that littered his body could far better tell the tale than his tongue, which was why he never spoke of it. At least not until now.

"Twelve times."

Kakashi shook his head, and let his eye wander from his former pupil's face to his right arm.

"You are too damned stubborn, Sasuke, and now you are suffering for it."

The anger in his tone was surprising, but Sasuke knew it wasn't being directed at him personally. The anger was toward Kakashi himself, seeing as how he viewed Sasuke as his own personal failure. The emotion was not lost on him, and facts underlying the tone could not be argued.

Yes, Sasuke had narrowly escaped death and had defeated his brother, finally attaining the vengeance he so blindly ran toward. But it did come with a price. Though he stood facing his former instructor in the present, his mind once again fell into the past.

Sweat drenched his clothes, and dirt clung to his skin. His breath came in ragged gasps and he felt as his muscles began to spasm. Kakashi looked at him calmly, but his eye twinkled with approval.

"Your limit is two shots."

Sasuke stared fiercely at the two gaping holes in the side of the boulder they were both facing, clearly dissatisfied. Kakashi himself had proclaimed that he could perform Chidori over a dozen times in one day. Two was simply not acceptable, he needed more.

"I know what you are thinking and you can stop there, Sasuke"

Sasuke scowled, but remained silent.

"At the level you are at now, pushing a third shot will be fatally detrimental. Your limit is two for now, leave it at that."

Sasuke spat in the ground in disgust, "That can't be enough! I need more!"

"Sasuke!" Kakashi snapped, "Relax! Your limit is two shots, nothing more."

The Uchiha visibly calmed down though his insides were seething. However, he knew when to back down.

"What if I try a third?" He asked quietly.

"A third won't happen."

"But what if?" He asked again, clearly dissatisfied with the abrupt answer.

Kakashi looked at him point blank in order to avoid any further confusion and questioning, "A third won't happen. If you try to push it, the consequences will prove fatal."

Even then, he didn't listen and in the forest during the fight with Gaara had pushed a third shot which resulted in his activating the Cursed Seal. Eventually, he grew stronger and elevated the amount of times he could use the jutsu, but he had not anticipated how often he would have used it against his Itachi.

"You won't win against him anymore Sasuke, I suggest you stop trying."

It would be the last meaningful conversation that he and Kakashi would have, and it seemed slightly poetic that after the copy nin's departure Sasuke's eyes would burn red as hot tears fell down his cheeks.

Sasuke would never again win a fight against Naruto, and possibly any other ninja beyond the rank of Chuunin all because one arm was shorter than the other. It wasn't by a significant amount, and all in all was barely noticeable, but it was enough to throw his entire fighting style off balance and leave him open to a variety of offensive maneuvers. He would never be able to legitimately fight again, and in all honesty is usefulness as ninja had come to a very abrupt end.

He had literally given his entire life for his brother.


Author's Note: Chapter 4 should be up soon. Havent decided on whether i should use Sakura or Ino. Decisions, decisions...