A/N: Yay! A new chapter! This chapter will once again be in Naruto's POV, since the story is actually about him, not Sakura. I write Sakura's POV as well, but only because I wouldn't be able to explain certain things without her. The story also focuses on the bonds between people - the bond between her and Naruto being the most important one. That is why you get to see her POV. It's starting to look as if the majority will be in her POV, however.
I've noticed some of you asking me about the timeframe of this story. It plays off when the rookie 9 are all about 19 years old, as I tried to state in the 2nd chapter ("after being teammates with him for over seven years"). Since Sasuke never met Orochimaru, he never deflected from the village and thus he had been in Team 7 (or Team Kakashi, take your pick) from the beginning. However, certain events still happened (like the Third still died, Tsunade still became Hokage and Gaara was still kidnapped by the Akatsuki), but Sasuke gave up his quest for vengeance (I know it's OOC for him, but his quest for revenge would be bothersome in this story, so I had it removed :P).
I hope this clarifies some issues you might've had. If you still have questions about the setting of this story, please don't hesitate to ask!
Enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
EDIT 13/09/2010: I changed their ages to 17 instead of 19 in order to let the plot flow more realistically.
Towards the Light
Chapter 4
Light. So light. His body felt as if it was suspended in air, floating in nothingness. His mind could not comprehend anything else: it was as if a dark void had claimed it, unwilling to let it go. All thought had ceased and only the sense of feeling suspended remained. It was all that mattered. Nothing else was important anymore.
Sweet music filled his hearing. The sound was like a harp: gentle, but bittersweet. An image flashed through his mind, but it disappeared before he could see it clearly. It was just a flash – there for an instant, but forgotten the next. The dark void still claimed everything. Nothing else mattered. He was finally getting the rest he deserved.
A confused thought flashed through his muddled mind. Rest? Deserved rest? Why do I deserve rest? Something tugged at his mind again: a memory. A memory of...what? What was the memory about? He felt an indescribable sadness wash over him. The feeling confused him. Why? Why does it matter? Why does it hurt to forget? He struggled to focus his thoughts, but try as he could; he was unable to focus on anything. His thoughts refused to stay still and in his control: they flitted around in his mind like they were desperately trying to escape; like they were mice trying to escape from a hungry owl.
White. Cold. Pain. Red mixing into the white. Hauntingly beautiful...crimson spots staring callously from the slightly shimmering snow...The images flashed through his mind, repeating itself continuously. A memory? The same images kept repeating over and over in his head. What does it...?
The ominous void laughed at his attempts to stay conscious: it would not let him have a peaceful respite from his feverish thoughts. The void seemed to revel in haunting him with painful images: pain blood fear hatred agony ithurts ithurts ITHURTS!
He felt his breathing grow ragged and his heart beating furiously in his chest with the memories the void instigated. His eyes flickered restlessly beneath his closed eyelids as his feverish mind tried to make sense of the images. Crimson flashes flashed just behind his closed eyelids, threatening to drown him in the never-ending memories...
STOP IT! Pleasepleasepleaseplease I don't want to remember make it stop MAKE IT STOP MAKE IT STOP! He could feel his eyes burning with moisture behind his eyelids, threatening to escape its confinement. It was hurting him; the coldness of the few drops that escaped their confinement was hauntingly cool against his hot skin, triggering memories of a different coldness upon his skin: a hand gently stroking him brow...
Green. The colour suddenly flashed through his mind, triggering an image. An angel. A green-eyed angel. No...not that. She is not an angel. Then, what? What does it mean? Who is she? His mind started to diverge away from the image. A single thought flashed through his mind before he forgot the image. Why is she so beautiful?
The soft music filled his hearing again. The sound was still bittersweet, bringing an ache into his heart. The music was suddenly interrupted by another slightly deeper, but still sweet...instrument? No...that's not it. Not an instrument. The original bittersweet music sounded again, bearing a ...questioning note? A voice appeared from the depths of his mind. Not music. A voice. Somebody is talking.
His bemused thoughts struggled to make sense of the confusing words. Talking? A voice? Whose? His mind tried to focus on the bittersweet music that had started again. Ah, he's right. It is a voice. The voice of...an angel? Again his mind denied it. No, not that. She is different...
His thoughts swirled around again. Different? Why? Why is she different? Why does her voice make my heart... Make my heart? Make my heart what? He felt the voice in the depths of his mind desperately trying to tell him something. It was yelling, pleading, begging, but he could not understand it. He could not understand the meaning of the words being spoken. It was important, though. He was certain of that.
The bittersweet voice broke his musings again. Why? Why does it sound so...familiar?He focused on the sweet voice. An image flickered across his mind: an image of emerald eyes set in a face framed with soft pink hair. His mind struggled again in confusion to make sense of the seemingly random images. Who...? The green-eyed angel. She helped you, remember? Back then, in the snow...
His mind desperately tried to remember. Back then? When is then? What happened back then? An image flashed through his mind: an image of snow and the desperate force driving him forward. He relaxed very slightly at the sight of the images. Ah, I remember. I had to move forward. Before they caught me. Before I lost again. His mind started to drift away again from any focused thoughts. Why did I have to run? Why did they try to catch me? The word 'freedom' flashed through his mind. His thoughts flitted around, trying to focus on the word. Because I've regained my freedom?
Confusion reigned in his mind. Regained my freedom? Have I ever lost my freedom? Have I ever been free? He could feel his mind struggling, trying to order his scattered thoughts, but he could not focus on it. The ominous void that still threatened to claim him prevented him from focusing on anything. The voice in the recess of his mind was still trying to talk to him, but he was unable to understand the words.
Something softly landed on his brow. The object was cool, almost icy against his burning forehead. He flinched away from the object, trying to get away from the danger it presented. The voice in his mind rebuked him, telling him that it didn't present any danger. He felt his body yearn for the coldness, but he could not will his body to relax. What is it? What's touching me? Images flashed through his head again - horrible images that felt far too real. Pain. Blood. Fear. A feeling of hopelessness. Agony. A bloodied knife. He felt his body react violently towards the images. His body tensed and his breathing grew even more harried as adrenaline flushed his system.
The object on his brow retreated. His body yearned for the cold relief it provided from the heat, but his mind revelled in its disappearance. It can't hurt me if it doesn't touch me. The voice in his mind scoffed at him, telling him to stop reasoning like a child. His body relaxed a little, but tensed again when the sweet voice sounded again. He could discern the individual words, but he could not make his mind comprehend the meanings.
The voice hidden in his psyche struggled in his mind, trying to make him listen. Listen? Listen to what? What does it want? The voice stopped struggling when it realised he was listening. Focus on her voice. She can help you. You can trust her. His brow knitted into a frown in confusion. Trust her? How can I trust her? How can I not doubt her? The internal voice responded to the questions with statements that only raised more questions. Remember. Remember who she is. Remember who you are.
The cool object returned to his brow, but this time it was accompanied by the sweet voice. The angel's voice. Her voice. Sakura's voice. His thoughts stopped at the name. Sakura?Who is that? How did I know the name? He focused on her voice, trying to make his mind understand the words, but the void still scoffed at his attempts to make sense of them. He still could not understand the meaning of her words.
The object gently stroked his brow. What's touching me? A hand. She's stroking your brow. His mind focused briefly on the hand. Why? The answer appeared in his mind, but disappeared before he could understand it. The void kept trying to claim him, but he refused to give in. He didn't know why he had to hold on. The only thing that mattered was to not give up.
The bittersweet voice broke through his scattered thoughts. "Naruto? Naruto, can you hear me?" Her words sent his thoughts flitting into a different direction. Naruto? Who is that? Is that...me? I don't understand...is she talking to me? The void laughed at him, playing tricks on his mind. It mocked him for trying to defy its mighty power. His eyes flickered again beneath his eyelids, trying to get his thoughts to run away from the threatening void.
"Naruto, it's alright. You can sleep. Nothing will happen. You are safe here," the sweet voice broke through his confused thoughts again, speaking soothingly. Safe? He felt exuberant at the sound of her voice. You can trust her. A strange peace enveloped his mind when the void came to claim him again, but strangely enough, the void no longer seemed ominous. Instead it seemed peaceful, gently gesturing him to relax and let go of his troublesome thoughts. He yielded to its sweet embrace and fell into a deep healing sleep.
_~...~_
A/N: Well, that's the chapter! I know it's rather short, but it's the best I could do to express what I wanted in the chapter. I'll try to make the next chapters longer, but I can't promise anything, since I'm currently busy writing semestertests at the university. Also, please remember to review! Even one word reviews are fine for me, like good or interesting or keep it going: it proves to me that people are still reading my story and liking it and that's what's motivating me to continue writing it. And if you don't like my story, please tell me what it is you don't like. I'm a very open-minded person: I won't hate somebody for saying something I don't like.
Just to clarify something, the voice in Naruto's mind is not the Kyuubi. It's the part of his subconciousness that's lucid and trying to fight against his delirium.
Till next time!
