Conclusion

Pictures and Conversations

oooOOOooo

"The bond that links your true family is not one of blood,

but of respect and joy in each other's life."

Richard Bach

oooOOOooo

While Sasuke made a decision to actively pursue his love interest, the rest of the day was otherwise filled with glumness over the recent turn of events. They walked aimlessly along the road after lunch without uttering a single word.

"We shouldn't sulk like this," Sakura finally said. They sat under the shade of a tree by the edge of the road just beside a farmland they had not passed through since they were little. "We did decide it was okay as long as he knew we're his friends."

"You've been able to tell if he's faking his smile, right?" Sasuke asked.

"He seems to have learned a whole lot of other facial expressions since the last time. I can't tell anymore," Naruto replied.

"I know it's inappropriate to think this way but I was secretly hoping Sai would choose us over the Rangers. I'm awful," Sakura said.

"No you're not, I felt kind of jealous too. But it's his decision. We have to respect that," Naruto said.

"Think he'll ever come back?" Sakura asked. None of them had an answer. Deep inside, they just wished their friend would be happy where he was.

They kept sitting under the shade until their butts ached. By mid-afternoon, they stood up deciding it was time to head back to the main part of the village.

Just then an old man walked past them slowly. Sakura bowed to show respect as the elderly walked by. Then Sasuke bowed followed by Naruto. The old man acknowledged silently. When he passed all of them, he suddenly stopped and turned around.

"Where's the other one?" He asked.

The three looked at each other not sure how to reply.

"There's another one, is there not?" The man asked again. "The black-haired boy. Pale skin."

"How did you know?" they asked.

"Seemed like a nice young man," he said, not bothering to answer the question. He walked on which naturally made the three follow. The old man didn't seem to mind being tailed.

"Would you like to have some tea at my house?" he offered on the way. "I grow my own tea leaves. I'm thinking of opening a tea shop in town but my daughter said it would tire me out. You should taste my tea and tell me if you'd be willing to patronize my shop."

The old man went on. They had lost interest early on but felt it would be rude to abandon him just like that. He offered them tea, after all. They entered the man's dwelling and were led straight to the living room. "Please wait while I prepare your tea," he said.

They kept their gaze on the floor as they walked in. They took their places by the low table in the middle. As they sat down, they lifted their heads and faced the wall. And there it was right in front of them - four panels of shoji screen with a full size drawing of Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto and Sai in black ink. All of them were smiling in the picture and they were holding hands.

The old man later related how those shoji panels were part of the house next door that was destroyed during Pein's invasion. "I thought the young man was a relative of my neighbor's but he said he was just passing through. When I went out the next day, I saw the panels were arranged side by side out front. I recognized his image immediately. Men were going to demolish everything that day so I thought I'd save them at least. Not everyday that a wandering artist passes through and leaves an interesting artwork, eh?"

The three kept their eyes on the wall for a long while. It was Naruto who finally spoke their common thought out loud.

"He'll be back."

~FIN~

Naruto & characters © Kishimoto Masashi

Epilogue

Sai hunched under a makeshift shelter of mud, dead leaves and branches as heavy rain continued to pour outside. He could hear drops of water as they trickled where the rain had seeped through from above him. He covered his face with a loose part of his hood cloak to protect himself from the biting cold. His last piece of kindling had burned out. But he surprisingly didn't mind the cold that night.

He pulled out his picture book from his pouch and carefully slipped it out of the plastic bag cover. He held it protectively for fear that it would get wet. He gently opened it to the middle and lifted a piece of folded parchment that was inserted just between the image of Shin and himself. On the parchment was a sketch he made long ago just after Pein's invasion. It was of Naruto getting hit by Sakura. It was the only drawing he saved from the bunch that he left in Konoha. Only recently, he added a third image on it, that was of Sasuke in the background smiling at the two combatants. Sai smiled to himself as he imagined the made-up scene in his head.

When a gush of wind signaled a fresh incoming assault of heavy downpour, he quickly folded the parchment and put it back in between the middle pages of the book. He then put it back inside its plastic covering and safely stowed it away in his pouch.

After that, he unrolled the message he received from base just a few hours before and re-read it for a third time.

"Sai, you have done a very satisfactory job as part of the Shinobi Rangers these past months. However, it's been decided that former ANBU Tenzou and Mitarashi Anko will take your place. the Hokage requested that you be recalled to Konoha at once as there is a need for your services there.

Allied Shinobi Forces

Chief Commander

Gaara

P.S. I believe a common friend and a few others will be very pleased when you return."

***Thank you for reading and for all your feedback.***

For anyone who read this but haven't seen ep. 238,

the shoji panels and sketch of Naruto and Sakura are from that episode.

End-theme: "Calls Me Home" by Shannon LaBrie c/o Wolferetic

Here's the YouTube link for tune and lyrics

www. youtubedotcom/watch?v=j85iLHc7bC8

(delete space, replace "dot" with "." )

Thanks Wolfie!