Pairing: None
Rating: K+
Note: I think I had a thought that went like this: "He had a smile to shatter the universe so carefully constructed by those around him. He had a smile to shatter the universe." And sooo… here?
A Smile to Shatter the Universe
Consistency was one of the anchors of life. The sun always rose in the east, there where four seasons, twelve months, people died, people were born, and the sky was blue when there wasn't rain clouds in the sky. Consistency made them strong. Consistency made them week.
The world had been constructed to believe that that mask would always be there. Neither rain, nor snow, nor purple clouds, nor flying armadillos, nor the sun rising in the west would ever change that. It had always been there, and therefore would always be there. Everyone had a mask, really, his was just a little more obvious; so obvious, in fact, that it was almost completely over looked by society. Ninja had strange quirks, the civilians would say, who cares about the mask? It's a symbol of his something-something, others might put in, to respect the something-hubbub of who-the-what-now where ever it happened to come from.
That was not to say that people had not tired to remove the mask; on the contrary, more people had than he could count on both hands, though he was never inclined to count them at all. His own subordinates had tried, and failed, which was not unexpected. Somewhere in the darkest recesses of his mind a little part of him might count off the times of failure, and how often the person failing had tried, and what number they happened to be after all the many before hand, and all the many after again.
And so society had decided that it was one of the 'Laws of the World,' ranking up with 'The sky is blue', 'the grass is green', and 'people die.' No one was alive that might remember his face behind the mask, and if they had been they might have not wanted to talk about it at all. Again, had they been alive.
But they weren't, so it was forgotten, and no one could recall him ever not wearing it, and so it faded even more. Consistency made them strong. Consistency made them week.
It was neither gloomily rainy nor foggily wet that morning, and nothing remarkable could be said for the people, nor the shops, nor the routine that had gone on for as may years as anyone cared to remember, if they so cared at all. It was not a morning promising surprises, nor one to foretell travesty or discontent amongst the populace of the village, and no one might have guessed what would happen but hours into the day.
None of the people around him at the time could recall what exactly triggered the removal of the mask. All that was known, and has been known since, is, that in the middle of the village, while looking at the sculpted stone head of the Fourth, beside him the Fifth, and the reigning Hokage the Sixth, he reached up and looped his fingers around his mask and dragged it down, baring his face to the world.
It seemed as though the entire populace held its breath, startled, amazed, astounded at the occurrence. Consistency had made them strong, the belief in their virtues and rights held true; but it had made them week, to comfortable with their lives to realize that one-day, such a change might happen.
It was said that Hatake Kakashi had a smile to shatter the universe.
It wasn't originally supposed to be called 'A Smile to Shatter the Universe.' It was first called 'Animal Dance', and then 'Mist', but those titles didn't do anything for me, so I rewrote the story and came up with this. It also wasn't supposed to be about Kakashi, but I like it, so its not changing. Pooodddleeessss…
