SasuHina Month 2018 #3: Rain

Inspired by "Love Rain" by Jang Keun-suk from the Love Rain OST. Haven't actually watched that k-drama, but it's been on my to-do list lol

The sound on the umbrella

the sound of the rain

the sound of my heart

Love rain is falling

I love rain, I love you


Listen to "Early Summer Rain (Samidare)" and "Floating Dead Leaves (Ochihabune)" from the Naruto Shippuden soundtrack to set the mood.


This had been a particularly rainy season. He had just gotten discharged from the hospital, but he couldn't keep still in his apartment. Sasuke walked the empty streets of Konoha without a direction or plan and with nothing to protect him from the weather except an old umbrella Kakashi had lent him. At least now the rain had let up into a gentle drizzle, after a long night of thunder and storms. He was going to go crazy if he had to spend another night in his room listening to nothing but the sound of the rain against his rooftop and his own breathing. He couldn't bear to be alone with his thoughts for one more second. The sky was crying, and the heavens were falling apart.

All it did was remind him of her.

If there was anything that broke him, it was her tears.

More rain, more tears. Tears in her eyes, on her cheeks. On her lips. Her chin. How they made her eyes glitter like diamonds. The last, true expression she showed him before their mission was completed, before she started avoiding him.

His grip on the handle of the umbrella tightened and he squeezed his eyes shut, as if it would stop his memories from replaying. As if it would prevent her face from showing up.

He always made sure to be careful. And the one time-no, the two times he had slipped up, it had cost him.

One, he had let their target come too close and they had almost hurt her. Instead, they had wounded him.

Hinata had managed to pull him into an abandoned cabin, placing a genjutsu over the area to cover their tracks, and propped him up against the wall.

In her distress, she wrenched as much of the wet armor off as she could, flinging their weapons and masks to the corners of the room.

"Sasuke-kun?" her frantic voice was the only thing keeping him awake.

Her clammy hands patted his cheek. "Stay with me, Sasuke-kun, you're going to be alright."

He remembered it was hard to breathe and there was a painful, slow burn, spreading throughout his body, paralyzing him.

Second, he had let his emotions get the best of him. His repressed feelings for her bubbled up inside him like a boiling pot. Was it in reaction to her concern? Her touch? He had always acted professional and distant around her, especially when they were working.

Maybe it was just the nearness of her face and the reality that he had almost lost her.

A cool, soothing sensation started to ease the pain, and along with the soft blue light that filled the room, he knew she was healing him.

He forced his heavy eyelids to open and looked up. Hinata was kneeling in front of him between his legs. Her face was serious, but the worry in her eyes was unmistakable. The healing hand she held to his body shook slightly as she worked to slather ointment on less critical wounds, reaching around his torso to wrap bleeding areas with makeshift bandages.

She bent over, ripping up the cloth with her teeth.

When she pulled away, Sasuke reached for a strand of hair that had fallen free from the messy bun she had thrown her wet hair up in as she worked on him and tucked it behind her ear.

She had stiffened in surprise and met his eyes slowly and shyly, pink dusting her cheeks as she realized the proximity of their faces.

The corner of his lips tugged up slightly at the corners and he managed in a raspy voice, "I think I love you, Hinata."

"L-Love?" She had been taken aback. "I love… Naruto?" The inflection in her voice was evident enough of her conflict, though it was there also in the cloudiness of her eyes and the shadow on her face. Yet her head tilted up towards him, and her hand curled into his chest even more.

"I see," he had said flatly. Sasuke removed her hands from him and turned away from her.

"Wait-!" the sob that caught in her throat was more painful than his injuries.

"I'll be fine," he interrupted. "Let's just get home. Sakura will heal me."

He admitted, he had been a bit harsh. He pretended not to notice her crying, but the tears had haunted him.

They were doing so well as friends, she had called them.

Now that he thought about it, it had been raining then, too.

Sasuke froze in his tracks, too distracted as the subject of his thoughts appeared suddenly.

He should have expected her here, although why his body led him here, he didn't know.

She was staring at the grave's headstone, looking like some kind of scary creature that had just crawled out of the swamp. Her long, wet hair was stuck to her face, and her baggy clothing sagged even lower as they grew more and more soaked. As she turned her head at his presence, her face fell, lips trembling. Her eyes were rimmed with red, her nose was red, her cheeks were red.

It made his throat tighten. She had been crying because of him. Again.

The sound of the rain filled the silence as they stood facing each other.

"You're going to catch a cold," he said numbly. He stuck out his umbrella over her. "What are you doing out here?"

"I n-need to talk to you," Hinata said, her voice wavering.

Sasuke's wet bangs fell forward, covering his eyes as he braced himself for more words he didn't want to hear.

When he didn't say anything, Hinata continued hesitantly. "I thought that — Neji-nii-san would have died for nothing if… if I didn't love Naruto. I was the one who," she swallowed. "Who tried to save him, after all. And he saved me."

"But now," her hand reached out and clutched at the edge of his sleeve. She turned her face up to him, tears flowing again. "I-I think Neji-nii-san would support me whoever I loved." She ducked her head, swiping at her nose and sniffling. "And now I…I have someone else I love." She lifted her chin, turning her face up to him again bravely and giving him a trembling, unsure smile.

Sasuke let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, the beginnings of an answering smile on his lips. "Don't cry anymore," he said gruffly. He reached out, bringing her close to him with one arm, placing his chin on top of her head.

With a shuddering sob, she nodded, burying her face in his chest.

And standing there with her against him, it wasn't so cold and wet anymore, and he thought that maybe he didn't mind the rain after all.