First off, thanks to Ashi-chan, Wyld Stallyns, Na-chanl and Saori-Hime for
reviewing the fic. And Saori, thanks for pointing out the mistake. I guess
dramatic irony got the better of me. T_T Anyway, the chapters are going to
be shorter from now on, because I had been tinkering with the first one for
a while before I finally put it up.
One month later
It was cold tonight. The wind whipped against Sasuke's exposed arms as he weaved around the trees in his path. The captain called for everyone to halt. The dark haired shinobi turned his head to see Naruto at his side. The Anbu uniform didn't really suit him. All that bright orange was gone, and this new, darker set of clothes didn't seem to reflect the young ninja's personality. Sasuke looked down at himself. Anbu.
Flashback*
Sasuke knocked and entered the Fifth's office without waiting for a reply. This was something Tsunade had come to expect, so she made sure to stay awake this time around.
"Hello Sasuke."
"Hokage-sama." 'Get on with it,' he thought. 'I have better things to do with my time and better people to be with.' He smirked. That was definitely a new feeling. Longing for something aside from revenge, and admitting to it. The Hokage noticed his expression.
"What's with you?"
"Nothing. Why did you call me in today Hokage-sama?"
"Well, I've gone over your report a few times now." She pointed to a rather large stack of papers. "You killed at least two S-Rank criminals while you were away (Orochimaru and Kabuto). You've been back almost a month now and have taken on 12 B-Rank missions and 4 A-Rank alongside your former Team 7. This speaks volumes of your team's abilities. We want you to join the Anbu."
"I'd need to discuss this with Sak-."
"Sakura has given her blessings. I spoke to her earlier today in her training. You know, she's Anbu material herself, but needs to complete her gen-jutsu training..." she started to ramble.
"In that case yes, Hokage-sama." No emotion was evident on his face, but Sasuke knew this would bring him closer to the Akatsuki. 'Am I afraid? Yes. Does that make me a coward?' He pondered this for a moment. 'No. Only a fool does not know fear. A warrior doesn't show it.'
****
The one they were hunting was next to him. He was a Mist hunter-nin gone missing-nin. Kind of ironic The Mist had weakened recently, and made an alliance with Konoha. Truth be told, they were just scared of Konoha's regained military prowess. If you can't beat them, join them.
The shinobi made his move. He leapt off of the branch he'd been hiding behind and brought his sword down through Sasuke's back. After a puff of smoke he found that he had butchered a log... with an exploding tag on it. The swordsman couldn't get his sword out and threw it with the log still attached.
"Kagemane no jutsu!"
The rogue stiffened. A signal from Shikamaru told Sasuke that he had successfully completed the technique.
"Sasuke, immobilise him," Shikamru called. Sasuke took hold of their blatantly frightened enemy. "Be careful with him. We're supposed to take him back in one piece."
"Roger. I'd let go of his shadow if I were you," he called back.
Shikamaru shrugged and released the missing-nin. Sasuke tripped him and firmly placed his foot on their captive's chest. He grabbed his leg and pushed it towards his head. After a few seconds of screaming, there came a sickening pop.
"Ugh! What the hell Sasuke?! All you had to do was tie him up!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs.
"We've been chasing him for two days. Dislocating his leg makes sure he can't get away," he turned to the whimpering ninja, "doesn't it?" The man nodded, scared of what else this monster might do.
He was right. The trip to the Hidden Village of Mist was quiet indeed. The horrified man merely stared at Sasuke the entire time. He wouldn't let him have another chance to hurt him.
The transaction was simple. Turn over the missing-nin and collect their payment. The squad made their way back to Konoha in the same day.
****
The sun had been up for 3 hours when they arrived at the village, making it about 9. Sasuke took off his mask and looked at it, reminiscing. The first major battle he fought was with Haku, who's mask looked exactly like his. In fact, Haku was the reason he chose this mask over all the others. Animal faces didn't really scream 'Sasuke' like a blank face did. It had been so long ago since that fight with Haku. He had died that day. He was resuscitated, but his life had ended for a short time. The only thought ringing in his head before he fell into blackness was how he had failed. Time changes everything.
He need only look in a mirror to see that. The rounded features he had as a boy were gone, replaced with a generally sharpened face. Still, the fan girls didn't seem to mind. A group of four rounded the corner and saw their raven-haired idol. Shrieking with delight, they charged. Sasuke brought his head up and gave them the most horrifying glare recorded or no in shinobi history.
"Grow up."
He put his hands in his pockets, leaned his back a bit and was about to walk off when he spotted Sakura giggling at what she had just witnessed. She casually walked up to Sasuke and pulled him into a passionate kiss, making sure to keep one eye open to see the fan girls' reaction. She wasn't disappointed. Their faces dropped, one began to cry. As the two ended the session of tonsil hockey, Sasuke turned to face the fan girls, and smirked. He put his arm around Sakura and they walked away.
"So, how did the mission go?"
"It was a success."
"Fair enough. Hey, do you want to come over tonight."
"Yeah."
"OK, if I could expect you at about 8? That gives you ample training time, and I need to go train with Tsunade-sama."
"That's fine." He kissed her forehead. "I'll see you then." And he was gone.
'He's changed a lot since training with Orochimaru. All that time alone must give a massive amount of time to think about things. Even those things that didn't seem important before.'
One month later
It was cold tonight. The wind whipped against Sasuke's exposed arms as he weaved around the trees in his path. The captain called for everyone to halt. The dark haired shinobi turned his head to see Naruto at his side. The Anbu uniform didn't really suit him. All that bright orange was gone, and this new, darker set of clothes didn't seem to reflect the young ninja's personality. Sasuke looked down at himself. Anbu.
Flashback*
Sasuke knocked and entered the Fifth's office without waiting for a reply. This was something Tsunade had come to expect, so she made sure to stay awake this time around.
"Hello Sasuke."
"Hokage-sama." 'Get on with it,' he thought. 'I have better things to do with my time and better people to be with.' He smirked. That was definitely a new feeling. Longing for something aside from revenge, and admitting to it. The Hokage noticed his expression.
"What's with you?"
"Nothing. Why did you call me in today Hokage-sama?"
"Well, I've gone over your report a few times now." She pointed to a rather large stack of papers. "You killed at least two S-Rank criminals while you were away (Orochimaru and Kabuto). You've been back almost a month now and have taken on 12 B-Rank missions and 4 A-Rank alongside your former Team 7. This speaks volumes of your team's abilities. We want you to join the Anbu."
"I'd need to discuss this with Sak-."
"Sakura has given her blessings. I spoke to her earlier today in her training. You know, she's Anbu material herself, but needs to complete her gen-jutsu training..." she started to ramble.
"In that case yes, Hokage-sama." No emotion was evident on his face, but Sasuke knew this would bring him closer to the Akatsuki. 'Am I afraid? Yes. Does that make me a coward?' He pondered this for a moment. 'No. Only a fool does not know fear. A warrior doesn't show it.'
****
The one they were hunting was next to him. He was a Mist hunter-nin gone missing-nin. Kind of ironic The Mist had weakened recently, and made an alliance with Konoha. Truth be told, they were just scared of Konoha's regained military prowess. If you can't beat them, join them.
The shinobi made his move. He leapt off of the branch he'd been hiding behind and brought his sword down through Sasuke's back. After a puff of smoke he found that he had butchered a log... with an exploding tag on it. The swordsman couldn't get his sword out and threw it with the log still attached.
"Kagemane no jutsu!"
The rogue stiffened. A signal from Shikamaru told Sasuke that he had successfully completed the technique.
"Sasuke, immobilise him," Shikamru called. Sasuke took hold of their blatantly frightened enemy. "Be careful with him. We're supposed to take him back in one piece."
"Roger. I'd let go of his shadow if I were you," he called back.
Shikamaru shrugged and released the missing-nin. Sasuke tripped him and firmly placed his foot on their captive's chest. He grabbed his leg and pushed it towards his head. After a few seconds of screaming, there came a sickening pop.
"Ugh! What the hell Sasuke?! All you had to do was tie him up!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs.
"We've been chasing him for two days. Dislocating his leg makes sure he can't get away," he turned to the whimpering ninja, "doesn't it?" The man nodded, scared of what else this monster might do.
He was right. The trip to the Hidden Village of Mist was quiet indeed. The horrified man merely stared at Sasuke the entire time. He wouldn't let him have another chance to hurt him.
The transaction was simple. Turn over the missing-nin and collect their payment. The squad made their way back to Konoha in the same day.
****
The sun had been up for 3 hours when they arrived at the village, making it about 9. Sasuke took off his mask and looked at it, reminiscing. The first major battle he fought was with Haku, who's mask looked exactly like his. In fact, Haku was the reason he chose this mask over all the others. Animal faces didn't really scream 'Sasuke' like a blank face did. It had been so long ago since that fight with Haku. He had died that day. He was resuscitated, but his life had ended for a short time. The only thought ringing in his head before he fell into blackness was how he had failed. Time changes everything.
He need only look in a mirror to see that. The rounded features he had as a boy were gone, replaced with a generally sharpened face. Still, the fan girls didn't seem to mind. A group of four rounded the corner and saw their raven-haired idol. Shrieking with delight, they charged. Sasuke brought his head up and gave them the most horrifying glare recorded or no in shinobi history.
"Grow up."
He put his hands in his pockets, leaned his back a bit and was about to walk off when he spotted Sakura giggling at what she had just witnessed. She casually walked up to Sasuke and pulled him into a passionate kiss, making sure to keep one eye open to see the fan girls' reaction. She wasn't disappointed. Their faces dropped, one began to cry. As the two ended the session of tonsil hockey, Sasuke turned to face the fan girls, and smirked. He put his arm around Sakura and they walked away.
"So, how did the mission go?"
"It was a success."
"Fair enough. Hey, do you want to come over tonight."
"Yeah."
"OK, if I could expect you at about 8? That gives you ample training time, and I need to go train with Tsunade-sama."
"That's fine." He kissed her forehead. "I'll see you then." And he was gone.
'He's changed a lot since training with Orochimaru. All that time alone must give a massive amount of time to think about things. Even those things that didn't seem important before.'