In order to understand this, you have to read the information provided in my other story, Breaking the Sound Barrier
Disclaimer-
I do not own Naruto. Otherwise, I would make Orochimaru kill himself for killing Zaku and Kin!
Warning-
There is a suicide at the end of the story; thankfully, it's not too graphic...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I remember how this began…how did it get off track?
A young Matt stood, smiling, on the roof of his house. Next to him sat his younger brother, Skye. "Skye, want to play target practice?" he asked. Nodding excitedly, the young boy got up and ran off to get his shuriken. Behind him, Matt noticed Manarak and Gar, his older brother and his father, smiling in the shadows. At that point, Skye returned and tapped him on the shoulder. "Big Brother wanta play?" he asked. Nodding, Matt hopped off and followed his younger brother…
That wasn't it…ah, I remember…it was that day…
Matt and Manarak stood on a rock on the outskirts of the forest, watching their parents fidget. They were awoken by Lena, the Hokage of the Village of Eternal Flames, as she emerged. She carried a scroll, which she handed to Gar and Wren. Bowing, the adults turned and handed it to Matt and Manarak, who bowed back.
"Remember, that gets to the Village of the Leaf. And don't read it!" Bowing one more time, the duo turned and ran off. "Do you think they are ready?" Wren asked her husband. "Only time can tell…" Everyone drifted back to the village, except Wren. "Something will go wrong…" she muttered.
Ah…then…It was him…all him…or, rather, that's what I told myself…
Matt stood outside the forest. Manarak stood with Gar, their faces as cold as stone. Wren was crying and Skye was close to tears. Lena looked just as sad. "We were alerted…Orochimaru contacted you, didn't he?" Matt nodded and Skye started crying. "Then, that makes you an outlaw…by your own admission…" Matt nodded, turned and started walking off.
When he was out of sight, he turned and noticed Orochimaru, Dosu, Zaku and Kin standing there. "What did I tell you?" Orochimaru nodded as the boy walked over. Picking up a Sound Hitaiate (headband), he handed it to the boy. "Welcome." Matt sighed and replaced the Flame Hitaiate with the new one. Dropping it, he ground it into the earth as he followed his new friends.
I should have known…making friends with him was a mistake…
All dead. All burning. All around him, the Village of the Leaf was burning. And it was his fault. Around him lay the bodies of ninjas, brave ones who had died to defend their land…and all in vain; with his friend's help, they had died. The boy turned over the bodies of Hinata and Naruto; both had died in each other's arms. Sasuke and Sakura; Ino and Shikamaru; TenTen and Neji… Friends, lovers, who knew?
As for the Hokage, he had died at Orochimaru's hands. And the Jonins were dead too, though Matt never knew how... All he could see was blood, fire, and death… Even Kin, Dosu and Haku were disturbed…Only Orochimaru was unaffected. Matt flung a look at the nearby forest; it too was burning, once again by his hand. Inside, he knew, he had laid his parents' bodies to rest…
That day…should have scared me. But I wouldn't heed it and now…
Matt stared at the dead body of Orochimaru…the man he had grown to view as a mentor, had died at his hands. He looked emotionlessly around; the bodies of ninjas were piled on each other. He then noticed his friends' bodies, dead on the ground. Picking them up, he carried them to graves he had dug after finding them dead.
"…" He sighed and started to walk off. "I can fix this…maybe…" Sad tears falling, he knelt and held a shuriken at his neck. "…Gomen nasai, Skye…forgive me, Manarak…Mother, Father….Kin, Dosu, Zaku…" One movement, and his limp body collapsed, adding to the sea of sadness…
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This story was written while listening to the ending theme from Final Fantasy X, one of the saddest songs ever, especially if you've seen the vid that goes with it...