"Black."

It was all she could see.

Wherever she looked, it was there, not leaving her vision even for a second. No matter how hard she tried to get rid of it, it followed her everywhere, even in her dreams, a space where she had authority over everything.

"Why am I like this?"

She whispered to herself.

"Why can't I see anything?"

Her voice cracked, indicating that she was on the verge of crying again but stopped before tears could well up in her eyes. She didn't want to look more weak in the eyes of others. Their usual taunts and berating were already too hard to handle and she refused to give them more themes to laugh at.

"When will this night end?"

Coal black eyes veered around the playground, hoping to see some light in her darkness filled world but found none. It was still all black, just as usual.

"Sayuri..."

Her lips twitched a little when a familiar sound reached her ears. They were here, she noted, and steeled herself for what was about to come next. Would it be harsher than yesterday? She hoped not but remained impassive just in case.

"Are you ok?"

Slender hands began to shake in anxiety. "Yes," she murmured in answer.

"Ohh..."

The silence that followed the remark scared her, it always did because it indicated that the worst was about to come next.

"Do you want to play with us?"

There it began, she gulped but still kept her calm. "I can't Daisuke-"

"Ohh yes, I forgot you are blind. I'm sorry, Sayuri."

He meant none of that, she knew. He never did. Daisuke was someone who prospered in the sufferings of others and hers was no different. It gave him a sense of euphoria, a sensation of satisfaction that the daughter of his clan leader was useless, even more than him.

"But don't worry, I'm sure you will become a very powerful ninja in the future. Then nobody will laugh at you, Sayuri."

Loud laughs that followed his remarks made her squirm, shame and anger being the main stimuli behind it. "Don't-"

"Aww..."

She recoiled in disgust when the fingers of the boy touched her face. It felt horrible, something she wanted to run away from but couldn't because for that she would need assistance too.

"Is our little four year old Uchiha prodigy mad at us?"

"No..." She hissed when his hands cupped her cheeks. "Leave me alone, please..." Shame filled her heart as she spoke that word. It sounded pathetic, even to her ears.

"Huh? Did you just say please?"

Dull black eyes lowered down in disgrace. Just how much more she was going to endure in her life? She had already ashamed her father enough and didn't want to cross any more boundaries now. "I-I said leave-"

"How much more do you want to humiliate our clan, Sayuri? People already make fun of you and if you are going to behave like this, then that day isn't far when people will start taking Uchihas lightly."

Every word that left his mouth punctured Sayuri's heart and pride in ways she couldn't even explain. "How?" she whispered. How could her blindness damage her clan's reputation? Wasn't it something that was out of the control of everyone? She didn't choose to be like this and she was certain neither of her parents did too. It was fate that gave her this curse and she had no option but to accept and live with it.

"Because you are weak and Uchihas have no place for people like you."

Wasn't he weak too? Sayuri wanted to retort but didn't because she knew it was unnecessary. Other than igniting a new debate, her reply wouldn't have any additional effect.

"Daisuke leave her. She is unnecessary."

Another voice entered her ears and just like Daisuke's, it was bitter and arrogant too. Probably one of his friends, she assumed. Unlike her, Daisuke had many friends, so many that she couldn't even count them on both of her hands.

"I know-"

"Hey!"

Sayuri blinked when another foreign voice entered her ears but this one was different, way too much different. Instead of making her more anxious, it soothed her heart with the amount of hope and happiness it carried.

"Oh, so he is back huh?"

The newcomer wasn't Daisuke's friend, she immediately deduced by the tone he had just used to acknowledge him.

"Yeah. Doesn't he get bothered by getting rejected and thrashed so many times?"

Sayuri's lips curved down. 'What did they mean by getting rejected so many times?' she couldn't help but wonder. Was the newcomer someone bad? No, she didn't think so because if he was then he would have been in Daisuke's friend circle instead of being on the opposite side.

"Blond idiot."

Blonde? What does that look like? Was it the same as the darkness around her?

"Monster."

Now that took her by surprise. 'Monster' She frowned upon the strange way that her clan member had just used to call the newcomer. She had never heard them use that term ever before, at least not in front of her.

"What is his name again, Shibuya?"

Sayuri perked up. She wanted to know his name too because 'monster' sounded very atrocious to her. It was a term she wouldn't use even for her worst enemy because calling someone monster meant confiscating their humanity off from them.

"Uzumaki Naruto."

The name sounded familiar, very familiar. Sayuri was sure she had heard it somewhere before. But where? She began to reminisce and gasped when a particular memory struck her mind like a boulder. 'Kaa-chan.' Her mother had told her about him. 'A boy who is very much like you, maybe even worse but he still smiles, no matter what the conditions are.' Sayuri smiled a little. 'His smile is very contagious, even more than his voice.' The words of her brother rang inside her mind then. 'They were right.' She thought to herself.

"Hey! Do you guys want to play with me?"

A strange emotion began to soar inside her. It was warm and fuzzy but intense enough to make her forget about her dilemma for once. His voice was truly contagious, mostly because of the happiness and the hope it carried. 'Uzumaki Nar-'

'Slap!'

Just like that, the sensation vanished, leaving behind a scowl on her face as she stared at the direction from where the sound had come.

-Earlier-

Loneliness.

An emotion he was very well acquainted with. It was something he had lived with throughout his whole life, from the day he was born to this present bleak moment.

Ironically, loneliness is the only thing that had never left him alone.

He had tried to suppress it, run away from it, and had even tried to eradicate it from his heart but unfortunately, it was something that had been engraved on his soul for eternity. No matter what he does, he is bound to this emotion and would have to live with it for the rest of his life.

"Why?"

A single word, a heartbreaking question left his dry mouth while his brilliant blue eyes stared at the flourishing village through the broken glass of the window.

Broken.

This world was a broken spectacle according to him. Otherwise, there's no reason why the populace of this world would loathe and ignore him like that.

He's a child, a mere bundle of flesh and bones who wants nothing but a soul who he could call his friend but this broken world wouldn't even let him have that.

"Because they despise my presence and fear it."

Fear.

A feeling that he had never failed to notice in the eyes of people who dared to come close to him. They all feared him, in one way or another.

To them, he's someone who should be kept away from everyone but lost in the wilderness of their baseless fears, all these people around him always declined to acknowledge the fear in his eyes.

His fear was very distinct from their fear. While they feared his existence, Naruto, on the other hand, feared their rejection. He had always feared rejection, even after experiencing it many times, he still fears it.

"They reject me because they hate me."

Hate.

Something he had always felt in every action directed towards him, no matter who the person was. It didn't matter to them that he was just a child who hadn't harmed anyone in his entire life.

"What have I ever done to these people? Why do they hate me so much?" His fists clenched by themselves, tightening as the seconds passed by.

"Even the Hokage discriminates against me!"

Discrimination.

An aspect that he had seen Hokage live with. The leader of his village never cared about him, did he? All he after was keeping his reputation as a loving and benevolent leader. Never punishing anyone who wronged him, no matter the circumstances. Naruto had always known that for some reason, he was always put below the other villagers.

"Why? Isn't he supposed to be the village leader? Someone who leads fairly. Then why does he treat me like I don't matter?"

By this time, his nails were digging into his flesh, making his hands start bleeding a bit. Unknown to him, his eyes had taken on a red hue and his nails had elongated, making them dig deeper into his flesh.

Defeat.

It was useless, wasn't it? He was going to die all alone in this hell that people called 'the world'. Alone, with no one to call his own. No one to cry over his dying body. Rather, some might even celebrate it for all he knew. The thought stinging like someone had dug a knife in him and twisted it. It made him feel truly hollow inside. The realization that he was always going to live and die alone, forgotten soon after his death, his death not even being an afterthought to anyone around him.

No. He shook those thoughts off. He still had his whole life in front of him. He wouldn't give up, he would keep going. Deep down he knew. Knew that it'd all be in vain, but his young brain refused to acknowledge this truth. He still wanted to try, try till the last drops of hope had been squeezed from his soul.

This was not getting anywhere, he needed to calm down and think about everything that had been going on. There had to be a reason why the Hokage didn't punish those that wronged him. Maybe they were forcing him to act like this. But… that made no sense, he was the leader, he was the supreme authority. No one should be able to force him.

"Maybe he is like that only huh?" Staring at the palm that had been bleeding until a few seconds ago, he decided to give it one last chance. A single shot with all the willpower he could muster. He would try to make friends in the park the next time he went there.

He knew that this might turn out like the last many many times he had tried, but he had a feeling, like some otherworldly being telling him that it will be fine. That he will achieve this time what he never achieved in the last attempts.

With these thoughts, he slowly dozed off, not knowing when sleep claimed him, his last thoughts being hopes of a better tomorrow. Not knowing that fate had some plans for him, plans that would change his outlook on the world forever.

-Playground-

"Hey!" An overly excited Naruto yelled out, hoping that the kids around him would notice and acknowledge his presence but sadly, none of them revolved from their position, not even a bit.

A little disheartened, Naruto still didn't let the rejection get into his head. He was optimistic, at least for now. "Hey! Do you guys want to play with me?" He exclaimed, yet again hoping to get some reaction out of the children. "I will play whatever you guys tell me to." The sadness in his voice was becoming noticeable now. "Umm-"

Finally, someone stepped forward, making Naruto happy that someone was going to respond to his queries. "Why don't you go away?" Were the first words that came out of the mouth of the stranger. "Don't you notice that we don't want you here?" The boy who whispered those heart-wrenching words had a very unpleasant look on his face, something that Naruto had seen many times in the past.

"B-bu-" Naruto couldn't complete his argument as he was slapped harshly on the cheeks by that same boy who for some reason was laughing at him now. Soon, all the children who were playing in the park joined the boy and began to laugh at him.

"Hehe, look at this loser!"

"Get him out of this park, he's a terrible person!"

"Yeah, my mom told me that he's a monster."

"Really? My father told me the same thing."

"Then what are you guys waiting for? Let's throw him out of the park!"

"Yay!"

Each and every word those children spoke wounded Naruto's heart in ways he couldn't even explain. Those words made him realize why he was destined to live alone. "I just want-" he was cut off by a punch to his face, courtesy of a random boy.

"Hey!" He yelled out in protest but was soon silenced with another punch to his chin, one that stung harder than the previous one.

"Look at how he is yelling at us!"

Naruto, who was lying on the ground, stood up and glanced at the group of children, his eyes staring at each of them with pure sadness. "Don't hit me" he whispered, caressing the swollen cheek with his right hand as tears flowed down his bloodied face. "I promise I will leave the park and will never disturb you guys again" with that said he turned on his heels and began to walk towards the entrance of the playground. "Still" for the last time, he glanced back and smiled at the children. It was futile he knew that but he still wanted to say that. "If you ever decide to play with me. You can find me on the swing beside the Academy. I am-" his eyes widened when a boy appeared in front of him out of nowhere and yanked a fist towards his already torn face.

"Agg" the speed and power behind the attack were too much for his 4-year-old body and soon he again found himself lying lifelessly on the cold ground. As usual, he tried to stand up but this time the pain was too much, so he decided to rest for a while.

His blue eyes drowned in the ocean of sadness when they saw children leaving the park. "I…" he wanted to tell them that they don't have to do it but at that moment he had no energy to draw words out of his mouth. The pain he felt earlier due to the punches was nothing in front of the pain he was feeling right now.

"Monster…"

His heart ceased to beat for a moment when he heard a mother utter that phrase as she picked up her child from the playground, her eyes never leaving his bloodied face.

"I'm not a monster…"

Tears finally fell from his eyes.

'I'm living in hell!'

-x-

Strolling through the streets of Konoha was something Naruto had always despised the most. These crowded roads no matter how joyous they seemed to others, never managed to persuade his heart that they could welcome him ever.

People who usually dwelled on these roads were hostile and had always told him to either go away or kill himself. If that was not enough, they usually make fun of him for not having parents, friends, and for being so weak compared to others.

"They are right though. I can never have friends. No one wants to be my friend" He whispered, hands still positioned on the bloodied and sore cheeks while his mildly broken legs struggled to manage the weight of his frail body.

"Mama, that boy is injured. We should help him!"

"Sshh… stay away from him, Aki-chan. He is a bad boy."

"Bad boy? But he is just like us! Let me-"

"Monster! He is a monster!"

Naruto stopped and looked at the woman.

Usually, by now, he would have gotten into an argument with that lady but today, something died at the playground, something that had kept him sane and optimistic. Now, he longer wanted to make friends. He had accepted his destiny. 'I'm going to remain alone for the rest of my life' with that thought in his mind, he began to walk again, completely ignoring the looks people gave him throughout the whole trip.

-Academy-

Creak.

Creak.

Creak.

The infuriating sound of the swing was nothing new to him. It was something he had got accustomed to over a period of time. This place, this small space beside the enormous Academy was his second home. It's a place where he had spent hours crying and despising his existence, something a four year old child should never do but sadly, he was an exception.

"Why?"

Naruto whispered, his hands gripping the ropes that supported the swing. "Why am I the only one to get this treatment? What have I ever done to them?" He yelled, pausing for someone to notice his question but unfortunately, there was no one there, as usual.

"I just wanted to make new friends" he whined and gently caressed the fresh wound on his lips. "It's hurting a lot" a whimper escaped his mouth, indicating that he was certainly in pain today.

"They punched me so hard that I couldn't even realize what was happening around me" a pathetic smile bloomed on his face as he reminisced the beating he had suffered through the hands of those idiots. "Especially that boy who punched me in the last," he mumbled, occasionally glancing at the swollen lips.

"I should complain about them to the Hokage," He thought about it and was about to stand up from his seat but at the very last moment, he decided against it. "No, What even is the use? I do not matter to him, he will ignore this once again, asking me to forgive those people."

Sandal clad feet patted the damp grass beneath. "I think I should-" his words were cut short by a melodic voice, a voice he had never heard before and made him turn around at the speed of light.

"Are you hurt?"

It wasn't what she asked that made him freeze up, it was how she said it. Over these past few years, he had grown very adept at sensing the emotions of others. He could easily tell if anything said to him was a lie, or if it was truthful and by extension, he could also discern the tone of voice behind anything said. For once, the only thing he could hear from another person was worry, concern, and curiosity.

However, he was still cautious about the strange girl in front of him. He knew that his assumptions were not foolproof, and that anyone could easily fake their emotions. No matter how docile someone appears to be, they can easily still pose a danger to him. His experiences have taught him the hard way.

"Hello," Naruto said slowly, on guard for any sudden actions. "Who are you and why are you here?"

The girl flinched when she heard Naruto's voice. It was very much like hers, full of sadness and suffering. "My name is Sayuri Uchiha." she whispered, making sure not to make any sudden moves in front of the boy.

Naruto's senses went on high alert after he heard the name "Uchiha!". He didn't have any good experiences with that clan, with most of them pointing out where he ran off to, and sending sneers of disgust his way. He was prepared to bolt from her when the girl spoke again, this time even more nervous.

"Are you trying to run away from me? If yes, then please stop. I just want to help you." Sayuri spoke hastily as she held up a healing salve with some bandages and placed them down on the ground, backing away after she did.

"Uhhh…"

The sadness inside her only grew stronger as she heard Naruto hum silently, probably scared of the items she had just put on the ground. She figured that the only reason that he would do this, is if he had been tricked by such things in the past. Little did she know, it was worse. Far worse than she could ever have imagined.

"My name is Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto."

His whisper brought her out of her thoughts as she glanced at him with a small smile on her face, a smile that was enclosed in a sea of comfort. "I see..." she replied, her dull eyes staring at his marred face.

Naruto shifted a little on the swing as he applied the healing salve on his face. "Umm... why are you helping me?" Large blue eyes blinked at her as he tilted his head in confusion. As far as he knew, people always preferred to remain away from him, especially ones from the reputable clans.

Sayuri was taken aback by the blunt question but composed herself quickly. If she wanted to help him then she needed to appear different from her clan members. "I'm amending the mistakes committed by the children of my clan. It was very wrong of them to hit you like that for no reason," she answered.

"Ohh… you saw me too huh?" He immediately looked away, no doubt ashamed to see that someone else saw him get knocked out too. It was already very humiliating, and now after knowing that this girl also saw it, the humiliation only increased. "I-I was just outnumbered, otherwise I'm very powerful" he whispered.

"I know, Naruto."

Whatever he was about to say perished in his mouth when the girl uttered his name. He knew that it might not mean anything special to others but for him, it still meant a lot because no one in his life had ever whispered his name with so much affection, without any tinge of malice. It was the first time and so it felt oddly satisfying. "I-I…" he closed his mouth, unable to form any sort of feedback. "You don't have to apologize for them, Sayuri-san. I'm fine." He whispered, worried that those boys might bully her too because of him.

Sayuri slowly shook her head. "No. You deserve an apology, Naruto. The behavior of my fellow clan members was absolutely peccant and should be dubbed accordingly."

"I-I see." Naruto didn't understand anything the girl just said but it sounded nice. It was the first time someone was taking a stand for him and that fact alone was enough to make him happy. "But I-I still don't want an apology." he asserted, trying to change the mind of the girl because she didn't know what would happen if she forces those boys to apologize to him. Naruto was sure they would try to ruin his life even more and he didn't want that. He just wanted to live in peace and solace.

"Hehehe..."

"Hey! Why are you laughing?" he muttered. Was she making fun of him? He didn't know but whatever it was, he for sure knew he was the source of it because there was no one else around them.

The laughs ceased and so did his embarrassment. He immediately stiffened when Sayuri looked back at him. "Umm… I just found your statement funny." her voice was still devoid of any queasy feeling, a notion that made his heart flutter for some unknown reason.

"Funny?"

A smile bloomed on her little face again. "Yes."

"Why?"

"Because your voice was cracking so much while speaking those words. It felt like you were afraid of those boys."

Everything left his mind as soon as he heard her answer. "Huh?" he scowled at her, very annoyed by the fact that she was making fun of his anxiety. It wasn't bogus, he was really afraid of those boys because they could ruin his entire life if they wanted to. So the fact that she was making fun of it, didn't go well with Naruto. "You are only laughing because they didn't make fun of you," he argued back. "If you had been in my position then you would have known what it means to be bullied and beaten by them." a little anger managed to seep out in his voice, something that he didn't notice until it was too late.

Sayuri went silent for a while, looking truly hurt by the words that the boy had just spoken. "You know..." she murmured, her shaky voice doing little to nothing in order to hide her pain. It was there, open for the world to see and hear. "I know what it feels like to be taunted by them. I really do. They taunt me every day, from morning to evening, they never leave a chance to make fun of me." she whispered.

"W-why?"

A sad smile emerged on her lips, a smile that made Naruto uneasy about the forthcoming words. He didn't want to hear them now.

"Because I'm blind. I can't see anything."

At that moment, Naruto wanted to vanish from the world forever. 'Blind...' his soul shattered into million pieces as he recalled what he had just heard. It was painful, so much that for once he forgot about his own problems, the very things that had kept him awake for countless nights. In front of her pain, his pain appeared insignificant because he had no one to lose from the start, everyone hated him but the girl in front of him was different. Unlike him, who was loathed by the strangers, she was being detested by her own clan members.

"Naruto?"

Naruto raised his head a little. "Y-yes?"

"Are you ok?" Sayuri spoke, feeling a little uneasy because of his sudden silence. Many people in the past had left her alone during that silence, so she couldn't help but think that he was going to do the same. After all, no one wanted to be friends with a blind Uchiha and she wouldn't be surprised if Naruto felt the same too.

"Yes."

His soft voice immediately lessened her concerns, to the point where she was beginning to smile again. "I see." The uncertainty was still evident in her voice but an utterly joyous Naruto only managed to see the genuine look of happiness on her face.

They both stayed like that for a moment before an inevitable question finally left Naruto's mouth. "Umm... do you have any friends?" he asked, hoping to hear a yes for the very first time in his life. Selfish as he might be sometimes, he was still compassionate enough to see her anguish and hoped that there was someone who was sharing her pain with themselves. Innocent people like her didn't deserve to be miserable and alone like him.

"No."

His heart sank even deeper into the ocean of sadness. "I-I see..." he murmured as he looked into her coal black eyes. They were amazing, he noted and beamed when they twitched as if to show him that she knew he was looking at her.

"No one wanted to my friend, not even my own clan members."

Like a barrage of huge boulders, her words pummeled the wall around his heart with their innocence and sorrow.

She was just like him but instead of feeling happy for himself, he only felt sad for her. She didn't deserve that. No one did. A life similar to his was even worse than hell and he wanted no one to have that, especially people like her.

"Say, if you don't mind can I ask you something?"

Naruto nodded his head but soon remembered she couldn't see him. "Yes." he murmured.

"Do you..." Sayuri paused, finding it hard to continue what she was trying to say. It was difficult, more than she had expected it to be. So taking a deliberate breath, she began to speak again. "D-do you want to be my friend?" she finally finished but immediately frowned when that silence returned, making her anxious about his response.

"I-I..."

The cracks and fright in his voice was enough for her to deduce the rest of his response. It was similar to what she had been hearing since the very beginning. "It's ok if you don't want to be my friend, Naruto. I-I will not-"

"Hhhshhh..."

Sayuri gasped as the sound of Naruto's whimpers entered her ears. "Nar-"

"I always wanted to have a friend,"

It was barely audible, a soft heart tugging whisper that fled his mouth but she heard it and at that moment, she got all her answers.

Blue eyes met faint coal orbs as both the boy and girl looked at each other, his eyes filled with tears and darkness while hers brimming with warmth and light.

"Sayuri, I'll be the bestest friend you'll ever have…"

No, he would be more than that.

He would be her eyes.

-END-

Review and remain safe.