Forgotten
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Naruto (Shippuden). This is a story inspired by the original made up for entertainment purposes only. - Krystal
Chapter 4: The Answer
The long awaited day has come. When the moon would appear in the sky, Yuki was to give her answer to the Hokage. The question he had posed was not an easy one to answer to. There wasn't a right or wrong answer to it. There was only an answer that must come from the heart. Did Yuki's little heart beat when she thought of the village? Did she start feeling an attachment to this village? Time wasn't up yet. She still had time to figure out the answer. Deep inside, she knew she was leaving regardless of the answer she gave. Why? If she loved the village, the Hokage will let her go as promised and await her return to this place called home. If she didn't love the village, there's no reason to keep her in a place that she despised. The Third would tell her to leave and not expect her return any time soon. What answer was she to give?
Regardless of that, she knew there was one place she needed to visit before leaving the village: the place where she was found a little over 4 years ago. The sky was grey and filled with clouds that day and a fog covered the village with an eerie vibe. It wasn't one of those days that made you feel good. It was a perfect day to visit a cemetery. She made her way to the entrance. It was as empty as always. The dead are gone and the living continue on. There was no surprise there. She, too, sometimes, can't bother to think of those who are already gone. It didn't have to do with whether she truly loved them or not when they were alive. It just always turned out that way. As she approached the K.I.A. tombstone where she was found, a shadow of a man began to show itself. He was just standing there, alone, with his hands in his pocket. He didn't make a sound, he didn't move an inch. His face, as she got closer and could distinguish the details now, was covered by a mask. He was wearing the ANBU's uniform. Another ANBU. She thought. ANBUs are known in the village to be around but unseen. They are omnipresent. The Third often said that they were the necessary shadows of the village and that their existence could never be erased. However, shadows are to remain shadows. They are never at the forefront, they are never to be noticed. In only a few days, she has now encountered two of them. Itachi exuded a warm aura with an underlying dark and cold one. This ANBU exuded no aura. He seemed as if he was dead. There was no energy, no life. He was just like a statue. No. I am wrong. There's something there... She thought. There was something there, deep, deep inside that barely alive being. She just kept on looking at his profile. He didn't seem to notice her or be bothered by her. She then shifted her eyes back to the tombstone and to its foundation, where she was found. She kept silence and did not move much. It didn't last long. The man turned around and started walking away. Before he was out of sight, he said:
"Aren't you too young to have lost somebody?"
His voice was monotonous, flat.
"I was all alone from the beginning. I don't have nobody to lose." she replied as she began to walk towards him.
"Nobody, eh?" he said as he sighed. He kept on walking. He didn't look back.
"Who did you lose?" Yuki asked hurriedly.
"A few... if not everyone."
It took her aback. He said it so casually, yet the simple fact that he was standing there for who knows how long proved this casualness to be more painful than he made it seem.
"How..." she began.
He raised his arm up and with his other hand pointed to his head: "This hand, this mind..."
He kept walking. She froze. He disappeared in the mist. That's the type of ANBU I've always heard and imagined of.
The night has fallen. The moon couldn't be seen through the clouds. Only glimpses of its light was at time perceptible. As she made her way to the Third's office, she thought of today's earlier events. She couldn't help but sigh. Before she knew it, she made it to the Hokage's office. She still didn't know what to say. She hoped that he would guide her with questions and that those questions would help her answer him.
She knocked on his door.
"It's open. Come on in."
She opened the door gently and walked into his office lit by only a few candles. He was there, sitting behind his desk. Next to him, a man was standing with his hands behind his back. It was that man from this morning. He was no longer wearing the ANBU mask, but he was still masked. His expressions were still hard to read.
"It's you." he said.
The Hokage looked at him and asked:
"Kakashi, you know Yuki?"
"So, that's Yuki..." he murmured. "No, I've only briefly met her this morning in the cemetery."
Yuki nodded at his answer. Kakashi? The Copy ninja? The infamous young ANBU?
"Yuki, now, why don't you tell me all the things you've experienced these past few days?"
She remained silent. She looked at Kakashi, then at the Hokage. The Third was smiling at her.
"So?"
"I..." Yuki started in a stutter. She took a deep breathe and started telling her story from when she met that Shikamaru boy to Kakashi. She did not, however, ever describe her feelings. They were all statements of what happened. She did not know how she felt about each of the stories. It would also be untrue to say so. She just did not know how to describe those feelings.
"Yuki, how was it for you meeting these people?"
"It was, for lack of better words, interesting." she replied.
The old man chuckled. Yuki bit her lip. It wasn't funny to her. The situations were indeed interesting.
"Sandaime, I'll be honest with you. I did see glimpses of the beauty you talked about, but I saw a lot more of the darkness that I've always feared of and imagined of when thinking of a village like ours. Shikamaru enjoyed the peace, but he seemed to be like a caged bird. Naruto, although seemingly happy and strong, has been scarred by the villagers' glares. That boy I met during the rain was quiet, reserved and wants to be understood, but isn't heard by others. Itachi has this dark aura within him that I can't seem to explain. Kakashi, here, is pained by the past wars and his scars haven't healed. He, himself, is almost... excuse me for the harsh term, dead inside."
Kakashi raised his eyebrow at that comment and commented:
"For a 4-year-old, you seem quite wise. You read characters well."
The Hokage chuckled again: "Isn't she? Wise beyond her age indeed...but Yuki still hasn't answered the main question... Do you love this village? Can you call this place home?"
Silence again. It was the question she feared she had to answer. It was the question that would determine how she was to leave the village: as a member or as an exiled?
"I... I still don't love this village."
The warm expression on the Hokage's face disappeared. He crossed his arms and looked right into her eyes. Kakashi seemed shocked by her honest answer.
"There seems to be more to that statement, Yuki." said the Hokage in a firm tone.
"I'm sorry, but I still cannot bring myself to love the village. The beauty that you talked about is there, but it is so fragile and tangible. I feel like a simple needle can turn that beauty into a nightmare. It's like the beauty is inside a bubble that can be busted at anytime. If I stayed inside the village, I am nothing by a trapped bird. I want to be out there. I want to be free..."
"You are moving away from the question, Yuki. This isn't about you leaving or not. This is about whether you love this place or not... I think you've given me an answer."
The Hokage pulled out a paper. It seemed to a be a grant to allow Yuki to leave the village. She couldn't see and read all the exact terms of the grant. The Hokage seemed disappointed though. It couldn't be good. However, Yuki wasn't done. She knew her answer now. She knew what she truly wanted.
"I want to be free... but I want to be free within this village. Hokage-sama, please allow me to become an ANBU. I want to move freely in the shadows of the village, unseen, unheard... Hokage-sama, please allow me the time to learn to love this village in my own way."
End of Chapter 4
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Here is to the end of the introduction and into the main story as we know it.
xoxox
Krystal