Hope For The Future
A/N: Here it is…The epilogue. Originally, this chapter was named, "Ignorance", but I just changed it for rightful purposes. Please enjoy.
Epilogue:
Kneeling silently in front of the recently buried grave, Sasuke bowed his head in quiet grief. The sounds surrounding him ceased, as if there was a possible God above them had finally allowed peace for one moment. Just for Sasuke…The tortured soul who could never find real purpose in his life.
Soft, darkened eyes stared blankly at the freshly disturbed dirt of the grave, ignoring the honorary stone only a few feet away. There was no need to look at the pitiful gravestone. If it did not list Uchiha Itachi's real achievements for the sake of the village, then why upset himself over it once again?
How in the world the Hokage had allowed this grave he did not know. Perhaps, she had felt sorrow for him, or maybe, she believed it was the right thing to do. Even the possibility that Lady Tsunade actually trusted his judgment came to mind, but Sasuke had dismissed it long ago. It did not matter so, but it still ran across his mind from time to time.
Uchiha Itachi, the man who murdered most of the Uchiha Clan for rightful reasons, deserved this grave. Especially, if it lay in the original Clan's plot, besides his parents. It might have seemed disrespectful, but to Sasuke, this is what he had wanted. For the family to be together, if not in life, but death.
Ignoring the light patter of rain falling on his face, he stood as his eyes finally lifted to the gravestone.
From far away, the last remaining Uchiha appeared aged by years of war and grief. He had recently adorned a permanent somber expression, one that had never been lifted once. His eyes, now more distant and calculating, had become slightly warmer. However, one detail that I had definitely noticed was a strange, familiar wisdom that he had gained through all the tragedies.
If I could honestly guess where such wisdom had come from, I would assume that Uchiha Itachi had passed it along as he was dying. After all, why leave your little brother with nothing? If his brother believed that Sasuke had abandoned his revenge and finally earned something in the end of their joined destinies, then so be it. The older brother always seemed to have a plan for these things…and it appeared, as usual, everything had checked out.
Pulling Sakura closer to me, allowing her head to lay against my shoulder as we stood in silence, I stared at the man who silently shut out the world. Several tears ran down her cheeks, out of grief or pity, I did not know. I could feel the innocent-like liquid slide against my neck, joining the light rain that followed.
"Will he be alright?" Sakura whispered softly as she watched her teammate with worried eyes. I brought an arm around her waist a little tighter.
"Things will never be the same again."
"I know." She chided in an immediate response. "We all knew that our lives would never be the same after Sasuke had left the village the first time…"
Her voice faded away as we fell into silence once more. The only sound audible was the noise of a crow's calls from a nearby tree, its beady eyes watching the scene. Soon enough, the omen-like bird flew off, cawing ominously as it traveled towards the outskirts of the village.
A steady, comforting hand found my shoulder, and by the sign of Sakura's brief tensing, hers as well. She soon relaxed, however, once she felt the familiar chakra of our sensei.
"What has happened cannot be changed…We do not need to dwell in the past, but the future." Kakashi murmured through his mask, his words ringing clearly, so that even the far away Sasuke could hear him.
Sasuke did not respond with stiffening or tension, as he usually would have, but instead, turning to face us with unfazed eyes. The bandages wrapping around all around his torso and right arm down, seemed to stand out as he finally started towards us. The rain was seeping through the weak fabric, but he continued to ignore it as his figure joined us.
The pink-haired woman beside me straightened up, her eyes locking onto Sasuke's gaze. I glanced between her and the Uchiha, barely catching the emotions exchange between them. His were more dulled than Sakura's, but I soon forget them as I found myself alone with Kakashi.
I couldn't help the tears running down my cheeks as I gently embraced Sasuke. His body did not stiffen at the close contact, but perhaps he was too far away in his own world to even care anymore about boundaries.
My weak emotional bond with him made it so I simply couldn't comprehend what he had been suffering through all this time. The pain he must've experienced and lived with the last few years…The thought made a cold shiver run down my spine, and I knew this gesture was not because of the cold.
Although my aching chest protested with the sudden jerk, I did not release my hold on him. If I could ease any of the pain with my comfort, then maybe I wouldn't feel as useless. However, even as my hands gripped his bandages a little tighter, I knew that all my efforts would be in vain. If Naruto or Kakashi could do nothing, then why should I try?
But that was the point, wasn't it? Even if the situation was pointless, one should always try, even if the results will end up in the same, mostly likely, disappointing way. And if Sasuke was this hopeless case, which by the blankness in his eyes—I had to believe it—then I could at least try.
A few hours later, after Sakura had long left for her early hospital shift, the three remaining men of Team 7 eventually ended up near the old training grounds, gravely making their way towards the memorial stone just inside the chain-link gates. No one spoke as each of them found a place around the honorary monument, observing the stone with shadowed gazes.
After a few minutes of the dead-panned silence, Uchiha Sasuke, the one whom everyone thought would never speak again, or at least, not for several months, murmured a quiet, "The threat of the Akatsuki still lingers…"
Kakashi, even with trained ears, barley heard the softly spoken words. He almost raised a curious eyebrow at Sasuke's statement, but instead nodded in agreement.
Naruto, on the other hand, could not hold in his curiousity. His 'loud' personality, despite the grim circumstances, showed.
"What of Madara? And the Elders? Are you targeting them as well?" Sasuke didn't so much as glance at his rival teammate, but instead, he merely ignored the questions by closing his eyes in thoughtfulness.
Naruto frowned slightly at Sasuke's reluctance to respond. It was one thing to ignore him before Itachi's death because of Sasuke's goal for revenge, but now…There was no need for that. If anything, Sasuke should've been more talkative, he should've changed!
As Sasuke finally glanced up at Naruto after a few silent minutes, the Kyuubi-container finally understood what exactly had happened. Sasuke had changed, and not for the better. Then again, that was his opinion, but he was sure more than a handful of people would agree. Once again, the blankness in his eyes gave away everything.
Naruto couldn't even remember the kind of emotion that those brilliant midnight eyes once contained, and now, there was nothing. They were nothing—blank.
"He wanted to protect the village, especially from the remaining Akatsuki." Sasuke's voice was still too soft for Naruto to make out the words very well. Kakashi, however, stepped forward and placed a hand on the Uchiha's shoulder as in to gain his attention.
"We will, Sasuke, but we must tend to our recovery—"
"No!" Sasuke's voice rose slightly with the audible emotion, defiance. Kakashi blinked in surprise at the raw sound of it.
Sasuke's lowered head made so his eyes were covered by his long bangs. He whispered, "There's no time to lose…" Just the ominous meaning in those words was enough to send chills down his comrades' spines.
One's revenge is never completely lost nor forgotten.
Those words never ceased to amaze him. They followed his students or close friends with a vice-grip that never let go. Never forgotten, and never left behind.
Kakashi's eyes shifted towards the Uchiha, but said nothing. There was nothing he could say. And even if there was something to say, just to aid in his wish to convince Sasuke otherwise, he might not have. However, this wasn't the circumstance, now was it?
He merely sighed in defeat, placing a comforting hand on Naruto's shoulder for a moment, before turning around and leaving.
The next, early morning, Sasuke found himself trekking the trail he once had long ago. It was almost the same, except this time, the reasons were different. The same backpack on his shoulders and the same location for his forgotten headband—upon the dresser, next to a facedown portrait of Team 7.
His eyes, completely focused on the Leaf Village gates, resisted the urge to pass a glance at the bench Sakura had once been left on. Sasuke had also done this with the training grounds and Naruto's apartment. Each memorable place was being forgotten for the sake of the future. The Academy, the Uchiha Clan Estate, the Chuunin Exams Stadium…
However, just as he began to pass through the main streets of Konoha, several figures entered his line of vision. By the time these distractions had registered in his mind, Sasuke had already turned his head away from his goal, his objective sliding down the list of importance.
The pace of Uchiha Sasuke slowed, but did not stop. His gaze kept on these shadowed figures, awaiting an ambush. He already recognized the chakra signatures, but that didn't stop him from jumping to that possibility.
Would they allow him to leave? Would they try to stop him, knowing exactly what he was doing?
To his slight surprise, the familiar signatures did not move from the sidelines of the street. In fact, they remained completely motionless. Just as Sasuke began to pass the line of them, he felt several bothersome questions overwhelm him. Luckily or not, however, they were soon answered.
"Farewell…Sasuke-kun." Sakura's voice drifted through the vacant streets. He could hear the tears in her voice, but only remained silent. He had expected her to say more, but she added nothing.
His pace once again faltered, and this time, stopped as his gaze settled on the ground. He chided himself for stopping, but knew there was no point. Uchiha Sasuke not only had wished to stop, but to stay just for the three teammates gathered beside him.
Sadly, that was not an option, or at least, that's what his mind forced him to think. His heart, cold and dead, no longer had a say in these sorts of decisions. In other words, this choice was final, and unchangeable.
Breaking out of his thoughts, Sasuke noticed Naruto's chakra signature shaking slightly. Not wanting himself to prevent his leaving much longer, he simply ignored it and continued to walk. There wasn't much nighttime left to waste; Sasuke had already guessed the time was around 3 a.m.
In less than a few minutes, Uchiha Sasuke found himself outside the gates of Konoha, staring up at the village. Was this for the last time? That was a possibility since the chances of him dying fighting the Akatsuki were quite great.
A small wry smile graced his lips just thinking of his chances. Long ago, he had only sought after his brother, but now, it was the entire organization. Sometimes…it seemed his choices were too ironic.
His gaze caught sight of the remaining Team 7 standing on the other side of gate, within the borders. Sasuke could see the temptation in Naruto's eyes, the raw urge to leave with him, and never let their friendship fall apart. However, he also noticed that Kakashi held a hand on Naruto's shoulder, something to prevent him from leaving.
"Sasuke…" Naruto murmured from across the barrier that separated us. I didn't respond or acknowledge him, but he knew he held my attention.
"As the future Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village, I…" Naruto's voice shook as he spoke, and finally faded away as he looked up at me through clouded eyes. The raw pain showing in his gaze took me aback, almost making me flinch. It shouldn't have been this hard to leave Naruto, just as I did the last time. But perhaps…
Perhaps, this time I knew I wouldn't be coming back. After all, with several Akatsuki members left, the chances of my survival were quite slim, if not none. And even though most shinobi might deny their fate or try to improve their hope by trying to convince themselves otherwise…Well, I just preferred things in black and white.
Simply put, do or die.
Even as Naruto struggled with his words, I sensed Sakura's chakra building up in her fists. My former sensei simply shook his head at Naruto, in disappointment or pity, I did not know. However, Kakashi finally looked up from his student's crumbling form to me with determination and condemnation visible in those once trustful eyes.
"As your teammates, we wish you the best of luck, Uchiha Sasuke." He began, his voice full of authority and strength. I could hear the personal sorrow of his there, but as I soon came to learn, I could only stand and listen. My body felt numb, except for my ears, which forced me to listen to Kakashi.
The catch in his voice was obvious. "However, as the people of the Hidden Leaf Village, we believe our own intentions are more important than your own. With the authority of the present Hokage and the Council, you are now deemed a rogue ninja and will not be allowed to…ever return."
Even if it was the Council's decision, I could practically feel the emotions radiating off Kakashi as he finished his declaration. The longing to follow his student to the end, even if it meant it would be his own. The grief for losing yet another comrade and friend in his short, yet experienced life. Especially, the sincere, but misplaced hope he had for my goal, despite the obstacles and risks I faced.
Within seconds, however, I sensed Naruto weakly waving at me as Sakura jumped a few feet forward, fists raised to attack. The impact on the ground made from her attack caused giant walls to slowly surface as the Leaf Village Gates began to close. The rocky barriers were beginning to offer protection and seclusion as they rose in front of the walls containing the village.
I found myself staring at my team's fading image, as well as the village I once belonged to that now shunned me. Sakura's tears hitting the ground as she continued to punch the ground. Naruto's crumbling figure as he watched his rival for the last time. Kakashi's gaze downcast, in shame and grief.
Now, as the gates closed, leaving me alone, and the rocky walls formed, I found seclusion. I stared, not quite comprehending what had just occurred, even though I had seen it with my own eyes. I released a sigh as silence ensued, my heart that I thought had long ago died, ache.
"Your life…is just now...beginning."
Sasuke's head lifted at the memory of Itachi's words. He glanced at the Leaf Village once more, knowing this was the last time to gaze upon it. Before turning around and starting down the trail, leading away from his former home, he allowed a small smile to grace his lips.
"Even if I won't see any of you again…" Sasuke's eyes softened, ignoring the weakness he was probably showing at the moment. …Doesn't mean I won't protect the village from the Akatsuki. In fact…That was my whole purpose of leaving.
The wind, softly breezing past him, picked up a little bit, almost as if encouraging him. He turned his back on the village, slowly walking down the path as the first of the night sky's stars faded away.
"Why sacrifice all of the people you care for when you can simply sacrifice yourself and end it?" Sasuke whispered softly, the smile still present. "Isn't that right, brother?"
Assuming his brother's role may not have been Itachi's wish, but this was Sasuke's life now, wasn't it? After all, if his life was just now beginning…Shouldn't he be the one to end it as well?
Brother…To assume your role is my true place among this world. To protect this village is my duty, and even if I must sacrifice myself…I will still be completing our goal.
The future of Uchiha Sasuke?
Why, yes, it would be short, but if Sasuke crafted it to his liking just as the man before him…It might be worth it.
A/N: It's hard to believe, isn't it? I seriously never thought my fanfiction writing would ever make it this far, but it has! The good news is, however, there are more to come!
Wow! This must've been one of my shortest stories in existence! Who would've thought I could fit so much detail in there?
If any of my readers thought my other stories were completely forgotten…Well, I have an awesome surprise for you! As I finish this one, many more updates are coming your way. :) I hope you all look forward to them.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this story, because I know I did. Thank you all for reading and reviewing, I really appreciated it. ^^ And yes, I'm aware Sasuke lost his character, but hey, you never know how an emotional Sasuke would ever act, now would you?
Until next update,
SharinganAnbuSakura