"Where are we going?" Sasuke asked in consternation. "We've been walking for days, and I'm convinced you're just wandering."

"That assumption would be correct!" Iroh beamed back at his flustered companion. "I've been informed that you are something of a political issue, and so I have been advised to move you from well- populated areas."

"Hn" Sasuke grunted, but he looked vaguely startled.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you" Iroh assured him. "But I don't think your village will look kindly on your desertion, so it's best that they don't find us, yes?"

Sasuke nodded slowly in the affirmative. "I don't think I'd ever really considered that before" he admitted quietly.

Iroh examined him quietly. "So what did that man- Orochimaru- promise you in return for leaving? Money? Pretty girls? Puppies?"

Sasuke was quiet for a very long time. After a few more minutes of silent walking, Iroh had resigned himself to not knowing whether Sasuke really wanted a puppy or not – until Sasuke spoke up again.

"Power" Sasuke grunted. "Power enough to kill someone".

Well, Iroh mused. That was almost shocking. He was very glad he had managed to extract some information on Sasuke's family from Mifune, otherwise that would have been a much more terrifying confession. As it was, it didn't bode well for the boy's mental state.

"Why would you want to do that?" Iroh asked, as kindly as possible.

The boy flinched like someone had hit him. Iroh almost regretted asking, but it was an important question. Sasuke detached then, and Iroh inwardly sighed. Of course, it wouldn't be that easy.

The rest of their walk was dead silent.

"…A tea shop…?" Sasuke grumbled, and glared over at Iroh. Iroh grinned, and gestured for the boy to enter the establishment.

Sasuke stalked through the doorway, radiating displeasure. Iroh was reminded of happier times with his nephew; Zuko had always been much the same way. Too little patience, and too much pride, he thought amusedly as Sasuke took a seat at a table in the darkest corner. He followed him quickly, and seated himself across from his recalcitrant student.

"I'm hungry" he fake-pleaded. "Have mercy on your ancient and feeble teacher".

Sasuke grumbled, but managed to bite back his complaints while they ordered and their tea was brought to them.

"Ahh" Iroh sighed happily. "This tea is wonderful. Maybe we'll stay here while I train you."

Sasuke continued to warily observe the room while Iroh fawned over his beloved beverage.

"You look like you think someone is coming to get you" Iroh observed, after seeing Sasuke's tensed posture.

Sasuke glared back at him. "A shinobi is always aware of his surroundings" he grunted.

"That is wise" Iroh agreed "but I wonder if you do not miss the point sometimes. What point is there to living another day if you cannot enjoy it?"

He swirled the tea leaves in his cup, and watched them settle at the bottom. He breathed in deep, the scent of the Jasmine caressing his senses, and set the cup back down to look at his student.

Sasuke was looking right back at him, and was obviously not amused.

"Such a serious young man" Iroh commented, pouring Sasuke some tea. Sasuke continued to stare at him as if he had grown two heads.

After another long moment, Sasuke reached across to accept the cup from Iroh. He took a sip, and examined Iroh again.

"So when are you going to train me?" Sasuke asked. "All we've done is walk and play Pai Sho."

Iroh set both of his elbows on the table and arched his fingers together. "I suppose you've been patient enough" he admitted. "We will start after we finish our tea."

He was rewarded with a look of interest from Sasuke, who leaned across the table eagerly.

"What will we start with?" Sasuke asked, eyes eager to take in all the Iroh had to teach.

Iroh smiled briefly, thinking of the long and arduous training he was going to have to administer. "With what else? The beginning" he said, and took a long sip of his tea.

Sasuke was frustrated. "I already know proper fighting stances" Sasuke griped, glaring Sifu down with all the ferocity he could muster.

Sifu tittered. "You know the stances you were taught as a ninja, not the proper katas for firebending. But humor me and show me anyway, see if there's anything we can actually use."

Sasuke grumbled, and went through the katas he'd been taught by his family and the academy. Iroh hummed disappointedly as it became increasingly clear that absolutely nothing overlapped between what Sasuke knew and what he needed to know to even begin.

Sasuke watched his new sensei closely, in tune with his disappointment. If he couldn't impress his sensei, how would he ever learn anything? What if the old man decided he was too much of a liability and not worth training?

Sasuke didn't even want to think about it. He needed to get stronger to kill Itachi, and anyone strong enough to destroy Orochimaru with one hit could certainly teach him. What did he need to do to impress him?

He'd just try harder. At least training with Sifu had never been incredibly uncomfortable. Orochimaru wanted Sasuke to push himself to a breaking point so that he could be rebuilt, to tear everything in front of him to pieces. And yet Orochimaru had been torn apart himself by a man who appeared to spend all of his time sipping tea and playing Pai Sho.

It boggled the mind, really. But it wasn't Sasuke's concern. As long as he got the results he needed, it didn't matter who taught him. And the old man didn't want him to hurt civilians. In truth, he much preferred him to Orochimaru. Every time Orochimaru had tried to make him take a life, he tried to find the differences between himself and the man he hated. He knew once he took an innocent life, there wouldn't really be one.

He would have done it, if it would help him to kill Itachi. But not if there was another option. A way to gain the power he needed, and without the sleepless nights and extra blood on his hands. In truth, the reason he'd consented to be Orochimaru's vessel was that he knew he couldn't live with himself if he continued down the path Orochimaru had planned for him.

He ran through his katas again, slowing the movements down and hoping that his new sensei would be attentive to his precise movements and grace. At least then he'd know that he didn't just throw himself around and hope no one noticed, like Naruto.

Naruto. Just at the thought of him, Sasuke grimaced. How had the baka taken it once he'd discovered Sasuke had left? Sasuke would be willing to place bets that Naruto had already tried to escape the village to find him at least twice by now, he'd been gone about a month.

"Stop" came the voice, and Sasuke obediently halted his movements and came to the proper resting position. As always, his sensei was unreadable. He searched his face and body language for any indication of how he'd done, but found nothing.

His sensei began massaging his temples again, and Sasuke felt a wave of shame envelop him. He wracked his brain, trying to think of what he could have done wrong and how he could remedy it. He could show the old man his proficiency with the Chidori. But… how to properly demonstrate that without an opponent?

He was interrupted by his thoughts when the old man cleared his throat, and looked up to see Sifu walking towards him.

Sifu shrugged. "I don't know any of those" he murmured thoughtfully. Sasuke must have looked as confused as he felt, because Sensei Sifu continued. "We can probably still use them, but that would be later. We can't experiment without knowing the basics."

With that, Sasuke felt much relieved. At least it wasn't a personal failing, and the training that had taken so long to learn would still be of use. Starting with katas wouldn't be so hard, and then he could move up to do techniques like his sensei. He only hoped training would progress fast enough.

"Here" Sifu said, placing himself in a starting position Sasuke did not recognize, "this is where we will start." He moved through a set of motions that were much more graceful than the katas Sasuke had known all his life. They didn't look like they would land a single blow on an opponent.

"Why do they look like that?" Sasuke asked blankly, and Sifu chuckled.

"If the movements aren't fluid, then the fire doesn't follow, and any minute mistake you make could make it uncontrollable" he explained carefully. "You must move in a way that the fire understands and can follow."

"But I saw you use lightning on Orochimaru" Sasuke interjected, irritated. "Why are you talking about fire?"

His sensei looked at him, confused, and Sasuke realized that he had just made some sort of mistake. He struggled to explain himself in a way that didn't make him seem like such an ignorant child. This is the kind of mistake Naruto would make, he thought darkly to himself. Don't act like the baka.

"I thought your chakra affinity was for lightning, like mine" he said, carefully gauging Sifu's expression as he continued "not fire. Fire isn't my first affinity."

Sifu's face was absolutely blank, and Sasuke struggled not to shuffle his feet under his sensei's gaze. Stand tall and confident, he coached himself. Look like an Uchiha, not a little boy.

Sifu sighed, and Sasuke frantically searched his face for disappointment, but found only weariness.

"Explain what you mean by 'chakra affinity', please" Iroh said, and Sasuke's mouth dropped open, unbidden.

Training with Sifu was difficult. Sifu was demanding where Kakashi had been lackadaisical, and invested where Orochimaru had been disinterested.

Sasuke didn't have a basis for comparison. Most of his day wouldn't look that straining to a casual observer. He ran through his old katas in the morning first, then the katas that Sifu had taught him. He practiced with his regular skills, and sparred lightly with Sifu for a few hours. Then Sifu would have him read books and study philosophy and history, followed by meditation and long hours playing Pai Sho. He was surprised at how much he was learning, frankly.

Sifu wasn't just making him into a weapon, like Kakashi had been. Sifu did not see him as a mindless tool like a kunai, to be used to whatever end his village intended.

Orochimaru's goals hadn't been that much different from Kakashi's, in truth. His methods may have differed, but in the end Sasuke was literally going to be an empty vessel to be filled and used to further someone else's goals.

Kakashi may have had more of a passing fondness for him than Orochimaru, but Sasuke thought that may have had more to do with Kakashi still possessing some semblance of a soul than any actual effort on his former sensei's part.

Sifu didn't see him as a kunai to be used and discarded, but Sasuke still didn't see what Sifu was gaining out of their arrangement. Sifu had no requests for him outside of his company, no demands for commitment to himself or any of his goals.

Though Sasuke was having a very hard time determining what his sensei's goals were. He seemed to be a shiftless old man wandering the Land of Iron. He certainly didn't lack for power or wealth, so what could he possibly be gaining by helping Sasuke?

Maybe he was a fugitive from his native land. He had said he was well-known, before. After all he'd seen, Sasuke didn't doubt it. Though if he hadn't seen him strike down Orochimaru like the fist of an angry kami, he wouldn't have believed the tea-drinking, calm-demeanored man was capable of any more exertion than moving his Pai Sho pieces.

Sifu was an enigma. But Iroh wasn't a last name he was familiar with at all. Sasuke would have to do some investigating if he was going to continue to train with him.

Sasuke knew too much about the world to think that anyone had his best interests at heart. Everybody wanted something. But what did Sifu want?

With that in mind, Sasuke rolled over onto his stomach and made his peace with the day, preparing himself for the nightmares that lay within his own head.

The dream started the same every night. He "awoke" in his bed in the Uchiha compound to the sounds of screams and clashing of metal on metal. He crept out of his bedroom and down the hall to his parents' room, carefully and stealthily clinging to the shadows of the hallway. He was hoping to crawl into their room, see them peacefully sleeping and have his mother tell him that everything was fine, he was just hearing things and needed to go back to bed.

He was not at all prepared for what he saw.

Flames were licking voraciously at the walls of the bedroom, and his mother's body was crumpled on the floor by the door. He immediately dropped to the ground, to help her up, but when he touched her she was limp and unresponsive. He started to shiver uncontrollably, and frantically shook his mother's shoulders to no avail.

He started to whimper, and buried his head into his mother's cooling abdomen.

"Sasuke" he heard behind him, and he turned to see his older brother, Itachi, staring down at him.

What Sasuke did not fail to notice was his father's corpse at his feet.

"Why?" Sasuke whispered. "Why, Itachi?"

But in this dream, Sasuke didn't get an answer. The world changed around him, to the village Sifu had found him in.

Orochimaru was going from building to building, releasing snakes like slithering death. People were screaming, and Sasuke couldn't block them out. Fire was devouring homes and people alike, and Sasuke could smell the coppery hint of blood mixed with sweat and tangible fear in the air. This time he watched himself with growing contempt, as the Sasuke of a few short weeks ago stood frozen in the middle of the street.

He'd stood as still as the Hokage monument as his insides warred. One side told him that he should follow Orochimaru's lead and take a life. It was a necessary step on his path of vengeance. How could he defeat Itachi if he couldn't kill? Itachi could wipe out an entire clan of ninja, and if Sasuke couldn't even kill a civilian, he had no hope of killing Itachi.

The other side of him protested vigorously and violently. If he slaughtered civilians en masse, he would not only be as evil as Itachi, he would be cowardly. At least the Uchiha clan was full of trained ninja, and could defend themselves. These people were completely defenseless, and killing them was beneath him as an Uchiha and a ninja.

His internal debate raged on as the flames consumed the village and everyone in it, as they continued to shriek in pain and anguish. He didn't even notice the flames creeping up his legs until it was too late, and he was lost.

Sasuke awoke with a start, and took a long moment to calm his breathing and confirm his surroundings. He was relieved to find that he was in the house with Sifu, and he was relatively certain he was no longer dreaming.

He stretched out his back and legs, and slowly rose from his sleeping mat. Maybe it would be a good time to start his morning katas. It wasn't like he was going to get any more sleep, anyway.

Not that he'd enjoyed sleep for a long time.

Iroh was incredibly pleased with the results of Sasuke's training. The boy was impulsive, sure, but he was determined. It was much like trying to tame a raging river, but Iroh knew the secret to calm water was guidance and time in equal measure. Luckily, he seemed to have both. Mifune-san had informed him that it was very unlikely Konoha would even think to look for Sasuke in the Land of Iron, and even if they did, they would not be able to send a hunter-nin within the borders.

And everyone in the Earth and Fire Kingdoms thought Iroh was dead. No one else cared.

Iroh had started Sasuke off with a series of firebending katas the Imperial family used to train their children, and was gradually working him up to master-level katas. Sasuke had shown no ability to bend fire as of yet, but Iroh suspicioned that the spirits had plans for Sasuke, and it was best for him to be prepared.

Sasuke had taken easily to the sword, and he wielded it with a grace Iroh would have never been able to manage at that age. He would have to procure a good blade for him, soon. He could not be expected to wield rusted iron for long, and Sasuke always hungered for more.

It made him a fearsome student. He devoured the texts Iroh set out for him once he'd determined that they had merit, and he approached his physical training with ferocity unlike anything Iroh had ever seen. He stopped his musing to watch Sasuke switch from kata to kata, culminating in the fireball technique Sasuke had demonstrated a month ago. It tore through the trees at an alarming rate, which seemed to surprise Sasuke as much as it did Iroh. It was a far cry from the tree sizzling he'd performed then.

Well, perhaps like something he'd seen, then. But Sasuke would make for a very tiny dragon.

Iroh glanced back at his wayward student and was rewarded with the ghost of a smile slipping across Sasuke's face. Good to see he does actually know how to smile- Iroh thought contentedly, leaning back to embrace the sun.

"So, when are you going to teach me how to bend fire?" Sasuke asked calmly, sipping at his tea across the table from Iroh.

Iroh sighed sadly, placing his cup back down onto the table and looking directly into Sasuke's eyes.

"I don't know if you can" he admitted disappointedly, "no one in this land is born with the talent to bend. I do not know whether you can ever possess that ability, to be perfectly honest."

"What's the difference between my land and yours?" Sasuke queried as he absentmindedly traced the lip of his teacup with his finger.

Iroh considered for a moment. That was a very good question, actually. "Bending was a gift from the spirits" Iroh began to explain, before losing the brief spurt of inspiration that led him to start the sentence. He hesitated, and evaluated his response again.

"There are five kinds of bending" he started again, and Sasuke looked up, interested "and they were all gifts to humans from either animals or spirits."

"What are they?" Sasuke asked, placing his hands on the table and leaning in, and Iroh tried not to laugh about how obvious Sasuke was when he was interested in something.

"Hm" Iroh said, gathering a piece of paper and placing it on the table. He drew the four symbols of each of the nations, in a large circle. "There is fire bending, demonstrated here" and he pointed to the Fire Nation, as Sasuke craned his neck to look, "And there is earth bending, and air bending, and water bending." He pointed to each of them in turn, and explained the main differences between each of the bending types and their nations. After he was done, Sasuke leaned back into his chair and thought quietly for a moment.

"That's only four" Sasuke said finally. "What's the fifth?"

"Energy bending" Iroh sighed resignedly. "But it has long been lost to us."

"Hn" Sasuke grunted, and Iroh left the boy to his thoughts. It didn't do to disturb Sasuke when he wanted to be alone.

Iroh rose to leave the living room, and was shocked to hear Sasuke clear his throat.

"You were from the Fire Nation, right?" Sasuke grumbled, examining Iroh closely.

"No, I'm really a light fluffy airbender" Iroh smiled widely, moving his arms wide to gesture to himself.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, and began ignoring Iroh again. Iroh giggled softly and silently made his exit, leaving Sasuke alone with his thoughts.

Sasuke couldn't understand it. The flame danced, it flickered, licked at the air. It looked so warm and inviting.

To him, fire was friendly. It comforted him and filled the gaping hole in his heart his family had left behind. Fire was much-needed warmth in the chilly abandoned Uchiha district. He liked holding candles in his bare hand, letting the warm wax drip down on his frozen fingers. It slid comfortingly down his hand, covering his fragile skin with impenetrable armor, a warm wax hand holding his.

He'd never exactly realized how much he'd loved fire before. Or maybe just hadn't wanted to think about it. The reminder of his family cut deeper than he'd realized, and ever present. The Uchiha family was fire. The symbol for their clan was a ceremonial fan to feed the flames.

Perhaps the symbol was more apt then he'd realized.

Itachi had burned through them like over-dry leaves. Maybe most of them weren't fire, Sasuke conceded to himself. They were their clan symbol, fanning the flames. Real fires were few and far between.

So was Sasuke a flame, burning brightly? Or was he further kindling to fuel Itachi's wildfire?

He felt warmth behind him, leaned to it. A hand on his shoulder broke his trance, and Sasuke looked up to see Sifu looking down at him.

"You've been staring at that flame for hours." Iroh murmured kindly, and Sasuke refused to move. The warmth from his sensei's hand grounded him, nourished him. Sifu felt like the sun, all warmth and light. If Sasuke spoke, the hand might move, and then he'd feel cold again.

But he couldn't sit like this forever, he knew. He closed his eyes and drunk in the feeling of warmth that Sifu gave him. "I'm sorry, Sifu. I should have been training." The hand left, and with it, the warmth and comfort it brought. Sasuke's body reflexively tried to follow it, but he wouldn't allow it.

Sifu laughed, and Sasuke couldn't help but be startled. He looked up at his sensei , who was smiling happily at him. "Who says you haven't?"

Iroh led Sasuke outside, and sat down on the grass. The house was next to a clearing, and the sunlight there was bright and warm. He sighed happily, and bade Sasuke to join him on the ground.

"What are we doing?" Sasuke asked grumpily, but Iroh could hear the relief and curiosity in his voice.

"You needed to be near fire" Iroh shrugged, as he basked in the warmth of Agni. "The sun is the best there is."

Sasuke cracked a small smile and spread himself out on the grass.

"You know" Iroh supplied "I'm starting to think you might be a firebender anyway." He could hear the grass move as Sasuke twisted to look at him.

"But I've never made fire without a jutsu" Sasuke groaned. "How could I ever be a bender?"

Iroh considered quietly. "I don't know" he admitted. "Perhaps I need to do more research. But we will find a way somehow." He turned his head and met Sasuke's hopeful gaze. "I promise. If there is a way, we will find it."

And if there was a way, there was a good chance the White Lotus already had information on it.

He marveled yet again at the calming light of the sun, and smiled.

"Is this what firebenders like to do?" Sasuke asked sleepily.

"We not only love the sun, we need it" Iroh stated calmly, checking on his apprentice again. He seemed to be falling asleep, which was good. At least in the sunlight he was unlikely to have any more nightmares.

"I thought you said that the Fire Nation was at war with everyone else?" Sasuke yawned, settling more comfortably on the soft, warm grass.

"They are."

"Then how in hell is the Fire Nation conquering everybody else, if they're all like you?" Sasuke tried to demand, as sleep slowly overcame his senses.

Iroh chuckled warmly. "Very efficiently, in between sun naps and tea breaks."

Sasuke groaned.

"Sakura-chan!"

She heard Naruto in the distance, and it took all of her strength of will not to bolt and expose herself. She weaved expertly and fluidly through the throng of people in the street, hoping he would lose her in the crowd. Just a little farther, she thought to herself. Then you'll be in Ino-pig's flower shop, and Naruto wouldn't go in there for all the ramen in the world.

"Where are you going, Sakura-chan?" she heard next to her ear. Sakura squeaked in alarm, and turned to pound Naruto's fat head into the dirt. But when she saw the look on his face, she couldn't bear to do it.

In the months since Sasuke left, Naruto had been melancholy, a word Sakura would have never thought would be an accurate descriptor for him. He followed her, Kakashi, and Iruka relentlessly. He never said why, but Sakura knew.

He thought they all would leave him, just like Sasuke.

He pretended to be the same. He insisted on dragging them all to Ichiraku Ramen, he made the same awful jokes. He showed up for training every day on time, even though both he and Sakura knew that Kakashi would be at least several hours late. He smiled happily and widely for anyone who would look his way, but Sakura knew better.

Not that I'm not coping in my own way, she thought irritably. While Naruto was clinging to the few friends he had, she had begun to push hers away. She spent all of her time following Tsunade, reading, and training. Outside of "team" practices or work in the hospital, she hid in her room with books and scrolls, poring over everything she could find.

The subject matter wasn't particularly important. Odd subjects could give her inspiration for her medical techniques, and she just needed to constantly be doing something- anything, really- to keep herself from wallowing. She wouldn't allow it.

"Hey, Naruto" she offered softly, giving him a small wave. Naruto looked shocked, and seemed to be waiting for her to hit him. She felt guilty that he should be so accustomed to being hit, and offered him her hand instead. Perhaps a peace offering was in order. He desperately wanted the company, and she needed food anyway.

"Ramen?" she asked nicely, as Naruto grinned and accepted her hand as if it were made of all his hopes and dreams. Maybe it is, she considered, and let him hold it as he pulled her across the market to Ichiraku.

At least his appetite is in good shape, she thought tiredly as Naruto plowed through his eighth bowl. "So, you have any plans?" she queried, as she absentmindedly drew pictures on the counter with her finger.

Inner Sakura wasn't so kind. 'Probably eating more ramen, and following us home', she scoffed. 'Then he'll light the Hokage Tower on fire with his stupidity as a beacon to lead Sasuke-kun home'.

'Shut up', she told Inner Sakura. 'Maybe I'll agree with you later, but not today.'

Naruto's eyes lit up at her question, and she immediately was filled with regret for doubting Inner Sakura.

"I just talked to Baa-chan, and I convinced her to let us look for Sasuke!" Naruto crowed happily, as he thumped his hands on the table. Broth went flying across the table, and Sakura thought she could see it coming towards her in slow motion as it landed directly on her silk dress.

'One thing at a time, Outer!' Inner Sakura shrieked. 'We get our Sasuke-kun back! Dattebayo!'

'That is an important thing to consider', Sakura thought as her heart simultaneously fluttered.

"When?" she stuttered helplessly, as her mind ran through all the things she would need to bring. She was going to bring Sasuke back, and she was determined to do it in a manner that made her superiority as a girlfriend obvious. Ino wasn't going to stand a chance.

Naruto grinned in a feral manner. "We leave next week, to go kick Orochimaru's scaly butt." He made an exaggerated scowl face, then added, "Well. We're not supposed to kick him. Baa-chan says he's like an S class asshat or something. I wasn't paying much attention."

She cracked her knuckles in anticipation. 'That stupid snake is never going to know what hit him! Dattebayo!' Inner Sakura cackled evilly.

"I can't wait" she stated calmly, being entirely honest for once in her life.

OMAKE:

"Holding a grudge is like drinking a poison and hoping the other person will die." Iroh stated kindly, bending down to view the irate teenager in front of him.

A look of shock crossed Sasuke's face, and Iroh could tell that he was thinking carefully about what he had said. He began to relax the tension that had been building in his back, when Sasuke looked back up at him with a strange expression. "People believe that there's a way to do that?"

A bit startled, Iroh raised an eye brow. "Well, yes," he admitted reluctantly, "that's called voodoo. But that isn't what I meant. I was speaking figuratively."

"Teach me this voodoo," Sasuke demanded.

"No…" Iroh grumbled, as he yanked back on Sasuke's humorously oversized collar.