Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Distance Part Three: Torn Apart
I wanna love you
But I don't know if I can
I know something is broken
And I'm trying to fix it
Trying to repair it
Any way I can
(X & Y - Coldplay)
x.
My body feels heavy and seeing my dead parents on the floor creates a whirlpool inside my stomach. I wonder if I'm not dreaming; the images seem too surreal. My eyes search for Sasuke-kun's, but he is looking away. The part of me that loves him starts to deny everything – deny that my dear Sasuke-kun is the murderer.
Suddenly, I get up to my feet, which startles Sasuke-kun again, but he makes no move. The last thing I see is a shadowed hand, but something's dripping, plip plip plip… like blood.
Or maybe I heard that wrong – maybe the blood is dry and almost crusty by now – I don't know. The only thing I'm now aware of is the feel of my legs moving, propelling me away from the crime scene, faster and faster with each step. Everything around me is but a blur.
When I stop running, my face contorts to disgust; I am standing in the path surrounded by cherry-blossom trees. I breathe in the sweet, almost sickening, smell of the cherry trees and I collapse to the ground.
And to think that, less than a half an hour ago, I had been sitting on the very spot, dreaming of Sasuke-kun…
Suddenly, a black flashes into my vision, and in an instead, a shadow towers above me. Neither of us dares to move, so we share a thick silence of confusion, fear, and pain.
After what feels like an eternity, I hear a small gulp, and then the shadow opens his eyes to meet mine. I stare dazedly at Sasuke-kun's black, Sharingan-less eyes. I know how susceptible I am to his Sharingan, but not one bit of red seeps into the pool of black. Although… I wouldn't have minded if it did.
Sasuke-kun opens his mouth, as if he's finally resolved to say something, and his voice cracks a little. "After I kill Itachi…" His eyes fall to the ground as he says the next part. "You can kill me."
That was certainly the last thing I expected to hear, so I erupt into a mix of snorts and laughter. Really, the idea is too funny… me killing Sasuke-kun?
The boy I'm hopelessly in love with?
The said boy shifts uncomfortably upon hearing my laughter – which is maddening by the second – then my mouth snaps closed without warning. The silence resumes, and in a painfully obvious sober voice, I declare, "Sasuke, I'm never going to kill you."
He must have interpreted it instead as, "I'm going to make you suffer instead," for he takes an abrupt step back.
Suffer, torment, or whatever else, it doesn't matter to me either way. Tonight, my parents were taken from me, and if that wasn't enough, the killer's words sent daggers to my heart. Does he honestly think that I'd stoop so low so as to kill him for revenge?
But then again, Sasuke does, and what prevents me from vengeance?
xi.
"Kakashi-sensei," my hands slam soundlessly onto the table. There's a quiver to my voice, but whether he noticed it or not, I don't know.
"Hm?" The silver-haired man answers me nonchalantly, and his attention stays fixated on a rather indecent book.
When I don't continue, he finally sighs and asks, "What is it Sakura?"
"I don't know who to ask, but uhm…" I begin unsurely, but I decide to get straight to the point. "Who is Itachi?"
Even before he answers, my breathing has become rather erratic, and when I hear, "You mean… Uchiha Itachi," my body breaks out into a violent tremor.
Finally, Kakashi-sensei puts his book down and his hands gently steady my trembling body.
"I've noticed it since you entered the classroom, Sakura, but,"
'Yeah right, you were reading your book all along!' I think, but then the images of last night floods into my head, and feeling dizzy, I cease all thinking.
"Something's wrong," he finishes off.
The corners of my mouth twists up the slightest bit, as if to mock him for finally noticing it. It's all I could do to keep myself from breaking down and crying, 'Everything's wrong! Sasuke-kun… Sasuke is wrong! I don't desire revenge…'
My mouth starts to quiver, and I barely say, "It's Sasuke," before I dash away. To where, I don't know.
I'm sure Kakashi-sensei will shrug and go right back to reading, but to my surprise, he runs after me. Until, that is, the horrid news that "Haruno Kizashi and Haruno Mebuki have been found murdered." The silver-haired man disappears to question the crime.
My feet continue to carry me away, and this time, I make sure I'm not running off to the cherry trees. Teardrops slide horizontally against my face, and then they fly away, disappearing into the air…
xii.
I must have dozed off, for I find a gentle shake to arouse me from sleep. My face feels a tiny crusted coat of dried tears, but I'm too tired to do anything.
"Sakura," the voice pleads me to wake up, and when I finally open my eyes, I see the bright hospital lights stinging my vision. When I turn to the voice, I see Kakashi-sensei with a pale blonde woman beside him.
The blonde woman, who introduces herself as "Tsunade," steps forward and gently props me up. In a grave voice, she begins, "You will be staying here for awhile, Sakura, but you will need to answer me some very important questions." She pauses, and with a frown of authority, she questions, "Do you understand?"
I don't, but I nod anyway, partly because she seems very important, and partly because I don't really care either way.
When the blonde begins her "questioning," I catch Kakashi-sensei step behind so subtly, and I wonder what's wrong. She questions mostly about where I was, but it is when she asks me the next question that I understand why Kakashi-sensei went out of his way to hide his face under the shadows.
"Sakura," The person named Tsunade holds up a picture. "I need you to identify him as the murderer of your family."
To my horror, I stare at a rather dark photo of Sasuke.
"It's extremely important," she explains, "because you're currently the only witness, although much evidence does point to him as the killer."
I look up to Kakashi-sensei, my eyes frantic and wild and pleading for help, but he continues to stand in the shadow.
"Wh-what's happened to him?" I stammer, and the blonde woman ponders if she should answer me or not. Just as she begins to say, "This information cannot be reveale –" Kakashi-sensei finally looks up at me and explains, "He's run away; we don't know his whereabouts."
I take a big gulp to calm myself, but fat tears roll down my face once more. It doesn't take me long before I start sobbing quite loudly, and somewhere in between my sounds of agony, I hear the woman mutter, "I'll come back later, Sakura. Rest for now, but I will be asking you for verification of this man."
Since when did the fourteen-year old Sasuke turn into "this man?"
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