Chapter Three: Countless Questions and a Few Answers

Ancient Greece:

Naruto watched Sasuke make his way down the path in absolute befuddlement. Sasuke was not exactly the most caring person in the world. However, that did not mean he went out of his way to be cruel either. He was the perfect specimen of indifference. Yet, if Naruto was not mistaken, he could have almost sworn Sasuke did not want to use his Sharingan on Sakura. The sunny angel looked back to the mortal, unsure of what to do. She was still standing there, her eyes staring blankly at Sasuke's back while her mouth hung slightly open in paused confusion.

"Hey dobe," Sasuke called over his shoulder in his usual monotone. "Are you coming?"

Naruto gave one last long look at the pink haired girl. His blue eyes scanned over her petite figure. Dirt and mud covered her hands and knees. Her dress was stained brown at the hem and knees from when she had knelt in the patch of mud and at her sides, where her hands clenched at the bunched fabric of her clothing, she left brown streaks of dirt from her fingers. Her hair was a bit disheveled from her frantic scramble to retreat from them earlier and her eyes were still red rimmed from her earlier tears. Aside from her disheveled appearance she seemed to be in no harm. Perhaps a little shaken but Naruto believed mortals were resilient. So it was with this comfort that she would be okay, he followed after his dark companion, leaving Sakura standing alone in the middle of the path staring at two departing figures.

"Why didn't you erase her memories?" Naruto asked after they had walked for sometime in silence. When Sasuke remained silent, Naruto chanced a glance at him to see Sasuke staring ahead with an odd look on his face. "Sasuke? Are you okay?"

Sasuke gave him a sharp look at his words of concern and let out a scoof. "Tch. I just didn't feel like it. Why would I waste my time and energy on something so futile as her."

Naruto gave Sasuke a strange look. The Uchiha was from the main branch of the underworld's leading clan. While young, Sasuke already possessed a vast amount of power. Erasing this mortal's memory would have been as effortless and blinking for Sasuke. But Naruto did not voice this point. Instead he asked, "what if she tells someone?"

Sasuke shrugged. "So what if she does not, like anyone would believe her. And it's not like it has not happened before. Mortals are such weak minded people that it won't be long until she begins to question herself." He waved a careless hand in the air. "By tomorrow she will have convinced herself that this morning was just a dream. And besides, it is not as if we will ever see her aga一"

"Hey wait up!" came a shout from behind them.

The seraphim halted their trek down the mountain and looked at each other. Then, in a synchronized motion, they each turned around to take in the sight of the pink haired girl sprinting down the path and waving her arms.

She slowed down and doubled over when she reached them. With her hands on her knees and her head bowed, she took in deep heaving breaths. Sasuke's lip pulled up in disgust in the poor display of stamina. It always surprised him just how much weaker mortals were compared to those not of their world. As if sensing his thoughts, her head snapped up and she looked up at his face, her vivid eyes meeting his own as if in challenge. It was as if she were daring him to summon his Sharingan again. Just so she could prove to him that she could resist its pull.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the thought. It had been a fluke. She had not overpowered the pull. It had been because of that damned thought that had passed through his mind. The idea that he did not want to erase her memories. It had been his hesitancy that had broken the pull of his sharingan, not her will. If he had truly wanted to erase her memories he could have. In fact, he had half a mind to do it right now just to prove it to her. But again, as he looked into the jade pools, he was struck with the same feeling again. He did not want this girl to forget him.

"What do you want?" he asked, his voice coming out harsh as his frustrated thoughts plagued his mind.

He watched her face slightly flinch from the abrasive tone but did nothing to rectify it. So instead she looked to Naruto who was looking at her with a warmth of welcome that always radiated from the blessed seraph.

"Can I ask you some questions?" she asked diffidently.

Immediately Sasuke felt this was a terrible idea. But before he could even deny the request, Naruto, who had no self control, was answering for both of them. "Of course what do you want to know!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. For someone who had been so concerned with the fact that a mortal knew of their existence, it sure did not take a lot for him to change his mind. Now the idiot was seemingly willing to divulge anything and everything about their kind.

"Well," she said, her eyes cast down to the ground as she dug the toe of her sandal into the ground while she fidgeted with her hands behind her back. Then suddenly, vivid green shot back up to them as a soft smile caressed her face. "To start with, what are your real names?"

Some questions had been an understatement. The sun was nearly at its highest point in the sky and she had still yet to run out of things to ask. Of course Naruto had done his fair share of interrogation as well. The loudmouthed angel had always been fascinated with mortals and how they lived. Anytime Sasuke had ventured into the city with the blonde seraph, Sasuke had always felt like a caretaker watching a toddler as Naruto bounced around from shop to shop. It was nearly cringe worthy watching him exclaiming loudly about how mortals had finally figured out something or wondered aloud what other things were for. He had lost count how many times he had to pull the dope quickly away as he went on about things that did not exist in the mortal realm.

Just the other day he had to pull Naruto away from the markets they had been exploring when he started describing a fruit to a vendor. It was one that grew on the other side of the world in lands that had yet to even be discovered by people within these parts. Yet somehow Naruto still managed to seem baffled that the man did not understand what he was talking about. The man had looked at Naruto as if he were demented.

Sasuke let out a small snort of laughter as he thought about the look on the merchants face. It only took a few seconds after the noise escaped him, that he realized the none stop chattering that had been running into his left ear for the past few hours had ceased. He turned to see his walking companions staring at him with raised eyebrows.

"What?" Sasuke asked as he looked at Naruto standing next to him.

"Whatcha laughing at?" Naruto asked with a curious tone.

It was then Sasuke realized that he had laughed out loud. His eyes flickered to Sakura who stood next to his friend. She was leaning forward slightly to peek around Naruto's broad chest to look at him more clearly. Her face was holding a small smile of amusement that Sasuke instantly dubbed: annoying. He did not like the idea of being some trivial form of entertainment for a mere mortal.

"Tch," Sasuke scoffed. "I was not laughing, I was clearing my throat."

Naruto narrowed his eyes with suspicion. "Didn't sound like it," he accused as he leaned in closer to examine Sasuke more clearly.

Sasuke's lips twitched in disapproval of the close proximity and brought his hand up to Naruto's face. "If I was laughing it would have been because of you moron," he chided as he shoved the blonde away.

"Stop calling me that you bastard!" Naruto shouted as he stumbled back and pushed Sasuke's palm away from his nose.

"Stop yelling dobe," Sasuke shot back.

"Why you…"

Naruto was just beginning to crouch into a preparatory lunge as Sasuke took up his own stance when their banter was interrupted by the hundreth question that morning.

"Are you two sure you're angels?" Sakura asked, looking quizzically at them.

Paused in his stance, Naruto looked at her. "Of course we are. Why would you think otherwise?"

Sakura's gaze moved back and forth, taking in each of their battle ready stances. "Well...you don't act like them," she said with a wavering tone.

"Hn," Sasuke said bringing her attention to rest on him. "And you are an expert on how seraphim should act? You just found out we existed today."

She swallowed under his scrutiny, her earlier bravery seeming to dissipate as she had grown relaxed over the day. "That doesn't mean I have not heard stories of your kind. My mother used to talk about the angels in the sky that watched over us when I was little."

Something flashed in Sasuke's eyes but it was gone quickly. With slow movements, he straightened up from his crouched stance as he folded his arms and raised a brow at her. "Oh, and what did mother dearest tell you about the seraphim in the sky?"

Sakura frowned at the mocking tone he spoke with. But despite it, she obliged in giving him an answer. "She said that they are gentle and peaceful. That they are our ancestors long passed away and watching over us, protecting us."

Sasuke let out a tsking sound and stepped closer to her. She moved to take a step back but was stopped when Sasuke caught her shoulder. She looked up at him, wide eyed and frozen as a smug smirk curled at the corners of his mouth. Her stomach churned at the nearly gleeful, predatory look in his eyes. With smooth movements, he leaned forward until his warm breath tickled her ear and caused the hairs on her neck to stand on end.

"There are many different kinds of seraphim little mortal, not all of us are happy cherubs," he whispered darkly. "You would do well to remember that."

As he pulled away, he paused a few inches from her face as he stared into her eyes. They were wide, letting in plenty of light and causing her pupils to dilate and become consumed by the jade coloring of her irises. For a moment, Sasuke felt trapped, as if it were she who wielded power in her eyes and not him. He felt a small breeze tickle his cheek and managed to use the distraction to look down at her lips. They were parted as the small flow of air escaped from them. Tinged with the faintest of pink to make them stand out next to the rest of her milky skin. It was enticing. Like ripened fruit just waiting to be picked from its green surrounding as it hung from a tree.

A warm breeze passed by and ruffled the leaves of the trees overhead. It would have escaped his notice had it not brought something else with it as well. Her scent. It was a mixture of floral and fresh spring water. And it was intoxicating. It shook something within him. The slight movement of her throat bobbing up and down as she swallowed nervously let him know that she too was feeling something as well.

His eyes trailed up until he met her stare. There he kept his eyes locked on hers, savoring the way her body seemed to tremble under the hand that remained latched to her curved shoulder. His fingers twitched and slid down from her shoulder to her bare arm. He felt the smooth skin prickle at the contact and it made him wonder if it was in fear, or something else entirely.

He continued to stare into her eyes. Taking his time he memorized every shade of green within her irises as well as the flecks of gold that the sun highlighted when the light hit them just right. Sasuke felt as if he could spend an entire century mapping out every detail. The way the individual pink lashes that framed her eyes contrasted…

The moment was utterly shattered as a yellow blob suddenly pushed its way between them and Sasuke felt his body being forced to take a step back.

"Oye," Naruto bellowed. "Stop it Sasuke, you're scaring her."

Sobered by the disruption. Sasuke quickly looked over Sakura, concerned that perhaps he had gone too far. But it seemed that she too had been broken out of whatever enchantment he had put on her. Immediately a rosy color began blooming across her cheeks. Sasuke smirked which seemed to cause the blush to become deeper, despite the now scowl that adorned her face.

Naruto was busy looking over her, his bright eyes inspecting her face with caring worry. Despite the blonde separating them, Sakura still felt her gaze being drawn past Naruto's shoulder to where Sasuke stood looking at her. At first it was with a peculiar look in his eyes but it was short lived before an arrogant expression took over. It was then she felt the heat in her cheeks and became horrified at the thought of the crimson color that would be accompanying it. This thought seemed to only make it worse as she felt the warmth increase and spread. In an attempt to hide how much he had affected her, Sakura glowered in his direction only to see him smirk wider.

She would have sent an even darker look in his direction but was disrupted when Naruto took her face in his hands and forced her to look at him. Bright blue orbs took over her vision as she stared into his summer sky gaze. His stare was intense but nothing like she had just experienced.

Sasuke's gaze had felt heated and languid. He had taken his time to inspect everything. As if her were taking her apart, layer by layer. Before she had realised, he had eased into her mind and thoughts. Once he had inspected every thing she had to offer within her head, he had moved on. He had traveled through every inch of her body, making her tremble as he moved closer and closer to the center. She had just felt the beginnings of a gentle caress against the thundering walls of her heart, when she suddenly felt him being yanked away when Naruto pushed himself between them. It had left her feeling exposed and Sakura immediately began to wonder which stare truly was the more dangerous. The gleaming red that he had drawn her in with earlier that morning or the solid onyx that had taken her apart piece by piece.

Naruto's stare was nothing like either of Sasuke's. It felt rushed. As if he were quickly surpassing the details and diving straight down to the bottom of her jade pools. Deep beyond the recesses of her mind and straight into her soul. For a long moment he just stared, examining with intense scrutiny. And then a look of relief passed over his face and he relaxed and released her face, seeming content with something.

The 'hn' sound that was becoming relatively familiar since the early hours of morning sounded and she looked back over Naruto's shoulder to see Sasuke walking away. It seemed to be a regular habit of his for the day.

"Hey where are you going?" Naruto called out.

Sasuke gave no verbal reply but a long arm raised above his head and a single finger pointed up into the sky where the heated sun beat down on them. Naruto turned back around, a look of understanding on his face before met her eyes and smiled brightly.

"I guess it's just you and me for the rest of the day!"

The underworld was not the scorching heat of fire and brimstone that the mortals painted it to be in their stories and art. Neither was there a chorus of suffering pleas of imprisoned souls to fill the air. And it was no longer the empty dank cave that Indra had fallen into long ago. It had been quickly rectified and turned into an underground cathedral in which the demons dwelt and ruled. Carved with craftsmanship only capable by angelic hands. Littered among the walls and ceiling, were precious stones that mortals had yet to even discover. When a stone caught the smallest of light and became illuminated, it made it easy to forget that one was submerged miles deep beneath the earth's crust.

Beauty aside, Sasuke had always felt the dim hallways of his home frigidly cold. But it was not a temperate cold. Being so far beneath the surface, the earth's core did well to keep the temperature a comfortable warmth, no matter the season at the surface. No, the coldness was not the kind that made a person shiver and reach for a warm blanket. It was an unwelcoming feeling that made him feel as if he did not belong. Sasuke loved his family, he loved his home, both these things meant everything to him. But he could not help but feel as if he were always alone. It was always seemingly too dark as the only light came from luminescent stones, glow worms that cling to the ceilings of the caverns, and the flickering flames of torchlight. It was enough to guide a person through the shadowed halls and dark corners of the underground, but it was nothing like the brilliant light of the sun that consumed the surface during daylight hours.

His steps were silent as he walked through the fire lit halls. The warmth of the torchlight heated parts of his skin each time he passed by the intricate sconce or raised pillar that held an everlasting fire. Fire was his family's pride and joy apart from the Sharingan. It was what they took inspiration from on how they ruled. Fire was what was used to forge and refine, but it could easily turn on you. It was not to be taken lightly for if manipulated incorrectly, it could consume and destroy.

"It is a bit late in the day for you to be coming home, don't you think Sasuke?"

Sasuke paused his steps at the disapproving sound of his father coming from behind him. He turned slowly, delaying the moment he would have to look at the face that would match the tone.

"I was busy, thought I would do a little overtime," he said with an impassive expression.

It was difficult to maintain the indifference in his voice but over the years Sasuke had perfected it. He would be lying if he said it did not bother him that his father still viewed him as nothing but a disappointment. He had given up long ago trying to live up to his father's unattainable standards. How his brother had managed such a feat Sasuke did not know. One thing he did know for certain was that as long as Itachi was around, Sasuke would never be on the receiving end of his father's beacon of pride.

Fugaku's dark eyes trailed over Sasuke's attire, taking in the mortal clothing. His father's face was mostly shadowed but Sasuke could still make out the deep lines near his thinned mouth deepen with disapproval. "You were with that blessed Uzumaki again, weren't you?"

Sasuke did not say anything in reply.

"You would do well to stay away from that one," Fugaku instructed.

Sasuke finally managed to bring himself to look his father straight in the eye. While he had given up trying to impress his father, it still stung to see the reflection of disappointment in his dark orbs. But he was done letting his father see that. Instead, he was determined to show his father that he was no longer concerned with his opinion. It was because of this that Sasuke tilted his face questioningly as he spoke.

"I thought we were in the process of working out peace negotiations," Sasuke stated. "I would think communication with one such as the Uzumaki himself would be a good thing. Especially considering who his father is. Would it not make things easier if we were already...acquainted?" Sasuke did not dare, nor would he ever outwardly admit that he considered the blonde idiot a friend.

Fugaku frowned at his sons bravery to question him. "We are," Fugaku confirmed. "But until then, we cannot be blinded by familiar connections. We must be vigilant and wary. Otherwise we will find ourselves walking away from a deal with nothing to benefit us. There will be a settlement, but Madara will not be making the same mistake twice. Remember, he considered Hashirama as a friend as well but the Senju betrayed him in the end and we as Uchiha were given nothing in return."

Sasuke made no reply. He knew there was more than peace treaties discussed behind closed doors. But those were in meetings that only contained the most important of the main clans. Despite the fact that he was a member of the main branch of the leading clan, he knew better than to think his presence was needed. And he certainly knew better than to think it was wanted. Sasuke knew his father would prefer that the clan forget he had a second son. So Sasuke kept to himself and let things run its course.

Things had been shaky for quite some time between the fallen and the blessed. For several centuries they had been stuck in limbo between peace and war. After Madara killed Hashirama there was no communication between the fallen or the blessed for decades. Each went about their duties and when their paths crossed only one of them survived. While certainly not a peaceful time, there was no one group purposefully seeking out to destroy the other. Although many had speculated that the Uchiha leader might have been an exception when Senju began to disappear at a rapid pace. Sasuke had not been alive during this time, but even he felt as though Madara had hunted down every last Senju with the exception of one. But no one had really seen or heard from Tsunade Senju since the war. Tobirama was the last to fall.

With no more Senju to take leadership, Hiruzen Sarutobi took up leadership over the blessed. Things had been slightly better during his time. A parlay was held and neutrality during sunrise and sunset was established during his reign. But before things could evolve into a more developed treaty, he had been killed by one of their own.

Orochimaru had wanted power and tried to take it from the God tree. In the end he failed. He had escaped the heavens before he could be dealt with. Originally he had sought refuge among the fallen but Madara had denied him entrance and the angel slithered off just as quickly as he came. Now he dwelt among the mortals searching out for new sources of power, for without the support of souls, his body was quickly deteriorating. The man had managed to survive thus far by linking himself with the life source of animals, specifically serpents. But there had been consequences to his actions. Now the man was more chimaera than seraph. The snake had approached Sasuke several times himself, promising him gifts but Sasuke denied him each time. Sasuke had yet to even learn what the man wanted from him but he desired nothing that the reptilian man had to offer. After his betrayal, Orochimaru had been deemed untrustworthy and Sasuke knew that any bargain made with the serpent was not worth his time.

Following Hiruzen's death it had been Naruto's father who had taken up leadership with the blessed and he had been determined to mend things between the fallen and blessed. Minato meant to end this cold war between seraphim and had extended an offer of peace to Madara. At first Madara ignored the attempts of contact, but Minato was persistent in achieving a better world. It had taken a while, but for the first time, the fallen were finally considering the offer.

"I would like you to start attending the councils," Fugaku instructed, taking Sasuke off guard and instantly becoming wary. His father had never so much as been concerned with his presence at the dinner table, let alone a meeting. "Madara requested you be more involved."

And there was the catch. It was not his father who cared, it was Madara. Madara, had been more interested in Sasuke's life than his father for more than he cared to remember. He knew his father disliked it. In some ways Sasuke thought it was why Fugaku almost seemed to resent him. Because the clan leader seemed to show favor on him instead of his brother. Itachi, Fugaku's pride and joy.

"Ah," was all Sasuke offered in confirmation.

Fugaku stared at him for a long moment, then nodded. "Stay away from that cherub. He distracts you from your true purpose. You are already weak minded and sympathetic."

Sasuke fought the flinch that threatened to grace his face at his father's last words. It seemed that while he had told himself he did not care, it was times like this that reminded Sasuke that somewhere deep down, he still hungered for his father's approval. With a stiff neck, he managed to lower his head in the slightest of nods. The movement was minuscule but was caught by his father's sharp eyes.

Without another word, Fugaku departed, leaving Sasuke to stare at his back as he was consumed by shadows. An ache in his jaw made Sasuke realize how tightly his jaw was clenched and he managed to loosen his gritting teeth. No longer wanting to return home where he would have to see his father all too soon, Sasuke began to walk with heavy steps in the opposite direction, determined to delay his return home until he had managed to calm himself.

Sasuke sat on the gravel shore and had been for hours, staring and thinking. His crossed legs had fallen asleep from lack of movement but he remained motionless. He did not even bother to turn around nor did he look away from the blackened lake when he sensed someone approaching.

"And what seems to be bothering my foolish little brother so much that he misses supper?"

Sasuke nearly let out a scoff at the question. There were many things that were bothering Sasuke's mind. Some were old and some were new. In hopes of sorting them out, he had wandered to the underground lake where many of his childhood memories were spent. On the far side was a wooden dock in which he learned to harness his first powers of procuring the flames that his clan was proficient at. It was perhaps the only time he ever felt his father acknowledged his efforts.

Sasuke remained quiet and unresponsive as his brother neared him. He heard the scrapping of rocks against each other and felt his brother settle down on the ground beside him. Itachi took in a relaxed breath and then let silence fall between them. At first Sasuke was determined to continue to ignore his brother. But Itachi was the epitome of patience. After several minutes of nothing but the occasional flutter of a winged creature that thrived in darkness, Sasuke lost his commitment and gave in.

"How do you do it?" He finally asked as he kept his dark gaze on the equally dark water. A small draft swept through the cavern causing the surface to ripple and catch the light of the glow worms that clung to the spiky ceiling above. With each line of disruption, the water caught the light causing it to sparkle and dance, giving the illusion of a night sky full of shining stars.

"Do what?" Itachi asked.

"Corrupt," Sasuke clarified, turning to his brother to look into his dark grey eyes. "How do you do it so easily? How do you justify it?"

Itachi took a deep breath and Sasuke watched his profile as his brother turned back to the lake. "I don't justify it," Itachi replied. "I just see it differently."

"What do you mean?"

Itachi leaned back with his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. His long legs crossed at the ankle as he let out a relaxed sigh. "Do you know what the god tree is?"

Sasuke gave his brother an affronted look. "Of course. It is what gives the blessed their powers."

Itachi nodded. "And where do we get our powers?"

Again Sasuke looked at his brother with a reproached offense. These questions were trivial. Any child would know them. But despite this, he humored his brother and answered. "We gain it from the Statue of the Outer Path. The souls we collect are fed into it which in return grants us our powers."

Itachi nodded again. "One man's poison is another man's cure." Sasuke looked at him in confusion, not understanding his brother's philosophical prattle. "Did you know that all the souls once went to the god tree?" Sasuke raised a brow, this he did not know and the expression on his face told his brother so. "In the first years of our existence, all souls were fed into the tree. Both good and bad. At first there was no consequence to this. Mortals were small in numbers and there were few that led themselves astray. But as their population grew, so did the number of corrupt souls that entered the tree. It was like a weak poison. A little will not hurt, but over time, the build up begins to take its toll."

He paused for a moment to let the information sink in. His long lashes opened slightly to see Sasuke looking at him in and he went on.

"The gods originally created us for one purpose. To protect and strengthen mortals. That is what we do, that is what I do. According to the blessed, Indra committed a great sin and was cast away from them. We are the result of his actions. But the way I see it, Indra's ways we're not corrupt, at least not at first, they were just misunderstood." He closed his eyes once more. "It is my belief that Indra saw this and knew that eventually the tree would die. And without the tree, we too would die. So he created the Statue of the Outer Path as a way to collect the corrupted souls, to preserve and save the god tree from being poisoned. It was just unfortunate that Hargoromo did not acknowledge the importance of his actions. And I believe it was this misunderstanding that caused Indra to lose focus and began to corrupt instead of collect the self corrupted. I think Madara and Hashirama knew this as well when they ended the war. They knew that they could not let all the souls return to the tree which meant someone had to collect those who had gone astray."

Sasuke looked at Itachi thoughtfully. "I guess that would make sense as to why the seraphim did not try to reunite fully."

Itachi nodded. "Yes, but I fear history likes to repeat itself." He added as he laid fully back down and closed his eyes.

His statement spoke volumes of what he truly thought of Madara. Sasuke knew his brother did not agree with the clans methods, nor their leadership. Itachi had never said it out right, but it was times like this, when he shadowed his disapproval with vague hints. Small suggestions that gave Sasuke the impression he was perhaps not the perfect child that their father saw.

"So you think that in order for all seraphim to survive, we have to collect the corrupted souls?" Sasuke clarified.

"Yes," Itachi replied without opening his eyes.

"So how do you bring yourself to do the actual corruption and temptation of mortals?" Sasuke asked.

"Mortals are weak minded and their hearts are even weaker. But when a mortal over comes a trial they become stronger and their soul becomes more precious. When a soul returns to the god tree it must be tried and tested otherwise it is worthless. And that is our purpose, to be that temptation. We are to test the limits of their will power and reveal the true intentions of their hearts. It is unfortunate that not all can resist, but that is our purpose. It may not have been the gods original plan but mortals are unpredictable. It is why our race has evolved, to adapt to the change in our purpose."

"It still does not feel right," Sasuke said quietly as he settled down on the ground next to his brother. He tucked his hands behind his head to serve as a pillow and stared up at the jagged teeth of the caverns stalactites.

"Perhaps it is more rewarding to be the one to guide a soul to success but what we do is necessary," Itachi replied after a short pause. "We don't get the glory, but our work is just as important. Some of us just don't see that."

Silence settled between them as they lay together and after a long and silent lapse of time, Itachi stood and without a word, left his brother alone with his thoughts. For a long while, Sasuke pondered his brothers words, wondering how accurate he was in his musings.

You are already weak minded and sympathetic.

The words of his father suddenly disrupted his thoughts and resounded in his mind. The peace that his brother had created in his troubled mind became turbulent again.

He was not weak.

The flash of pink lashes blinking and breaking away from his pull played across his mind and he frowned. Not pleased with the reminder of the pink haired fluke of a mortal, Sasuke drew his brow together and with determination, voiced a different affirmation in his mind.

He was not sympathetic.

As if his own mind was mocking him, another flash pictured in his mind. This time it was green. Green eyes looking up at him with complete innocence and purity. And then his mind truly betrayed him as a single wonder flashed across his mind.

Did she still remember him? Or had she already forgotten?