EDIT 10/13/21: Altered the final scene, which was originally all this interlude was. Now, it is longer with added scenes for impact and added information to improve lore.

[ This chapter has been edited/ fixed as of 10/13/21 ]

Eternal

Part One: Genesis

Interlude I

Shinobi

A time lost…

Sasuke knew this area well. Having used this route often to come and go from the Fire Country, he's had the area imprinted into his mind; a vast sea of trees, shading the earth from the brightness above, covered the land almost entirely. A quiet, serene place where he would occasionally stop for a brief nap or just to enjoy the peace that enveloped him whenever he'd pass.

He much preferred taking this route rather than the official border pass that most must go through. But he isn't most people. Most people would be happier that he'd gone this route, seeing as his reputation, despite being considerably more favorable now than it used to be, tended to still instill fear into them. He preferred it that way, he supposed. He never did enjoy the frivolity surrounding herodom, nor the crowds of people that only knew them by name and legacy and treated them as such, mere commodities for them to gawk at and revere. There were those that did so concerning him, though, not as often as Naruto.

Perhaps one thing he'd like to change was the time he got to spend with his family. Because of his job, he's rarely ever home, always dispatched out into the world to protect those important to him. His family was at the top of that list.

Sasuke considered himself lucky. With anyone else, he supposed a marriage wouldn't last with these conditions. But Sakura wasn't just anyone, just as he wasn't. Their shared history, though a tumultuous one, led them to the relationship they had now: one built on trust, understanding, and a love he never knew the universe would allow him to have, nor have it be reciprocated.

Then, there was Sarada, the product of that irreplaceable bond, the life he wanted protected at all cost. He wanted her to live a life without all the horrors of his. It was why he took on this task, a task only he could do. Though, that didn't come with sacrifice. Their first meeting after his long absence was a testament to that. That was something he and Sakura could have handled differently, but things have settled. Sarada knows and understands now, and their relationship had changed for the better and had remained as such. It still doesn't change the fact that Sasuke wished that things had gone differently.

Thoughts of his family were what preoccupied him here, when he'd take a seat underneath a tree and see light peek through the leaves above him. He would remember. He would regret. He would reflect. It was what the peace offered him around here.

But that peace was nowhere to be found when he stepped foot into the forest. Instead he felt heat, a sinister heat, one that made sweat drip from his palms, leaving a burning tingle on the back of his neck. It was chakra, contained, but still strong enough to elicit such a temperature change.

His guard was up, his eyes narrowed as he surveyed his surroundings with every single step. Nothing was out of the sort until the closer he got to the source, the more trees looked weaker. Branches began to thin; piles of leaves, dead beneath his feet, grew plentier; grass turned brown until there was nothing more than soil.

He would have been notified of something like this if the village had known. With this kind of chakra surrounding the area, he would have received a briefing on it along with the letter he received urging him back to the village. It must have occurred recently. Very recently. And that was alarming enough already.

Then, he saw it.

A part of the earth looked to be torn upwards, forming a cave-like structure. From where he stood, nothing but darkness stared back at him.

Darkness never scared him. Back then, he sought it out. But there was something about this cave, this eeriness that made him hesitate for the slightest moment. Only a moment.

Then, he entered.

The sun shined brightly above the Hidden Leaf Village. Its rays beamed down on the building and on the people getting ready to start their day. Parents were walking their children to school. Some stores were beginning to open. There were pleasant sounds of different birds singing all throughout the area, the sun being its reminder to start the day. Overseeing the village as it started to wake were seven pairs of stone carved eyes perched on the cliff side, the past leaders of the village keeping a watchful eye on the people that were the very reason that some of them honorably gave up their lives for.

Usually, by this time, her mother would be on her way to the hospital, having to be there first, a task her mother thought was a good example for everyone on her staff. But Sarada Uchiha watched as her mother walked back into the house just as she was getting ready to leave herself.

"Mama?" She said, eyes filled with curiosity as her mother removed her shoes. "Did you forget something?"

Though her mother had quite a temper, she's usually seen with a smile, greeting patients with care, appearing diplomatic in political affairs, and at home, she treated Sarada as if she was the most important person in the world, which can be a bit coddling at times, but her mother meant well. And it wasn't like she did so to the point of irritation. Her mother knew when to be stern and serious, but Sarada knew just how much her mother loved her.

However, right now, the look on her face was a complicated one, one somehow mixed with excitement and worry.

Sakura shook her head and immediately put on a smile, soft and not entirely forced. "Oh, yeah. Silly me."

With a raised brow, Sarada inspected her mother. It was then she saw the paper in her hand, crumpled between her fingers and her palm. Sakura made no attempt to hide it, but it was clear to her daughter she must have gotten something important in between the few minutes she left home and came back.

"Heading out to meet your team?"

"Yeah," she said slowly. "You asked me that before you left earlier."

"Oh, right." Sakura laughed awkwardly. "Well, have a good day, sweetie!"

Sarada nodded, still confused by her mother's demeanor. Walking to the door, she's stopped by her mother's voice, now softer and less guarded.

"Oh, and come home early if you can. Papa's coming for dinner."

That explained the elation. But what was she so concerned about?

Sakura waited a few more minutes after Sarada was out the door. It was always so hard to hide things from her, no matter how miniscule. Her daughter could read her like an open book, quickly and with ease, and that's not without reason. Since it was mostly just the two of them together as she grew up and having inherited both her and her husband's deduction skills, Sarada was always very curious.

But she couldn't tell her right now. It's what the letter said.

Walking to the main bedroom, she closed the door, locking it before walking to the window on the opposite wall. With two soft clicks, she opened it, allowing the early morning breeze to cool her face, eyes closed relishing a moment of peace.

"Sakura."

Her eyes lifted open, meeting the familiar intensity of his eyes, an intensity that was sincere, that was true. She felt the corners of her lips rise in a smile, delicate and warm. It was an instinctual reaction to his presence, to him. With every fiber of her being, she loved this man, this complicated, sincere man. She saw his features soften at the sight of her, his own natural reaction to having her near.

In a quiet moment, the two relished in each other's presence, allowing the morning breeze to be the soft sound around them as they welcomed the familiar tranquility between them. Then, as quickly as the breeze halts, their features grew serious. Sasuke, atop a branch by the window, entered the room as Sakura stepped aside, allowing him the space to do so.

"The letter."

He nodded. "I sent a hawk to Naruto. He and the rest should be waiting. But I needed to speak with you first."

From his cloak, he takes a scroll out and presents it to her. Even with its distance, she can smell the faint burnt cigarette smell. Sasuke didn't smoke.

Sakura held the scroll in her hand, bringing it closer to her for closer inspection. The burnt smell was stronger now, but there was a subtle sweetness to it she could not understand. Something akin to vanilla yet something as pungent and stale as burning tobacco.

Then, it hit her. Memories flooding back to the forefront of her mind. The moon above them, the old woman, her cryptic words, the wilting flower bed, the smell.

Her eyes darted back to her husband, wide and with a hint of alarm. "That night."

"It's too specific a smell in a similarly questionable circumstance."

"What did she say then?" Sakura frowned. "Two halves of a whole-"

"Chosen to be lost," he finished.

"Have you opened it?"

His silence was her answer. He had.

"And where did you find this?" The current Hokage placed a worn out scroll onto his desk.

"There was strange chakra surrounding a small area in the outskirts of the Fire Country's borders. I followed it into a cave hidden underground and found the scroll." Sasuke pointed to an area on the map laid out on Naruto's desk.

"We've had scouts surveil the area before. This is new." Shikamaru crossed his arms. "And a cave. None of them have ever mentioned something like that before."

"I've been through that area countless times. That cave was never there."

"Were there reports of any earthquakes on or near the area?" Kakashi chimed in, one hand on the desk.

"None." Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose. "What's most disturbing about all of this isn't just what's in the scroll. It's what isn't."

"Think it's another Otsutsuki?"

"Hopefully not. We've dealt with too many of them and would rather not have to resort to thinking about blowing up the moon again," Shikamaru said, giving the former Hokage a knowing look.

Naruto looked at the only woman in the room, the look on her face was that of concern and confusion. She'd been quiet. "What do you think, Sakura?"

She walked forward and took the scroll, carefully opening it. "If what it says is true, we need more information. Anything to help prevent anything like the outbreak it described. Have intel look into it. Check if there's some sort of secret seal within it hiding anything."

"It's without a doubt hiding something." Kakashi traced a finger on the letters. "It's suppressing the chakra."

"Do you think it's sealing something?"

Something akin to Kaguya? Those words weren't spoken but everyone in the room knew it was implied. The fear that someone like Kaguya was hiding somewhere was not unfounded.

"First thing's first, we need to bar that area from everyone. Make sure no one tries to get into that cave," Naruto said, arms folded. "We have enough trouble with the rising anti-shinobi factions around the border."

"It's not just the border," Sasuke replied. "It's a rising sentiment throughout small villages around the continent and has been for decades now."

"That means to make sure the area's closed off sooner rather than later." Shikamaru sighed.

Kakashi remained quiet as the rest of the meeting continued, his mind preoccupied, regret breaking through his consciousness like water breaking through a dam. It attacked like a tsunami.

When he was Hokage, he had heard of small protests against Shinobi as an aftermath of the war. At the time, he did what he could to help lessen the sentiment, but it seemed fruitless. In truth, he completely understood why these people, these anti-shinobi, were rebelling. They blamed the Shinobi for all of the major issues, the wars, their world had to endure, and they weren't wrong.

With the hope, peace, and light that shinobi had brought into the world, they also delivered pain, war, and destruction. It was the way things were. The world needed to be in balance. And although the world was experiencing an incredible time of peace, there would always be an inevitable force that would come to challenge it.

He couldn't help but feel as though that challenge was finally coming.

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