The air rang with terrified screams. Men and women, mothers and children all fled at the sound of his name. It was pointless. They could never escape. Hatred burned in his cold onyx eyes as his sword escaped its sheath. The blade was sharp, but his cold anger made it sharper.
Lightning crackled in the sky and the sword. Flames danced in the ink-black sky, casting the world in a terrifying shade of red. The man's face was cast in sharp blue light and shadow from the lightning blade he wielded. Although only twenty-one, he was already many times stronger than the average jonin, more merciless and cunning than any Anbu.
He slowly passed a mother with a newborn child. She screamed in terror and he mocked her, laughing in his quiet, bitter way. His hand gripped the blade more tightly, but he didn't strike. She wasn't the one he was after. The one who must die was close, he could feel it in every fiber of his being. He was close.
He left the woman to search for his target, taking slow, careful steps. He mustn't lose control of himself now, not here, so close to his goal. All the lonely, helpless years of persecution and mistrust - it was all behind him now. His friends had probably forgotten him as he had forgotten them. Now, all that mattered was revenge.
Suddenly, a lone, black-clad man stood before him, neither glaring nor smiling. The sight of the black robes sent anger coursing through his veins. The other man nodded sadly.
"You're going to kill me?" he said tonelessly. "So be it. Farewell, little brother." He drew out a kunai.
"No! Today you will die!" Before the black-clad man could move to disappear, he was already impaled with the glowing blade. Slowly, he crumpled to the ground.
"So much... I never... told you..." he said sadly. He took one final breath and was silent and still. But before victory had settled in his little brother's mind, the world melted into a flurry of swords, stabbing and tearing at him from all sides. He was too slow to react, and one impaled him through the chest... It was over...
Sasuke Uchiha woke with a start. He gasped, trying to catch his breath and resting his hand on his chest. He looked down and saw no blood. It had only been a dream. He'd been having that nightmare so often lately... Itachi had died five years ago, but still managed to haunt Sasuke.
He paused and took in his campsite. He was being pursued, and nowhere was safe. Judging by the moon's position, the Anbu from this village would be there soon. It was time to start his journey again. Before he could take another breath, a kunai sailed past his face, cutting his cheek.
In a flash, he was on his feet, blade in hand and Sharingan eyes blazing. He glared around him, but he couldn't sense them, not yet... A twig snapped behind him and he whirled around, but too late. A sharp blade grazed his shoulder, making a deep gash in his flesh. He was instantly surrounded on all sides by other shinobi.
Sasuke tensed his grip on the sword, looking for an opening. He saw a small break between two of the Anbu and prepared to make his move. Lightning coursed through the cold steel, and the Anbu drew their blades, as well. Fifteen to one were terrible odds, but Sasuke was a seasoned fighter, merciless and cunning. Blood ran freely from the wound on his shoulder, but he was too focused to notice the pain. He knew they stood no chance.
"Are you gonna fight, or just look - AAAARGH!" one of the younger Anbu screamed as Sasuke faked him out, lunging toward the opening and doubling back to stab him. The young man fell lifelessly to the ground, and was quickly joined by one of his comrades, who was dead before he could utter a scream. Sasuke stared coldly at the remaining thirteen.
"Earth Style!" shouted the commander, making quick hand signs. "Jaws of Death!" Just as Sasuke heard the words, sharp plates of earth shot up from beneath him, forming the shape of a snarling animal's jaws. The sides formed walls coated with tooth-like shards. He leapt into the air, but a half-second too late. The "jaws" closed around his right ankle, shattering bones and tendons with a loud crunch.
"UGAAAAH!" Sasuke screamed. Blinded by pain, he slashed the earthen wall with his sword, freeing his torn leg. The pain was sickening, and he fought blacking out every time he moved his ankle. But he was a hardened fighter, and he choked back the pain as he dashed back into the battle. He knew he would not even have survived the jutsu without his Sharingan.
"Not so tough without your master, are you?" sneered a female Anbu.
"This is the 'great' Sasuke Uchiha?" mocked a man slightly older than Sasuke. Sasuke sneered at them through the pain and slashed them across their chests, tearing through their protective armor like paper. Blood spurted from their wounds as they slumped to the ground. Now only eleven remained. Sasuke took a deep breath and began making rapid hand signs.
"Fire Style: Fire Typhoon!" he cried. A twisting vortex of flame came forth and engulfed seven of the Anbu. When it cleared, all that remained was singed earth where they had stood.
"Die!" cried one of the remaining four. Sasuke lunged at him and stabbed his sword through the man's left shoulder and heart. He crumpled to the ground. Sasuke prepared to finish the battle. He sheathed his sword and prepared for his deadly jutsu. Lightning began crackling around his palm.
"Chidori!" he cried, aiming to kill the other three in one move. He stuck his hand through the neck of the first, then drew back. The man had suddenly turned into a cloud of smoke.
"A shadow clone?!" he said, beginning to panic. "Then where - AAAAAAGH!" he screamed as a sword stuck into his stomach and out of his back and was roughly jerked back through.
"Looking for me?" sneered the man. Sasuke coughed, staining the ground with more blood. He backed up with staggering steps, clutching the bleeding wound. His vision was blurred, and his ears rang. His only chance now was to flee. He leapt into the nearby trees.
"Unh!" he gasped as his ankle cracked loudly and twisted. He nearly fell, but kept up his limping, staggered sprint. The Anbu were drawing closer with every second, and Sasuke had lost all sense of direction in this terrain. He ran blindly forward, hoping for a way out. But suddenly the trees cleared, and his heart sank. He was standing on a narrow rock cliff above a wide river. The angry rapids spun a hundred and fifty feet below, and the opposite bank was four hundred feet away. Now the Anbu were behind him. He was trapped.
"You have nowhere else to run!" said the Anbu commander, stepping toward Sasuke. "Just surrender, and I'll make sure your death is quick and painless." Sasuke glanced toward the man, the river, the man. He glared at them coldly, his heart racing as it pumped what little blood he still possessed through his body. Then he turned, took the deepest breath humanly possible, and jumped.