Professional Documents
Culture Documents
By: MitsukiShiroi
Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
A/N: My first Naruto story! It’s an Itachi x Sakura story so if you have any objections
against this pairing, I’d suggest to stop reading and turn around.
This story is slightly AU. It follows the storyline until chapter 290 and then it diverts from
the canon story line.
FOR FIRST TIME READERS AFTER JULY 2008: Metamorphosis was my first
fiction and written while I was sixteen years old. My English has since improved
tremendously and Metamorphosis has become a thorn in my eye considering all the
spelling mistakes etc. Feel free to read it, but please don't leave reviews about how bad
the grammar is and how illogical everything seems, I know. I'm in the midst of rewriting
chapter three right now and will continue rewriting until I feel that it's improved overall.
So proceed at own risk. If you chose to heed my warning, please try Twilight,
Asphyxiation, or another one of the fanfictions listed. :)
Chapter One – Descend into Darkness
She knew she couldn’t take this any longer.
It has been six years since she last seen his arrogant smirk; six long years since she heard
his magnetic voice and smelled his unique scent that reminded her of rain and forest. Six
years since he just knocked her out and left with just two simple words.
Ever since that day, both she and Naruto had tried everything in their power to take their
mind off their teammate, to train individually and when the time was ripe, they would
meet again and bring Sasuke back.
Which failed miserably since they were never able to find Orochimaru’s headquarters, or
Sasuke for that matter. It was as if both had vanished into thin air, leaving not even a
small trail behind.
Desperate, they had returned after spending two weeks in the Country of Field,
attempting to find their lost teammate but never succeeding.
Sakura was sure she was going mad.
She cried when Naruto tried to comfort her, telling her that his promise was eternal; that
he’d bring Sasuke back, no matter what. She sobbed as Sai suggested that perhaps Sasuke
had left Sound already in search of his older brother. Sakura wept as the annual team
photo shoot was announced and Naruto suggested to make a picture of the three of them,
while holding a picture of Sasuke in their hands, showing that they still knew who their
real teammate was.
And now she was drained.
She had hit rock bottom when Sai stepped out of the shower they were sharing during a
C-Class mission, drying his hair. He saw her then and flashed that fake smile of his as the
towel fell down to the ground, exposing his hair.
His hair was spiky at the back and she knew it was because he was drying his hair in that
place, but she just couldn’t get the mental image of Sasuke’s hair out of her head then.
When he tried to ask her if something was the matter, she had quickly turned around,
ignoring Naruto as he called out her name and locked herself up in her own room,
spending the rest of the afternoon crying over a fading image.
The year afterwards, she tried to ignore everything that had any connection with the
Uchiha. She tried hating him, but failed miserably as she glanced to their group picture
when they had just become Genin. She tried to ignore the pain that he had left in his
wake, thinking that one day, it might just go away.
Sakura tried to wish Sasuke away; wish that she had never laid eyes on him, but he would
still be there when she woke up.
On her seventeenth birthday, she hoped to find Sasuke standing in front of her door,
congratulating her with her birthday as he pressed a present into her hands, Naruto in tow
with a smile, telling her that he had kept his promise and brought Sasuke back.
She smiled slightly, mentally complimenting herself for being so naïve throughout the
years.
“Sakura-chan,” Naruto called her gently, awaking her from her reverie.
Sakura glanced at her right, watching as Naruto landed on the same branch as hers before
jumping further. “What is it Naruto?”
His cerulean eyes had lost the spark she was used to seeing as a child. She supposed
losing your best friend and not being able to help him would do that to someone. Maybe
she had lost her own spark; who knows?
His hair was longer and flatter than before, but it still had that spiky edge to it. Now
sporting a Chuunin uniform, Sakura couldn’t help but feel saddened with the thought that
they’d left their childhood behind, together with Sasuke.
“I was wondering…” Naruto stalled slightly, voice faltering. “Would you… like to eat
some ramen with me?”
She remained quiet for a moment, contemplating his offer and Naruto grew more restless
with each passing second.
“I’ll pay!” he quickly said as an afterthought, making Sakura smile slightly.
“Sure,” she nodded and watched as Naruto beamed back like a child who had just been
given some candy. She smiled sadly, before focusing on the road ahead of them.
They had just returned from a B-Ranked mission, concerning a certain paranoid Daimyou
who thought he needed Shinobi to protect him. But nothing had happened throughout the
entire mission and so they returned completely unscathed.
Her eighteenth birthday was during said mission and Naruto had apparently found a way
to send one of his Bunshins to the nearest gift shop and buy her a box of chocolates.
She smiled lightly; it was probably the most romantic thing Naruto had ever done for her.
Sakura pondered slightly on what to wear. She wanted to make it special for Naruto, one
good, happy memory of her. After all, this was her last chance to eat some ramen together
with him.
Because on her eighteenth birthday, she decided to leave Konoha and find Sasuke.
--
“Sakura-chan!”
She chuckled lightly. Leave it to Naruto to call her name, rather than to knock on the
door. She waved goodbye at her mother who smiled back at her before continuing to chop
the vegetables for dinner.
Walking out of the kitchen, she could hear Naruto yell her name again and balled her first
slightly in irritation, before realizing this was the last time she would see Naruto.
She froze in the hallway and for the first time, she doubted her decision. According to her
plan, she would eat with Naruto, wait until her mother had fallen asleep before packing
her stuff and run off towards Sound.
It seemed like such a good plan.
If only she wouldn’t miss her mother, Naruto, Kakashi… Even Ino.
Tears burned in the corners of her eyes as she recognized that she wouldn’t see any of
them again, and what for? A man… no, a boy of her past who didn’t even go out with her
once. A boy who blatantly ignored her feelings and ran off to gain power.
But he was also someone else… He was boy who complimented her in order to cheer her
up; a boy who fought to protect her. A boy who would lie next to her in the grass during a
mission, and his presence would be enough to soothe her and to make her fall asleep. A
boy that she had confessed to love.
Sasuke was a boy and she would have left Konoha to be with him.
Without fully realizing it, she had been crying.
“Sakura?” her mother’s voice sounded concerned. “Are you alright? That boy is still
calling out to you!”
Sakura snapped out of her thoughts, quickly wiping away the tears that streamed down
her cheeks before turning around, meeting her mother’s worried glance. “I’m fine. I’ll see
you tonight.”
Her mother nodded with a half-hearted smile and Sakura smiled back before rushing
towards the door where the blonde shouted her name once again, this time knocking on
the door as well.
She opened the door roughly, stopping Naruto as he attempted to knock again.
“Sakura-chan,” he smiled brightly.
“There’s no need to break down the door you know,” Sakura smiled weakly as she
grabbed her boots, putting them on before walking through the threshold, closing the
wooden door behind her.
Naruto nodded eagerly. “Sorry, I thought you were gone.”
The word ‘gone’ nearly made her flinch and she bit her lip slightly to stop herself from
crying again.
“I was just distracted,” she said quietly.
Naruto smiled bright to her, obviously oblivious to her small depression as he led her to
Ichiraku.
They shared light conversations as they walked through the illuminated streets of
Konoha. Sakura was only listening with one ear though, smiling sadly as she stared at the
buildings she used to pass by so easily, not knowing that one day, she might even miss
those.
While Naruto was ranting about his latest technique that Jiraiya had taught him, Sakura
looked at the academy as they passed it by, vividly remembering all the times that she
would sit in the field of flowers with Ino, staying there for hours, just chatting until they
saw the sun set and ran off to their respective homes before their mothers became upset.
She missed those days.
“Sakura-chan?”
“Yes?” she asked, half-smiling as she continued reminiscing about her childhood.
“We’re here,” Naruto grinned widely, propping his arms behind his head. “You sure
you’re alright Sakura-chan? You seem a little distant tonight.”
“I’m fine Naruto,” she poked his stomach gently. “Let’s go.”
She was awarded with another one of his grins as they walked into the small stand.
--
“That was great,” Naruto exclaimed as he rubbed over his stomach as they walked away
from Ichiraku. “I can’t believe how I’ve lived two and a half years without it.”
“Me neither,” Sakura chuckled.
He smiled at her, sky-blue eyes fixated on the roseate kunoichi next to him and then his
gaze turned serious. “Are you sure you’re alright Sakura-chan?”
“Yes, why?” she asked softly.
“You haven’t eaten much… I haven’t seen you so down since…” his voice wavered
slightly and Sakura knew where this was going.
“I’m fine… I just…miss him,” she said evasively.
He nodded slightly. “I know… I do too.”
They stopped on near the crossroads and Sakura smiled. “I need to go left here.”
“I know,” Naruto grinned. “Want me to take you home?”
“I’ll be fine Naruto,” she smiled slightly before stepping towards him.
She ignored his shocked look as she wrapped her arms around him gently, pressing
herself against him in a last ditch attempt to memorize the texture of his clothing, the way
he smelled like spicy ramen and the way he held her in his arms as he wrapped his own
arms around her.
“What did I do to deserve this?” Naruto whispered softly in her ear, making Sakura hold
on to him tighter. She never wanted to let go of him; she was secure in his arms and he
would protect her from everything, she was sure of it.
If only she loved Naruto.
If only she could forget about Sasuke.
And then the waterworks started, and Sakura cried on Naruto’s shoulder as he whispered
gentle, soothing words in her ear while stroking over her back. He never asked why she
was crying, he just held her in his arms for those precious minutes as she clenched and
twisted Naruto’s Chuunin uniform in her hands, never wanting to let go.
It took her several minutes to calm down and several more to finally gain the willpower
to let go of him.
She was afraid to look him in the eye, afraid that he might see through her instantly. But
his hand cupped her chin gently before pushing it up, forcing her to look up and see the
sad smile that adorned his lips.
“Don’t worry Sakura-chan,” he said, voice still as strong as ever. “My promise is still
valid. I’ll bring Sasuke back.”
“I know you will.” And I hope you’ll bring me back too.
“You sure you want to go home alone?” Naruto’s voice was tinged with concern. “It’s no
problem for me to take you home.”
“I’m sure,” she said calmly, forcing herself to smile.
“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Naruto grinned at her, before clasping her shoulder. “You
take care alright? It’ll be fine, trust me.”
“I know.”
“See you tomorrow,” Naruto smiled before turning around as he walked away towards his
house. Halfway around, he turned around and waved at her before turning around again.
Sakura just watched him as his form slowly blended and disappeared in the dark
shadows.
--
When she got home, her mother was asleep already. Sakura wasn’t surprised; her mother
went to bed early and woke up early just to make her daughter’s breakfast.
Stealthily, she opened the door to her mother’s bedroom, and slipped inside before sitting
down on the ground, watching her mother’s sleeping form.
Biting her lip to quell the tears that were threatening to spill, she gently stroked her
mother’s hair, making sure that she wouldn’t wake up before turning around.
It hurt to know that this would be the last time she would ever see her mother.
Casting one last, lingering look over her shoulder, she sneaked out of the room and
walked the stairs up to her room.
She opened the wooden door and walked straight to her closet, knowing that if she stayed
any longer, her resolve would fade and she would end up staying in Konoha, rather than
searching for Sasuke.
She grabbed her backpack and quickly stowed some of her clothes in it, bandages, a
couple of medicines and some anesthetics and finally, the picture of Team Seven.
She glanced at it, longingly as she touched Sasuke’s photographed head, enjoying the feel
of the cool glass against her warm fingertips.
“Soon Sasuke-kun…” she whispered as she packed the picture.
Glancing around her room for the last time, she refrained herself from crying as she
stared at the picture of her and Ino.
She would definitely miss Ino.
She didn’t even had the chance to say goodbye.
She trembled slightly as she grabbed two pieces of paper from her desk and hastily
scribbled a goodbye note for her mother and one for Naruto.
Sakura knew he would understand. He would hate the fact that she was gone too, but she
knew he would understand why she left. Perhaps the one most understanding of her
feelings was Naruto.
Placing the two pieces of paper on her bed, she heaved her backpack over her shoulder
and turned around without even a second glance. She closed the door behind her and
looked around her house before she walked down the stairs as quietly as possible.
She toyed with the thought to see her mother again, but she knew that doing so would
only lead into more tears and questions if her mother accidentally woke up and saw her
daughter sitting next to her bed, crying her eyes out while carrying a backpack on her
shoulder.
Therefore, she settled with touching the wooden door of her mother’s bedroom for a
while, wishing things could be different before she turned around and left the house.
Luckily, she didn’t live far from the gates of Konoha. Sakura wasn’t sure how much pain
she could handle and for a second actually envied the missing-nin who had carelessly
turned their backs against their villages and left to live by themselves.
Vaguely, she wondered how many of them regretted leaving.
She strolled past the academy again, smiling slightly as she remembered all her fond
memories in the classroom when everything was still simple. When she would still bicker
with Ino about who could sit next to Sasuke.
If she had known that the Chuunin exam would be such a disastrous event for all of them,
Sakura wouldn’t have shown up. She would have stopped after the written exam, not
giving Orochimaru a reason to find Sasuke. She would have protected all of them from
the events that happened afterwards.
If she hadn’t entered, Sasuke would have never caught Orochimaru’s eye and none of this
might have happened. There would be three people dining at Ichiraku tonight, rather than
two. She could still ask Sasuke if he would go out with her, and perhaps after knowing
her for years now, he would say yes.
Sakura knew this was all just a fairytale, but how she wished it could be reality.
She walked past the garden of flowers, picking of the cosmos flowers and smelled it’s
fresh scent as she placed it, lovingly, inside of her backpack. She would dry the flower
later on and keep it as a memento for Ino.
Finally, the gates that led to Konoha’s exit came into vision, and with that, the road where
her hopes and dreams were crushed; where she had confessed her love for Sasuke and he
had declined her once again.
She stopped.
She turned around.
There was still time to go back. This was foolish; she would say goodbye to everybody
for Sasuke. She would leave her village, where she had build up a career as a medic-nin,
the village where she had turned into a Chuunin.
And for what?
To help a lost boy find her revenge for his older brother? To help him train? She wasn’t
even sure what she would do once she arrived in Sound.
“Don’t worry Sakura-chan.”
She shivered slightly as a cool night breeze passed her.
“Don’t worry Sakura-san… It’ll be fine, I know it will turn out fine. Naruto-kun gave you
the ‘Nice-guy’ pose after all.”
“Lee…” she whispered slightly, remembering how he had tried to cheer her up after the
three Genin left to search Sasuke.
“Sakura… Don’t worry, everything will turn out fine.”
“Kakashi-sensei…”
And she took a step back to Konoha.
She was right, this was foolish. Someday, they would all combine their powers and they
would bring Sasuke back. This wasn’t worth it.
She could lose her life if ANBU found her. For all she knew; Orochimaru or any other
Sound-nin would kill her if she arrived there. There was no telling what would happen in
the future and it scared her.
In Konoha she would be safe.
In Konoha, she still had everyone else.
She took another step back to Konoha.
“Sakura.”
She could still hear his voice calling out to her. If she closed her eyes now, Sakura could
imagine Sasuke still standing in front of her, his back turned to her, the Uchiha emblem
colored in such vivid colors compared to the dark night.
Sakura remembered everything he had told her that night.
He wasn’t like her or Naruto… His heart had chosen revenge above them… He found her
to be annoying…
“Sakura…thank you.”
He had thanked her…
“Sakura.”
She turned around and bit her lip as she stared at the gates that loomed in front of her.
“Sakura.”
She clenched her fist slightly and took a step towards the gates, steeling her resolve.
Sakura took another step and looked over her shoulder one last time before tears started
to sting in the corners of her eyes and she turned back towards the gate and ran over the
stone pavement, jaw clenched so hard that it hurt as she ran past the gate and left her
home village.
For Sasuke.
--
“Sakura-chan,” he knocked on her door as he yelled her name.
This was the second time that she didn’t open up immediately and Naruto was getting
worried. Usually her mother was home around this hour, and although she still stared him
suspiciously, probably thinking that the Kyuubi might pop up any minute, she would
always go to Sakura’s room and get her to hurry up.
Then again, maybe she was already at the Hokage tower.
With one last scrutinizing look and the awful feeling that something was wrong, Naruto
started sprinting towards the Hokage’s headquarters; fully aware that he was fifteen
minutes late and Tsunade would give him hell.
He dashed past Izumo and Kotetsu, hearing them yell and swear loudly as they dropped
the stack of papers they were holding. He yelled an apology back and ran into the
headquarters, nearly bumped into Shizune and earned some swearing from her as well.
He apologized quickly before finally reaching the room where Tsunade’s office was
located.
Without knocking first, he opened the door violently and stepped in, before realizing that
Sakura wasn’t there.
Instead, Sakura’s mother was there, crying quietly and Kakashi was standing in front of
Tsunade’s desk and had turned slightly to see Naruto enter.
And then it hit him that something bad had happened.
“… What’s going on?” he asked, voice faltering slightly. “Where’s Sakura-chan?”
“Sit down,” Tsunade directed and Naruto immediately spotted the waver in her voice,
contradicting the stern manner she regarded him
“What happened?” Naruto asked again, ignoring Tsunade’s orders.
“Naruto,” Kakashi spoke up, tone serious. “Sit down.”
Naruto gave Kakashi an exasperated glance as he stalked forward and sat down on one of
the chairs. “Well?”
Usually, Tsunade would rant at him that she was the Hokage and that his bratty little self
needed to show her some damn respect, but to his utter surprise, she only sighed
forlornly.
“Sakura left Konoha,” she said, hiding her face from view as she tried her hardest to
overcome the emotions that were in danger of escaping.
Hokages don’t cry.
It remained silent after that statement. The only thing Tsunade could still hear were the
sobs of Sakura’s mother and the harsh breathing of Naruto.
Naruto’s world was shattered in that instant.
Everything made sense now.
He understood why she held him so tightly last night, why she had agreed to go on a date
with him. Naruto even understood why she cried and why she found it so hard to let go of
him. It all made sense.
But he wasn’t willing to admit it.
Sakura wouldn’t leave. Not after all that they’d been through together. Not after all the
promises they made to bring Sasuke back and hit him until he was knocked out and they
dragged his sorry ass home.
She could have the first go… he promised that.
Maybe she hadn’t left the village… Maybe there was something else going on.
Was it his fault for leaving Sakura alone yesterday? Was she attacked?
“What are you saying Tsunade-baachan…” he whispered hoarsely, chuckling slightly.
“Where did she go to? The mission already? Was it because I’m late?”
“You know what I meant,” Tsunade said harshly.
“She wouldn’t leave,” Naruto whispered like a mantra before yelling it out to Tsunade as
he rose from his chair. “She wouldn’t leave! We were going to bring back Sasuke
together!”
“Naruto,” Kakashi said his name half-threateningly as he laid one of his large hands on
Naruto’s shoulder and pushed him back on the chair. “You’re talking to the Hokage,” he
said firmly. “Show some respect.”
“Kakashi-sensei!” Naruto rose his voice desperately. “You know that she would never
leave! Say something!”
“Calm down,” Kakashi said in a low voice, thought Naruto could swear he heard a
sympathetic tone in his voice. He heard his teacher sigh softly and clenched his teeth
painfully hard in frustration before fixing his gaze back on Tsunade.
“How do you know she’s gone by her own free will?” Naruto searched desperately for
another solution to the mystery surrounding Sakura’s disappearance. “Maybe someone
kidnapped her!”
“She left a note,” Sakura’s mother finally spoke up, voice quivering somewhat as she
stared at Naruto through her tears.
From the corner of his eyes, he could see that Tsunade was finally looking up as well.
Shocked, he muttered the only thing that he could at that moment. “What did it say?”
Wordlessly, she fumbled to get something out of her pocket, before thrusting it to Naruto,
who accepted the small scrap of paper wordlessly. Still staring at Sakura’s mother in
puzzlement, he opened the letter and stared at Sakura’s hastily scribbled handwriting.
I’m so sorry Naruto.
He trembled slight as tears started to well up in the corners of his eyes. No matter how
hard he tried to be strong, this always happened for some reason. He tried protecting
everybody and yet failed to protect the two people closest to his heart.
And he was supposed to become a Hokage? Someone who could protect an entire
village?
He wasn’t even fit to protect his own friends.
Tears dripped down from his nose onto the paper, staining the ink. The tears blurred his
vision as he crumpled the letter in his hands, unaware of the fact that Tsunade had stood
up and was walking towards him with a sympathetic and sad look in her eyes. Unaware
to Kakashi’s hand which had involuntarily gripped his shoulder somewhat harder. He was
even oblivious to the fact that Sakura’s mother was crying again.
“Why…?” he asked to nobody in particular.
“Why what?” Kakashi asked gently, the firm tone from before gone.
“Why is everybody leaving me?”
He smiled as he glanced at Sakura's drowsy form, nearly asleep with her head on his lap.
Her radiant pink hair was fanned all over his lap as he gently caressed it, admiring the
soft texture of it under his roughened hands.
Friends, they were. Nothing more; she was in love with the Uchiha, he knew that, but
still, he wished it would be different, especially during these small intimate moments that
meant nothing more for her than ordinary bonding.
"Deidara?" she whispered, voice laced with sleep.
"Hmm?"
"Did you mean it?" Sakura asked quietly.
"Mean what?"
"After Tooya's attack, you said you loved me..." she opened her eyes and looked him in
the eye, searching for answers.
He opened his mouth, then closed it again, not sure what he should say to her. All that he
told her that fateful night was the truth, and he knew it was in vain and that it wouldn't
matter, but he just had to say it to her.
Feeling like an absolute idiot, he tried his hardest to flash a smile and then answered, "I
did... yeah."
"Did?"
"I guess my feelings for you receded to just a brotherly love after you left," he lied easily.
She was not his and would never be his; he accepted that. It was time he let go of her.
"And I always knew you were in love with Itachi... yeah."
Sakura smiled sadly, then pushed herself up and against Deidara, hugging him tightly.
"I'm sorry," she whispered softly in his ear, clutching his shirt in her hands. Then, his shirt
suddenly felt wet and it took him a mere second to realize she was crying. "I'm so sorry."
"Don't apologize," Deidara laughed it off casually, wrapping one arm around her waist as
the other one stroked her short hair. He hesitated, then kissed her cheek quickly as she
pulled away to face him. Sakura gave him a watery smile, her fingers gently touching the
place he had kissed her.
She then bent towards him and returned the kiss. He grinned happily. "Don't call me
brother though... yeah!"
"I won't," Sakura laughed as Deidara wiped away the tears that still rolled over her cheek.
A curt knock on the door made the two of them look up. He already knew who was
standing on the other side of the door, but asked anyway. "Who is it?"
"It’s me," came the monotone reply and the bed lurched as Sakura pushed herself off and
opened up the door to reveal the raven-haired man. His piercing crimson eyes glanced
over Sakura's cheeks momentarily, obviously noting the fact that she had been crying,
then turned to the blond who still sat on the bed, his hand on the place where Sakura had
sat moments before, still feeling the warmth radiating.
"You've been crying," Itachi observed, still looking at Deidara.
As Sakura looked up to meet his eyes, she could clearly see something other than his
usual blank look. Another emotion flickered behind those long lashes of his, and for a
moment, she thought it was anger, before dismissing it immediately.
"It's nothing," Sakura replied, touching her eyes. "We were just talking about the past."
Itachi curtly nodded, then calmly walked away, his thumbs hooked in his pockets in a
nonchalant manner.
She turned around and smiled at Deidara, waving, before following her partner to
wherever he was heading.
He turned around the corner and stopped there, causing Sakura to almost bump into him
as she hastily followed him. The kunoichi stood still for a while, waiting for him to say
anything, but as he turned around, he gently pushed her against the wall and before she
could even speak up, he pressed his soft lips against hers, displaying his hunger and urge
in a way she hadn't ever seen before.
Sakura complied, wholeheartedly welcoming his warm lips as they nudged hers in
demand for more intimate access as Itachi's hands settled on her hips, softly kneading the
flesh. These flashes of passion from Itachi's side were rare and she'd take any chance she
had to make them last. With a quiet moan, she gave back as good as she got and the kiss
went on, growing hungrier and more insistent by the second, until she felt that familiar
pain burning in her throat and she quickly pulled back.
He held her tightly as she coughed, a hand calmly resting on her back as she doubled over
and when she nearly fell to the ground, Itachi held her calmly, allowing her to reach the
ground without hurting her knees, patiently awaiting the moment that the coughing would
stop.
When it finally stopped, she was too tired to even look him in the eye and just passed out
in his arms.
Without too much effort, he picked her up and carried her to their room, once in a while
glancing down to see whether she was awake or not, but she didn't open her eyes.
As he laid her down on the bed, he could clearly hear her even breathing and looked
satisfied as he calmly took her boots off and pulled the heavy duvet over her. Itachi then
turned around, picked up one of the wooden chairs that stood near the door and sat down
on it, watching over his kunoichi as she slept.
With his elbows resting on his knees and his hands folded against his forehead, he finally
let go of his mask for the first time in years, and let the dreadful fear that lingered within
take over for a split second.
He aspired to be the ultimate shinobi; a powerful being who was a part of Akatsuki. He
had hidden all of his feelings for so long and then she showed up again and told him the
news and nearly broke him from inside out.
This is why he didn't want to get close to anyone again. This is why emotions are
unnecessary.
This is why he failed as a shinobi.
But still, as he pondered about all of these things, he wasn't able to suppress the feeling
that the next time she had a coughing fit and passed out, she might not wake up again.
And that mere thought was enough to bring a stinging to his eyes that he hadn't felt since
he was a mere child.