The Cost
of Vengeance
By Ami-Chan
Chapter I: The Mission of Darkness
Uchiha Sasuke was known as many things. He was one of the Leaf’s strongest, he was calm and collected and also fought over by Ino and Sakura. There is one side of him that only he truly acknowledges as himself. This is the avenger, the one to kill his brother, Itachi for the murder of his clan. Naruto has always heard that there was someone that Sasuke was meant to slay, but he had no clue as to whom it is. On this day in the Leaf Village, soon after the former Hokage, Sarutobi was laid to rest, Naruto would find out the darkest secret. Sasuke’s mission was to kill his own blood brother, and he only lives to do so. As the avenger, Sasuke can’t think of anything else, or he will become weak and fail his father and mother’s resting spirits.
“This is quite amusing, Naruto. Are you actually trying to hit me?” Sasuke mocked as he was able to dodge his attacks.
“Shut up, Sasuke! I’m going to wipe the floor with you!” Naruto retaliated.
That day the two were just sparring for the fun of it, although Naruto wanted to end Sasuke’s popularity by beating him once and for all. Kakashi or Iruka were nowhere to be found, so they could go all out if they really wished to. Naruto’s swipes kept missing as Sasuke’s speed allowed him to dodge. Sasuke backed away near a tree. When he least expected it, a kunai was at his throat.
“Surrender,” Naruto smiled.
“You got lucky your shadow clone was distracting me all that time,” Sasuke said plainly, not even ashamed of his cheap defeat.
The two of them headed back into the inner city of the Leaf Village going to the ramen place to get a bite to eat. Perhaps Naruto would meet Iruka there, and he could tell him about how he defeated Sasuke. To their surprise, no one was there. Everyone must have still been grieving while they were out sparring with great joy. Naruto had to admit these were bittersweet times. With the Hokage gone, maybe his dream of becoming one wasn’t too far off. Yet his friend, Konohamaru didn’t have a grandfather anymore. Sasuke was eating his ramen without a word. Usually he’d just tell Naruto how he “held back” so he’d win for once, or that he was an idiot that needed to train more. Sasuke was silent though, and Naruto was beginning to worry.
“What’s the matter, Sasuke? Is it a custom at your house to not speak until your food is gone?” Naruto said with his mouth still full of ramen.
“My “house”…I don’t have one,” Sasuke answered sorrowfully.
“Huh? Oh…that’s right. Your clan was slain,” Naruto recalled sipping in the noodles.
Sasuke went another while without saying a word to Naruto at all. He was in deep thought about something important. A long time ago, the evil twisted Orichimaru offered him enough power to kill Itachi if he were to join forces with him. Now would be the best time to leave. Everyone was still grieving over their lost Hokage, and no one would notice him. Sasuke rose up from his chair. His ramen dish was still half full. Naruto crammed the noodles dripping in chicken flavored soup and he paid for both of them, and then he took off after Sasuke.
“What’s the rush? I was just enjoying that!” Naruto complained.
“I don’t want you to follow me,” Sasuke answered emotionlessly.
“Where are you going at a time like this? The Third is dead! Don’t you have any consideration for that?” Naruto stood in front of him stubbornly.
“I need to kill that man… now. I can’t let you interfere. Besides, you need to train more if you’re thinking about being The Fifth,” Sasuke spoke in a monotone as he pushed Naruto aside.
“Who is he, Sasuke? Why is it so important you go after him now?” Naruto followed him from behind.
“If I tell you, you’ll wish to stop me. Anyone who gets in my way will die with him,” Sasuke said once again with his cold tone.
“Like I’d interfere with the weak opponents you fight,” Naruto remarked.
“I have to kill my brother, Itachi. He is the one who had slain my clan years ago. He’s the one that made me the avenger,” Sasuke explained without hesitation.
“You’d kill your own brother? Sasuke Why-?”
Before he could say anymore, Sasuke hammered his fist into Naruto’s stomach. Everything started to spin around him as his vision dimmed and the ground rushed to his face. With his last bit of strength, he called out to Sasuke with no avail. His body made a thud on the ground as dust surrounded it. Sasuke turned away without remorse, and walked the path on his own.
“He needs to learn to mind his own business,” Sasuke thought.
Sasuke never looked back as he left Naruto behind. The only one that was in his way was now unable to interfere, and he could do whatever he wished. How could he possibly understand what Itachi was like? He never met him, and he certainly didn’t hear the words, “He killed the Uchiha clan.” Naruto didn’t know any of Sasuke’s problems, and he wouldn’t understand if he explained. That was the only reason he could go alone, the people of the Leaf would never know or understand the pain he felt the day he was an avenger. All they cared about was how him and Itachi were brothers, and that “family values” should come first. To Sasuke, the Leaf Village’s people were just idiots and fools who could never accept the harsh realities of life. The winds changed to the southern direction and rain began to pour down and trickle off Sasuke’s face. This was a bad omen.
-Meeting Ground-
“Iruka, what are you doing here? You look worried,” Kakashi commented as he leaned against a wall reading “Come, Come Paradise.”
“Where are Naruto and Sasuke? They’re not here, and they should be with the rain outside,” Iruka answered.
“I bet they’re still outside training. That reluctant Naruto won’t give in until he defeats Sasuke,” Gai sighed while shaking his head.
“They’re both idiots for staying out there…I’m going to get them,” Iruka said as he took a rain coat off one of the coat racks.
Iruka headed out the door without a second thought and he ran outside with the raindrops hammering against his hood. In the shadows of the trees, he spotted a familiar silhouette of a person staggering and every once in a while falling against the natural walls of stone. He gradually drew closer and closer and the person’s image gained some color. When Iruka was just about to call out to him, the figure who was Naruto gave in and sank to his knees in weariness. Iruka rushed to his side without even a word from his mouth now, and he knelt at his level in front of him.
“Naruto, what are you doing? You’re going to get sick if you’re not in a decent shelter soon,” Iruka frowned at him with sad eyes.
“Iruka-sensei… I was looking for Sasuke… he knocked me out and then he took off,” Naruto explained shivering.
“You can’t find him if you’re dead, Naruto. Come to my place with me,” Iruka offered kindly.
“Thanks, sensei,” Naruto smiled weakly as he continued to shiver.
*************
Wolves howled in the long, desolate night. The owls spoke to each other in great distances with their eerie hoots and the crickets chirped a repetitive tune. These noises of the wilderness weren’t anything Sasuke hadn’t heard before, but a hard feeling in his gut kept him awake. It was almost as if something was burdening his heart, and it was the point of near pain. This feeling that overcame Sasuke was guilt. He never once felt it, not for about ten years now. Why did he feel sorry for those who had distracted him? What kind of person was he to care if people lived or died? Vengeance was his only goal and purpose in life. The Leaf’s people were trying to give him another reason to live, but he denied their offers of kindness and compassion. All of them sickened him, and they could save their pampering for the fools that needed it. The village’s fool got him thinking though. Of all memories, the most idiotic, loud, and hot-tempered shinobi’s came first. Uzumaki Naruto was in the deep truth, Sasuke’s only true friend.
“I wonder what he’s up to. He’s probably striving to think he can become greater than me so he can be the Fifth. Why am I remembering him? What is this feeling in my heart? Naruto, what have you done to me? Why do I regret what I did back there? No…I don’t regret it at all. You don’t deserve to come alongside me. You’re just a coward, and a loudmouth, and an idiot…but, you also make this feeling come in my heart, you and the others of the Leaf Village, that it isn’t just revenge that I’m living for,” Sasuke thought as he stared out his cave shelter into the moonlight.
*************
The steam of hot chocolate and ramen filled the air of the dining room, and it seemed the entire house had a slight warm feeling to it. Anything was better than outside, where it was cold and damp fit for neither man nor beast. Naruto started to gorge his ramen like a frenzied piranha does to any sort of meat. Iruka would have been embarrassed in any other case, but he could understand. Being out in the rain must have been his weakness, he never saw him lose so much strength in even combat before. Naruto’s eyes looked at Iruka while some noodles were still hanging from his mouth. He blinked before sucking them in and finally laying back against the wall. Naruto could tell just by the look Iruka gave him that he thought he was weird.
“Why are you looking at me like that, sensei?” Naruto turned his head to one side.
“You act like you haven’t eaten in days,” he replied simply.
“I’d just give anything to have warm food now,” Naruto smiled.
“About Sasuke… did he say why he left?” Iruka changed the subject.
“He said he was going to kill his own brother. His name’s Itachi,” Naruto explained.
“If you two were so angry with each other, why did you go after him?” Iruka eyed him with suspicion.
“It’s not like I care about him or anything. I just want to defeat him in a real match in front of everyone, so I can be one step closer to being Hokage and then I-
“Your imagination is vivid, Naruto. I admire that, but I don’t like it when you lie,” Iruka crossed his arms across his chest. He was irritated now.
“I didn’t lie about anything! I don’t care about Sasuke at all!” Naruto dropped his chopsticks and stood up with both fists balled.
“You should feel lucky, Naruto. You won’t have the pleasure of being with Sasuke and Sakura forever-
“Yeah, somehow Sakura will have a ghost’s chance in getting him, then they’ll be married and have one happy little family,” Naruto interrupted crossing his arms and turning his back. “I don’t want to hear how happy he’ll be.”
“That’s not what I mean. What I mean is, when you’re my age, you’ll probably live alone. Every shinobi has to do that. Otherwise, you’ll endanger the woman you marry and the children she has. There are too many shinobi who tried to live normal lives and their families were used as hostages…I don’t know how The Third managed to have a grandson and still be the great shinobi he was,” Iruka explained blinking a few times to hide his eyes of sorrow.
“So it’s true then… you really do live in this place all alone,” Naruto muttered at last showing a sign of sympathy.
“I’m not really alone though. Even if they don’t live with me, my students are all like sons and daughters to me. Being in my place isn’t really that bad,” Iruka smiled.
“Sensei, I’ll be the one to make you the proudest. That’s a promise!” Naruto was gaining his overconfidence back as he smirked and held up his left fist.
“I’m sure you will,” Iruka agreed, sipping his hot coco.
That night, Naruto couldn’t sleep. He watched the heavy rain drops become mere tears of the clouds, then nothing at all. The clouds were slowly creeping across the sky, letting the moonlight shine into the window he stared out of. Sasuke was out there somewhere too, watching the same scene, thinking of his home. There was no way Sasuke could forget everyone. Important memories could be buried, but never lost.
“Sasuke…I never wanted to admit it, but it’s driving me crazy to know you could be anywhere…I miss fighting you. Where are you, Sasuke?” Naruto thought as he stared at the left half moon surrounded by the lingering clouds.