Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Mirror Fragments ❯ One-Shot

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, and with a genius like Kishimoto-sama in charge, I don't hope to, either. This is completely fictional, though some scenes from the series were described here.

 

Author's Note: My, my. I never did expect to write something like this. Originally, the story was planned to progress in different manner, but now that its come out like this, I believe this version is much better. I love this fanfiction with all my heart and I spent a very long time on it. I may have actually written this in a 3-week span, which is quite a stretch for me, if not some other writers out there. I was also planning it from a while back. It would warm my soul if you take the time to read this.

Presenting: “Mirror Fragments”.

-RaiMidori

 

POV: Sakura

 

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It was all different this time. His step was a slow, thoughtful shuffle; his back was hunched over, all his pride gone. I watched him as he hung his head low, studying the dirt clods he kicked up with his feet with mock fascination. I wanted so much to say something, but my mouth was frozen, my lips trembling He shifted from foot to foot, experimentally lifting his head, his dark hair shifting in tufts. The sun glared, forcing him to squint and lower his head once more. I watched in helpless anguish as his back was diluted by my tears, more and more, until, finally, I couldn't see a thing.

 

There was a full moon that night, long ago. It hung over the sky as if it was suspended on a string, dangling precariously on the edge of the world. The dull light floated peacefully over the worn footpath, casting shadows in his dark footprints. The cherry blossoms drifted solemnly on the breeze, dancing a May ritual. I called his name over and over, tasting it on my tongue for what I thought was the last time. Sasuke. Sasuke, Sasuke. I love you, do you know that? I love you a lot.

 

There was a glazed look that came over Naruto's eyes whenever his thoughts were on Sasuke. He would abruptly stop in his training, looking down at his feet on the verge of tears, before he would suddenly blink as if he just realized he existed, and continue as if nothing had happened. We never said anything. Even if we wanted to, there would be no words that we could muster the courage to speak. Deep in my heart, I, too, felt the ghostly pain of Sasuke like a hole in my existence.

 

The streets of the village were louder than I had ever heard, the midday sun pounding into the back of my neck. Crowds of Konoha shoppers filled the area in a stifling manner. Merchants called out sales excitedly, lifting their hands in a gesture of welcome, winking at passerby. Workers lazed about on lawn chairs, fanning themselves with an air of prideful exhaustion. I pushed through the crowd, my eyes trained on the bright building of the Gondaime, Tsunade. The punishments I could receive for my next actions would be severe, and I felt my mind wander through the horrible options that Tsunade would have to go through. I shook my head in distaste and walked, my head held just a little higher, my back just a little straighter. I knew what I had to do, but it was just so hard.

 

My footfalls resonated in the hall like an empty drum, a pounding rhythm. I reached the door sooner than I would have hoped, and even before I took a deep breath to steady myself, Tsunade's loud voice filled my ears. “Come in.” I swung the door on its hinge inwards, mentally preparing myself for what would come next. The tiles on the floor were a bleached white, flashing with the reflections of the bright sky through the window. Tsunade peered at me curiously, and I folded my hands in front of me defensively. “I…well, you see, Tsunade-sama…” I was fidgeting on the spot, my eyes warily locked with hers. A rush of determination buffeted me. “I'd like to request a pardon, for Uchiha Sasuke's sentence.”

 

I was told so many times that the world is not a fair place. We can be here, on one side of it, training for our next mission lazily while on the other side, foreign ninja are locked in bloody wars and gruesome battles. I disliked that thought before, and I still do now. The only difference is, now, I realize it's all around me, and it's somewhere right here, in this village. I'm not trying to blame anyone. I still need to figure it out for myself. Sasuke left this village 2 years ago. I saw him. I saw him leave, with his back facing me. But he didn't murder anyone. He didn't ruthlessly slaughter an entire clan like his brother, Itachi, yet he is still sentenced the same way. Death. Execution. When you die, you can't ever come back. I had always known that, but the weight of it has only started to press on me. Sasuke, Sasuke Uchiha, my Sasuke was going to die. I couldn't lift a finger to help. It was like a cold-blooded play running in front of my eyes, with me as an audience member. It was like dying myself.

 

Sasuke had always been with me. We had been on the same team for as long as I could remember. He had saved me countless times, and I was in debt to him a thousand times over. The fragments of that are laid to rest on the floor of my memories, little pieces that will take a lifetime to pick up, and another to put back together again. If I had that long to live, I'd spend it all doing just that, though I wonder if I would even remember who that boy was. That dark haired teenager with a piercing gaze, seemingly able to come to life from that moment at any second. I think that, then, I'd spend the rest of my life reliving those dusty memories, one after another, until, finally, my heart would light up again, every time I called his name.

 

Tsunade was silent. Her features flashed one emotion after another, almost too fast to detect. She was astounded, angry and then curious. But barely a second later, her face returned to the usual probing stare and blank features. “Are you questioning my authority, Sakura-san? I was the one who made that decision, have you forgotten?” her eyes were wrinkled at the edges, showing faint signs of a jesting smile. I was at a loss for words, but pushed on as best as I could. “No, Tsunade-sama. I am not, though I just wish to speak my opinion. I personally believe that Sasuke Uchiha, who is not even an adult yet, does not deserve the… death sentence.” My voice cracked at death sentence, but Tsunade either didn't notice, or pretended not to. “And what, may I ask, makes you think that, Sakura-san?” she intoned, her patient golden eyes studying my face. I looked at them, searching for traces of malice, but all I found was sincerity. “I love Sasuke-kun with all of my heart, Tsunade-sama. I think you know that. You're thinking that my opinion is biased, and, truth be told, it probably is. But I want you to look at your decision, too. Sasuke hasn't done anything wrong. I know he left the village. I saw him. He may or may not be a traitor, but that doesn't mean you need to kill him! Has he murdered anyone? Has he hurt anyone? Tsunade-sama, I've always respected your decisions, but this time I want you to think about this one hard. I hope you come to the same conclusion that I have.” My impromptu speech didn't end with the feeling of an ending. It was more cut off, awkward-like. Tsunade paused before she spoke the dismissal in a monotone. I wanted to ask so many questions, each popping in my head after another. In the end, I just turned and walked out of the room briskly, leaving everything in the hands of fate.

 

Regrets? Yeah, I have some. About some things. I should've done those things while I had the chance. I should've held on tightly to my dreams before they fluttered away. That's when it all started changing. It's so hard to forget, but it's also hard to live with them. Shall I sell a piece of my soul for fake happiness? I've lived with them as myself, but it's not nearly enough. I love Sasuke with all my heart. He knows, he really knows, but I've never told him. I wanted to walk right up to him, look him in the eyes, and say those words. I love you, Sasuke. I love you more than anyone else. What would he do then? He'd tilt his head to the side gently, and a smile would creep up onto his lips. Then, he'd pinch me lightly on the arm and tell me to stop joking. He'd smile, he really would. He'd smile just for me. That's why I fell in love with him. Do I regret that? I know, it hurts. But there are no regrets.

 

The gate to the cell holdings was built in a foreboding manner. There were snakes on it, twisting and winding, frozen in the moment. A cobra flicked its stony tongue at me, threatening, but fabricated. The old hinges were noiseless as I moved through the courtyard, the trees eerily bending to the undetectable breeze. My steps were muffled by the earthly remains of dead leaves and branches strewn over the path. A crow followed my gait until I disappeared under the archway housing the main entrance. There was only forward to go, there were only thoughts to posses and nothing to lose. I did what I could, though sometimes I wonder if I tried just a little bit harder, if things would have turned out right. My excuse was that I don't know. It's too easy to pretend.

 

The anbu sitting at the main desk was eyeing me lazily, flipping noisily through a stack of important-looking papers. “Uchiha Sasuke.” I said simply, hoping that she would understand. I wouldn't be able to bear saying it to the fullest extent; it would prove to my consciousness that Sasuke was, indeed, held there for a crime punishable by execution. She stifled a sharp intake of breath, clumsily dropping the keys she held out for me to take. She looked nervous, glancing up at me rapidly in succession. “You… are you Haruno Sakura?” She clutched the documents she had been sorting before, staring at something on the front page avidly. I nodded, curious as to the reason she knew my name, and tilted my head in question. “Regularly, Haruno-san, we wouldn't let visitors in for criminals marked for execution.” I winced at the word `criminal', trying my hardest not to cry out in protest. “Hokage-sama sent us these documents explaining the overwriting of these rules especially for you. I don't understand it, though I suppose you do.” I shrugged carefully, avoiding releasing of any information Tsunade might not want leaked. She shook her head in wonder and handed me the keys, pointing out the right direction to the cell. My knees were shaking like I was a child, but I thanked the woman and ran so I wouldn't have any doubts, the keys tinkling as a frightening reminder.

 

The bars of the cell were reinforced with chakra detectors. Hundreds upon hundreds of marks from kunai and sharp objects were carved permanently into them, as if the place was a torture chamber or a blistering furnace that the occupants wanted nothing more than to escape from. My mind flashed through a series of images- Sasuke clawing at the bars, yelling in anguish, Sasuke screaming in pain, Sasuke being captured by the anbu to be dragged here. I attempted to push them from my head, but the horrifyingly real scenes remained, as if burned into my retinas. Instead, I grabbed at the frigid cold bars, feeling a shock of recognition at the familiar sensation. I fought at it, and my body was once again warm. The chakra detectors embedded into the steel were part of a larger mechanism named `Andromeda' that contained a concoction that attacked the nervous system, freezing your body until, eventually your blood froze and you would die. I guessed that the security measures were to prevent escapes. I had received training from Shizune on how to handle the drug, so, essentially, I was immune, but only to a point. I let go of the bars and shakily turned the key in the lock, earning me a satisfying click. The anbu guard in the corner had his face turned towards mine eerily. The room was colder than I expected, and I watched my breath spiral like smoke above my face. Sasuke was there in the corner, a cold smirk upon his lips. “Hello, Sakura-chan.” The familiar voice hit me like a train on the tracks. His arms, draped over his knees, were paler than ever. His bare chest was exposed to the air, bloody and jagged slash marks drawn cruelly into his flesh. His eyes were closed.

 

I lifted a trembling finger to his wounds. “Those… what happened? I mean…do you want me to heal you? I…” He opened one eye, peering at his injuries. “These? They're nothing serious, just torture wounds.” his tone was a slow drawl, as if he sincerely believed his words. I would've walked up to him and healed him despite it, but, though I didn't want to admit it, I was afraid. I was afraid of who this new person was, this stranger that I had fought so hard to protect. I was afraid of change.

 

I'm not afraid of change. The words themselves are simple to say. I'm- me, myself. Not- negative, no. Afraid- frightened, scared. Of change- Sasuke, the curse mark, Orochimaru, Naruto, the anbu, Tsunade's decision, the cold smirk upon his lips. But meaning them is different. I have the resolution in my heart- to bend it is like reversing the flow of a waterfall. Like fighting nature itself. I wish I could give up.

 

I've been wounded before. Everyone has. It's part of being a ninja- it just blends in. When you are injured, your sensei might rush over to treat you, or they might just take a glance at it and mutter a simple condolence. Kakashi was the latter, and that's how I learned to hide it. It's too much when you are injured and your sensei only spares you a glance. He expects us to bear it, to keep going, and we do. But it's hard. I've learned to cover my wounds with my clothing; lightly staining it in a way that anyone would assume it was the enemy's blood. I can put on an act, running despite the fiery pain, jumping higher than anyone else. But a wound to the heart is too easy to cover. No one will ever know you are in pain unless you tell them. You can live, drowning in your own tears, for the rest of your life.

 

“You look stronger.” he indicated, his left eye still tightly shut. I had no words to respond. Even being with him was like living in a dream. I would have a million unfinished phrases from the past, but none seemed good enough. So when I said it, it was sudden and didn't connect with my brain. “You left me, Sasuke. You left me all alone. I was scared for you, so scared. I didn't want you to change or anything. And I don't… I don't know what to do.” The words were like a secret password that only he knew existed. He opened his other eye, which was completely black except his pupil, which was a sickening yellow. On his face was a sad expression, one that had never seemed right on him. “I did, didn't I? I left you behind.” As he said this, he punched the ground angrily, his knuckles scabbed and bloody from all the other times he had attempted it. “I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!” His voice was cracked and pleading like a child's. His right eye was lined with tears, desperately open wide, but his left eye was unmoved as ever, its unusual colouring seeming almost fit for him. As I watched him, I realized I was truly lost.

 

You know what you want. You always, always know. It's something you chase, some thing you keep your eyes on. So what do you do when you lose it? When you have no purpose, no goal? You can still live, but what's the point of it? It's like walking off the race track in the middle. You're going to get older as time passes, and die by the side of a long-forgotten race that lays unfinished for you. The crows will peck at the limp body by the side of the bleachers, cawing tentatively, wondering what you had done, what you had lived for. And really, what did you live for? Dying before you had the chance to live- I think that's the saddest thing. It's horrible being empty, hollow and unfinished. When pain is all you have left, time feels like it's been stopped. You can live a million years, wandering helplessly, searching for your lost love. When you finally find him, he's changed. He's not the one you fell in love with. Ah, shall I sing to you? Shall I sing to you about pain, suffering, and sorrow? It's all I can do, so if you listen, you can save me. If you haven't changed, Sasuke, please, save me from the silence.

 

People expect so many things from you. If I'm a healing ninja, does that mean I can save a dying man? I want you know how much I want to, but I can't. One day, when I'm stronger, I'm going to heal everyone I can. I want to walk into a hospital, and heal for as long as I hold out. The only thing I won't ever be able to heal is a broken heart. If I could, the first person I'd heal would be myself.

 

He looked at me, despair flooding his eyes. He looked like nothing more than a small child at that moment, and I wanted nothing more than to console him. “I didn't… kill Itachi. I couldn't even touch him! He just… just…” His voice was husky and unlike him. He cried out in frustration, bringing his bloodied fist to connect with the granite floor. It left a crimson mark, a painful reminder of his actions. Without thinking, my hand flew to his wrist, restraining him. I expected him to throw it off, but he stopped struggling. His whole body was trembling like a candle in the wind, on the verge of being blown out. My voice rose from me softly, poetically. “Sasuke… let's… let's run away. I want to be with you, and you don't deserve to die. We can start over, somewhere new, somewhere fresh- I want you to be happy.” He let his eyes trail slowly over my hand, up to my face, earnestly peering out through his dark bangs. “Being alone is a hundred times worse than dying, Sakura-chan. I just want you to stay with me… until the end.” He clutched my hand tightly, as if it was a lifeline, and I couldn't help but let my tears fall to the unforgiving ground. He held my empty hand as if I could save him, but really, I couldn't do a thing.

 

There's a little shadow on the lake, right behind the towering mountain. If you traipse there casually, you'll never make it. But if you go at it, for years and years, hiking and falling around the colossal monument, you'll get there. You'll be able to rest in the cool shade watching the ripples of the water reside, and reach a feeling of true peace. It's not much, but it'll feel like being on top of the world. You'll have gone there, right? You'll have seen things no one else has. In a sense, you'll be higher than anyone else. Sasuke's like that. He'll hide part of himself, always denying its existence until someone points out its stark contrast to the rest of his being. Then he'd take a hesitant look at you, and walk away with his hands in his pockets. So fragile, so exposed- he'd be afraid. I reached it, years ago. He didn't say it out loud, back then, but from his thin lips, pressed firmly into a line, his hands, bunched ever so clandestine in fists, and his eyes, resonating with fear and discomfort, I could tell that I was right. I had told him that he had a lot of love. He loved his clan and his parents so much that he was risking his life to avenge them. When I said that, he was silent for a stretched minute, his gaze flitting from my face to the ground. In the end, he jammed his hands into his pockets and leaned forward ever so slowly, landing a sweet kiss on my cheek.

 

I was looking back, my eyes glazed in a way that I imagined didn't look much different than Naruto's usual expression. It's strange, reliving the past. It's like watching a dream from someone else's soul, never knowing if you'll ever wake up. The person that shakes you awake might be showered with unrighteous loathing or thanked endlessly with blossoming sincerity. But when you are waking someone, truly willing them conscious, it's never about the hate or love received. No, it's about the person themselves, the one that you are trying to save. In my dream, I dreamt of Sasuke. It was a hazy and mirage-like dream, one that would make you wonder if it ever happened at all. Ironically, the one who shook me from it, who saved me, was the very same Sasuke, but I felt as though I didn't know him in the slightest bit.

 

I leaned forward. My dress, still lifeless on the floor, dragged silkily across the granite. Sasuke flinched, but stayed where he was, his hand slowly losing its grip on mine. I lifted my other hand and put it on top of his, and the frozen waves emanating from it. I lifted it to my trembling lips and blew my hot breath on it softly, threading my fingers through his. He looked away, but his midnight eyes jumped back to me almost instantly, searching for a reason, an answer. I brushed my hand along his wrist, close enough to feel his pulse, yet barely touching him. His hand, resting in my cradle of fingers had been revived, a warm glow touching the sides of his skin once more. In a moment of clarity, I let my outstretched arms find the painful wounds on his chest. I formed the hand signs by heart, and they were executed perfectly, just as I had practiced them. The ball of chakra in my hand flowed like liquid, and I pressed it into Sasuke wounds, watching as they sealed themselves up and his skin was restored to its previous state. The way it looked, it was like I had cast a spell on my fingers, allowing them to perform such entrancingly useful magic. I let my body go limp from exhaustion, tipping precariously on the edge of falling from my sitting position. Sasuke caught me in his surprisingly warm arms, and our breaths mingled together in the air as he wrapped his arms around me. And then he said it just like he did, the last time I had seen him, under the bright moon, to the chorus of the birds. “Thank you, Sakura.”

 

What's it like when you fall in love? It's not like anything else. You think about that person every day, and sometimes it hurts a lot. Where? It hurts right there, in your heart. More than a weapon, more than a kunai or shuriken can ever do. But there's happiness, too. There's a kind of happiness from just being with that person, and it never fades away. Sometimes, you can wait forever while that person flies away. But sometimes, that person will stretch out his hand for you to take, and then… you'll fly away, together.

 

I tilted my head back and caught his icy lips in mine. The last puff of my breath lingered in the air and finally drifted away, free from a horrifying cage. He ran his fingers tenderly through my hair while I took in his scent. It was so familiar, and the joy surged into my soul in enormous gusts. I was pressed tightly against his chest, his arms wrapped tightly around me, daring anyone to challenge us. No one said a word.

 

In the warmer breeze just outside the cell, Tsunade wore a defeated smile. The papers in her hand fluttered, each lettered in bright red characters. Each sheet read, Release Order- Uchiha Sasuke. The anbu guard stepped out from behind the doorframe and removed his mask, revealing radiant golden hair, stunning blue eyes and whiskers on his cheeks. There were tears staining his azure gaze, streaming down his face and out of sight into his collar. For the first time in years, a smile graced his thin lips.

 

There are all kinds of songs- sad songs, happy songs, love songs. You can spend forever trying to list all of the songs there are, yet each one is incredibly enlaced with meaning. Our world is so full of emotions, exploding with spectrums, colours, and sharp-edged pieces of time. But there's another song- whenever I listen to it, it brings a sort of realization to my mind, like a wake-up call. Do you know what that song is? It's the beating of our hearts. Not just mine, and not just yours, either. When you and I are together, Sasuke, the beating of my heart is pounding in a lopsided rhythm with yours, imperfect, but lovely, natural. I want to listen to that forever, and maybe, just maybe, a little bit longer than that.