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It was a typical night in Konohagakure, the Hokage stone faces were watching over the village, the hot summer air was blowing, and the will of fire was resting. Every light was off and every house was asleep.
Except one.
Yours.
Or to be specific, the apartment you'd been living alone in since your parents had died and your clan’s estate had been locked up.
Because unfortunately, it was a typical night for you too, a restless sleep wracked by nightmares.
You found yourself 11 years old once more, living as peacefully as possible in your clan’s estate. Your peace was interrupted by a loud crash coming from the west wing, then another came from the east wing, the north wing, and finally, where you were tucked in your room, pushed to the very back of the estate, the south wing. Hunters. The next thing you knew, your clan members had taken you out, told you to pack your things. They were peaceful people, not shinobi, this wasn’t a war where each side was on equal footing, no, this was a hunt. They were predators and you were prey. The next few moments were a blur as you ran through the estate, tiny fingers clutching your caretakers haori; you passed by blood spilled on walls, belonging to people whom you’d greeted just that evening, bodies fell in front of you, the hunters chased behind you, their swords flickering under the moonlight, eyes glistening with greed at the idea of the bounty they could cash in by capturing your eyes. The Kaguyame purge. The day your clan had been hunted to extinction, treated less than animals, all because of a bounty placed on your Dojutsu. The Kaguyame.
You woke up with a gasp, your eyes activated automatically, pulsing with energy. You clutched your chest with clammy hands, as you turned your gaze towards the window, a full moon. That would explain it. Your Dojutsu always seemed to act up on full moon nights. Your hands would shake, you weren't able to control it, and its whispers would get stronger. As if it was alive and trying to take control of you.
A normal Kaguyame would've been fine under a full moon, functioning normally, but your eye was everything but normal. There's a reason that your clan never went to the front lines. If a Kaguyame eye ever comes into contact with pure chakra from a tailed beast, it becomes corrupted. One of their eyes turns a rotting dark color, and their mind becomes infested with the beast's chakra, taking a life of its own. When activated, a corrupted Kaguyame is intensely powerful, powerful enough to warrant a bounty of 200 million ryo, but just as unpredictable. It makes the user crazy, unable to tell friend from foe. That means that every time you use your eye, there's a risk to you, your friends, and anyone around you.
The monstrous chakra slowly eats the user's brain the more it's used, attacking the limbic system first, and going for the brain stem, ultimately killing the user. Every corrupted Kaguyame user in history had either died to their eye, or lost their mind and ended their life to escape from the pain. Or so that's what the books told you.
You had been the unlucky child who sneaked out of the estate the night Kurama had been released and wreaked havoc on the village. You just wanted to search for your parents, yet you ended up encountering the fox, the one who would kill your parents that night. You still remembered how heavy his chakra was, it made your eye burn and left you permanently scarred.
Your clan had locked you up. They didn't care if you were only barely a year old, they only saw a ticking bomb. A curse. That's what you were. Your caretakers did not have a mother’s warm smile or a father’s gentle touch, they carried a detached demeanor, the way one would treat a beast. Your clan elders kept you locked inside the main estate, and at any sign that you were slipping, a fall, a dropped cup, you were locked in your room, chakra seals pasted on your doors and windows. It continued for 10 more years, till the night the hunters came. You were almost thankful. Almost.
You shook your head in your room, trying to shake off the memories, and got off your bed, walking towards the kitchen for a glass of water. You weren't really thirsty, just didn't want to go back to bed and face your monsters again. The glass of water didn't really help, but at least it helped you ground yourself, blocking out your eye’s pull.
‘Perhaps a little walk outside the apartment? Fresh air would help, right?’ You thought, putting on your sandals and stepping outside, and it did help. The fresh night air took your mind off it, but as the nightmare slowly bled into reality your breath hitched in your lungs.
3 figures suddenly dropped from the rooftop and started cornering you, one from the left, one from the right, and one in front. Hunters. They were all big men, faces hidden by the night, the telltale cruel aura of mercenaries following behind them. Even from their chakra signature alone you could tell that they weren't from the village. The one on your right stepped forward, carrying heavy metal chains, those must be for you.
You activated your eyes again, scanning your surroundings for a way out.
“The people of Waves were right. It exists.” One of them said, staring at you with a predatory glare. “You're going to make us a lot of money, brat.”
So they had heard of your eye from there, your team's mission in the land of waves. You knew you shouldn't have activated your corrupted eye back then, but your teammates were in trouble. Sasuke had almost died trying to save Naruto from Haku’s senbon. You couldn't sit back and do nothing, even if it literally cost you your sanity, and now it seems, risked your life.
You tried to activate a jutsu, any jutsu, but you found yourself paralyzed in fear. You knew this day would come. You'd been under your clan's protection only for so long. Time to face the music, right?
You tried to make a hand sign, going for a simple substitution jutsu to give yourself some space. But you couldn't even think before they attacked, one of them yanked you by your hair and you fell back, hitting your head against the wall. The one in front locked his hands around your throat, trying to suffocate you. You could feel the oxygen leaving your lungs, and went limp, dropping to your knees. As he dropped his hands and lowered his guard, you struck, punching his jaw. His head rolled to the side, as he wiped blood off his mouth, signaling something to the one of your left. Before you knew it, the one on your right grabbed both your arms as you started thrashing and struggling, while the other jammed an injection into your arm. You didn't know what it was, but it immediately made your vision blurry and your head dizzy. You tried to fight against it, throwing punches that didn't do any damage in your drugged condition. And just like that, your vision darkened, your mouth went dry, the sky spun, and you passed out.
+×+
There was a sharp ringing in your ears when you finally regained consciousness, your limbs felt as heavy as lead, and your head was throbbing with pain. It felt as if whatever they had injected you with completely sucked out your chakra. You tried to take in your surroundings but all you could make out was the spinning earth, dirt rubbing against your cheek. You were being dragged on the forest floor, pulled by the metal chains you’d seen them carrying. You debated telling them you’d woken up, but chose not to, leaving yourself to converse with fallen leaves in case you miraculously had the energy for a surprise attack, though, honestly, you didn’t have it in you, given the situation your body was in. Yet you still mustered up whatever chakra you had left to activate your eye, careful not to activate your corrupt left one. Your right eye turned from its natural color to a bright white, crystals forming inside your pupil. If all else, at least it’d be able to help someone find you, if anyone was even awake at this hour.
Weak.
That was all you could think of; how incredibly easy of a target you had been, how you’d let them take you, how you hadn’t improved at all. You’d been weak. Just as you had been the night the hunters came to your clan's estate. You're the last one remaining. Their legacy. The last Kaguyame. You can't fail this easily, can you?
But wallowing in self pity won’t save you. Breathe, think. You were in the forest, and they seemed to be moving at a steady pace. The Hokage faces seemed only a few kilometres away, the clock was around 01 : 15 when you'd woken up, and the fight, if you could even call it that, had lasted around 3 minutes and 12 seconds. Pathetic. If they've been moving at the same speed, then you've only been travelling for 20 minutes. It must be around 01 : 40 right now then. The fire nation bounty station is only a few hours away, the location was practically encrypted in your brain from how much time you'd spend staring at it on maps, unable to accept how your family members had most likely ended up there. Eyes gouged and bodies sold. You were always afraid you'd end up like them one day. But you didn't want it to happen like this. It's silly, isn't it? It was a horrific fate, but if it had to happen, it had to happen the way you wanted it.
But what use is years of preparation and awareness if you still ended up like this?
It's the dead of night, no one would be awake right now. Your teammates, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke, would be fast asleep. You’re supposed to meet up with all of them the next morning, surely someone will come looking for you then, you never miss training, but that’d be too late. There's a chance that there'd be Shinobi on patrol, but these guys seem like they know what they're doing, judging by the way they're navigating through Konoha’s dense forests, looking for kunai marks on the trees as their guide. They've planned this thoroughly.
Suddenly they halted, finding a suitable place to make camp for the night. It's in the middle of the forest, the bounty station is 5 hours away. Even if they stop for the night, you’ll be as good as dead before anyone realises you’re missing. The man roughly took you up off the floor, tying you up against a tree. You couldn't get a good look at his face in the dark, but you could tell that he was the one who had injected you with the serum. You glared at him angrily, though your intent probably didn’t come off correctly given the state you’re in.
“Feisty, hm? Use that energy to pray, girl.” He said to you before walking off and sitting with the other two by the campfire.
“Don't give her any hope, idiot. No one's coming to rescue you, brat,” One of them said. “Make sure to give her a second dose before you sleep, it'll go out of her system in a half hour if she's this alert,” he continued.
At least the serum was about to wear off soon. Perhaps you could use your eye and do something, though it'd be incredibly risky under a full moon.
‘No one's coming to rescue me, huh?’ You thought, staring up at the moon and closing your eyes. Why would someone? Your clan was so afraid of you that they locked you up to the point that the village was surprised when you turned up alive. Why would they save you? You're cursed.
No one's coming to rescue me.
Shing.
The sound of a kunai.
Your gaze turned to the men instantly, as a small shadowy figure moved around. A well placed hit, perfectly aimed shuriken, and two of the men quickly fell to the floor. More hunters? Has word spread in waves? Your heart started racing, who would be your next captor?
The relief that flooded your veins when you heard “Fire style: fireball Jutsu!” Could never be placed into words. The trees nearby turned to orange flame as the last man was caught off guard, before he passed out as well.
Your vision was still blurry, and the darkness didn't allow you to see properly, but you'd always recognize that face, with dark hair falling over his onyx eyes, contrasting against his pale skin, face adorning the same scowl as usual. Though he somehow looked grumpier than usual. He's probably thinking about how pathetic you are, getting caught this easily, and he probably has a lecture prepared for you already. But he’s here.
“Sasuke.” You smiled, relieved.
“I came to rescue you, Yakamashii.” He replied.
Of course he’d call you that, the annoying nickname he’d given you the first day you met him, claiming that you had ‘talked his ears off.’
His eyes narrowed at the chains wrapped around you before he severed the chains with a kunai, freeing your body from the biting pull of having them pressing against you.
As soon as you felt the chains dropping, you let out a breath and your head dipped forward, your body finally relaxing after the weight dropped off of you both physically and emotionally. He caught you before your face met the dirt, tucking a hand under your legs and lifting you bridal style as he jumped from tree to tree, making his way towards your apartment complex, his grip firm and grounding.
“Thank you, Sasuke.” You mumbled, head rolling against his chest, as he hummed in reply.
“How did you even let them capture you? They’re D-rank at best, you know that.” He asked, his tone accusatory. His irritation likely came from worry over you rather than anything else though. This was his way of asking you what happened without showing he cares.
“I was caught off guard, idiot… I couldn’t sleep, so I went out for some fresh air… and I got ambushed.” You mumbled, eyes dropping to your hands.
“Still, you should’ve been able to handle it. You know you could’ve.”
“Yeah well, maybe you think too highly of me…” You’re lying. He probably knows your skills better than anyone from how much you guys keep sparring.
You sighed, continuing honestly. “They injected me with something and I passed out. There’s still ringing in my ears but my vision’s coming back, I can feel my chakra again and my head doesn’t hurt as much anymore… I heard them saying something about it wearing off soon…”
“Hn. Get yourself checked out tomorrow, as early as possible.”
“What, savior wasn’t enough so you’re playing doctor too?” You grumbled, turning your head up to face him. “Why are you up anyway? And how’d you find me?”
“I couldn’t sleep either. So I snuck into the training grounds to practice. I saw those men passing through, and they didn’t look like people from the village, so I decided to follow. Then I saw your eyes light up. The cheap flashlight glow isn’t exactly easy to ignore.”
That got on your nerves. You ignored the effects of the drug for a moment to glare at him and say, “Cheap- cheap flashlight-?! That’s a revered, ancient Kekkei Genkai you’re talking about, ya know! How would you feel if I called your Sharingan just advanced glasses with a red tint?! Just admit your tracking skills are horrible if you needed a ‘flashlight’ to find me!”
You could feel his hold stiffen as he rolled his eyes, almost pouting as he let out a scoff. “At least I found you, didn’t I? Be grateful. Yakamashii.”
You rolled your eyes again, out of revenge more than irritation, which easily bled into relief once again as you were reminded of the sticky situation you were in tonight. “I really am, honestly. I don’t know what would’ve happened to me if you weren’t there.”
He raised an eyebrow, finally looking at you from the corner of his eyes. “Do you deal with trash like that often?”
The air instantly tensed, as you took your time before choosing how to continue. Should you pretend this doesn’t faze you at all? That you weren’t absolutely terrified and scared out of your mind? That you thought you’d be safe until you were taken from your own home, again?
A few moments later, you let out a breath, turning your eyes to the forest. You chose not to lie to him, he would’ve seen through it anyway.
“You’ve heard about the Kaguyame bounty, haven’t you? Two hundred million ryo… This is my normal. The hunters came when I was 11… And after that my clan split up. They'd been… hesitant to take me with them. A corrupted kaguyame was dangerous, I have a higher bounty than the others, it’d attract attention. So they left me behind. Lord 3rd found me and he set me up in that apartment and everything. It’s been two years since I saw a hunter… I think everyone assumed I was dead, but word spread after our mission in Waves. I… I didn’t think they’d come to my home, you know. I thought I was safe. For once since that horrid night I thought I was safe. But I guess I was wrong.”
A world of peace destroyed in one night, feeling burdened by your clan’s genetic ‘gifts’, and never feeling safe again? Yeah, those were all feelings Sasuke Uchiha was familiar with, more than anyone. But he didn’t quite know how to reach you, he’d built his walls so high that no one could come in, nor could he get out. So, he did the only thing he knew to show someone he cares. He acted.
“Ask the old man Hokage to change your apartment tomorrow. Right after you go to the hospital. We’ll set up traps and alert systems so that it doesn’t happen again. Naruto would probably trip over his legs and mess it all up, but Sakura and Kakashi might be useful. As for tonight… I can stay the night. I’ll sleep on the couch.” He suggested, or enforced more so judging by his tone. He wasn’t going to budge.
You wanted to say ‘you don't have to, I'm fine, I can handle this,’ but you’d be lying, because you can't. Not tonight. Perhaps not since you’d lost your clan. So you nod and smile at him. You can’t always expect him to be nice, but you could count on him.
He finally stopped, having reached the roof of your apartment building. He let you down carefully on the roof, as you sat on the ledge, legs dangling towards the ground as he sat next to you.
“You’re getting soft, you know.” You teased, wiping your eyes.
“Tch. Shut up. It’ll just be annoying to deal with you if you’re paranoid.” His eyes glanced at you once before turning to stare at the village. “Don’t feel like sleeping?”
You shook your head, saying, “I don’t even feel like going inside,” and letting out a chuckle, though it wasn’t funny.
His eyes narrowed, as he turned towards you, observing your glassy eyes before turning his head away again. “Stop being so stubborn, and just cry, idiot.”
After the hell of a night you’d had, being kidnapped by your home, thinking you’d die, and being rescued by Sasuke Uchiha of all people, this was your breaking point.
You didn’t try to stop the tears as they fell, landing like silver pearls on your hand, carrying the heavy weight of your fears and insecurities.
You couldn’t stop the words either as they slipped out, coming out in between stammers and sobs.
“I haven’t changed at all. I’m pathetic. What if you hadn’t been there!? I would’ve died tonight! And you know what? Maybe I should’ve! Maybe what everyone said was right and I truly am nothing but a ticking time bomb, a curse on everyone who ever has the displeasure of meeting me! I should’ve died tonight.”
Sasuke hadn’t interrupted you throughout your whole crashout, he knew better than to tell you platitudes or promises that everything would be okay, but at your last few words, his hands tightened into fists as he turned to face you, his onyx eyes meeting yours. You could see his fury inside them, even the worry and care he tried so hard to keep buried.
“Stop it. Don’t you dare say you should’ve died. You think you’re the only one who’s ever been weak? Who’s ever frozen up in the face of danger and felt pathetic? During the Land of Waves mission, I froze too. When Haku trapped us in those mirrors... I couldn't move either. I was terrified. If Naruto hadn't snapped me out of it, I would've been dead.”
He leaned in slightly, forcing you to look at him. "You’re not a monster, it’s the people who hunted your family. And you’re not weak. You have talent, you always did, even back in the academy. If you call yourself weak again, I'll drag you back to the training grounds myself. You’re my teammate. You don't get to give up. You’re going to get stronger.”
Your breath hitched, trapped in your throat, and your face heated up at his words.
“What if- what if I don't get strong enough in time?” You breathed out, unable to tear your eyes away from his.
“Then you’ll have someone to save you. Naruto would search every inch of the forest till he found you, Sakura would punch a mountain into dust and Kakashi would never rest till you were found. You have people. Just like I was here tonight, someone will be there.” He sounded almost envious of that, of your ability to keep your heart open, of being able to let people in, a luxury he didn’t let himself have.
He didn’t understand it, you’d both been through the same things, yet he’d hardened while you’d grown softer. You didn’t understand it either, you’d both been through the same things, yet he was a genius prodigy, and you, as always, were struggling to catch up.
He moved closer, not to hug you, he’s not that type of person. You felt his shoulder against yours, a grounding weight, a promise that he would be there. Always.
“I just… I don’t want to be a burden on anyone. A dead weight.” You replied, directing your gaze downwards to your hands.
“You’re not a deadweight. You’re my teammate. And I wouldn't be saying any of this if I didn’t see you worth it.” The steadiness of his tone combined with his eyes gazing into your face, someone seeing you instead of through you, finally brought you a sense of comfort and safety in this disastrous night.
“You’re right, I guess… Crying without making an effort won’t get me anywhere. I don’t even know what to say, Sasuke. Thank you.” You said, wiping your eyes and turning to look over the village.
“Then don’t say anything. Just get some sleep. Idiot.” He scoffed, peering over the roof with you, and continuing. “After the massacre, I snuck into the uchiha district almost every night. I blamed myself for being too small, too slow, unable to stop him. For freezing, being weak and pathetic. As if I’d betrayed my family.”
You didn’t interrupt him, despite the troubling things he said. To someone else, it might’ve looked like he was being too harsh on himself, he was just a kid, he had been only 7. But to another survivor, someone who had also lost their whole clan, it was a mirror.
“I see them in my dreams sometimes. Blaming me for not protecting them, for being too weak to save them and too insignificant for him to see me worth killing.” His fists turned white from how tight he wound them, his brows furrowed and expression grim. “That's the real reason why I was awake tonight.”
He kept his gaze towards the village, not sparing you a glance. “I stopped feeling sorry for myself, though. I got stronger, not strong enough, but stronger than I was then. And one day I will be strong enough. And I’ll take my revenge and kill him.”
You couldn’t help but stare at his side profile, the way his eyes lit up with determination was intriguing. To others it was a futile goose chase that’d leave him empty and eventually destroy him, but to you, it was simply justice. Itachi deserved it. An understanding smile graced your face as you turned your gaze over the roof too.
“Sometimes I wish I could get revenge too, but there were so many bounties, so many hunters. Moreover, with the way bingo books and bounty stations work, I could never find who put the bounty on my clan in the first place…”
You felt his pinky locking with yours on the ledge, and your heart raced.
“If you ever find out who it was, I’d help you take revenge.” His voice was firm, and you knew he meant it.
You turned to him, smiling. “And if you ever need it, I’ll help you too.”
He got off the ledge, making his way to the stairs leading below, deciding that the conversation was over, almost as if he was running away. “Then it’s a promise.”
You made your way over too, walking down to your apartment together.
What you didn’t know then, was that your promise would be called into question the night he left, when he’d asked you to join him and go rogue. You were ready to help him, but were you ready to sacrifice your life, your friends, and your village to uphold that promise? Your connection to your past and your future as a shinobi?
Well, you’ll deal with that when it happens, but for tonight, you were two survivors who lost their homes, families, and clans, but had found comfort in each other and in a pinky promise under the stars, if only for one night.