Chapter Text
"You should try it out sometime, Sasuke-san," the man said. He was a young brunette, with clear blue eyes and a grinning face. A rare combination. Probably in his twenties, although he looked to be around Sasuke's own age. But then again, Naruto looked much younger than he actually was, thanks to his characteristic stupidity seasoned with the occasional bout of genius. Oh for the love of Kami... now this guy's demeanor was starting to remind him of his blonde best friend rival. What was his name again? Ah, yes. Kenta. He now stretched out a hand in Sasuke's direction, beaming. "Wanna give this a try?" Kenta had been crouching down to feed the birds some grains, with Sasuke leaning against a wall behind him. In the pregnant pause that followed, Sasuke's gaze flicked from the grains in Kenta's palm, to his face, and into his eyes. Ha... the light in his eyes, it was the same one Naruto carried in his.
Bending down to take the seeds, Sasuke wore a faint smile on his face. The spirit of a shinobi truly never does fade away... and neither does the force which connects all people, ninja and civilians alike, together... in mind, soul and spirit. Then he blinked. Ha... Sasuke had forgotten about his missing left arm. Now that was gonna get some getting used to.
The sudden cawing in their ears startled the bird feed right out of Sasuke's palm as both he and Kenta jumped. A murder of crows had alighted on a nearby tree, black beady eyes eying Sasuke as he mentally berated himself for getting caught off guard. But for what? It wasn't like they would still be intel-gathering for his now dead brother.
Sorry Sasuke... There will be no more next time.
No matter what happens from here on out... Remember that I will always love you.
Haa... Sasuke knew now that there was no point dwelling on the past, but now, in moments like these as he watched some of the crows circle above their companions and alight on the tree's mostly bare branches, he felt himself teleported to another time and place, of days innocent and carefree. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he turned to Kenta, who had now stuck his hands in his pockets with a childish grin, watching the small birds gather around the grains Sasuke had dropped.
"I meant it though," he said, "when I said you should check out the food stalls at the festival," nodding towards the noise coursing the bridge connecting the Land of Waves to the mainland, "Their takoyaki is truly out of this world!" Sasuke nodded, turning towards the Great Naruto Bridge. The festival Kenta had spoken of was to celebrate the completion of that very bridge. The name still made Sasuke want to crack up. Not that he showed it, of course.
"Maybe next time," he said to Kenta, eyes softening as the words reminded him of the last time he'd seen Sakura, and her timid request to take her with him.
Beside him, Kenta nodded "The Festival of Hope is an annual festival, Sasuke-san..."
W-what if... I said I...I wanted to go with you...?
"So make sure to bring that special someone with you next year, yeah?" Kenta finished with a dorky grin on his face.
W-WHAT?!?!
Sasuke stared at Kenta as if he'd just grown another head, blood rushing to his ears as the latter doubled over, clutching his stomach as laughter escaped him in uncontrollable bursts. Sasuke grabbed him by the collar and teleported them behind one of the stalls bordering the Bridge, out of sight of the villagers who'd paused their frolicking to chuckle at them.
Was Sasuke really that predictable?
"What in the name of Kami was that?!?!?" He hissed as Kenta's entire frame shook with mirth, "You're really predictable, Sasuke-san" the brunette chuckled, wiping tears out of his eyes, as Sasuke's flushed face spread into a snarl.
"Hey, hey; calm down, Mr. Self-conscious, calm down." They settled down on the barrels behind a tea stall, Kenta propping up his cheek on his arm, elbow on the Bridge railing as he regarded Sasuke with a thoughtful expression on his face. "I bet she's a very outgoing person," he muttered under Sasuke's harsh gaze, "Someone really pretty and sure of herself. She'd rather die than leave you, wouldn't she?" His face broke out into a grin as Sasuke froze, staring at him dumbfounded. "So I'm right! I'm right, aren't I?" Kenta laughed.
Sasuke turned his face away, towards the stretch of sea over which the Bridge had been built - the same stretch of sea he had crossed with Tazuna-san and the rest of Team 7 five years ago. That time seemed so far gone in the past now. To Sasuke it occurred that that mission was the first time he had really felt how much they'd grown together as a team. It made him feel all warm behind his sternum. That feeling had been one of the reasons behind the frequent episodes of doubt and frustration Sasuke had felt during his training under Orochimaru.
"How'd you know?" He asked Kenta in a low voice, eyes still staring out at the sea.
He felt those electric blue eyes study him for a moment. Kenta turned to stare out at the festival crowd. "It's kinda cliché, you know," he said finally, "The cold, troubled guy gets a sweet, considerate girl who wouldn't leave him for the world, even if he's hurt her. And soon the guy realises that he won't find another girl like her and they get married and live happily ever after!" He paused. "More or less."
He turned his head, staring at the side of Sasuke's brooding face.
Cliché, huh. Sasuke wasn't sure how he felt with that. Was he to end up with Sakura just because there was no other option? Just because she had invested all her time and energy to bring him home? Besides, even if they did get married, would he be able to give her a comfortable home and a happy family? Would he even be able to stay in that village long enough to raise a family of his own? Would he be able to give his children a life free of sorrow and anguish, the life he had dreamed of living if not for the Uchiha Clan Massacre?
Sasuke didn't know.
What he made up his mind on, however, was that no child of his would end up like he had, weighed down by grief, guilt and hatred. And he knew that growing up in Konoha, with someone like Sakura like their mother, would serve that purpose wonderfully.
Now only one obstacle remained. Becoming a man worthy of Sakura.
It was the primary purpose of this Journey after all. A chance to change his imperfect ways. Sakura deserved more than a former rogue shinobi who had gone rampaging across the Elemental Nations, killing people and threatening to destroy their villages. She deserved someone who had made peace with the world he'd once tried to destroy, someone who now saw it through a different lens, and sought to protect it with his all.