#i sure hope this survives. i hastily scribbled pants on him it’s fine RIGHT

[lazarised]

practice with jay

[harunoheart]

Oneirophrenia C6

Oneirophrenia C6

———————

Sasuke Uchiha

———————

She fell asleep so peacefully.

I remember when we used to go on missions as Team 7, Naruto would pass out snoring and sprawled out so falling asleep around him was always difficult.

But without the dobe taking over the space everything felt different.

Once her breathing evened out I opened my eyes. The moonlight filtered into the tent just enough to see her outline.

I tilted my head so the hair that was covering my left eye shifted and suddenly she was much brighter.

The Rinnegan, for all its cursed power, has allowed me to see a lot of things more clearly, in the literal sense.

Sakura’s face was suddenly bathed in blue moonlight, her lips gently parted as she drifted off to sleep.

I watched her shoulders rise and fall with each breath and drew my eyes up to her forehead which was now glowing green as I could see her chakra being channeled there. It was a small trickle of movement, just the barest minimum of chakra flowing to her forehead at all times. It was impressive, really. She’s been storing chakra a little bit every single day for years to achieve that reservoir. That control is so second Nature to her now that she can do it in her sleep too.

I watched her sleep for just a moment more before closing my eyes and drifting off myself.

—-

Sakura’s chakra spiked rapidly and quickly. It felt like an electric shock waking me up from a deep sleep. Sakura sat bolted upright and panting for air.

I reached out to try and comfort her but she instinctively slapped my hand away. She quickly pulled her hand back after realizing what she had done and apologized. Her right arm was draped over her stomach, caressing it with her thumb as if to insure that she was still in tact.

“Gomen-ne, Sasuke-Kun. I didn’t mean to wake you.” She reaches into her bag and grabbed her water bottle and a small pill from her bag.

Before she could pop it into her mouth I grabbed her fist with my hand.

“What are you taking,” I asked. I was too tired to beat around the bush.

“Daijoubu, it’s just Melatonin. Good for going to sleep.” I released her wrist and she popped the small pill in her mouth and took a swig of water to wash it down. She tucked her hair behind her ears and took a deep breath.

“Are you ok?”

She looked at me, surprised by the question. “A-ah.. I’m fine,” she smiled softly.

I looked down at her hand still clutching the spot on her abdomen. She realized what I was looking at and released her grip on the spot.

“Misete.”

Her eyes widened for a moment before lifting up her shirt to show a scar that was much bigger than I thought. It was about six inches or so long and was a thick keloid that looked hastily healed. I pulled the hair in front of my rinnegan out of my eyes and got a better look at it in the dark.

It looked aged and settled into her skin. This was a rather old scar.

“There’s one on my back to match,” she said, chuckling to herself and pulling her shirt back down.

She laid back down to go to sleep but I couldn’t stop thinking about what kind of weapon made a scar that deadly, and how she could’ve possible survived the wound. The bleeding alone would’ve been fatal with a gash that size straight through her kidneys.

It seems Sakura has more demons that I realized.

I reached out once more...but her back was facing away from me this time. I let her withdraw and go back to sleep but now I was wide awake and all I could think about was someone putting their sword through her.

I thought about how I made her believe I had put a Chidori through her chest. I wondered if she woke up from nightmares about that too.

—-

She was gone.

I felt her absence before I even opened my eyes. The sunlight pouring into the tent was blinding. Once my eyes adjusted I saw her abandoned pillow, covered with a few pink hairs that caught the light.

I could feel her distant presence nearby, her chakra had a very unique quality to it. Sakura’s chakra control had always been so precise that it ebbed with her breathing.

There was only one problem. Waking up I felt unnecessarily aroused by the thought of her. I furrowed my eyes in annoyance at the inconvenience. Either it will go away on its own or I’ll be have to deal with it.

It’s been more of a problem lately than it ever had before.

I felt dirty, after her nightmare last night. I shouldn’t be thinking about that while she was suffering through ptsd. But this feeling in the pit of my stomach, that worry of protecting her at all costs was the only thing I could think of as I struggled to fall back asleep last night.

Sakura frequented my dreams in ways that haunted me. A different kind of ghost than Itachi’s memories and a little more guilt and regret on my end. I wanted to pull her closer, to protect her.

I reached down and grabbed it, then immediately regretted it.

“Fuck.”

I slammed my head back into my pillow. I hated dealing with this fucking problem. It was hard enough going to the bathroom in the morning.  

I sat up and tried opening the door of the tent. When I got to the mesh screen I could see Sakura stretching at the other end of the campfire. Her face was relaxed and serene, with no signs of the panic she showed last night. Sakura knew that whatever bothered her was just a Dream...And I envy her for that.

“Ohayo Sasuke-kun!” She shouted as she bent at the waist with her hands and feet on the ground. Her hair was brushing the grass as her head hung upside down.

I watched as she changed into a plank position and lowered her body to the ground before she arched her back in an elongated pose.

Meanwhile I was at full attention. Watching her body move was mesmerizing. She was wearing a sports bra and shorts, her muscles moving slow and deliberate as she flowed from one pose into the next. Her abs were flexed and defined. Her legs were strong. Everything about her body looked strong and capable. She is beautiful. And My body ached to bring her closer to me.

In our years as a team I never took the time to look at her enough. I took her for granted as a kid. But now Sakura isn’t that little girl anymore... In more ways than one. As I watched her move and shift with so much confidence and strength I realized that the dobe was right.

I love her.

I felt a strange feeling in my chest, as if I unshackled a weight I didn’t know I was carrying around with me.

I’ve been lying to myself for a long time.

I’ve loved her for a long time.

I just never thought I was worthy of her. And now, looking at the woman she has become, I know that I will never be worthy of her. She never gave up hope for me to be happy.

And I know I never want to break her heart again. Every time I felt like I had to do it, it killed me. Betraying her trust and her faith in me was one of the hardest things to do. Almost killing her was the most selfish thing I’ve ever done and I can’t believe I fell so far.

I was such a stupid kid.

At least that train of thought got rid of my problem. I climbed out of my sleeping bag and put on a black Undershirt and my pants.

Getting used to only having one arm has been interesting. I’ve developed my technique by now but it’s finally starting to feel almost normal...or at least as normal as my life could be.

Bringing Sakura on this trip has been an interesting decision, though not an unplanned one. I just needed the right reason; the right timing. Her optimism was a breath of fresh air from my last travel companions. And without Naruto there was no bickering or posturing to worry about. It felt almost peaceful...

I looked out at her again. She was balancing in a headstand and lowering her legs into a split.

Being this close to her and alone was dangerous, if only for the fact that I feel like my self control is being tested. This is new territory for me, and I’m not sure how I should approach the subject. I half expected her to bring it up first but she seems to be content tiptoeing around it.

“It’s your move, buddy.”

I hate that he’s right.

————

“Alright Sasuke-kun, what’s first?” She asked, skewering the fish she caught for breakfast while I handled the campfire.

“First, we establish an escape route.” I said. She nodded and stuck the last stick next to the flame. “Our main objective is to explore Kaguya’s castle, but to get there we have to enter Kaguya’s core dimension.”

“The one with the mountains.” Sakura chimed in.

I nodded. “The one where she is currently sealed inside of the new moon we created. So there is that to think about.” I poked the fire a few times and turned one of the logs over to get a more even burn. “We will have to start there, before we travel anywhere else. We have to learn as much as possible about the kind of toll it takes on our bodies, on our chakra, and what kind of environment it is and if it’s survivable should we get stuck.”

“That’s where I come in,” she said proudly.  “I also had a few theoretical questions I wanted to look into while we are dimension-hopping. For example, does our geographical location in our dimension affect where we end up in Kaguya’s dimension or if there is only one ‘doorway’ we can enter through.”

Now there’s an interesting thought.

“Every little bit of intel we can get from this will help us. So if you notice something, even if it seems insignificant, tell me. And write it down.”

Sakura pulled out an empty scroll from her backpack and a pen. On the front of it she wrote the kanji for Mountain 山. She opened it up and began to write.

“Here’s what we know so far. The Mountainous dimension is a core dimension. We know that this is the center linking our dimensions with hers, so through here we can access the other doorways. Kaguya can recharge her chakra from the victims of the infinite Tsukiyomi here so it has some properties of transference... the entire dimension is likely to have its own chakra network.” She said, scribbling away. She paused and looked up at me, “How much dimensional travel have you been doing alone?”

“Just once. I landed in the Mountains and lost the use of my sharingan for 24 hours. Luckily I had brought rations with me and waited it out but realistically right now I am not capable of efficiently traveling on my own.”

“Don’t worry Sasuke-kun,” she tapped the diamond on her forehead with the back of the pen, “I’ve got you covered.” She smiled.

“How long does it take you to restore your reserves?” I picked up one of the fish and handed it to her. She took it and then I grabbed one for myself.

Through a mouthful of food she said “about a week, if I’m at zero.” She swallowed and continued, “If I’m channeling the chakra to you and not fighting, it may be less. My base chakra will restore overnight much like yours if my body isn’t damaged and healing.”

“We should try to keep at least one of us in fighting shape at all times. We are no use to each other if we’re both injured. How good is your Kenjutsu?” I nodded towards the sword that was resting by my pack. Sakura looked at it and scrunched her eyebrows together.

“Not great, I’ve been training more with axes lately.”

“I’ll train you.” I said. She looked surprised.

“Really?”

I nodded, “If, for whatever reason, I become unable to use it, you should know how to wield it as well.”

I finished my fish and grabbed my water bottle.

“Let’s get started.”

———————

Sakura Haruno

———————

“Ok now shift all of your weight to your right foot, and twist your hips, dragging your left foot behind your right.”

I shifted my stance the way he instructed and the hilt of the sword naturally fell into my hand. The movement was subtle and quick.

“Now, step back and draw the sword.”

I tried to do it in one fluid motion, but Sasuke’s sword was long. The tip of the blade got stuck at the opening of the sheath and I had to completely readjust my position to get the whole thing out. I sighed in embarrassment over how clumsy I was.

Why can’t I just punch things? That’s so much more straightforward.

We’ve been practicing for about half an hour and that’s just been the basics. At least Sasuke was more patient than Tsunade-shishou...

“Try it again,” He said, “this time stop when you step backwards, don’t draw the blade.”

Shift.

Twist.

Step.

My hand gripped the handle and I froze, like he asked. Sasuke came over to me and looked at my stance.

He adjusted the sheath so it sat lower on my hips instead of my waist and pulled my shoulders back. When I dropped my eyes to watch what he was doing his knuckle lifted my chin back up and straight ahead.

“Don’t take your eyes off your enemy,” he said softly. He pushed my rear foot back a little more and then his hand cupped my waist and pulled me backwards, shifting my weight to my rear foot. I kept my eyes locked onto the tree that was supposed to be my target but all I could focus on was the way his touched lingered.

He circled back around to stand in front of me.

“Draw.”

I pulled the sword smoothly out and watched the tip of the blade slice across Sasuke’s figure, just a hairs breadth away from being cut. I heard the air pushed away by the blade.

Sasuke smirked.

I could feel the smile on my face.

He was so tragically beautiful. Honestly it was unfair. It blows my mind how much he’s changed since he was a kid...but at the same time he was so familiar. Like I had forgotten this part of him still existed. The part of him that could be playful or happy. Even for a moment.

“You look happier, Sasuke-Kun,” I said. He looked taken aback and embarrassed. I laughed.

“No, really. You look...lighter. If that makes sense.” I handed him back his sword and he put it away next to a tree.

“I feel lighter.” He said looking back up at me.

“I’m glad.” I said softly, looking at the wind moving through the trees. The sound of the wind was so nice to hear after having been stuck in a hospital for the past few months. I couldn’t remember the last mission I carried out... was it the Daimiyo’s daughter...?

“What happened?” Sasuke asked, breaking my train of thought.

Shit...I kind of expected him to pretend it didn’t happen. I don’t get nightmares that often but last night I couldn’t help but think of Chiyo baa-sama. My subconscious sort of spiraled from there.

“I’m fine Sasuke, really. It was just a dream.” Or rather, a memory.

“Not last night,” he pointed to my shirt, “How did you survive that scar.” He asked.  

He caught me off guard again.

“I...ah...” I stammered, unsure of where to begin.  “It’s a long story...”

“Who did that to you?” He asked instead. A simpler question.

“Akasuna no Sasori.”

His eyes got wide. He looked back down at my shirt where the scar was hiding.

“That was you?” He asked. “I had heard he was defeated by his grandmother and a young kunoichi...” He asked, visibly processing the information.

I nodded my head as we walked back towards our campsite, picking up a few sticks and logs along the way for more firewood.

“It was an honor, fighting by her side.” I finally said. “She was truly a great ninja.” I smiled, thinking back on how skilled and experienced she was. Watching her fight was a sight to behold and I will never forget it.

“So the puppet master left you with a scar through your kidney?”

“I jumped in front of the blade, actually,” I confessed. Sasuke stopped walking as I said that. I turned around and saw him scowling at me, His fist was clenched at his side.

“You did...what?”He said slowly, through an obviously clenched jaw.

I immediately went on the defensive. “What, are you gonna call me stupid? Reckless? Or tell me I shouldn’t have gotten in the way?” I crossed my arms, kind of irritated at the attitude he was pulling.

He let out a breath and stretched his fingers out, trying to calm down. “No. That wasn’t-“

“I’m a ninja, I have to be prepared to die.”

“You’re a medical ninja, Sakura. If you die who heals everyone else?” He bit back at me. His words echoed with Tsunade’s voice behind them.

She told me the exact same thing when we were training how to dodge enemy attacks.

I turned around and kept walking towards the campground with Sasuke trailing right behind me.

“Sakura. Sakura, wait.” He said, flash stepping to catch up to me. He grabbed my wrist and spun me around to face him.

Our eyes were locked on each other’s, both equally frustrated.

“What.” I spit out. I regretted how bitchy it sounded but I can’t take it back now.

Instead of blowing up at me like I expected, Sasuke took a deep breath and stepped in closer. He looked at me with this deep sadness in his eyes that immediately made my chest want to collapse.

He held my hand tightly in his palm and pulled it to his chest.

“Tell me the whole story.”

—————

So I told him.

Starting with the forming of Kakashi-Han, the bell test... Gaara getting kidnapped, Kankuro getting poisoned, the antidote... everything.

Much to my surprise, Sasuke sat and listened to the whole thing. He asked a few questions here or there that sent me off on another tangent but overall he seemed to be absorbing all of the information I was giving him.

“I knew the blade was poisoned...and I knew that my antidote had worn off. But I wasn’t strong enough to battle him alone so it felt like the only way I could be useful. Provide Chiyo baa-sama with an opening.”

I nibbled at a granola bar as we sat and at lunch by the river.

“I began to heal the wound with the sword still in me... I could at least stop the bleeding that way but I thought the poison would’ve gotten me for sure. I felt it...” I touched my hand to my Ribcage and felt the scar through the fabric. “It was...excruciating. Like slowly being burned alive from the inside. But Chiyo she...she didn’t take the antidote I gave her. She shoved it into my leg and then at least the burning stopped but I still had a sword going through my body and every slight shift of my weight opened a new wound.” I ran my fingers up and down the length of the scar, remembering how much it hurt just to stand.

“She found her opening. Got him right through the last piece of his humanity sticking out of his chest. In the embrace of his mother and father puppets...”

I closed my eyes and could see him whisper to me about the rendezvous at the bridge. About Orochimaru and his spy. I could hear the clicking of his jaw as the chakra faded from the puppet he inhabited.

“You told me how you survived the poison, but how did you survive the sword?”

I smiled up at Sasuke, grateful for his questions. “Reanimation jutsu. Life force for a life. It’s how she saved Gaara too.” I looked down at my hands, “I carry her with me wherever I go.” I closed my hands into fists and put them behind me, leaning backwards with my feet dangling in the water. The sound of the water trickling through the rocks filled the silence for a moment.

“I understand.” He said finally. “I carry by brother with me.”I looked over to him with his fingertips touching his eyelid. “These eyes... “ he paused. It was like he was looking for the right words to speak. He dropped his hand instead and looked out at the water.

“That’s right, I kinda met your brother for the first time right before I fought Sasori.” I said, trying to encourage the conversation. Sasuke looked up at me, a little unsure of where this story was going.

“Did he hurt you?”

“No, he fought Kakashi and Naruto. I stayed out of it for the most part.” I explained, “I remember thinking...you two looked a lot alike, and he was terrifyingly strong...” and I hated him for what he did to you... “but it wasn’t even really him, it was a jutsu where he could take over someone else’s body. A diversion.” I clarified.

“My brother was...rigid.” Sasuke said. He took his cloak off and began to relax his posture. I think he’s given up on trying to explore a dimension today. I felt bad but I was also enjoying the opportunity for conversation. “He was always disciplined... I suppose he had to be with how deep undercover he was.” He picked up a rock and threw it into the river with a ‘plop’.

I hesitated to tell him the truth of what I knew, afraid that he would be mad at me for meddling in his past...but I felt like I had to be honest with him.

“When Naruto left to train with Jiraya I had a lot of time to myself in Konoha,” I said, picking up a rock and throwing it into the river just like he did. It felt really satisfying and helped to ease some of the anxiety I was feeling. “I scoured through as much history and records as I could trying to learn about you....about your family and what happened...” I started picking at the grass as a distraction from how fast my heart was racing. I didn’t dare look up at him. “I found entire bookshelves of redacted scrolls. Sealed with the blood of the Sandaime Hokage. I learned what I could from newspaper articles and the investigative report of the crime scene that called it an open and shut case but...there wouldn’t be that much redacted information for a massacre like that without there being a dark secret behind it.” I finally turned to look at him.

“There are answers. I know where to find them but-“

“I don’t need any more answers, Sakura.” He said gently. “I spent a lifetime mourning their deaths. I want to try to remember how they lived.”

He looked solemnly at the water and took a deep breath, “I’ve been thinking about my mom a lot, actually.”

I turned towards Sasuke, eager to listen.

“What was she like?”

———-

End chapter 6

Thank you so much for reading!

I wanted to explore Sasuke and Sakura’s conversation and communication dynamic more in this chapter especially after the Boruto Episode

Gives me all the feels.

[umbrahighpriestofgiratina]

Truth

A sequel to Green and White, taking place after that and the events of White 2. It involves N and Reshiram being socially akward dorks and jumping to conclusions.

Two figures sat hunched around a campfire, its light casting dappled shadows on them and the surrounding trees. One, a green-haired young man in black and white clothes, was busy scribbling mathematical equations into the dirt. The other, a large, white-feathered dragon, stoked the flames with fiery breath at intervals. Eventually the dragon stopped stoking the flames and sighed. <N? I'm bored.> The young man looked up at her and frowned. "Why, Reshiram? It's wonderful out here. All these wild Pokemon living in sync with their surroundings..." Reshiram looked around sheepishly. <They aren't much for conversation, though. Too busy trying to survive. I'd rather socialize with trained mons... Or humans. And... It's probably better for us if we aren't all alone.> N sighed himself and looked out into the distance. "There's a town nearby... But... Wouldn't they recognise me?" <We're fairly far from Unova. Surely word about you hasn't spread that far.> "Yes, but what about you?" <I can do that whole 'be a human' trick.> N crossed his arms and put a hand to his chin, thinking. "I'm still not sure..." Reshiram reached over and gave him a pat with a wing. <Don't worry. If anything happens I've got your back.> N looked over at her, then back into the distance. "...All right. We'll go in the morning." ---- It was a busy morning in the small town Reshiram and N had chosen to visit. People and Pokemon were moving rapidly between different shops and cafes, as well as taking leisurely strolls to enjoy the scenery. In the midst of it all N and a white-haired, white-clothed human Reshiram attempted to navigate their unfamiliar surroundings. N had switched his normal clothing for a simple grey hoodie, having pulled the hood over his head so only a tuft of green hair was sticking out. He looked around nervously. "There's certainly more people than I expected..." he whispered. "Let's find a quieter spot, then..." Reshiram whispered back. After some deliberation, they entered a cafe with relatively few people and sat down at a table. "This place looks like it serves food..." said Reshiram. "You want anything to eat?" "Do we have any money?" Reshiram felt in her pockets. "I have a bit... Hold on, I'll get something." Reshiram got up and headed to the counter. As she did, however, she overheard two men talking at a nearby table. "Say, you hear the rumors that N nutjob showed up again over in Unova?" "How could I not? It's all over the internet!" "Ahem." The two men turned to see Reshiram standing over them. "Can you two kindly tell me what this Internet is so I can burn it?" One of the men scoffed. "What rock have you been living under?" "A very nice one, thank you," said Reshiram. "But seriously, tell me." "Look, lady," said the other man. "If you're really that ignorant you can-" At this point the conversation had caught N's attention and he approached the table. "Hey! You can't talk to her like that!" "Oh, so hoodie boy's standing up for his lady. Cute. Do you want to fight me or something?" N clenched his fists. Meanwhile the temperature around Reshiram increased by several degrees. "Listen, if you touch a hair on his head I'll-" "Ahem." Everyone turned to see an irate manager leering at them. N and Reshiram quickly noticed the rest of the cafe staring at them as well. "You four. Get out." Everyone quickly obliged. Once outside, the two men turned to exchange choice words with N and Reshiram, but they were already gone. ----------- <OK, that did not work out well. At all.> The two had returned to the forest clearing. N, previously in the process of pacing back and forth, turned to Reshiram. "You shouldn't have confronted those men..." Reshiram scoffed and puffed out a gout of flame in annoyance. <They called you a nutjob! And apparently they got rumors through that internet thing so I had to find out what it was!> "What's more concerning is they've heard rumors about me at all. People are more likely to know who I am, and that'll cause problems for the both of us." <Well if we get in another fight we can probably take 'em.> N gave her an unamused look, then gestured to Reshiram and himself. "You could. I'm not so sure about me." <Well, you could-> Reshiram briefly thought to herself, then shook her head. <Look, I was probably wrong. We're probably better off by ourselves...> N thought to himself for a bit. "...No. You were right." <...I was?> N looked down and brushed the ground with his foot. "Remember what I told that girl? The girl I almost gave you to?" Reshiram thought for a moment. <That you wanted to be the bridge between humans and Pokemon?> "Yes. I still have that goal... And I- we can't achieve it if we're all by ourselves. That's not a formula for changing the world, not in the slightest." He looked out into the distance again. "And... It gives us a better chance of finding him. The Trainer whose ideals helped us find the real truth." Reshiram smiled. <That's the N I know. We'll try again tomorrow.> ------------ The next day, N and a human Reshiram were walking the streets of the town again. The two had just talked to some passerby, the conversation having gone smoother than last time. As they walked away, N whispered to Reshiram. "You said your name was Rachel Burnington?" "Quiet, Natural Harmonia Gropius." N cringed and hastily diverted his gaze. It was then he noticed a bedraggled Swinub hiding behind a lamppost. N slowly approached the Swinub, noticing it was a distinctive green color instead of the usual brown. "Hey little guy!" he said. "What are you doing behind there?" <D-Don't let him get me!> the Swinub replied. "Who?" N then noticed a slim, well-dressed man approaching him and the Swinub. "Oh, thank you, sir! You found my prized Shiny Swinub!" N glared at the man with a fiery intensity. "This Swinub was afraid of you. That tells me something is very wrong." "What are you talking about? I've treated this Swinub perfectly well!" "It's told me otherwise." "...Look, sir, I'm just going to take my Swinub and-" the man started to say, reaching for the cowering Pokemon. Without thinking, N panicked and delivered a powerful punch to the man's jaw. It sent the man sprawling and groaning on the ground and elicited stares and murmurs from passerby. "What kind of jerk is that guy?" "Someone call the police!" N nervously turned to the Swinub. <Thanks mister!> the Swinub said. <Now I don't have to take a bath!> N paled, then quickly bolted. He ran to where Reshiram was, grabbed her hand, and kept running. "N? What's going on?" "No time to explain we gotta get outta here!" They ran past the town borders and didn't look back. ---------- <How could you do that?!> The two were once again in the forest clearing. "That Swinub sounded so scared... I genuinely thought it was in trouble..." Reshiram sighed and placed a wing-claw to her forehead. <Look, last time I messed up, this time you did... Next time we both work together to succeed, OK?> N was silent, not looking at Reshiram. <What's wrong?> "...I don't want you to get hurt." <N, I'll be fine. I'm a Legendary.> "...That's what you said about Kyurem." At N's words Reshiram's mind flashed back to an incident not too long ago. ------ Cold. Cold that suppressed her heat, yet embraced it in its icy grip. Together, they felt more whole than they had in millennia. They were one step closer to being what they once were. And yet... The pain... The bitter, unforgiving cold... The panicked, strange mind that was now one with hers... She tried to scream, but it came out as an anguished, feral roar. Fire and ice spun around her in twin maelstroms. And all the while her mind - their mind - begged in agony for it all to stop. --------- <I... I... L-Look, that was different. What we're doing now is something we can handle.> N sighed, shaking his head. "I failed you then. That's why I almost gave you to the girl that saved you. So I wouldn't fail you again." Reshiram was silent for a while. <...I still believe in you. I still think we can do this.> "...If you believe in me more than I do... Then we'll try." <We can lead normal lives. Third time's the charm, right?> -------- A few days later, N and Reshiram were in another part of the same town, hoping to avoid attention from those that witnessed their earlier escapades. They had entered a restaurant and were waiting on someone to serve them. "So..." said N, "We just tell them what food we want, right?" "I think so," Reshiram replied. She frowned. "Problem is no one's served us yet." N looked around. "...Are people supposed to be giving us funny looks?" "...No." "Maybe we should lea-" It was then they noticed a female police officer had entered the restaurant and was approaching their table. "Excuse me, you two?" "Er, yes?" said Reshiram. "I believe you two are the ones who've been causing trouble around town recently?" N sighed. "Look, that was us. But those were misunderstandings, so if you just give us a cha-" "I've heard enough. You two are coming with me." "Well," said Reshiram. "You can't do that if your pants are on fire." "Wait, wha-" The officer looked down to see her pants were indeed on fire. As she panicked and tried to beat the flames out Reshiram grabbed N and ran until they were well out of sight. ---------- "Why did you do that?!" said N, back at the clearing. <We needed a diversion to escape! It was completely necessary!> Reshiram replied. "I could have reasoned with her!" <Well your 'reasoning' wasn't working!> "Well what else was I supposed to do? Punch her in the face like I did that man?" <You could have tried anything but half-hearted diplomacy with someone out to get us!> "Well you could try something other than force or fire! That's all you ever want to do!" <Face it, N, my force and fire is what gets things done with the two of us! You never do anything significant without me!> At this N truly began to seethe. "Shut your mouth! Shut up shut up shut up!" The two stared at each other in shocked silence. "...Reshiram, I-" <No. I'm going.> She flapped her wings and flew up, then off into the sky. "Fine!" yelled N after her. "I don't need you! I never needed you!" He stormed off into the forest, not looking back. ------ A human Reshiram was wandering a different town far from the last one. She encountered two women and struck up a conversation, which lasted a good while. "Say," said one woman. "Did you come here with anyone?" "Er, no," said Reshiram. "I was traveling with someone but... " "But what?" "We got into a fight." "What about?" said the other woman. "If you don't mind me asking." "He and I had some trouble trying to get to know other people. We had a nasty argument and kinda split up." "Oh, I know how that feels. Kristen here and I get into fights all the time but we always make it up." "...Wait, you do?" "Yeah!" said Kristen. "We get into fights all the time and we're still friends!" "I... See..." said Reshiram. "Well, we've got to go. See you!" They left, leaving Reshiram lost in thought. ---- N was at the edge of a forest, looking out at another town. There's a place I could go... Where I could start bridging the gap between humans and Pokemon... He stepped forward, then stopped. But I have no Pokemon of my own anymore... And... I'm not sure how to deal with so many people on my own anymore... I certainly can't go about it the way I did while with Team Plasma... He sighed. Reshiram would know how to handle this... He stared at.the town a while longer before heading back into the forest. ----------- N was at the forest clearing again when Reshiram flew in. "Hey." <Hey...> "...I'd like to apologize for-" <No, I'm the one who should be apologizing. I provoked you. It was my fault.> The two were silent for a moment. "...Why did you join me?" said N. <...What?> "When I was part of Team Plasma. I was crazy, stupid, naive. Why did you ever side with me?" Reshiram smiled. <I'm the great dragon of truth. I could tell there there was more to you than that. And besides, guess who else was crazy, stupid, and naive back then? And still kinda is?> At this N smiled slightly back. <That's why I stuck with you even when you offered to let that girl take care of me. We're both messed up. That's why we need each other.> N looked off into the distance. "We still need to find that boy, right?" <And get readjusted to society.> "It's going to be a long road... But we'll do it together." Reshiram let N climb on to her back. <That's a truth if I ever heard one.> She flapped her wings and the two flew off into the sky. ***