#like imagine if sakura hates the idea of killing her enemies as the reason for her not being able/not wanting to fight

[yaboirezzy]

Sakura: *covered in blood, shaking, absolutely traumatized*

Naruto: Do you think she's gonna be alright?

Sasuke: It's her first time killing an enemy ninja, beating him to death out of pure instinct-

Naruto:

Sasuke: Of course not, dumbass

(something that should've happened in part 1)

[momowho34]

Time for another naruto au post that so long and complicated it might aswell be a fic in and of itself. Why am I like this :,) Naruto au where Itachi runs away from the village with Sasuke in tow and doesn’t leave him behind. Also Itachi is a little older then a teenager because it makes more sense. Buckle up this is a long one.

Itachi refuses to kill his family and runs to warn them but when he gets there everybody’s dead except for Sasuke, (who witnessed the whole thiNG OOPSY-) so he takes him and runs for their lives.

Itachi joins the akatsuki but uhhhhh now there’s a four year old tagging along and Itachi’s too scary for anybody to mention it.

Imagine the fluff and angst potential with the akatsuki oooooof there’s so much omg

At first they all think it’s super annoying but within like two days they would all gladly die for this kid. Seriously they were pretty sure their hearts were made of stone at this point but apparently not.

Kisame is surprisingly really good with kids, partly because he appears fairly calm on the outside without being too standoffish so Sasuke likes him best. Also Kisame could happily play peek-a-boo for the rest of his life he likes the small things

Kakazu is awful with kids but sasuke likes him anyway and he hates it (not really) Hidan.... really doesn’t know what to do. He’s never cared about another person in his life, okay? He kind of wants to kill the small child but he knows Itachi would steal his fucking knee caps and bury him at the bottom of the ocean so he doesn’t even mention it ever

Sasori is the mom when Itachi isn’t around. They would all feed him candy until he fucking died if Sasori didn’t stop that. Sasori is also the one to go “oh my GOD Deidara you can’t dare him to climb that mountain he could fall and hit his head no I don’t care about that deidaRA HE IS SEVEN YEARS OLD ITACHI IS GOING TO KILL YOU WHEN HE GETS HOME MARK MY WORDS—“

Tobi likes to blame all of his mistakes on Sasuke as a joke. Also they all teach Sasuke bits of their fighting styles so he becomes even more formidable and all of them are kind of freaked out by how quickly he masters their techniques

When he’s too young to tag along on missions he has to stay with Konan and Pain. He really values Konan because she’s really the only one of them who treats him like a person instead of a stupid child that needs protection.

“He costs too much,” Kakazu says. “He shouldn’t be here, what about how much it costs for him to stay with us” all while consistently finding room in the budget to get the kid anything and everything even though he’s fairly low maintenance to take care of

When Itachi arrives, everybody tries to disregard the rumors paired with Sasuke being there. Because of Itachi’s overall demeanor and Sasuke’s refusal to talk about it, they assume that he killed his family but didn’t kill his little brother for some reason

...And then Sasuke starts having nightmares. Like loud, screaming and crying in the middle of the night nightmares. Every time it happens, Itachi wakes up, calm and collected, and holds him until he falls asleep again. They all start having doubts about Itachi really killing his family.

Itachi doesn’t really hold a grudge against Konoha, but he didn’t see the whole family die like Sasuke did. Sasuke wants revenge, and he’s dead set on it.

Okay yeah but what abt the actual plot and stuff??? Don’t worry I’m there.

So a while later after that during Naruto’s three year journey (which he still takes with Jiraiya because he needs training to fight Orochimaru who is still a big threat btw) he meets this weird black haired kid staying at the same hotel he is.

Turns out they’ve both got caretakers who are absent (Jiraiya’s at a brothel somewhere and Kisame and Itachi are off killing some guy) which sucks so they bond over that and compare abilities and beat the shit out of eachother a little and develop a mini rival complex all of that but then

“Wow you’re so cool! You fight just like a ninja! You should come back with me!” Naruto laughs one day. Sasuke asks “Back to where?” And Naruto’s like “back to the leaf village of course! I’m a leaf village ninja, I’m out here training with my sensei! I forgot that I left my headband in the room, I can show it to you.” But Sasuke just gets really pale and runs off and Naruto doesn’t see him for the rest of the trip.

He thought he’d never see him again but then Sasuke gets separated from the Akatsuki members reeeaaaallly far away from their base and Konoha. As he’s trying to figure out what to do, a certain ninja crew happens to be in town. Naruto is like “omfg I know this kid!!!!!!!! Hey Sasuke!!!!! Hey Sasukeeeee!!!!!”

Sasuke is like o-o but then he starts to consider his options. If anybody figures out about his sharingan, he’s straight up fucked. His eyes are gone, he probably gets murdered. Naruto is like “what r u doing here????” And sasuke spins a fairly convincing story

He’s like “oh yeah and I know my way around this place so I can help you out could I maybe seek asylum in your village maybe??? I could be helpful” just so he can head in the general direction of Konoha and hopefully get closer to his base along the way.

So Kakashi begrudgingly agrees and Sasuke tries not to burn alive because he’s in the general proximity of leaf soldiers that he fucking hates and he will not grow attached to any of them at all no siree, not at all, no way!

Sasuke begins to grow close to them, of course. Sai and Sasuke do goth shenanigans and he fights with Naruto and tries to get Sakura to leave him alone (what is up with her why is she being so weird?)

Oh bonus angst: Tobi used to talk in his sleep sometimes, and at some point Sasuke drops “those who break the rules are scum, but those who leave their friends behind are worse then scum” casually and Kakashi almost has a full blown panic attack.

This is when he first realizes something is seriously up with this kid; and his first name sounds... familiar. His suspicions are just suspicions until they run into Orochimaru. Now Orochimaru could just out Sasuke as akatsuki, instead he plays with his feelings a little bit. He keeps saying things like “how does it feel to fight on the same side as your enemies for once?” And “have you forgotten already?” They defeat him without Sasuke revealing his sharingan but the jig is up in Kakashi’s mind.

Kakashi doesn’t quite connect the dots; but he’s almost there. Whoever this kid is, they’re coming back to the village for sure. It’s the safest thing to do. Meanwhile the Akatsuki are freaking out. Itachi is unhinged and almost grieving, they have no idea where Sasuke could be. The team is out in full force; including Tobi

And you know, Obito doesn’t care. He shouldn’t care, nothing matters in this false reality. It just doesn’t. Tobi might have given a shit about Sasuke, but Tobi isn’t real. He’s just a front, Tobi doesn’t exist. So why is he looking so hard for this stupid kid that he shouldn’t give a shit about? Obito convinces himself it’s just a front, it’s just part of Tobi’s act, but it’s not. What’s happening to him? Why is starting to feel things now, so deep into the plan?

Annnnnndddd that’s as far as I got with it lmao. That’s still pretty fucking far tho

[ionlycareaboutteam7-blog]

why do sasunaru shippers hate sasusaku more than naruhina/sakura more than hinata? || aka a sasunaru shipper explaining why sasusaku is better than naruhina in every conceivable way

yeah yeah this isn’t my lane as a sasunaru shipper to comment on ss because it’s not my ship but it IS my lane to comment on sasuke and sakura, 2 of my favourite naruto characters.

this is my first post about naruto or any series in quite awhile, so excuse any possible errors on my part, but i’ve been thinking and i’d like to write out my thoughts on a particular subject. i’m back with a controversial opinion, of course because those are the only ones i’ll ever have

if you ship sasunaru and u viciously hate sakura i suggest going into this post with an open mind because... you aren’t gonna like a lot of what is said here but i suggest reading anyways :-)

during my time in naruto fandom i’ve noticed a trend among sasunaru shippers(and anti ending people in general), sakura is the butt of all of the jokes and especially after the manga ending and gaiden being released people have loved to make jokes about SS’s marriage but hinata never gets the same negative treatment and my thoughts are only

why?

act i: underratus sasusakus

i’m going to get straight to the point and say my opinion. sakura and sasusaku especially are given extremely unfair treatment and exaggerated belittlement among the sasunaru fandom. allow me to explain why

if you love this bitch right here

you should have done enough character analysis to realize these few things about him

1: he was completely deprived of love and any connections from like age 7 up until he met naruto, sakura and kakashi

2: he felt like he had to push everyone he cares about away because he saw it as weak

and 3: underneath all of his trauma he’s kind hearted

so knowing all of these obvious things, why would you say that in moments like these

he is actually trying to shake off someone he doesn’t like at all and only sees as a girl with an annoying crush?

or alternatively, why would you say he’s abusive and she deserves better but then go and ship him with your favourite character? it’s so transparent and it’s obviously just a filler excuse so you don’t have to actually look into the character dynamics and how they work because you don’t want to admit that your least favourite ship actually isnt awful.

Sasuke isn’t the type of person that would have such disregard and apathy towards a person that’s shown him nothing but love throughout the entire series. that goes against his entire character’s philosophy and most of the arguments seem to be pulled out of thin air also

He obviously cares about sakura plain and simple, no mental gymnastic argument in the world can disregard plain canon evidence. if youre so set on the idea that sasuke doesn’t give a shit about sakura, then i’m gonna raise the question: why would you have a character who doesn’t care about one of his teammates that supported him as ur fave? which leads me to my next point

there’s obviously gonna be theeese kind of people:

“of course my precious baby sasuke loves his team, but sakura has a selfish love and she will never deserve him!!!!”

there are SO many anti sakura arguments from sasunaru shippers that are just plain wrong so i’m gonna use this opportunity to crush them all

“sakura only liked sasuke cause he was hot and popular”

after sakura was surprised that the kid guessed she liked sasuke, she was informed he was popular with the girls

so that one panel gets rid of that argument

“sakura doesn’t really love sasuke, she was going to kill him...”

...because she thought it was her ONLY OPTION to save him from himself, she thought he was too far gone and it wasn’t until naruto showed up that she had hope again (which is why sasunaru shippers being as threatened by ss as they are is so dumb and crazy)

personally i don’t like this aspect of ss and heavily prefer the sasunaru dynamic with the whole eternal never giving up on you thing because it scratches my particular shipping itch but it’s foolish to say that sakura doesn’t love sasuke period, she obviously does and she does deeply and she’s one of the closest people to him and always will be

Sasusaku gets tons of unfair hate just because of the long running anti Sakura meme, and it’s always been the scapegoat of the anti naruto ending crowd. But it’s silly to me because it makes sense that if sasuke doesn’t end with naruto, he would end with sakura

aside from naruto, his closest living person is sakura plain and simple. she’s done nothing but love him, maybe not as absolutely and unconditionally as naruto has, and maybe she did falter but it’s more than anyone else in the entire series(besides naruto) has and it’s more than he’s ever got from anyone else (besides naruto lol) so if sasunaru doesn’t happen why on earth would you be upset that the boy who was so deprived of love for his entire life ended up with this girl?

if not naruto, sakura is the best person for sasuke plain and simple because literally who else in the series (besides naruto) put up with all of his baggage for the entirety of the series, + she raised his child when he was MIA and sarada actually grew up to be a diligent and intelligent ninja. i ain’t even mad when people ship SS

sasuke has recognized all of this, too.

and has thanked sakura for all of the love she’s ever provided for him throughout the years, even when he was not himself and hurting her, she always just wanted him to be okay, and he appreciates it. so of course he married sakura, duh.

you cant even be threatened by their eye smex

because sasuke gives naruto bedroom eyes all day long

he gives a shit about sakura okay?!?! sakura gives a shit about him okay?!?! it’s okay to acknowledge that his canon marriage isn’t the devil while still realizing the objective superiority of your otp!!!!!

all of this can be summarized into, for some reason sasusaku threatens the sasunaru fandom and leads them into having bullshit mental gymnastic arguments against it for no real reason when....

the real monster of the series is naruhina.

act ii: naruheinous disgustus

NARUHINA IS THE WORST SHIP TO EVER COME OUT OF ANY SHOUNEN MANGA, OR ANY MANGA EVER EXCEPT MAYBE SOMETHING LIKE VAMPIRE KNIGHT. I said it.

sorry about coming off a little strong there, but i have a lot to say about this matter, and you know i’m for real when i have a lot to say about something that has so very little.

it seems to me like most sasunaru shippers don’t actually care about naruhina and just give it a free pass cuz it’s boring and she’s nice and cute and whatever

but naruhina is so much worse than sasusaku on every imaginable level

so, so much worse

because where sasusaku at least has friendship

naruhina has nothing

at least where sasusaku has care and chemistry

naruhina has a bland empty space

because hinata is a bland and empty character

[due to plot holes and retcon in the last and other filler, i will only be using kishimoto’s material for this post. but hey, since naruhina is canon only the author written material has to be enough, right? right....? please guys he ships our ship he made it canon i swear he planned everything to end with their epic moon(who sasuke) love story]

we get shown this when naruto gets introduced to hinata and his only impression of her is that she’s a weirdo

We get this when Naruto never ever noticed Hinata, while Sasuke was actively trying to cheer Sakura up

naruhina in part 1 has absolutely NO basis at all. it’s absolutely nonexistent from naruto’s side.

unfortunately... it remains that way.

this moment. this fucking moment is when it all started to go downhill. i mean, naruhina was always at the bottom but this is when it becomes apparent that the ship is never going to pick itself back up.

i’m not going to be one of the people who say that after naruto completely ignored her confession that she should just never think about him again and find a new guy, that’s unreasonable.

however,

naruto completely ignored her confession! in fact, i don’t even think he ignored it. i think it just never occured to him that he should even talk to her which is even sadder imo... sasuke, who is apparently the devil to sasuke, at least y’know... thanked her.

after this happened we never saw hinata’s reaction to this, her feelings on why naruto never replied to her, we never even see her doing anything outside of thinking about naruto/talking to naruto period unless it’s a fight in a flashback

it’s almost like hinata is an NPC in the naruverse programmed to react to anything naruto related and nothing else. you can definitely not say this about sakura, she has a defined personality. Hinata doesn’t.

don’t even understand how this

[sending her son to fight alone against an enemy of unknown strength and only telling him to... take care of naruto-kun]

could ever be favoured over this

sakura > hinata

sasusaku > naruhina

sasunaru shippers = dumb for hating on sasusaku and giving naruhina a free pass

[agoddamn]

Just out of curiosity, let’s go through some of these personal skills and how they were localized. Cut because it got long...

不思議な魅力 / Supportive This does actually describe what the ability does, but it’s dry, which is an especially unfortunate choice for the main character. I’d go with Mysterious Charisma or something along those lines. Mystic Charm? Hell, if character length is a problem even just Charismatic has a more special feeling to it than Supportive, which is a quality you look for in a bra moreso than a main character.

ダーティファイト  / Highwayman This is literally just “Dirty Fight[ing]” in katakana, so it’s not like it was confusing. I have no idea why they changed it, given that dirty fighting cleverly both describes the ability itself (it only activates when the enemy can’t attack back) and Ashura’s struggle as a character (he hates himself for being an honorless thug) so...what was gained from changing it to Highwayman, which is just a synonym for his base class?

農地の主 / Forager Descriptive, which is good! My only complaint is that the original title, Farmland Master, implies a lot of competence on her part that Forager doesn’t capture. Nature Master? Living off the Land, if we get creative?

おっちょこちょい / Mischievous Completely different term. The Japanese is Scatterbrain. The deeply confusing thing is that this completely changes the nature of her ability, instead implying that she strips people on purpose. I don’t get...why they did this...

お転婆 / Fearsome Blow Completely different term! The Japanese is Tomboy. I guess we’re not allowed to say she’s a tomboy in America. The Japanese word for tomboy supposedly comes from the Dutch ontembaar, which means spirited/indomitable/untameable. Which actually says a lot about the Japanese perception of the term “tomboy”--it’s not “boyish girl” in the sense that we imagine boyish girls, IE short-haired and pink-hating and sports-loving, but “boyish” in the sense of not being quiet and submissive. Personality over appearance. Anyway, in light of that I can understand not using the literal word tomboy in English but Fearsome Blow is just dry. Doesn’t reflect on her personality at all. Even Ferocious Blow would be better.

爆炎使い / Pyrotechnics What always confused me here is that pyrotechnics almost always refers to decorative explosions. You use pyrotechnics to describe tricks or flashy shows, not actual bombs designed to kill people, which is what Saizou is doing. It’s like saying a flamethrower and a flashlight are interchangeable because they both involve light that you point places. I don’t think 爆炎使い is an existing term; the only results on Google for it are Saizou and a Yu-Gi-Oh card. Literally, it’s something like Explosive Flame Messenger/Carrier. Probably a double meaning on Saizou carrying explosive bombs and being an explosive bomb. Hilariously, FEH completely gave up trying to translate this term (which is also his character title in that game) and just rendered it as Angry Ninja. I’d just translate it as Incendiary, trying to keep the double meaning intact.

小さな声援 / Quiet Strength This one is accurate to Sakura’s personality--which is good--but doesn’t describe the effect and misses out on the fact that all three (!) Hoshido princesses have linked personal skills. Aqua’s is Healing Voice, Hinoka’s is Rallying Cry (localization was actually dead on here), and Sakura’s is Little Cheer/Soft Cheer. They’re all voice-related. Localization lost this theme by changing Aqua’s to Healing Descant (a type of melody) and Sakura’s to Quiet Strength. At the very least, Sakura and Hinoka have reciprocal effects so the names really ought to match. They actually did this excellently with the Nohr sisters (Lily’s Poise/Rose’s Thorn) so it’s a shame the Hoshido sisters lost out.

ぼんやり / Optimist Another totally different term. The Japanese is Absent-minded/Airhead. Like, did they feel bad about calling Setsuna dumb? But still left all her supports about how dumb she is? Even more confusingly, Kisaragi’s personal skill is named almost identically. Nobody would do that on purpose. I admit that this one is tricky to name--neither Airhead nor Optimist suggest getting extra-effective healing, but at least Airhead describes her personality. She’s more implacable than optimistic. I’d try to get creative with this one and go with something like Help From My Friends if space allowed, or just fall back to Airhead/Head in the Clouds if airhead sounds too mean.

悪あがき / Triple Threat Once more, different term. The Japanese is something like wasted effort/struggling in vain. I think the implication is that you’re wasting your energy trying to melee Hinata? This is definitely a weird one. Honestly dunno that I’d have a better suggestion; Triple Threat at least gets across that it procs against three weapon types. Last Stand, perhaps.

軍略伝授 / Perspicacious This is another one of those where the game suddenly whips out obscure vocabulary for no apparent reason. When’s the last time you heard someone use perspicacious outside of an English test? The Japanese is Strategy Instructor (or something like “offering strategic advice”), which is why it buffs other units’ hit rate. I can kinda see the connection to being perceptive, but perspicacious, for all its syllables, fails to describe that Yukimura is instructing other people. Strategize would have done the job perfectly well.

勝利への執念 / In Extremis The Japanese is something like “victory through persistence”. This is a case where I actually like how it communicates the ability--it activates under extreme circumstances, when she’s on the edge--but I question the terminology. Latin is a pretty specific choice in language. What about the soft butch French rebel artist says “yeah, Latin is the right choice here”? 

風の血 / Wind Disciple Another case of losing the theme. Fuuga, Flora, and Rinka, as the scions of their elemental tribes, all have abilities that go [element] Blood, implying they’re the distant descendants of their founding dragons. They got it with Rinka and Flora, but for some reason fucked up Fuuga.

美しき王 / Peacebringer Japanese is Beautiful King, hahaha. I actually like that the English gets the meaning of the ability--and his role in the story--across, but the Japanese implication that Izana is so beautiful that everyone around him forgets how to fight is really goddamn funny.

怪力 / Puissance The one I’ve been complaining about the most! Why French? Why this word? The Japanese is a pretty simple “super strength”. I totally understand the urge to jazz it up, but this just seems like the worst way to do it. It’s not an easily recognizable term and the diction doesn’t match her character at all, localized OR original. I like the idea of rendering it as Atlas to emphasize her role as Elise’s pillar plus a sly reference to the Charles Atlas strongman stuff, but you could go a million different ways here. Just...not puissance.

奇襲任務 / Opportunist Man, I’m so used to Ambush Duty that I had to look up who Opportunist was actually attached to...which I think says a lot about its success as a character descriptor. Opportunist technically jives with the ‘surprise attack’ part of the Japanese, but not remotely Belka’s personality. The ‘duty’ bit is important here because that’s Belka’s role, she does what she’s told. She’s mechanical. Camilla even likens her to a broken doll. Opportunist generally implies more agency, someone actively taking chances. 

青の踊り / Fancy Footwork Azure Dance. I guess Indigo Dance would flow better with Awakening’s localization. I like the dance nod but it’s a shame to miss out on the color wink.

冷血 / Pragmatic Cold-blooded. In this case I understand why it was changed--”cold-blooded” is too close to Flora’s “Ice Blood” (though that didn’t stop them giving Setsuna and Kisaragi literally the same ability?)--and the meaning is mostly intact (pragmatic can just mean simple and efficient, but cold-blooded means cruel). Leon has a couple of other ice-themed symbols in the game, though--his personal weapon, Leon’s Icy Blade, and general references to being cold and heartless. It’s also an ironic contrast to his tome, a tree of life. Cold-blooded fit really well with all that and Pragmatic doesn’t.

ひろい食い / Goody Basket sdfkfghdf the Japanese for this one is like...indiscriminate appetite/open-minded eater/someone who eats stuff they picked up on the floor. Which is why she’s regaining HP, Velour’s just eating random shit she finds. Goody Basket doesn’t remotely capture how funny this is. I’d have called it Five-Second Rule.

乙女心の躍動 / Bibliophile Bibliophile does hint at the effect, but...just looking at a list I honestly thought this was Eponine’s. She’s the one explicitly described as the story-lover. The Japanese is something like Liveliness of a Maiden’s Heart--so it’s Ophelia’s own earnest, girly version of Odin’s Aching Blood. It’s admittedly hard not to have Something Blood on a female character sound kind of lewd or a euphemism for masturbation. What about Pounding Heart?

臆病 / Guarded Bravery Just the opposite meaning here, the Japanese is Timid. Were they afraid of making him look bad?

だまし討ち / Fierce Counter Foul Play! The one that started all this. To copy-paste, the implication is that either male enemies underestimate Foleo’s ferocity because of his feminine appearance or that Foleo is the type of guy who has no compunctions about kicking another guy in the balls (he IS his father’s son), take your pick. Fierce Counter is dry and doesn’t indicate the proc (male enemies) at all.

[kuriquinn]

Penthesilea [11/?]

Cover & Disclaimer

Chapter Summary: History has a tendency to repeat itself; those who don’t learn that lesson are doomed to endure it over and over

Chapter Beta: None beyond my own two eyes and editing software at the moment

戦国時代 

Sasuke doesn’t approach his brother right away, instead seeking advice from Kakashi about what to do. Although the man feels protective of both Uchiha brothers, he can also see the grander picture in a way Sasuke has not yet learned to.

When Sasuke questions the wisdom in suggesting Sakura’s potential cure, especially in the wake of Shisui’s death, Kakashi sighs

“You know you must inform him of this. And respect whatever he wishes, no matter your own reservations.”

A part of Sasuke wishes Kakashi had told him to keep silent though he isn’t sure if it’s for Itachi’s peace of mind or his own.

It’s another day of weighing his options before Sasuke finally broaches the matter. He enters Itachi’s quarters, expecting him to be sitting in quiet, grief-fuelled reflection, only to stumble upon him putting on his armour.

“What are you doing?” he demands as his brother adjusts his cuirass.

“What I should have been doing all these long months,” Itachi replies neutrally. “Leading my people.”

“You’re supposed to be resting. If you push yourself, you could have another fit and—”

“It doesn’t matter,” Itachi interrupts. “This war will never end. We’re all destined to die anyhow.”

“You think Shisui would be happy about you just giving up just because he died?”

Itachi’s eyes flash in irritation. “Have a care, little brother. I won’t tolerate his name used in the manner you intend.”

“Only because you know he’d tell you not to be a coward.”

“I fail to see how giving up my life to protect our people is cowardly. It’s a far better outcome than wasting away in a bed,” Itachi maintains stubbornly, and then sighs. “I’ve allowed myself to put it off too long.”

The hopelessness in his brother’s voice angers him.

“Put what off?” Sasuke demands. “Your death? If that was your end goal why the hell did you let Sakura and I try to save you these past months?” Itachi is silent, and Sasuke stalks forward, furious. He grabs his brother’s armour and pulls it off; it’s a mark of how weak Itachi is that he doesn’t have the strength to stop him. “You’re not just giving up. You’re too important to this damned peace everyone wants so badly. If you’re not there, what’s the point.”

“Sasuke—”

“We might have a cure,” Sasuke cuts him off before he can think of better phrasing. Itachi stills and raises an expectant eyebrow. “Maybe…but it comes at a cost.”

“These things usually do,” his brother replies dryly, but allows Sasuke to lead him back to his bed to sit. As he helps him remove his armour, Sasuke hurriedly explains what Sakura has found and the technique she is proposing. His brother listens with a neutral expression the entire time, betraying none of his thoughts as Sasuke confesses the caveat of the plan working and Sakura’s true identity. 

“I’ve known who she is all along,” Itachi tells him wearily when he finishes. In happier times, there would be amusement in his voice, but now he simply sounds tired. “She is the most competent healer I’ve ever known—more so even than Tsunade-hime, I suspect. Besides,” He manages a wan smile here, “I said it was impossible to forget eyes like that.”

“And you still allowed her to treat you,” Sasuke says, disbelieving.

“I said before that you have immense trust in her if you were to ask her help. If you trust her, I trust her,” his brother says. “There are good men and women on both sides of this war. Why do you think I’ve tried so hard to end it? And that was long before your feelings for a comely woman entered into it.”

Sasuke jerks in surprise, but Itachi waves a hand in dismissal, frowning only at the effort it takes him.

“As unlikely as it is…you forged bonds with these people,” Itachi says. “That’s both admirable and dangerous. And so, I ask you: if you were to put aside these bonds and think of them simple as that, as people. Not a childhood friend, but the leader of one of our enemy clans—not your lover, but the heir to Senju Tsunade herself—would you still trust them?”

“I…”

“The Senju can play a long game, Sasuke. There’s a reason this war has continued so long,” Itachi tells him. “Both sides are unfailingly adept at carrying out strategies that require years to come to fruition. Generations even. The Uchiha…the Senju…it’s all the same.”

“We aren’t the same Uchiha and Senju that started this,” Sasuke points out.

“Aren’t you?” Itachi challenges. “History has a tendency to repeat itself; those who don’t learn that lesson are doomed to endure it over and over.”

“Repeat what?” Sasuke demands.

“Do you remember the stories Mother used to tell you? Of the Peace That Wasn’t?”

“Hashirama betrayed Madara. Mother said it was a woman they both loved.”

“It was Uzumaki Mito.”

Sasuke feels the air leave his lungs.

“A healer,” Itachi continues, eyes boring into Sasuke’s. “The first to awaken the Byakugō no In. She was Madara’s lover but betrothed to Hashirama—and in the end, she chose duty over love and stood by her husband. She even sealed a demon inside herself to help him defeat his former friend.”

“If you’re suggesting…”

“I’m suggesting nothing. I’m simply offering a caution. If we agree to this and it goes badly…this would be their best opportunity to turn the tide of the war,” his brother points out. “To lure the leaders of their enemy away and destroy them, then win the war on their terms. In our absence, ambitious men like Inabi would take over—”

“But Obito—”

“Obito does not possess the patience required to lead and the remnants of our council are aware of this. If the worst were to happen to us both, they would invoke clan law to elect a different leader. You know Inabi has a talent for winning people to his cause—how long do you think it would take him to oust Obito?”

“He’d have to kill him first. Obito wouldn’t go down without a fight.”

“Exactly. And our people would endure war on the home front as well. It would not be long before the Senju emerged victorious, picking the clan off as they saw fit. And perhaps that’s for the best—this war must end—but too many among the Senju forces hate and revile us. Within generations, anyone of Uchiha blood might find themselves reduced to the status of slave, or even banished from our ancestral lands. At worst, they might wipe us out entirely.” Itachi pauses here, allowing his words to sink in. “And so, little brother, I ask again: even knowing all of this, do you trust these people?”

“Yes.” Sasuke is surprised at how quick his response comes to his lips this time.

“Other than Sakura,” Itachi clarifies. “I know you trust her. Even if you didn’t, she’s a true healer; her duty is to her patient, and I suppose I am protected by that. Out of everyone I can think of, her motives are the most trustworthy. But innocents like her can be turned into pawns by others. Do you trust Uzumaki Naruto?”

Sasuke thinks over everything he has ever known about the other man. The image comes back to him of Naruto standing before him, refusing to fight him because he was respecting his grief.

“Yes,” he says finally.

Itachi studies him for a very long while, and with a maddeningly unreadable expression. Then he nods once.

“Very well,” he says at last. “Sakura will perform this healing technique of hers. I will put my fate in her hands—but I cannot in good conscience put our people’s there as well. Not in the current climate. I imagine you have no intention of staying here—”

“Don’t even suggest it,” Sasuke warns.

“—which means we will need insurance. Someone who can extract you if the worst should happen.” Sasuke makes a noise of protest, but Itachi raises his hand. “There is having complete faith and trust in someone, and there is being practical. When you are the leader, you will understand that.”

“If,” Sasuke corrects, narrowing his eyes. “If I were the leader.”

Itachi smiles a little, but it doesn’t reach his eyes.

“This is absurd,” Sasuke tells him. “If you told anyone else in the clan about this, they would stop you.”

“Then we won’t tell someone from within the clan,” Itachi replies. “In fact, there is already someone in your confidence who is loyal to the Uchiha and to the idea of peace. And who, if I’m not mistaken, also has a soft-spot for Sakura-chan.”

Sasuke is the one who is quiet this time. He knows that his brother is referring to Kakashi, and while he can’t argue with anything Itachi has said, he can’t help being wary. He suspects there is another reason Itachi wants their former teacher to go with them; that Sasuke can’t figure it out bothers him more than he would like.

But his task was to get his brother to agree to Sakura’s procedure, and he has succeeded. He will deal with any other difficulties as they come.

戦国時代

Several days later, under the cover of night, Itachi, Sasuke and Kakashi arrive in one of the neutral border villages. It is a tiny hamlet that has never taken sides in the large conflict if only because there are too few villagers and too few beneficial resources.

Naruto’s messenger—a tiny frog summon with an attitude—said they must travel to the farthest hut in the village. In no time the three of them stand a short distance from the homely structure. Sasuke indicates to the others that he will go first, and heads for the entrance.

A slender woman with long dark hair peeks out from the doorway, eyes widening a little at the sight of him. He suspects he is a disconcerting sight, dressed entirely in black and hand on his hips, but she is expecting him. With a nervous smile, she motions for him to come inside. 

Sasuke exchanges last looks with his brother and mentor, a general agreement to be wary. Trust aside, they are all conditioned to await ambush.

The interior of the hut is dimly lit, and that only within the confines of what seems to be a small tent at the back of the room. A clean room for surgery,  Sasuke realises a moment later when Sakura emerges. She is dressed for surgery in a cap and gown, her hair carefully tucked away beneath her gear. Beside the cloth walls, Naruto is speaking quietly with an older man, who resembles the dark-haired woman enough that Sasuke suspects it’s her father. And then, lurking in the shadows—

Sasuke frowns at the third figure in the room. This man is a stranger with hollow cheeks and dark features and dressed casually but his bearing and the scars on his hands betray him as a warrior.

“Who’s this?” Sasuke demands, suspicious.

 “This is Tenzō Yamato,” Sakura replies in a soothing tone. “He’s a distant relative of Tsunade-shishou, and the only person alive who inherited Hashirama-sama’s Mokuton.”

“I don’t care who he is, I care why he’s here,” Sasuke snaps, nerves making him shorter than usual even with her.

“He is here to protect Naruto if something should happen to me,” Sakura says curtly.

“Did I hear someone say ‘protect’?” Naruto speaks up, sounding annoyed at the idea.

“Don’t be childish,” she retorts.

“And what danger does he need to worry about?” Sasuke challenges, narrowing his eyes at his rival. The blue-eyed man returns the gaze with equal wariness, until Sakura steps between the two.

“You’re not the only ones worried about ambush,” she lectures sternly. “It pays to be prepared.” When he continues to frown at her, she adds in a softer, quieter voice, “You can’t fault us for extra measures. I trust you…and I know Kakashi and Itachi to be good men. But on the off-chance someone overheard your plans to come here? Or ours? What we do tonight is not something to be taken lightly.”

Sasuke growls wordlessly in reply, eyes flitting from Naruto to the stranger in the shadows, but then forcibly relaxes. “Fine. Are you sure this location is secure?”

“I’ve known Teuchi and Ayame since I could barely walk,” Naruto interrupts. “They’re trustworthy.”

He and Sasuke regard each other for a further moment, hard-eyed, and then Sasuke nods.

Sasuke returns to the door and waves a hand through, signalling his brother and Kakashi that all is safe. Or as safe as it can be under these circumstances. As she watches them approach the small hut, Sakura’s forehead wrinkles in consternation over something. She turns to Sasuke.

 “You were supposed to bring someone who could be a match for Itachi. There’s very little chance that Kakashi would be.”

Sasuke gives her an unimpressed look. “You know that’s not why he’s here.”

“I can hope, can’t I?” she returns, face falling a little. Obviously, she expects what he intends, but still hopes to be told differently. In some ways, she is still so innocent.

“You’re a stranger risking your life for my brother,” he tells her. “Is it even a question that I might do the same? Of the two of us, his survival is the most important.”

“Don’t say that,” Sakura snaps, a little harsher than usual. Noticing how Naruto and Yamato glance over, she lowers her voice. “His survival isn’t the only one that’s important.”

“You’re in the minority with that belief,” Sasuke replies as his brother enters the tent.

At once, Itachi’s eyes fly toward Naruto, and the two rival clan leaders size one another up. There is a palpable tension in the air;  Sasuke has the sudden mental image of a crow facing a toad, trying to decide whether to eat it or not.

A beat later, Naruto takes a step forward, and bows into a low saikeirei. There are several surprised intakes of breath around the room—even Sasuke is somewhat caught off-guard, as he wasn’t even aware Naruto knew how to be respectful.

“Uchiha-dono,” he says. “I express my heartfelt sorrow for your friend’s passing. Too many good men have been lost to this war, and I’m sorry his end came at the hands of anyone associated with the Senju or the Uzumaki.”

Itachi remains carefully composed, studying the younger man, and then ducks into a stiff eshaku. “You condolences are appreciated.”

“Please know that my clan and I remain committed to peace,” Naruto goes on, straightening to his full height. “Danzō does not speak for us—or the Senju, however much he believes he does.”

“That discussion is too long for today,” Itachi says quietly. “Although it begs the question. Many a man would expect recompense for the danger you throw yourself into tonight. Tell me, Uzumaki Naruto - is your help tonight conditional on a peace treaty?”

 “No,” Naruto says immediately; his tone sounds almost offended. “This is because you’re Sasuke’s family.”

Itachi raises an eyebrow. “What do you care for my brother?”

“When I was a child, he was the only friend I had,” Naruto says in a firm tone, eyes flitting briefly to Sasuke and then returning to Itachi’s face. “Before I met Sakura, before the war caught up with us and forced us to fight each other. I don’t forget the people to whom I’ve formed bonds.”

Sasuke blinks at this, surprised, while Itachi nods, thoughtful.

“Besides,” Naruto continues with a shrug. “Sakura is important to me, and Sasuke is important to her. And you are important to him.”

“That’s a rather loose set of reasoning to help the enemy.”

“Better than some reasons that people go to war,” Naruto shoots back.

In the corner, Kakashi snorts and even corners of Itachi’s mouth twitch.

“Very well,” Sasuke’s brother says. “Then answer me one last question.”

“Fine,” Naruto juts his chin out as if to dare the leader of the Uchiha to find something he has to hide.

“This is a dangerous medical procedure. Even one that your distant ancestor Uzumaki Mito could not manage. Why are you here to help your medic friend carry it out instead of Senju Tsunade? To my knowledge, you are not learned in the art of medical ninjutsu.”

Naruto and Sakura exchange glances then, and something passes between them. The silence conversation is that of long-time friends, and Sasuke instantly resents it. A beat later, the leader of the Uzumaki tilts his head at Yamato, who appears wary, but slowly nods.

“It’s because I have something Tsunade-baachan doesn’t,” Naruto says at last, utterly serious. “And which Mito didn’t have at the time that she tried the technique.”

Itachi considers him for a long moment, frowning as he weighs these words, and then his eyebrows raise incrementally. “Ah. I see. So that’s why the Mokuton wielder is here.”

Naruto startles and Sasuke shoots his brother a confused look. “What are you talking about?”

“Uzumaki Naruto is a jinchūriki,” Itachi declares quietly. “To the same demon that harnessed by Uzumaki Mito, if I’m not mistaken.”

There is a heavy silence in the room.

Naruto doesn’t speak or move beyond a clench of his jaw, neither confirming nor denying it. Sakura bites her lips, eyes flitting worriedly between her friend and her lover, as if she’s unsure who she ought to be more worried about.

Sasuke is stunned.

He has always suspected that there was something about Naruto, something that allowed an otherwise average warrior to withstand Sasuke’s training and talents. Some secret technique that allowed him to heal from wounds that would have killed lesser men.

But he would never have guessed at a legendary beast residing within his rival. He glances to Sakura, understanding in that moment why she could not tell him the truth. 

“It’s amazing that you could keep this a secret from us,” Kakashi remarks, sounding uncharacteristically surprised. “And a dangerous gamble, if anyone found out.”

“Yes,” Itachi agrees. “If he and the demon are one, his power is potentially unlimited. But considering we have never heard of any of your abilities, and you haven’t used them on the battlefield, I assume this balance yet escapes your grasp.”

“Not to mention Sasuke would be dead several times over,” Kakashi points out, earning a glare from the younger Uchiha.

“Not necessarily,” Itachi says, narrowing his eyes at Naruto. “And you know that too, do you not?” His eyes gleam red, Mangekyō Sharingan spinning in a threat. Yamato makes a move toward him, but a tiny gesture from Sakura stops him. “Without having reached the pinnacle of your power, you still appear before me knowing that you could hand me a key to win the war. You are familiar with the stories of Madara I assume? They say he could command untamed demons with his eyes.”

Sakura flinches, but Naruto steps forward.

“You won’t,” he says, though his fists clench like he’s trying to convince himself of this. “You want a peace that lasts, not one that’s built on an illusion. Besides, this has to be fair. You came here tonight even though I’m sure you suspected it was a trap. And you have a lot to lose if your disease is discovered by your people. So I should have a lot to lose too. We have to be equal.”

It’s the most ridiculous, naïve thinking Sasuke has ever heard of. No warrior he has ever faced would voluntarily handicap himself when meeting with the enemy, and yet the Uzumaki leader has done just that.

Then, to his shock, Itachi gives a short chuckle.

“You are a strange man, Uzumaki Naruto,” he says, sounding coolly amused. “You have a very simple view of the world. I would call it innocent, except I suspect you understand better than most that the world and the people in it are not kind. That you have maintained this…hope in the face of adversity is no small feat. And I can see why my brother trusts you.”

This time it is Naruto who appears surprised, glancing over to Sasuke as if to gauge the truth of this.

“We will proceed,” Itachi declares, and turns to Sakura. “I commit my life to your hands. Whatever plan you have, let us carry it out now.”

“I can do this,” Sakura insists to him. “With Naruto’s help and my training, I’ll succeed where Uzumaki Mito did not.”

Itachi studies her face for a moment and then looks to Sasuke.

“That is my sincerest hope,” he says, and Sasuke wonders if he has imagined the undertone in his brother’s words.

つづく

Reviews and constructive criticism are much appreciated! Also, if you are in a supportive mood, I have a ko-fi button at the top of the page, or you can find my tip jar here.

Thanks for your interest in my work!

クリ

Next Chapter

[behindheremeraldeyes]

SasuSaku Fest 2017 Day 4- Sasuke’s Regrets . Title: I Should’ve Killed You . Summary: Sasuke’s rescue mission told from his point of view. They’re trapped in that sinful, life-saving embrace and all he could think of was how he regretted not killing that pink annoyance before. . A/N: Okay, first of all, I HATED THIS THEME! I mean, Sasuke barely has any regrets in his life, right? AHH! How annoying! Well, apart from that, I also have to thank @ tanubhatnagar for sending me a request that actually matched the idea I had. It’s not long and it’s basically all about descriptions, but I’m quite happy with the way it turned out in the end! I literally slept with three manga volumes this night, and I’ve lost count of how many times I kept looking at those beautiful SasuSaku panels XD Thank you, @ tanubhatnagar , I hope you and everyone else enjoy what I did to your idea! Please, leave me a comment with your opinion! Feedback is always important! . . . He knew he shouldn’t have done that.

He knew it, as soon as he laid his eyes on her, that he shouldn’t have done what he did. He shouldn’t have hoped, longed and certainly not struggled so hard to reach that closing opening created by Haruno Sakura’s absurd strength.

He shouldn’t have held her like that.

Blame the heat to which his body was exposed to just moments before, or even the sudden need to use his immature powers, but Uchiha Sasuke had done the one thing he could have never imagined doing during the war. He had his hand resting against the exposed skin of her arm, her body pressed against his chest and he could feel his fingers grazing a rough, wet bruise that he soon realized to be a scald.

Her perfectly pale skin was entirely ripped, as it burned red against his palm. His touch was probably stinging like hell, but in the state she was currently found, the Uchiha doubted she could even feel her arm at all. Whatever had happened to her during the time he was away, he could see her body and easily tell that she had gone through hell, barely coming out alive from it.

Sakura was sweating more than he was, as her pink hair was sticking to her head, only the end of her locks blowing with a passing breeze that hit their bodies. She was clearly defeated and vulnerable, as her entire weight was released on his chest. That girl couldn’t take a single step by herself without him, and the reason behind that was clearly the fact that she had depleted her chakra levels in order to bring him back.

He owed her a lot at that moment, and yet, he regretted being there by her side, holding her up.

That action, he could feel, had changed not only what she thought of his current self, but also exposed a part of him he wished he could have long forgotten already. They were in the middle of a war against a goddess and his revolutionary ideas were still there, knocking on his mind and forcing him to keep going. Itachi’s ideals could not go to waste, therefore he could neither die nor allow himself to have a change of heart because of a pink haired girl, who was all fucked up and who perfectly fitted his half embrace.

The avenger Sasuke could not let the annoying Sakura get in the middle of his mission. He could not let her get so close to his heart, for he knew- oh, and how he knew- that single, pink hired girl was strong enough to make a disaster out of his concealed and objective personality.

But what could he do, right? His body just moved on its own, not caring about the future consequences his actions could bring upon them, only thinking about doing something to protect that fragile, beautiful and strong warrior that was about to fall back.

She was going to hit her head, and that was definitely going to hurt. Someway, he had spared her from a concussion, and yet, he just knew that had been the wrong choice.

He should’ve let her fall flat on that stony floor and not held her close. He should’ve offered her another one of his risky words and not established such an intimate eye contact.

He should’ve killed her when he had the chance. When he had his fingers around her neck, compressing her carotid and a kunai in hands. He should’ve killed her, but he didn’t and at that very moment, the Uchiha was aware that allowing her to live was his biggest regret.

And it was all because of their eyes, he knew. Just like back then, they were the ones to be blamed, in the end.

Those stupid, stunning emeralds he couldn’t keep himself from drowning into.

Fuck those eyes.

By the way their gaze connected, the raven haired boy knew that getting lost in those deep, exhausted emeralds of hers had been the wrong choice, especially when his bloody heritage was activated. Through his red orb, he could see and record all the details and all the changes that were now decorating that girl's- woman’s face.

Her cheeks were bonier, her eyes deeper and her lips fuller, making him gulp unconsciously. She looked absurdly weak and useless without those lines spread around her body, and that scent of iron and dirt was invading his nostrils, proving him that even Haruno Sakura could, indeed, bleed.

She could bleed and fight, and she could certainly bring him back from wherever the hell he had been sent to. She could charge a full attack against Madara in order to create a diversion, and she could heal her broken self until she seemed to be fixed. He could see and read her through his bloody eyes, and even if that was probably his last chance of ridding himself from another regret, Sasuke knew he wasn’t strong enough for that.

Not while looking at her hurt form. Not while supporting her from falling and not when she had done it all for him.

Damn you, Haruno Sakura, he thought, as his own eyes sent hers a silent and deep ‘thank you’. Those unsaid words had been the death of him, but by that time, the shit had already hit the fan. He was trapped in that trance of recording every single detail of her green irises, as he also scanned her brave and perfect body. At that moment, not even if he wanted, Sasuke wouldn't be able to say anything.

Fuck, she was beautiful. Even more than when they were kids, and even more than when she tried to kill him. For the first time since he first joined the battlefield, the Uchiha had completely forgotten about the enemy, as he just wanted to hold onto that moment, as he observed her in such pure and raw state.

But it was not like he had time to waste on her like that, right?

His eyes followed the salty, sweat droplets that originated from her skin pores and watched them sliding down, brushing her dirty skin. For her head was resting against his shoulder, he had complete visual access to her hidden skin, and apart from the small scratches spread all around, there was that one bruise on her sweaty neck that-

“ …How?”

A hoarse voice broke him from his thoughts, making him protectively bring her body closer to his. She was still looking at him, trying her best to force her abdominal muscles to breath, and he soon realized his heart was beating a lot faster than he would’ve expected it to beat at such times.  At first, he didn’t break eye contact- another regret, for sure- as he tried to build enough strength to articulate an answer. He released a sigh he didn’t know was trapped inside his chest, and he could feel her muscles relaxing against him as soon as they broke their deep connection.

With those eyes closed, at last, he could return to being himself.

“ It’s one of my abilities. I can shift myself between spaces… Though only over a finite distance.” He looked down at her once again, secretly disappointed not to have her eyes on him anymore. He took a deep breath before allowing his right eye to turn the darkest shade of black. “ But thanks to you, I made it.”

The other Uchiha allowed his head to fall, with an amused smirk decorating his face as he tried his best to recover himself. Obito would still have to transport them home, so he consider it a good idea to take some minutes so he could rebuild some strength. The three of them spent some good minutes still, not being able to move a single muscle. That dimension created a calm and serene atmosphere that helped them forget a little about the war going on back where Naruto and Kakashi were.

It was peaceful and silent, and hell, they could all stay there forever.

But their responsibilities kicked in, and as always, the pink haired girl was the first to answer to that call.

As soon as they heard the flat sound of Obito’s body crashing against the floor, he felt her body shifting under his touch, and he soon realized she was trying to create a distance between them. She was going to check on the man that was clearly as exhausted as she was, clearly not caring about her own situation. Sakura tried to move, but as expected of her very first attempt on doing so, she failed and fell back to her previous spot.

“ Don’t.”

“W-We need to… I need to-“

“ Rest a bit more. He’ll wake up soon.”

“ But Sasuke-kun, we need him to get you back to where the others are. I need to see if he’s okay and-“

“ I said rest. You’ve done more than enough for us now.”He tch-ed.” Damn it, since when have you become so stubborn, Sakura?”

At his words, the girl could feel her body finally weighting down and her bruises finally starting to bring pain all over her body. Her arm hurt like hell, and soon she realized her consciousness was drifting away.

Soon, she would be just like Obito. She would succumb to her body’s needs, but unlike him, Sakura knew he would be there to hold her. Even if she wasn’t supposed to trust that, and even if she wasn’t supposed to fully trust him, the pinkette knew, by the way they had exchanged glances, that he wouldn’t let her fall.

And with a shy smile paying on her lips, her eyelids finally closed, as she muttered an almost inaudible 'thank you’ before collapsing. At that moment, the Uchiha held her even more carefully, slowly shifting her body so they could both reach the floor safely. Sasuke realized himself he was also exhausted, and taking some moments to let his strength get back wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Once again, he was taking care of the girl he was supposed to have killed, as he was now sitting on the floor, with her body brought close to his chest. Her pink hair was falling over his exposed chest, as her eyes were completely shut. Her chest was rising and falling along with his, and as he brought his fingers to brush a faint dirt from her cheeks, the Uchiha was aware of how screwed he was. After that moment, his plan would no longer be the same, and if he were to be honest, he couldn’t care less about that at such time.

Another regret was born in his heart, and once again, it was all her fault.

He should’ve definitely killed her when he had the chance because if he had, he probably wouldn’t be falling for her all over again.

Had Uchiha Sasuke killed Haruno Sakura, his regrets as an avenger wouldn’t be so peaceful.

“ Tch, how annoying.”

[secretkidcolor]

Ghosts by the Dock

"And even if you're not here to stay, I'm happy the universe allowed your soul to stop by." Set right after the events of Conquest.

There was a strange feeling of emptiness that came with the end of the war. A feeling that made everyone in Nohr's royal army collectively say, "What do we do now?" The war against Hoshido had consumed their entire lives. It had been all they could really think about each day, and all of a sudden it was now gone. That had been the point though, hadn't it? To put an end to the fighting that seemed to last forever? A new era of peace could begin in the ashes of a tremendous loss, something they had been promised would be worth it. Sure, the safety of the future generations was something they desired, but what good what it do them in the present? They were soldiers. Without a war, they had no purpose, and nobody felt like they were without a purpose more than the youngest prince of Nohr.

Leo stood in the desecrated throne room in Hoshido's capital. The puddle of muck that was once King Garon, his father (not that Leo had ever truly been able to think of him as one), festered in front of the throne of the Dawn Dragon. People were scattered around the room, tending to their rooms and comforting one another. The struggle of fighting King Garon and then the surprise attack from the fallen Prince Takumi had taken its toll on even the strongest of their soldiers. Miraculously, they hadn't lost anyone in the battle. The hadn't lost anyone in the final battle, but they had definitely lost someone before. Azura. Leo's wife, although the marriage was painfully short. It had been a spur of the moment decision. After the death of his retainer Odin, Leo had determined that survival wasn't going to be guaranteed, and that he'd rather die without regrets than continue to live with them.

Azura hadn't died in a previous battle like Odin, or Charlotte, or Benny, or the countless others. Leo had seen their deaths with his own eyes, horrendous wounds from Hoshidan soldiers. The thoughts of their lives being snuffed out made it hard for him to sympathize with the remaining members of Hoshidan's royalty. Perhaps Princess Sakura could be afforded his feelings, since she reminded him of Elise, but Princess-Soon-To-Be-Queen Hinoka could choke as far as he was considered. She had killed Odin herself, and Leo would never forgive her for that.

No, Azura had technically died after the battle against the fallen form of Takumi, but Leo suspected she had started to die before that. He heard the pain in her voice as she sang to keep Takumi's spirit contained, and then he watched her dissolve in his arms, begging to see Corrin one last time. Leo hadn't cried at his wife's passing, but he had cried at the idea that she wanted to see his brother over him. Their marriage had been rushed, sure, but there were true feelings behind it, at least Leo had hoped. Now it just seemed to be an act of courtesy. He was the first person to ask and she didn't want to hurt his feelings. What a fool he was to believe that somebody could that way about him...

"Father!" A voice called out, snapping Leo out of his self-loathing stupor. Forrest ran up to him, his sky blue curls bouncing underneath his hat. "Shigure and I are going to go out and see if there are any civilians who were caught in the fighting and need healing. Will you be alright here?"

A father was the last thing Leo had expected to become during the war. Much like most of the marriages in the army, the children had been for convenience. Another decision based on life being too short, and being reminded of their own mortality at the sight of death. If Leo's memory served correctly, it had been seeing the girl from Cheve executed that had caused the first child to be born. A couple that had lost themselves in nights of passion had come up with the idea to use the Deeprealms to wait out pregnancy and pass off childcare before returning to war. Leo had deep reservations about using inter-dimensional pockets as day-cares, but as usual nobody listened to him.

Soon enough, everyone seemed to be having babies, even Elise, which deeply concerned Leo and his older brother Xander (Corrin remained obliviously happy to see a new child be brought back, of course). Elise's husband was her own retainer, and he adored her, but their age difference was the topic of more discussions than Leo would have liked. At least when he ended up with two children, people weren't as eager to talk about that. Leo kept most of the details of those nights to himself and Azura, who he was sure immediately spilled all of them to Corrin, who then likely circulated them around the army a couple of times. It was embarrassing, but he was inexperienced. They all were, and yet nobody wanted to be the voice of reason to stop any of them. Life was too short, children were made, and as a result some of the children died. At least Leo had survived the war with both of his sons in one piece. The same couldn't be said for everyone.

"Of course I'll be alright," came the automatic response that Leo was used to saying when people expressed concern for him. "Don't worry about me. Just please be careful, okay?" Forrest gave a nod and ran back to his brother. Shigure caught his father's eye, before turning shyly away from him, which furthered Leo's feelings of guilt. Of his two sons, it was clear who he was closer with. Forrest had seemed so vulnerable as a child, and Leo wanted to give him constant protection. Meanwhile, Shigure was just like his mother and didn't seem to need anyone. Leo couldn't help not being able to relate to him like he could relate to Forrest.

There was something else too of course. Stray thoughts that Leo refused to validate. Seeing Shigure atop his pegasus, his Falcon Knight armor glinting in the light as he skewered enemy soldiers left and right, reminded him too much of seeing one of his retainers run through by another Falcon Knight. Azura had shamelessly brought Shigure up to honor his Hoshidan roots, and everything from his mount to his clothing oozed with the foreign style. The others thought it was refreshing, and for some they found it easier to accept the enemy as human beings who still deserved honor on the battlefield. Leo couldn't bring himself to do the same. Hoshido had taken away one of his only friends. It had taken his wife. It had almost taken the rest of his family.

As he always did, Leo just directed the feelings toward hating himself. What sort of father loathed his own son for his heritage? He didn't hate Shigure, but he found himself being more tense when he was around. He couldn't relax. He was afraid. Leo, Prince of Nohr, strategic genius, and an object of his retainer's worship (how sad it felt to only be able to refer to one retainer instead of the usual two), was afraid of his own son. Leo was a coward.

"Prince Leo," said another voice, and Leo was once again dragged back into reality. It was Niles, with his doting mannerisms that instantly started to make Leo feel somewhat better.

"Niles, I'm glad you're safe," Leo said earnestly. "We have a lot of work to do and I'd like to start with-"

"Forgive me, Prince Leo," Niles interrupted, "but I'm needed elsewhere. Corrin would like me to stay with him, Nina, and Kana. I hope you understand."

"Yes, go with him," Leo said, his gaze drifting over to his brother and his two adopted children. If Leo could choose to blame anyone other than himself for the tragedies that had struck them, it would be Corrin. Barely his brother anymore, it had been Corrin who blindly trusted everyone and led them into so many traps. It had been Corrin who favored his own sense of strategy over that of Leo and Xander's, which subsequently got people killed. It was Corrin who had taken Niles away from his liege and took up all of his time. And perhaps worst of all, it was Corrin's name that Azura had called out as she died. After worrying so much about which side Corrin would take in the war, Leo wasn't convinced he was better off than if Corrin had sided with Hoshido. It was clear that neither kingdom was the top of Corrin's priorities.

"Leo, I'm so sorry about Azura," Corrin had said after Leo had witnessed her death.

"She wanted you there," Leo had replied, his tone deadly. "She did this so that you would live."

"I know," Corrin hastily, "but I can't imagine how she could possibly make such a sacrifice for me." It was his usual way of defusing a situation by not taking a clear stance. Favor both sides and hope to reach a compromise. It had been unimpressive when they were younger, and now it just made Leo sick.

"How could you not know?!" Leo snapped. "You were the only one that ever seemed to understand her! You don't know why she died for you?!"

"Leo, hold," Xander has said in an attempt to intervene. "I know you're upset, we all are."

"It's so sad when family is separated," Camilla added with a breathy whimper. Elise sniffled by her side. "But blaming Corrin isn't going to solve anything."

It was clear, then and there, that blaming Corrin wasn't going to solve anything because nobody in their right mind would ever blame him. He had ruined all of their lives with his choices, but because they volunteered they didn't hold anything against him. Such a fierce loyalty for family, that only seemed to apply to certain members of it. Leo had choked down his emotions in that moment and said no more, leaving Corrin to continue to spew more nonsense about compromises and peace. Camilla and Elise quickly ran after him to offer their support, leaving only Xander to linger with Leo.

"Corrin doesn't understand how the world works," Xander said. "He was imprisoned his entire life. His history is a lie. He's just as lost now as he was when this all started. You can't blame him-" Leo turned to look his brother in the eye, making Xander rethink his words. "You can blame him...but it won't do you any good. He's our brother, and we need him just as much as he needs us. Azura made her choice. I'm sorry it wasn't the choice you wanted her to make." With that, he left Leo to go finish off the last of the enemy soldiers.

Leo had always felt lonely, even surrounded by overbearing siblings, but he had never felt such an hollow pang of being alone than he did as he stood in the center of the throne room. He stood alone, watching families grieve and comfort one another. His sons had run off to do their civic duties, his wife was dead, his retainers were gone, and his siblings were busy with their spouses and children. Nobody would notice if Leo had just slipped away, and as a result nobody noticed when he did. Leo hated the concept of running away, but that's what he was doing now. He ran out to the look next to Hoshido's castle, where a small dock jutted out into the water. It was unsafe to just leave without a guard, anybody could be lurking at the water's edge, but Leo wasn't exactly in the mood for self-preservation.

He sat on the dock, not wishing to remove his boots and get his feet wet. The full moon was directly overhead, casting a ghostly reflection onto the mostly calm water. Dragonflies darted around the water and small groups of fireflies twinkled in the reeds. Such insects didn't live in Nohr, and when they had first arrived in Hoshido Leo had been fascinated by them. He was curious about what made them glow and move so fast. If he had time, he might like to study them and see what new magic he might be able to create from the inspiration. Such pastimes would have to come after the restoration of Nohr and whatever fate was in store for Hoshido. If Leo was correct, and he usually was, Corrin would give everyone in Hoshido a full pardon and have a treaty be signed between the two kingdoms that prevented them from going to war. The treaty would be honored at least until Corrin passed away, and every other current member of the royal families was dead. Then war would likely begin again. Such was fate.

Leo had come up with his own ideas for what should happen to Hoshido. He felt that if Hoshido would not become a part of Nohr, that Nohr should at least rule over Hoshido. Taxes would be paid to the Nohrian royalty, but they would be fair. Hoshido had an abundance of resources, and Leo felt that they were too stingy with their neighbors. The constant turmoil, and subsequent need to conquer, in Nohr was caused by the country not being able to support its growing population. If the two would share resources, for Nohr boasted minerals and plants that Hoshido did not have, then the conflicts would stop. That was how you made peace, in Leo's mind. Not whatever Corrin was trying to do, which wouldn't solve anything. Alas, the secret prince had been very gung-ho about his own ideas, and Leo didn't stand a chance of getting his ideas heard until council meetings were held in the following months.

His own future was something that he had been thinking more and more, now that all conventional ideas had been completely shattered. He'd have to find a new retainer...but could anyone really replace Odin? After his death, Leo had sought out his daughter Ophelia and offered to teach her magic that her father loved so she could feel closer to him. She was talented, and her mother was a villager who had nothing, so Leo could pull some strings to improve their situation. That was assuming Odin's two best friends, his siblings' retainers as well, ever let her leave their sight. If he could make that happen, she would be great for carrying on her father's legacy. Of course now that he thought about it, he might have to replace his other retainer as well, given how possessive Corrin was of Niles.

Even if his retainer situation was figured out, what was next for Leo? Unless Xander by some chance died, he was to remain a prince. Perhaps he could continue his studies and invent new spells. Or maybe he could take a long vacation. Maybe he would find a new wife. That idea didn't exactly make him feel good, but he couldn't very well resign himself to being alone forever. His marriage, which had been expected to last his whole life, had been crammed into a span of time that didn't even reach a year. If there hadn't been a war and the marriage had ended by a means other than death, he would be ridiculed for how short it had been. He had loved Azura, but it hadn't been enough time to fall truly in love with her. And clearly it hadn't been enough time for her to fall in love with him, either.

The hair on the back of Leo's neck began to stand on end, an indication that someone was behind him. "What do you want?" Leo asked, not turning to look at whoever was behind him. When he got no response, he turned around and immediately wished he could turn back around. There on the dock was a spectral version of his deceased wife, Azura. Leo shot up to his feet, his first curled to prepare a spell. He lacked any tomes, but a blast of unfocused magic would still be powerful coming from him.

"What is this?!" Leo shouted. "An apparition? Some sick joke? Answer me!" An orb of magic began to form in his grip.

"It's just me Prince Leo," Azura said, and Leo felt his power fading. The orb subsided and he stared at the spectral Azura. "I wanted to speak to you. To answer you questions and ease your thoughts. Your mind has been dark lately, Prince Leo."

"You can't even refer to me without my title," Leo said bitterly. "Is it true what I'm thinking? Did you ever love me?!"

"No. I'm sorry." Leo stared at Azura, whose expression remained unchanging. She took a step forward. "But be honest, Prince Leo, did you ever really love me?"

"I thought I did," Leo replied. "I thought what I felt was enough. I thought it was what love was supposed to feel like. It wasn't anything magical, or overpowering like it's described in books, but I think what I was feeling was right. We had children together, Azura."

"You're not being fair to Shigure," Azura said.

"Don't tell me how to treat my son," Leo hissed. "You can't even be there. You're dead. You died to stop Prince Takumi. You died to save Corrin."

"I did it to save you as well," Azura remarked, coming to stand closer to Leo. Leo just scoffed. "We could go back and forth about our love, or lack of it, but I don't have much time. I am here to set you free."

"Set me free how?" Leo asked suspiciously.

"Set you free from your feelings of obligation," Azura explained. "You did not really love me, and I never loved you. I'm sorry we ended up married and with children when there was truly nothing between us. I cannot undo that, and I don't think that I would want to after seeing what wonderful children we had. All I can do is let you know that I never loved you in any way."

"You're really taking some liberties with this whole dead-wife-comes-back-to-speak-to-her-still-alive-husband bit aren't you?" Leo said sarcastically.

"Prince Leo, you're free to move on," Azura sighed. "You can find a new wife, have new children. You can return to your duties as Prince of Nohr with no obligations to me as your wife. You need not even write of me in the royal records. It can be as though I never existed. A fresh start. I am doing this for you because I believe you deserve better-"

"If you really thought that you'd never have married me in the first place!" Leo shouted. "Try as much as you'd like, but you can't just erase your own existence. There are two living, breathing pieces of evidence that you were here and that we had something. Or at least I thought we did. What, do you want me to disown them and pretend they never exist either?"

"Is that what you want?" Azura asked. "I know how you feel about Shigure, and how you used to feel about Forrest."

"I've grown to accept Forrest for who his is and that was done with no help from you," Leo reminded her. "As for Shigure, I'll be damned if I let your choices in raising him prevent me from one day being able to look him in the eye."

"So be it then," Azura said. "If that's how you feel, then you've already started moving on. Goodbye Leo. Give my best to Corrin." She turned and Leo felt something snap.

"Don't you dare fade away from me again without me finishing," he roared. Azura turned back to face him. "I know you only love him, and that's why he was the only person you wanted to see as you died. Everyone knew that, and I didn't say a word because of what I thought was love. And now you've let yourself die and left me with two children. You should have married him instead."

"Yes, perhaps if I had been faster then things would have ended differently and you wouldn't have felt so much anguish," Azura admitted. "Once he married Niles, I thought I would be happy enough being the bride to one of his brothers, and that we could share a sibling bond instead. It would appear I was mistaken, or perhaps I had just had the misfortune of falling in with the wrong brother. No offense."

Leo almost couldn't believe what he was hearing, but he was also talking to the ghost of his dead wife so nothing was off the table at this point. "You married me...to get closer to Corrin?" He whispered.

"It is a choice that has brought me great shame," Azura began, but Leo cut her off.

"Go," Leo said.

"Please do not take out your anger on Corrin," Azura begged.

"I won't touch your precious Corrin," Leo promised. "I see now that you both deserved one another. You're both too careless with the feelings and lives of others to be good enough for anyone else. I would thank you if I had any ounce of respect left for you, because for the first time in my life I know that I'm not the worst person in the world, or the one who is at fault for everything wrong."

"Do you feel free?" Azura asked, reaching out a hand, with Leo backed away from.

"Yes," Leo remarked, "because now I know that if things had played out differently, I'd be spending my whole life with a woman who wanted to use me as a pawn to be with my brother."

"Your wording is harsh," Azura sighed, "but I suppose my actions were as well. Does this not upset you?"

"Oh I'm mad as hell," Leo said with a chuckle, "but I find solace knowing that for all that you've done and tried to do, you still didn't get what you wanted. You brought me two great kids in your attempt to get Corrin and even in your final moments, he wasn't there for you. He's got a husband who adores him and two children that worship him. And what did you get? You're dead." Azura stared at him, pain in her eyes, but Leo relished the sight.

"I will leave you then," Azura said, her voice strained. "May you find the happiness you seek."

"I'm not done yet," Leo said, taking a step closer to Azura. "You're dead, and as you've already given me permission, I'll see to it that nobody remembers who you really were. I'll keep you in my family's records, as my first wife. You wished to be Corrin's and in doing so you decided to mess with the wrong Prince of Nohr."

"This darkness you're allowing yourself to feel," Azura said, tears beginning to form in her eyes, "it will consume you, Leo. You must forgive me!"

"I'm done with forgiving everyone who's done me wrong and then blaming myself for their hurtful actions," Leo declared. "The only person I need to forgive is myself, for almost ending up as your cuckold." Tears swiftly fell down Azura's face, and her spectral form began to cry. "You can leave now. And even if you're not here to stay, I'm happy the universe allowed your soul to stop by. You've been able to set me free." And just like that, Leo blinked and she was gone.

For some time after, Leo wasn't sure whether or not he had truly met with the spirit of Azura. Maybe, in his agony, he had hallucinated or dreamt the entire thing. Nobody else had been there that night, and Leo didn't dare say a thing. The last thing he wanted was to spread rumors about what Azura had told him only for them to have just been the product of his own imagination. So Azura's memory was maintained as shrouded in mystery like it always had been. Leo had chosen not to give into whatever darkness that lurked in his heart, but felt satisfied with the threats he given spectral Azura.

Nothing seemed to change from that day on, except for Leo's demeanor. He had ditched the inferiority complex to the best of his ability, and sought out to repair his relationship with Shigure. Shigure had helped him appreciate Hoshido's culture, something Forrest was eager to learn about as well. He never forgave Hinoka for killing one of his best friends, but he was surprised to find himself spending more and more time with Princess Sakura. Leo ended up taking Ophelia on as his second retainer, and his fears that Niles would leave his service never became a reality. After many years, Leo found himself confronting Corrin in a manner similar to confronting Azura, but unlike with Azura he found Corrin to be accepting of his mistakes. A genuine apology was given, as time had taught Corrin how much he had to learn about the real world. Their relationship was no longer the happy-go-lucky sort that Corrin had hoped for, but Leo had built up some sort of respect for his older brother as a result. Now, Leo could look forward to what the future would bring. Yes, there was the fact that one day he'd be reunited with Azura in death, but he had the rest of his life to figure out whether or not he was going to truly forgive her.

[naruto-oc-critiques]

Review under cut.

NAME : Tsuneo (it means ‘eternal hero’ but I chose it because it sounded good) Izumi (‘spring of water’)

C: I’ve only ever seen Izumi used as a first name, but Mod Syn has said that it’s fine as a surname too. It may be worth considering any possible confusion between Tsuneo and Izumi Uchiha, though as she’s a minor character it’s not that important.

GENDER : Male

AGE : 24 at the beginning of Shippūden

TIME SET IN : From Third Shinobi War (birth) to Shippūden mainly

BIRTHPLACE : Konohagakure

LIVES IN : Konohagakure

APPEARANCE : • Tsuneo is 1m70 and weighs 70kg. He has black hair that reach his shoulders when they aren’t tied in a tight bun and his eyes are brown. He got tattooed three black dots under his right eye when he was 19.

C: Thank you for the pictures you sent in. Is there some kind of significance behind this tattoo? It seems a rather unusual thing to choose. A more detailed description of Tsuneo’s appearance would also be useful, including things such as build, skin tone and posture.

• When he was a genin, he used to wear a sleeveless dark green hoodie with a Konoha symbol stitched on the front. He also wore a black undershirt, long gray pants and classic shinobi shoes, with the same bandage wrapping around his left thigh (for the shuriken holster) and ankles. He had a pouch filled with stuff (ninja wire, kunai, etc.) on his waist. He wore his hitai-ate around his head, like most other young ninjas. He had really short hair at that time.

C: This sounds practical. I’m curious as to why he chose to have the Konoha symbol on his hoodie though, as I can’t think of any characters in canon who have the Konoha symbol on anything other than their hitai-ate.

• When he’s an adult, he wears the standard Konoha uniform (flak jacket, long-sleeved black shirt and dark blue pants, along with bandage wrapping around his left thigh for his shuriken holster) with dark gray shinobi boots and bandages around his wrists. He has two pouches filled with various stuff (kunai, explosive tags, etc.), one on each side of his waist. He wears his hitai-ate around the neck.

C: This outfit is fine too, though wouldn’t really make him identifiable through his clothing alone, which is fine if you are aiming for him to fit in with the general ninja population rather than stand out. Is there any particular reason behind him changing where he wears his hitai-ate?

FAMILY : Satoru Izumi (father, chunin) Machiko Izumi (mother, special jounin) Unnamed twin sister (still born)

C: Details about his family and his relationship with them would be useful. I know you’ve mentioned a bit about his father later down, but I don’t have any kind of feel for what kind of people his parents are, or if he gets on with his mother. As far as I am aware, still born children still usually have a name, so I would advise giving his twin one. I can imagine his stillborn sister having in impact on both him and his parents too, which would be good to go into some detail over.

OCCUPATION : Konoha Cryptanalysis Team, Code Breaking Team

C: It’s nice to see an OC in the cryptanalysis team. I don’t think that I’ve seen one before.

RANK : tokubetsu-jounin with jounin-level genjutsu

C: Thank you for including Tsuneo’s speciality! I’m curious as to why his speciality is genjutsu and not intelligence (or code breaking) if he’s in the cryptanalysis team.

TEAM : Everyone became chunin, died or have a higher rank by Part I. • Manabu Hoshiki (jounin-sensei, alive, OC) • Muta Aburame (tokubetsu-jounin, alive, Canon) • Kokage Yanagikage (chunin, alive, Canon) • Ishiko Uchiha (chunin, dead, OC)

C: A sentence or two about Manabu and Ishiko would be nice, and perhaps some detail about how they worked together as a team and if they had a speciality.

FRIENDS : Sakura Haruno, Muta Aburame, Kokage Yanagikage, Ishiko Uchiha, Shiho (Cryptanalysis Team)

C: Some details on their friendships and when they became friends too would be good.

PERSONALITY :

C: I’ve broken up this section a little more to make it easier for me to comment, hope you don’t mind.

• He’s rather happy when he’s hanging out with his friends though he won’t go out of his way to make new ones. 

C: Is there any particular reason why he isn’t interested in making new friends? 

• He speaks bluntly, sometimes to the point of being rude. 

C: Does Tsuneo act this way around everyone? If so, is he aware that he can be rude?

• He’s always doing something and easily becomes restless. He’s a bit of a perfectionist.

C: Does he spend a long amount of time perfecting various things then? Or will he turn to more or less any task when he’s restless? 

• Therefore, he’s rather annoyed by the “sloppy” genjutsus of his comrades and he criticizes them more or less harshly because there aren’t “enough” details.

C: I imagine that this would irritate a number of people. Does this cause problems in his relationships?

• He likes all kinds of puzzles though board games are ‘meh’. 

C: Is there a particular reason why he doesn’t like board games? It’d be nice to know the types of puzzle he is particularly fond of too.

• He also enjoys physical contact, be it hugs or sex (though he prefers one-night stands to dating). 

C: Is this preference for casual relationships linked in any way to him not being interested in making new friends (ie he doesn’t want to form meaningful bonds with any new people)?

• He loves dumplings. 

C: Would he share dumplings with a friend? Mods are friends right?

• He dislikes being alone for too long and people bothering him when he’s working on codes. 

C: Will he seek people out after a period of being alone then? What if his friends are unavailable? 

• He doesn’t like artificial smells like perfume or disinfectant.  • He also hates his father because his ideas of shinobis are outdated (only men are worthy of being ninjas, respect and rules above all, etc.)

C: Does this cause friction between him and his father? Is it something his father is aware of too, or something Tsuneo keeps bottled up? Does his hatred of his father impact any of his other relationships too? I imagine that it could cause problems with his mother too if he is frequently arguing with his father, for example. I’d be good to go into more detail on Tsuneo’s own beliefs about shinobi too to see exactly how his and his fathers differ.

• He’s very uncomfortable in crowds since the Kyuubi Attack since he almost got trampled when he was on his way to the bunkers. It lead to him having troubles breathing when there are too many people.

C: This makes a lot of sense if he was almost trampled. How does this impact his day to day life? Have there been any times his discomfort in crowds has caused problems?

HISTORY :

• He was born in Konoha from a shinobi family. • The Kyuubi Attack happened when he was 9 and he was very shocked. His determination to become a good shinobi increased. 

C: I’d like to hear a bit more detail on what happened to Tsuneo here, and exactly why it made him so determined to become a good shinobi, as well as what he considers a good shinobi to be.

• Placed in Team 5 with Muta Aburame and Ishiko Uchiha, he soon became friend with them and had a particularly strong bond with Ishiko. Muta was the first being promoted to chunin in the team. Kokage Yanagikage took Muta’s place and all passed on their second try at 14.

C: What age did he graduate at, and what kind of grades did he get in the academy? It’d be nice to know a little about his family and friends while he was in the academy too, and maybe what he tended to do with his time. When did he become a chuunin too, and how many times did he have to take the exam?

• The Uchiha Massacre happened when he was 17. After Ishiko’s death, he was angry and wanted to kill Itachi (though he knew that he would be flattened in less than 3 seconds). The death of his teammate led him to show a lot of physical affection towards his friends.

C: Did his desire to kill Itachi last long? I assume that his fondness for physical affection predated this. Is there a reason he held back from showing it before this point? Detail on what physical affection he tends to show his friends would be good too.

• At 18, he decided to work in the Cryptanalysis Department to uphold his promise to Ishiko (which was that he would use his puzzle solving skills with decoding messages instead of being a regular shinobi with no special job).

C: More details on this promise he made to Ishiko would be nice (how long ago, etc), as it evidently means a lot to him.

• He became a tokubetsu-jounin specialized in genjutsu at 19. 

C: This seems like a reasonable age to become a special jounin.

• At the beginning of the Time Skip, he met Sakura by chance during one of his morning trainings. After a while, they decided to spar regularly together and Tsuneo ended up teaching her genjutsu.

C: I’m sure Kakashi said that Sakura was well suited to genjutsu, and I’m glad to see you expanding on this. I always felt that it was a little disappointing that this wasn’t expanded on in the series where we only ever saw her dispel them.

ABILITIES : As a tokubetsu-jounin, his skills are all average/above average compared to a chunin. Since he’s not a front line fighter, he focuses more on speed and stamina. He prefers to distract the enemy with his genjutsu first and thus incapacitating their senses. Then, either he or one of his team mate will close in and kill the enemy.

C: This tactic certainly suits Tsuneo and his skill set. How often does he actually wind up in battles though if he is in the cryptanalysis department?

He is earth-natured but also know one katon jutsu and one suiton.

C: Considering how he only scores 2/5 for ninjutsu, I would just stick to him knowing earth jutsu.

The technique he’s the most proud of is the Information Overload because he created it himself. This genjutsu makes the target believe that every useless detail (like the number of clouds in the sky) is as important as the fight itself, thus resulting in confusing the target and headaches. It takes time to reach its full effect since the “acknowledgement” of information can only increase slowly but it’s terribly effective. However, Tsuneo has to be covered by an ally while he’s casting the genjutsu because he won’t be able to concentrate on the fight.

C: I really like this jutsu.

STATS : Ninjutsu : 2/5 Taijutsu : 2/5 Genjutsu : 4.5/5 Intelligence : 3.5/5 Strength : 2/5 Speed : 4/5 Stamina : 3.5/5 Hand seals : 4/5

Total: 25.5/40

C: Both Anko and Ebisu have stat totals of 25, with Genma’s being 27, so Tsuneo’s stats are at the right level for a special jounin. I feel like his intelligence should be at least a 4/5 though considering how he is in the cryptanalysis team.

Overall, I really like Tsuneo, and think that he is a very promising OC. There are a couple of small tweaks to make, but what you have is good. As I went through your submission, there was a fair amount of information that I would have liked to see missing, though I don’t know whether this is stuff you know but didn’t include on the form, or things you haven’t decided on or thought about yet. If it is the former, then I really would encourage you to include any information you think will be useful to allow us to give you the best possible review. If you have any questions about this review please feel free to send us a message.

[kuriquinn]

Penthesilea [3/?]

Cover & Disclaimer

Chapter Summary: For a week Sasuke wrestles with himself, knowing that they need a more advanced healer—knowing exactly who would be the most competent person to seek out. But certainly, she wouldn’t be so foolish as to heal the leader of the enemy forces. Sasuke doubts even Uzumaki could shrug off that as anything but treason, not to say what Senju Tsunade would think of it.

Chapter Beta: Sakura’s Unicorn

戦国時代

Sasuke is constantly exhausted and yet, sleep eludes him every night.

For months, he occupies himself with battle strategy in the bleak, restless hours before dawn. He runs numbers in his head and tries to outthink the plans of his rival. Uzumaki is a bit of an idiot, but Nara Shikamaru is at his side, and the shadow manipulator is known to be a genius. Itachi could keep up with his ploys with ease, but Sasuke struggles. He’s not an anticipatory thinker, preferring to react to problems as they present themselves. That kind of approach is fine when it’s only himself, but with so many lives dependant on him now, he can’t rely on such personal tactics.

As time goes on, however, Sasuke’s ruminations change in a bothersome way. Offensive strategies and possible promotions give way to imaginings of brilliant green eyes and a mouth curved into an impish smile. This, more than battle tactics, keeps him awake at night, and he hates himself for being so weak and fallible as to be distracted by a woman of all things.

There’s little point in spending hours staring at the canvas ceiling of his tent, and so most nights, he will get up and walk. It’s a simple thing to slip away from the constant din of the army camp and into the forest, far enough away that he can’t hear people. It is easier to pretend…something. He isn’t sure what.

Tonight, Sasuke sits at the base of a large oak, staring up into the sky at the giant moon hovering above the tree line. He wonders if there are people there and if they, too, are embroiled in an endless battle.

He begins to understand why Itachi always yearns for silence.

“Do you know the story of how this war got started?”

Sasuke’s muscles tense, fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword, but as he touches it, the voice registers and he pauses.

“There are few people who can sneak up on me,” he points out, refraining from turning to her. However, out of the corner of his eye, he can see her ensconced in the branches of the tree, eyes on the moon, legs swinging idly back and forth.

Sakura, he thinks, as if remembering it for the first time, even though her name has been burned into his brain since he learned it.

“My perfect chakra control has allowed me to mask my presence since I was twelve,” she states matter-of-factly. It’s not a boast or a challenge or even said to impress him—just an answer to an unspoken question.

“That would be a useful skill for a spy,” he remarks.

“Yes, it would.”

“Is that why we’ve never seen you before?”

“Among other things,” she replies, a bit of a teasing note in her voice. “So, do you know it?”

“Do I know what?”

“How all this started.”

She’s avoiding the question, but he allows it for now, if only to spend time getting a clearer picture of this woman. “I do.”

The stories were told to him in his cradle, passed down by grandparents, parents, aunts, and uncles. No Uchiha is brought into this world without knowing the story of Indra and Asura—the two brothers who were the progenitors of the Uchiha and the Senju, and the stolen birthright which started everything.

“The Senju have been selfish opportunists from the beginning,” he goes on. “They take what does not belong to them—credit, power, control—and then blame others for their failures.”

“And the Uchiha have been perfect examples of restraint?” Sakura counters dryly. “Your people spent decades slaughtering each other and everyone else.”

He can’t exactly argue with that. Those dark days are literally written in stone.

“Senju Hashirama,” Sasuke offers quietly. “Your beloved leader’s grandfather is the reason for the conflict.”

“You would say that,” she sighs. “I suppose you never heard the story that he and Uchiha Madara were friends. A lot like you and Naruto.”

Sasuke splutters and glares up at her. “I am not friends with Uzumaki. In case you’ve failed to notice, we spend most days trying to kill each other.”

“And I’m having a conversation with the man who stabbed me,” she shrugs. “Humans tend to do things that make no sense.”

He has no idea what to say to that, but he suspects offering any argument will lead to more of her twisted logic.

“People say they tried to find peace,” she continues, as if she didn’t just make the most ridiculous accusation. “Hashirama and Madara tried to build a village together, to stop all the fighting. But it didn’t work.” She snorts. “Which version did you get growing up?”

“Version?” he echoes, looking up this time.

“You really think we all know the same story?” Sakura asks, amused, gazing down at him. The moonlight makes her hair look silver. “If that were the case, I doubt there would still be fighting.”

Sasuke doesn’t answer, wondering if she’s right and suspecting she’s not. He knows that as long as there are humans, there will always be needless battles and wars.

“My parents used to say it was because of the daimyō,” she goes on, as if they’re having a conversation about the weather. “They were worried about the shinobi becoming more powerful because they were united now. And so, they engineered a war to bring down their numbers. Only it backfired because the Senju and the Uchiha could not work together.”

Sasuke thinks on this.

He is familiar with the theory that the daimyō were worried about a centralised shinobi power arising. But the story his family always told was that Senju Hashirama betrayed Uchiha Madara in the worst way possible. No one knows exactly what the betrayal was—the specifics vary according to who tells the story. Sasuke’s father told him Hashirama tricked Madara out of the leadership of their utopian village. His mother said that it was all down to a woman they both loved, and who ultimately chose Hashirama. Sasuke always found Mother’s tale to be completely unlikely. He’s never had a use for such emotional drivel. No one woman could inspire such a change in ideals, to cause a war where countless lives have been lost and lands torn apart by deep-rooted hatred.

And even if one could…

His thoughts trail off as he stares up at Sakura as she gazes at the moon. A second later, Sasuke shakes his head.

Even if he survived long enough to meet such a woman, it would mean nothing. He will marry Hyūga Hinata to strengthen his bloodline and finally wipe out the Senju and Uzumaki threat. There will be no sentiment involved, no confusion. He won’t have to worry about his future wife making him question himself with irrational flights of fancy.

And yet, he can’t find it in himself to reach for his blade and attack, or to raise the alarm for the watchmen to come running. Trying to cover his own confusion, Sasuke turns his back on the tree and the woman in it.

“The next time I see you on our borders, I will kill you,” he hisses as he walks away. He refuses to look back to see if Sakura has left, or if she’s still perched in the branches like a tree spirit.

戦国時代

Within weeks, it becomes clear that Itachi’s preference for solitude has never been just about needing momentary solace.

Sasuke learns that his brother’s blindness is not the result of an enemy jutsu, but a symptom of the disease Itachi has hidden for years—a sickness that weakens him every day, sapping his strength and mobility. Before Sasuke’s eyes, his brother grows thinner and weaker, coughing up blood and fighting just to raise a hand.

“Put it out of your mind, little brother,” he says, smiling gently whenever Sasuke visits him at the end of the day. “There’s still more than enough time.”

But when he reaches to tap Sasuke’s forehead in affectionate reprimand, the gesture is as feeble as the graze of a butterfly’s wings.

This stark reality adds to Sasuke’s wakeful nights and keeps him preoccupied by day. He tells his clansmen and their vassals that Itachi has caught an aggressive pneumonia—the damp conditions in the trenches make this a believable lie.

In secret, he seeks out help.

Through the course of months, Sasuke quietly brings in every medic among their forces, every village healer and hedge witch, but no one has an answer or hope to give. Even Obito’s wife, Rin, a talented healer in her own right, is mystified.

For a week, Sasuke wrestles with himself, knowing that they need a more advanced healer—knowing exactly who would be the most competent person to seek out. But certainly, she wouldn’t be so foolish as to heal the leader of the enemy forces. Sasuke doubts even Uzumaki could shrug off that as anything but treason, not to say what Senju Tsunade would think of it.  

He tries to ignore the naïve part of him that believes she would agree if he asked. For the most part, Sasuke succeeds in this until one night when Itachi’s condition worsens.

A coughing fit sends Itachi into a seizure, and when he emerges, he can barely speak. His usually keen eyes are dull with pain and confusion, and Sasuke decides right then that he will take whatever chance is necessary to help his brother.

He slips away from the camp by night, extracting from Hyūga a promise that he will keep Itachi safe before setting off to find the one woman who can help. It’s a mission that could get him killed if he gets caught—might get her killed, too—but it’s a price he’s willing to pay. Itachi has been the only constant in his life, a good and peaceful soul trapped in a war he never should’ve been part of. Sasuke will burn down the world if it means saving the man who practically raised him when their parents died.

The current border between Uchiha and Senju land falls along a barren, rocky seashore. Upon reaching it, he hesitates. The moment he steps over the boundary, he is risking not only his personal well-being, but is also handing the enemy a pivotal bargaining chip. More than that, he’ll be asking someone for help—something he hasn’t done since childhood.

It’s a distracting enough conundrum that he doesn’t notice, until it’s too late, that he’s not alone.

Three figures materialise around him, and before he can react, he feels a swift, burning pain lance through him. From the sudden difficulty Sasuke has breathing, he suspects one of his assailants has landed a blow beneath his floating rib.

Turning to face them, blood soaking down his front, Sasuke makes out two men and a woman wearing the mark of Oto—mercenaries with loyalty to the highest bidder. This insult more than anything else infuriates him, and he wastes no time in disposing of them.

Still, the damage is done, and he knows before examining the broad slit in his side that the wound is fatal. His attacker’s blade cut deep, nicking either a kidney or a vein, and his violent disposal of his attackers did not help.

As his knees buckle, it starts to rain.

He lies there in the damp sand, inches from lapping waves, gasping and alone, thinking how this was not how he was supposed to die.

戦国時代

Unconsciousness bring with it a rare peace.

Sasuke dreams of Sakura, imagining her voice and a soothing coolness against the raging pain in his side. He envisions being lifted from the damp ground and cradled against her chest—it must be her chest because he hears a heartbeat, and it’s racing too fast to be his own. For once, any embarrassment or self-repudiation he might feel is blissfully absent.

When he awakens, he’s no longer on the seashore, but in a damp, dimly-lit cave. In the distance, he hears the lap of water and steady rush of rain, suggesting he isn’t far from the shore where he fell.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees his sword propped against a rock, his bloodstained haori and hakama draped across another. A fire has been constructed nearby which casts shadows across the damp walls. It and the unfamiliar haori draped over him keeps him warm and dry.

And of course, it’s Sakura who kneels by his side, her face set in what he assumes is an uncharacteristic frown.

“You almost died,” she whispers.

He coughs. “You should’ve let me.”

Sakura shoots him an unamused look. Her eyes crackle with an anger he hasn’t seen before. “You damned idiot.”

And for some reason, he wants to laugh, but the first dry chuckle hurts too much, and Sakura pokes his shoulder in reprimand.

“Stop it—I healed all of your injuries, but you are still weak.”

Sasuke grimaces at those words. “I am not weak.”

“Poor word choice,” she acknowledges. “Your body will be compensating for the rapid cellular regeneration for a while, so please refrain from making any more stupid decisions.”

“No more moonlit walks through forbidden ground,” he agrees, and he thinks his blood must not be replenished yet because that comes out more as banter than sarcasm. Obviously, he’s still lightheaded.

Sakura reaches for his brow, ostensibly to check his temperature, and Sasuke shivers at the sensation of her palm on his skin. He suspects she’ll find it warmer than it should be, although he’s not entirely sure that’s due to his body fighting off infection.

“What were you even doing there?” she asks softly, and instantly, he remembers his mission.

Itachi.

Sasuke struggles to sit up, not wanting to have this conversation with her while lying on his back. It’s bad enough he’ll have to ask her for help, especially after she just saved his life. It’s incredibly fortuitous that she was close by.

Wait.

He frowns at her. “What were you doing there?”

Sakura’s cheeks flush with colour and she looks away.

“Sometimes, I go there to think. The water is calming and sometimes…sometimes, it’s so quiet along the shore that I can pretend all the rest is just a dream,” she confesses. There’s no need to elaborate on what all the rest means.

“And by some coincidence, you chose tonight to do this?” Sasuke asks, suspicious. “You just happened to arrive right after I was attacked, but not before. And you just happened to be there to help?”

She stares at him now, confused. “Do you think I set you up?”

“Did you?” he challenges. “Because healing the enemy is something no one in this war but you would conceive of. Not without some ulterior motive.”

“You’re…angry at me…because I helped you?”

“We are on opposite sides,” he snaps. “And you’re the only one who refuses to understand that.”

“This did not happen in battle!” Sakura shoots back, gesturing at the newly healed scar in his side. “This was someone—someone not on my side—trying to kill you!”

“No one knew I was there,” he reasons stubbornly. “I took particular care. The only people who would attempt to assassinate me is one of you damned Senju or Uzumaki. Or your hired mercenaries.”

“Those people I found beside you were not ours,” Sakura insists angrily. “Hired or otherwise.”

“You don’t know that��your side counts rabble among your allies,” he dismisses. “Men and women who do not even belong to a reputable shinobi clan.”

“Why does belonging to a clan matter?” Sakura demands, and he can see that he’s insulted her. “It made no difference to them. They almost killed you.”

“Almost.”

“Because I saved you, you ridiculous man!” she snaps. “Do you even hear yourself? Repeating some inane story over and over again until you think it holds truth! That’s insanity! You never answered me before, Sasuke-kun—do you even know why we continue to fight?”

There it is again. That maddening familiarity—as if she has the right to call him by his name.

Sasuke jerks away from her and struggles to his feet. She follows his movements, but it’s a little less impressive given that she’s half a head shorter than he.

“It’s simple—I am Uchiha. You are not my ally. And I should’ve known better than to come looking for you,” he says, turning toward the mouth of the cave. “A fool’s notion. I won’t make it again.”

She’s behind him, steadying him with a gentle, but firm, grasp.

“You were looking for me?” she asks, voice soft and sounding so hopeful that his stomach jumps.

Sasuke scowls and pulls away from her.

“Don’t touch me,” he growls, but there is an edge of panic in his voice. He swallows it down—She can’t notice it!—and adds in a more threatening tone, “My mercy has its limit, and you are testing it.”

Sakura takes a step back, although he’s chagrined to see it’s not in fear, but as if she’s simply acquiescing to his wishes—a medic humouring her patient. The insult rankles, and before he can think better of it, he lashes out at her.

He’s still weak, though, and she pins him with an ease that would embarrass if anyone else saw it. He’s pushed against the rough cave wall, her hands immobilizing his wrists. She stops him from sweeping her feet out from under her by pressing close to him, bracketing his leg between her thighs. Her hair is in his face and she smells like firewood, rain, and something floral. It makes it hard to concentrate on her words, which are angry and frustrated.

“What’s the matter with you?” she demands. “Why are you like this? Do you even know what gratitude is? If I wanted to kill you, I could have so many times already, but I didn’t!”

“Because you want something,” he bites out.

“I want nothing!” she snaps. “At least…not in the way you think. I have no interest in enemy secrets or battle plans or…or anything to do with this damned war! I just want to help the people who are hurting, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted!”

Sakura’s cheeks are flushed with colour and there are tears in her eyes, but he senses they’re angry instead of sad.

“If that were true, you would’ve left this land and found somewhere untouched by the war,” he tells her coolly. “Your idealism means nothing here—it doesn’t differ from a child’s.”

Her fingers tighten painfully around his wrists, and he tries to hold back any visible wince.

“Do you never dream of something more?” she asks, searching his face desperately. “Do you ever want more? Or do you just want to keep fighting like this? Keep distrusting everyone you meet for the rest of your life?” He remains silent. “Is there a single place in your heart, no matter how small, that doesn’t see an enemy when you look at me? Or has this war completely destroyed that?” When he continues to glare in silence, she sighs. “Never mind.”

Sakura loosens her grip on him and pulls away. Sasuke immediately turns the tables, grabbing her and shoving her back against the cave wall, one hand around her neck.

“I doubt your abilities can heal you if I break your neck,” he growls at her, leaning in until they are inches apart. He feels the hard ridge of her oesophagus against his palm, knows the exact amount of force it would take to crush it, and silently dares her to give him an excuse.

“Doesn’t…really matter, does it?” she rasps in reply, her polite speech evaporating in the face of impending death. “My…childish ideas mean nothing here…you said it yourself. You’d be…doing me a favour…right?”

Sasuke tightens his grip incrementally, staring into her eyes and watching the flash of alarm as her oxygen is cut off a little more. It would really only be the matter of adjusting his position slightly…

When he moves, it’s not the way either of them expect.

Instead of crushing her windpipe, his hand slides from her throat to the collar of her kosode, fastening onto the fabric there and hauling her toward him. Crushing his mouth against hers, he feels the startled, oxygen-deprived gasp against his lips, and senses the flail of her hands as they try to find purchase somewhere. One lands on his bare shoulder and it’s as if a current has been run through him—the hairs on the back of his neck rise and a shiver creeps down his spine.

Sense forces its way past impulse and Sasuke pulls back, shocked and appalled by his loss of control. Of all the ways he’s been trained to deal with an enemy, this is certainly not one of them.

In the flickering dimness of the cave, he catches sight of something dark and hungry in those damned green eyes of hers. Then she’s the one to shove forward and kiss him, just as furious and angry as he was moments ago. Her hands are in his hair, teeth tugging hard enough at his lower lip that he tastes blood.

This is not how it’s supposed to go—not an intelligent course of action in any way. But as she wraps one leg around his hip to draw him in closer, he finds he doesn’t care.

In fact, it’s worryingly easy to give in.

 つづく

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