endless_scrolls (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
endless_scrolls) wrote2010-11-11 09:45 pm
endless_scrolls) wrote2010-11-11 09:45 pm
The Choices We Make
Title: The Choices We Make
Type: Not-So-Drabble
Fandom: Naruto
Theme: Earth, Wind, and Fire [ 795 ]
Character(s): Tenten, Uchiha Sasuke; brief mention of Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto
Pairing(s): None
Warning(s): Possible spoilers an a slight change in canon events.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but these words.
Note: Based on a plot idea originally made for the RP community of![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
circleobetrayal that eventually inspired the fic 'Inheritance of Betrayal.' Theme borrowed from 30_tortures.
Dedicated to:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
its_game_time; Didja see what I did there~? I hope you did. ♥
Even though she had gotten a fairly good head start and the use of one of the best trackers in the village, Tenten was still faster. She had trained with four of the swiftest shinobi of their time, after all, three of which she had spent the better part of the last four or five years building a career with. No other squad could ever come close to the speed and efficiency of Team Gai. So when Sakura had rushed in to deal out the killing blow, the elder kunoichi had been there to stop her, arriving in the nick of time to grab the other's wrist and still the motion of the kunai mere inches from striking through his back. And then, in the next breath, she jerked her elbow into the back of the younger girl's neck, knocking her unconscious from the force.
"See, this is why I don't like leaving you alone," she quipped with a deep furrow of her brows, "You have a tendency to get into trouble without me."
Letting out a huff of breath, the kunoichi could only tilt her head curiously as the young man frowned -- scowled, more like -- in her general direction before turning stiffly. "I don't need your help."
"Clearly," was her sarcastic response.
His head snapped back around, and the familiar flash of red alerted Tenten of his immediate irritation. But even though it had only been a few months since she had last seen him, there were obvious differences that the kunoichi couldn't hope to ignore. His shoulders were more squared with determination. The neutral lines of the young man's face were replaced by a deeper etch of simmering anger. Even the Sharingan, though she had only managed to catch a glimpse of it before his dark eyes returned to normal, had changed somehow. Sasuke was not the same person she had left after Orochimaru's defeat. And though she was reluctant to admit it, Tenten feared what that meant for them and their endeavours.
"What are you doing here, anyways?" he demanded, the clear look of disapproval still mapped across his face.
"We had a plan," she replied, matching him in tone alone, "And you seem hell-bent on ignoring it."
Despite the resolve in this eyes, though, Sasuke shifted them away at that. Which was telling on his part. It was very rare for him to break from his stance on something, even for a moment. Even with her. After all, it had been a while since their days under Orochimaru's watchful gaze. Any semblance of the allies they used to be during those times would certainly not hold up against the distance and excommunication. And from what she had heard of his latest movements, Sasuke was under the service of another puppeteer now.
But was he really gone from their grasp, or only doing what was necessary to meet his goals like before?
A snap of his head brought the Uchiha's eyes back to meet hers, solid and unmoving unlike before. "Things change."
And it was like a hot iron nail had been pressed into her chest. "That much is obvious."
Their eyes remained where they were, locked in a wordless conversation that spanned a thousand lifetimes as they told her everything she needed to know. He wasn't coming back like they had planned. And any effort to persuade him otherwise would only drive him further and further away, she knew. The harder the grip, the more the struggle. Whatever had happened while she was gone from his side, it was profound enough to change and shift everything into another sphere of understanding that she couldn't reach. And while, years ago, she wouldn't have cared less of him and his choices, things were different now.
"This is no longer your concern. Just go back and forget any of this happened."
It would've been an easy thing to turn back and pick up her old life. Unlike him, she still had the luxury to do so. Because no one back in the village would know of her near treachery; none of them could mark her as a traitor, save for one. And Tenten had been able to catch her by surprise. It would just be a simple case of rebuilding those last few moments so that she had never been there at all, a talent and skill that Sasuke was more than capable of accomplishing. She could've disappeared and allowed Sasuke to continue striving to achieve his new plans on his own.
The kunoichi could've gotten her entire life back to how it was before she had ever been captured and taken to Orochimaru's base... if only Naruto had just been a few minutes slower.
"Sasuke!"
But it was too late now.
Type: Not-So-Drabble
Fandom: Naruto
Theme: Earth, Wind, and Fire [ 795 ]
Character(s): Tenten, Uchiha Sasuke; brief mention of Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto
Pairing(s): None
Warning(s): Possible spoilers an a slight change in canon events.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but these words.
Note: Based on a plot idea originally made for the RP community of
circleobetrayal that eventually inspired the fic 'Inheritance of Betrayal.' Theme borrowed from 30_tortures.Dedicated to:
its_game_time; Didja see what I did there~? I hope you did. ♥Even though she had gotten a fairly good head start and the use of one of the best trackers in the village, Tenten was still faster. She had trained with four of the swiftest shinobi of their time, after all, three of which she had spent the better part of the last four or five years building a career with. No other squad could ever come close to the speed and efficiency of Team Gai. So when Sakura had rushed in to deal out the killing blow, the elder kunoichi had been there to stop her, arriving in the nick of time to grab the other's wrist and still the motion of the kunai mere inches from striking through his back. And then, in the next breath, she jerked her elbow into the back of the younger girl's neck, knocking her unconscious from the force.
"See, this is why I don't like leaving you alone," she quipped with a deep furrow of her brows, "You have a tendency to get into trouble without me."
Letting out a huff of breath, the kunoichi could only tilt her head curiously as the young man frowned -- scowled, more like -- in her general direction before turning stiffly. "I don't need your help."
"Clearly," was her sarcastic response.
His head snapped back around, and the familiar flash of red alerted Tenten of his immediate irritation. But even though it had only been a few months since she had last seen him, there were obvious differences that the kunoichi couldn't hope to ignore. His shoulders were more squared with determination. The neutral lines of the young man's face were replaced by a deeper etch of simmering anger. Even the Sharingan, though she had only managed to catch a glimpse of it before his dark eyes returned to normal, had changed somehow. Sasuke was not the same person she had left after Orochimaru's defeat. And though she was reluctant to admit it, Tenten feared what that meant for them and their endeavours.
"What are you doing here, anyways?" he demanded, the clear look of disapproval still mapped across his face.
"We had a plan," she replied, matching him in tone alone, "And you seem hell-bent on ignoring it."
Despite the resolve in this eyes, though, Sasuke shifted them away at that. Which was telling on his part. It was very rare for him to break from his stance on something, even for a moment. Even with her. After all, it had been a while since their days under Orochimaru's watchful gaze. Any semblance of the allies they used to be during those times would certainly not hold up against the distance and excommunication. And from what she had heard of his latest movements, Sasuke was under the service of another puppeteer now.
But was he really gone from their grasp, or only doing what was necessary to meet his goals like before?
A snap of his head brought the Uchiha's eyes back to meet hers, solid and unmoving unlike before. "Things change."
And it was like a hot iron nail had been pressed into her chest. "That much is obvious."
Their eyes remained where they were, locked in a wordless conversation that spanned a thousand lifetimes as they told her everything she needed to know. He wasn't coming back like they had planned. And any effort to persuade him otherwise would only drive him further and further away, she knew. The harder the grip, the more the struggle. Whatever had happened while she was gone from his side, it was profound enough to change and shift everything into another sphere of understanding that she couldn't reach. And while, years ago, she wouldn't have cared less of him and his choices, things were different now.
"This is no longer your concern. Just go back and forget any of this happened."
It would've been an easy thing to turn back and pick up her old life. Unlike him, she still had the luxury to do so. Because no one back in the village would know of her near treachery; none of them could mark her as a traitor, save for one. And Tenten had been able to catch her by surprise. It would just be a simple case of rebuilding those last few moments so that she had never been there at all, a talent and skill that Sasuke was more than capable of accomplishing. She could've disappeared and allowed Sasuke to continue striving to achieve his new plans on his own.
The kunoichi could've gotten her entire life back to how it was before she had ever been captured and taken to Orochimaru's base... if only Naruto had just been a few minutes slower.
"Sasuke!"
But it was too late now.