Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ After the Dream ❯ Breakaway ( Chapter 11 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

This chapter is just filler really. Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Bold font - dreams

Regular font - everything else

Easy enough, right?

Breakaway

When Naruto was little he loved the rain. When it rained he could stay inside and avoid all the townspeople. When it rained he could sit in his apartment and pretend that nothing was wrong. He could pretend that he wasn't hated.

One day about a week before his sixth birthday it stormed. It was the first real storm that he could remember. He had stayed up all night watching the lightning in fascination; he had never seen anything as beautiful as the lights that were dancing across the sky. The night of his birthday came, even though he didn't know, and he watched the celebration going on in the street. As the sky darkened he moved away from the window and began to prepare for bed. A half hour later the fireworks display began and the loud booming brought him racing to the window hoping to see another light show. He could only watch the colored display growing steadily more disappointed. When the fireworks ended he turned away sadly and went to sleep.

From that day on whenever it stormed he would sit by his window and dream the day (or night) away. He never bothered dreaming about his parents; as far as he was aware he had never had any. He never bothered dreaming about any sort of family; he didn't even know he was missing one until he was almost ten. He never bothered dreaming about anything but his dreams. He knew he was missing something and it was his dream to find out what it was and how he could gain it.

The breakthrough came a few years after his first encounter with lightning. It was at this time that Naruto first learned the concept of friendship. He had been heading down to the playground when he saw two girls fighting. A few minutes later just as one of the girls began to cry a third girl joined the group. She yelled at the first girl - an ugly brunet - for making the second girl - a pretty pink haired girl - upset. The brunet asked the newcomer - a loudmouth blond (not to different from himself) - why it was her business. The blond responded that the pink haired girl was her friend and so of course it was her business. The brunet scowled before walking away as the blond turned to make sure her `friend' was alright.

He had never had anyone stick up for him like that. He had never had anyone comfort him after he cried. The only logical assumption for the eight year old to make was that he didn't have any friends. For most this new information would have been depressing but that night as Naruto thought over it he actually smiled. Now he knew what he was missing. His new dream was to make friends. He didn't care how long it took he would make friends. He would find someone he could stick up for and someone who would stick up for him.

Friendship would bring him happiness; he just knew it would. He had been right. He was happiest when he was with his team. The three of them had an odd sort of friendship but it was there.

Now it was just the two of them. Naruto glanced over at Sakura once more before lying down and finally falling asleep.

XXXXXXXXX

The room was dark - which made perfect sense seeing as how it was well past midnight. The room was bare - which made perfect sense seeing as how only one person actually lived in the small one room apartment. The room was quiet - which didn't make sense seeing as how the room's only occupant was a small child and everyone knows small children are naturally loud.

The sound of a door creaking open suddenly disturbed the quiet room including the small child sleeping in the crib. “Well demon I hope you weren't sleeping well seeing as how I don't get to,” a middle aged woman said as she walked over to the crib holding a bottle. She set the bottle inside the crib and glared at the small child looking up at her sleepily. When the boy reached up a chubby little hand towards her she smacked it away and glared hard at him. The child whimpered slightly causing the woman to sneer at it.

“Stupid demon,” she said before raising her hand and slapping the small child. The young boy's eyes widened upon impact but oddly enough no tears or sound came to show his pain. She glared once more for good measure before turning and storming out the door mumbling about losing sleep. The moment the door closed the child curled up completely ignoring the bottle that still lay within his reach. If one were close enough a small tear could be seen rolling down his round cheek.

A moment later the window nearby slid open allowing a slim figure to slip in easily. A whispered, “hurry up,” could be heard from a figure outside. The child looked up when a gentle hand wiped away his tear. “How's our favorite birthday boy?” a feminine voice asked as young teenager wrapped the small boy in a blanket and lifted him from his crib. As an after thought she reached back and grabbed the bottle before jumping out the window.

A moment later she landed softly on the street and was joined by a second figure. The two quickly and quietly made their way through the streets heading towards the pride of the town. Ten minutes later they could be found sitting atop a ledge looking out over the entire village. “Well Naruto I know this is a crappy birthday present, but it's about all we could do today,” the young girl's companion said.

She rolled her eyes at him before turning back to the child looking up at with a small smile on his face. She winked at him before a small glow enveloped her hand. The young boy watched in awe as her hand came up to brush along the side of his face where a small bruise had been forming. “Don't worry that nasty old lady won't be able to touch you again,” she whispered to the child in her arms.

“You two are going to get into soooo much trouble if Sandaime-sama finds out,” a simpering voice said causing the two to whirl around. The small child whimpered slightly at the sudden movement and his carrier immediately began rubbing his back to soothe him. “What are you doing here Anko?” the young man said.

“Deciding whether or not I should get you and Rin in trouble, Kakashi-kun,” she said back still smirking at the two older teens in front of her.

“You probably shouldn't considering they could both make you suffer in return,” a young boy said quietly behind her. Anko whipped around to find herself face to face with Konoha's favorite prodigy. Well not actually face to face seeing as how she had to redirect her gaze downward a significant amount.

“What is this? A meeting of psychotic, overachieving brats,” Rin muttered quietly to Naruto. It was unlikely that the two year old understood her but he giggled at the comment nonetheless. “I feel so left out,” she continued talking to the boy in her arms, “After all we are the only two normal ones here.”

“You call that brat normal?” Anko asked brashly causing Rin and Kakashi to look at her sharply. Naruto had stopped laughing and was looking slightly frightened under Anko's stare.

“You're scaring him,” the boy behind her said as he pointed to Naruto. Anko relented slightly and Rin turned away and began dancing with Naruto as the others just watched in amusement - not that any of them would ever show it. The little boy giggled as they pranced around the mountain top.

“You know Itachi, if you're really bored you could always bring your brother along,” Rin said as she passed by him while spinning with Naruto.

“Hn,” was Itachi's only reply. Rin turned to grin at him. Kakashi turned to look at Anko and Itachi before replying sternly. “Neither of you are going to say anything. Let the kid laugh a little,” Rin stopped dead in her tracks to gape at Kakashi upon hearing his words.

After a moment she grinned down at Naruto and whispered, “There's hope for him yet.” Naruto beamed up at her and Rin giggled before beginning to spin again.

As the sun began to rise Naruto had fallen asleep in Rin's arms. She lifted him up and she and Kakashi left with one last warning to the other two youths behind them. They raced back and slipped into the window just as sounds of the village waking began creeping through the air. Rin put Naruto into his crib with one last goodbye before the two teens took off to report for duty. “Sweet dreams,” someone whispered causing the sleeping child to smile in his sleep.

XXXXXXXXX

Naruto woke up calmly with the feel of the sun on his face. It took him a moment to remember where he was before he turned to wake up Sakura. He wasn't sure but he felt that he had had the best dream the night before. All he remembered was someone saying, “Sweet dreams.”

For the first time he had a smile on his face as the two of them set off. They had been traveling for several days; they weren't quite sure where they were going only that they were traveling east. After the first day they had abandoned the river and moved off covering their trail as best as possible. They weren't actually sure how far they'd be able to make it. There was always a chance that they had slipped up. There was always a chance that something had been left behind that would give them away. But that didn't matter if they got caught they got caught; they'd deal with it then.

“Another few days and we'll reach the shore,” Naruto said as he observed their surroundings. They had stayed off the main roads and out of the towns trying to remain inconspicuous. They had hunted and fished for food but they were still hungry and tired. In order to stay as far ahead as possible they had only stopped two or three time to eat and sleep. Naruto had been amazed that Sakura was able to keep up without complaining.

He looked around again and had to stop himself from grinning. They weren't in Konoha anymore. The trees weren't as large here. The forest wasn't as dense here. They were really gone. He looked up at the cloudless sky and was let a tiny sigh of relief escape his lips. He knew he had left a lot behind, but he couldn't help but believe that everything would work out. He suddenly knew that this was what he had needed.

He had taken that chance and it had worked. He still didn't know what he was looking for but he knew that this was where he would find it. Well not here he thought looking around at the forest; just out here away from Konoha. Everyone had to leave home at sometime and apparently he had left at just the right time.

Uzumaki Naruto looked around the forest and smiled; everything would be alright.

XXXXXXXXX

When Haruno Sakura was young she had been lonely. Sure she had plenty of friends but she had never really fit in. Around them she had had to act …girly. She had never been any good at arranging flowers or anything else that a female shinobi was supposed to be good at. She had always liked the fighting classes, but her friends had made fun of her for it. She got sick of the teasing so she started spending all her time on the other stuff.

None of her friends really understood anything about her. She was constantly changing to make sure that they didn't leave her behind again. One day when she was walking home from school she took a shortcut through the park. There were a lot of other kids in the park because most of the other students had gotten out earlier.

One little boy - who was probably about her age - was slouching away from the others. She recognized him because he usually tried to play with the others but was always turned away. She followed him discreetly and was amazed when he paused to watch another boy sitting on the dock. She had to stop herself from squealing at the sight of her crush Uchiha Sasuke.

Sakura could only watch in jealousy as her crush turned around to look at the other boy. She smirked when they scowled and looked away from each other. But a moment later as the little blond boy walked away she noticed him smiling. When she looked closer she noticed Sasuke trying to hold back a grin as well.

That was what she wanted. These two weren't even friends and yet one small action and they were both grinning. It was like some silent joke had passed between just the two of them. She didn't have that connection with any of her friends. That was what she wanted.

XXXXXXXXX

Sakura was trying not to glance back at Naruto every two minutes. Ever since he had woken her up that morning he had been grinning and as much as she loved seeing him smile again she couldn't figure out why he was smiling. All she knew was that Naruto was returning back to normal.

She didn't know if Konoha had been that bad for him that just being away from the village made him happy or if something else had sparked his mood but she honestly didn't care.

“Another few days and we'll reach the shore,” she heard Naruto say behind her. She was suddenly reminded of the only vacation her family had ever taken. Her parents had had a simple escort mission and had brought her along. They had spent the next week lounging around along the beach. Two years later she had graduated and become a Gennin. She almost never saw them after that. They were always gone on missions. Or she was gone on missions or training with her team.

She looked around her as they were moving. Naruto had become silent again but it was in now way oppressive. It was like she could feel him grinning behind her. They were gone from Konoha. As scared as she should have been she couldn't be happier. It wasn't that she was lazy and had hated working like she had in Konoha; there was just something about being out of the village and free like they were.

She hadn't realized how much she had missed being out like this; just running, not worrying about being anywhere, going anywhere. This was what she had needed. The only worry they had was being caught, but even that paled to what she felt like. She hadn't realized how much she had needed freedom, but now that she had it…she wouldn't be going back any time soon.

Haruno Sakura looked around the forest; everything would be alright.

XXXXXXXXX

A crescent moon sat far above the village barely illuminating the deserted streets below. High atop the village's central mountain three people sat in silence. Well more like one stood watching indifferently as his friend and a child played on the ground trying to suppress their giggles. “We're gonna get caught one of these days you know,” he drawled lazily causing his female friend to look up and stick her tongue out at him. The three year old sitting in front of her giggled and imitated the action causing the teen to scowl down at him.

It was lucky the mask on his face obscured the action because the child was bit skittish when it came to others and any type of negative facial expression tended to scare him. Kakashi sighed and withered slightly under the unconvinced look Rin was sending him. He walked over squatted in front of the little boy before gently mussing up his hair. The familiar action had been performed many times by his own sensei so it was only fitting to pass it on to the tiny blond in front of him.

The blond scrunched his face up in a grin before all three whipped around hearing someone snort behind them. Rin let out an exasperated sigh when she saw a grinning Anko pounce her former teammate. Kakashi ignored the younger teen hanging off his shoulder and returned to watching Naruto. The little boy looked up at the newcomer and grinned at her before once again mimicking Rin and sticking his tongue out at Anko. Rin collapsed onto her back in giggles as Anko looked at Naruto in shock. She reached over to pick up the boy causing his eyes to widen as he struggled in her grip.

“Anko don't do anything stupid,” Rin said immediately coming back to attention. Anko smirked at her before looking down at the cowering child in her arms. She grinned slightly before she began tickling him mercilessly. The child's eyes widened in shock before he began giggling uncontrollably and squirming more in his tormentor's grasp. Anko finally relented and set a grinning chibi Naruto down in front of Rin.

She turned when she heard someone yawn behind her and squeaked, “Kawaii!” Rin, Kakashi and Naruto all looked around just in time to see Anko assault the youngest Uchiha who yipped slightly and tried to hide behind his older brother. Anko ignored the child's protests and immediately began tickling him just like she had tickled Naruto moments before. After a few moments the little boy began giggling causing his brother to glance at him oddly before sighing and walking over near Kakashi and Rin. Anko joined them a moment later and set the youngest Uchiha down on the ground by Naruto.

The two toddlers just stared at each other as the older teens watched them in amusement. Naruto slowly squinted his eyes at the other boy and Sasuke began to scowl. Naruto glared at the other boy before scooting over by Rin. Sasuke glared back and moved closer to his brother. “Ahh, look they like each other,” Anko said laughing at the two toddlers. Kakashi looked at her as if she was insane - which she was - before turning back to look at the two boys.

Rin leaned down and whispered something in Naruto's ear causing the blond to grin at her and then turn to look at Sasuke again. After a moment Naruto stuck his tongue at the other boy causing Sasuke to look at his brother in confusion. Naruto giggled and grinned widely at the other boy's dismay which only caused Sasuke to scowl back at him.

The others let the two get acquainted through scowls and smiles as they began talking about missions and such. After a bit Kakashi grew bored and laid back content just listening to the others discuss the goings on of the village. Naruto and Sasuke had been amusing themselves by making faces at each other for almost half and hour and the two seemed to be tiring of their game.

Naruto paused in his play and looked over at the young ANBU curiously. He scowled and squinted his eyes in concentration as he watched the older Nin “sleep”. Rin looked up curiously when she heard someone shuffling slightly. She watched as Naruto crawled as quietly as possible over to Kakashi. She watched in confusion as he sat and inspected the older shinobi.

When Kakashi heard the others stop talking he opened an eye slightly just in time to see a small hand reaching up towards his face. Rin tried to control her laughter as Naruto scrunched his face up in concentration as he slowly reached for Kakashi's mask. Sasuke could only watch in awe as the other boy went after the older shinobi. Right before Naruto pulled down his mask Kakashi reached out and grabbed the boy before jumping up and staring down at him. Naruto looked up at Kakashi innocently as if confused with the older boy's anger.

The sound of feminine laughter behind them caused the entire group to turn around in shock. They hadn't been paying the slightest attention to their surroundings. “Kaa-san,” Itachi whispered as he looked at the black haired woman in front of them. Uchiha Ashitaba raised an eyebrow slightly and looked down at her eldest son. “Honestly Itachi, I may not be a ninja but did you really think I wouldn't know when my sons snuck out of the house?” she questioned playfully.

“Sorry,” he said humbly. Anko was tempted to laugh at the Itachi abnormally submissive behavior, but her respect for Ashitaba kept her from doing so. Sasuke grinned up at his mother causing her to shake her head and laugh before reaching down and picking up her youngest son. She planted a kiss on his cheek and then laughed again when he scowled and reached up to wipe it away. After a moment Ashitaba turned to study Kakashi, when she recognized the little boy in his arms she gasped suddenly.

Rin stood up and immediately moved over to take Naruto from Kakashi when Ashitaba laughed. “I'd almost forgotten that he'd be the same age as Sasuke,” she mused aloud causing the group to look at her oddly. Rin and Kakashi were still wearily eyeing her; Anko felt distinctly uncomfortable and out of place; and Itachi was trying to figure out what his mother was going to say next.

“Well Sasuke-chan,” she said looking down at the boy in her arms, “Did you have fun playing with Naruto-chan?” Sasuke grinned and nodded before yawning. “I thought so, how about next time you play with him during the day instead of staying up late,” she said, he nodded happily. “Good,” she said before turning to shocked teens in front of her, “I know for a fact that all of you have missions tomorrow and that Naruto-chan needs sleep. Staying up late at night to play may seem fun it isn't a habit I'd recommend instilling in a three year old.” Rin grinned sheepishly before taking Naruto from Kakashi and grabbing his blanket.

“Say bye-bye to Naruto,” Ashitaba added as she turned to go with her sons in tow. “Bye,” Sasuke said as he yawned and laid his head on his mother's shoulder.

“Bye-bye,” Naruto chirped happily causing the teens to stop and look at him. Rin started giggling and Anko could only stare. When he felt everyone's eyes on him Naruto looked up sheepishly trying to figure out what he had done. Ashitaba turned to inspect the group before finally stating, “He hasn't spoken before has he.”

Rin shook her head before saying her own goodbyes and heading off with Naruto and Kakashi. Uchiha Ashitaba could only smile as the small group dispersed.

XXXXXXXXX

For the first time in the week since he had fought the Sound Four Sasuke felt relaxed. The pain in his arm and chest had subsided slightly but he still had difficulty breathing. He had stuck to the forests and avoided meeting anyone. He hadn't felt any Shinobi nearby so he assumed that news of his death had been accepted.

He didn't quite know where he was going but he didn't quite care either. Because he had kept himself so isolated he hadn't been able to learn whether or not the attack on Naruto and Sakura had failed. He assumed that if they had been killed he would be able to learn about it any of the villages in Fire Country but he hadn't been able to risk possible exposure or questions about his injuries. He would have to wait until the majority of his injuries healed before attempting to gather news about his teammates.

This is of course why the relaxed feeling he had woken up with had him so confused. He had been tense and jittery all week. Any odd noises had set him off and he hadn't allowed himself to stop for more than a half hour at a time. The night before he had stopped by river to clean some of the cuts and soothe the burns afterwards he had accidentally fallen asleep under one of the trees. He had slept soundly throughout the night and for the first time in years he hadn't had a nightmare, which was even odder because he distinctly remembered seeing his older brother in his dreams and he rarely remembered the good times they had had.

He looked around and was tempted to smile at his surroundings. He hadn't been outside at all during his training with Orochimaru he remembered with disgust as he glanced down at his pastier than usual skin. The trees around here weren't like the trees in Konoha but they were still trees. He had grown up around forests; he had trained in them; most of his missions had taken place in them it was just what he was used to. To being surrounded by concrete and darkness may have suited his brooding mood but it had always kept him on edge.

Out here was just right. He remembered all the times he had spent with his team in the forest on missions which sent him back to wondering if they were alright and wishing he could stop in the next village to try and find word about them. Instead he just kept moving the woods were thinning and he knew he would be reaching the edge soon. A moment later he saw the tree line and slowed slightly until he was creeping along the upper branches carefully. When he broke out of the tree line he realized he hadn't needed to worry. The trees edged a cliff before dropping towards more forest below.

Standing on the cliff looking out he remembered part of his dream from the night before. He had been with his brother and some other younger shinobi. One reminded him of Kakashi and another of that psychotic examiner Anko - Orochimaru had liked complaining about her. He also remembered another child but he hadn't been able to place him. Then his mother had come along and taking him home promising that he would be able to play with the other boy later.

As he looked out over the cliff he wondered if the dream had been real. And if it had who all the others were. He shook his head before quickly descending into the forest below and continuing on his way. A breeze shook by and he swore he heard someone whisper “bye-bye”.

Uchiha Sasuke looked around the forest and smiled; everything would be alright.

Just keep moving. Just keep going. Just keep moving.

Nights and days had a tendency to run together when the only thing on one's mind was escaping. They never put a word to it but that was all they were doing: escaping. They were escaping every aspect of life that had brought them down.

Nights and days had a tendency to run together when the only thing on one's mind was reaching a goal. They never said it aloud but it was always there floating in the back of their mind. Find him. Find her. Find each other.

Just keep moving. Just keep going. Just keep moving.

Agent's Spiel: The scene described by Sakura is supposed to be the one in Naruto's flashback in Chapter 228. I'm not sure if this was obvious or not but I figured I'd just make sure you knew this wasn't something I was making up. The one Naruto describes with Sakura and Ino is made up but pretty possible considering Sakura's past.

In the first dream Naruto is two, Rin and Kakashi are 16, Anko is 14, and Itachi is 7.

The second one is supposed to be a few months later.