amethyst solitary (naruto u.)

desiderium

With widened eyes, Naruto gradually retracted his arms back to his sides and took a step back, unable to fathom what had just entered his ears. The flabbergasted shinobi couldn't vividly recall a time where his heart dropped this hard. Probably ever since the day he discovered Sasuke had left the village without anyone's awareness, which was years ago.

"W-Why?" He stammered, pupils wavering in incredulity.

Manaka lowered her head and stared at the ground, folding her arms beneath her chest. Although it might not appear so from the outside, she was actually enduring a war on the inside. Her chest and stomach were a complete mess, upturning and pulsating hard like rhythm in fear, with intense hot flashes dispersing manically. One wrong slip of a word and her entire strategy of being perceived as the bad guy tumbles down to the ground.

"I don't wanna live here anymore." she shrugged her shoulders, hoping her sedate impression convinced a tad of integrity.

Meanwhile, Naruto inhaled longly and blinked repeatedly. "I don't understand. You were so happy when Tsunade agreed you could stay longer. Why the sudden change of plans?" A grimace urgently enveloped his strained face. "Is it because someone bothered you? Did anyone from the neighborhood make you feel uncomfortable or threatened you or something?!"

"God, Naruto no!" She glared and pressed a palm against her chest. "Why can't you just accept that this is what I want and nothing else! I want to leave this place, simply start over somewhere else besides Konoha!"

"I thought things were going well for you in the Leaf Village?" His response came out to be hoarse, narrowed eyes refusing to cease.

"I thought so too! B-But I was wrong." She sighed as she took in his sudden crestfallen expression.

"Things change Naruto."

Naruto shifted in his place and drifted his gaze away from her, unbeknownst of his action plummeting her heart further and deflating her posture as well. At this point, she was beyond drained, both mentally and physically.

"Is aiming for a change wrong?" she timidly mutters.

He gritted his teeth, taken aback by such a thought. "Tch, it's not about that. Are you forgetting about your hidden Chakra? The spiritual woman? Shit, the Akatsuki?!"

Her face turned completely solemn. "That's something only I can handle alone."

He sent her a ferocious look that nearly made her arm hair stand up. "No you cannot and we both know that. Which is why you need to—"

"Naruto." She interrupted, simulating his irritated countenance. "Stop dictating to me what is appropriate and beneficial for me. I can't stay hidden like this! I need to make the most of my life, just like you had previously advised! I know it sounds so sudden but after thinking it thoroughly, I came to the realization that I have places to explore, people to meet, and I'm starting to learn more about myself as the days go by. Hiding from criminals won't lead me anywhere, and I can't rely on others to look after me. If I want to succeed in life, I need to learn how to properly take care of myself without anyone's help." She diminished the gap between them and delicately grasped his shoulder.

"I need to set myself free."

Disbelief struck his sight as if he just got slapped across the face.

"But you are free!" he exclaimed with an indignant gesture.

She shook her head and deliberately watched him flatten his shoulders with a stare that evidently read at loss for words. The girl hesitated to resume the conversation but insisted on pushing through despite the suffocation in her living room wearing her down. She felt as if she was about to pass out at any moment now.