Melancholia

Chapter 9

By the end of the morning, Kakashi, after discussing the matter with Naruto, who assured him he was completely fine, decided it was probably best to head out again. He reluctantly gave him back his weapon holster, but not before giving him one single plea:

"Naruto, listen to me... You have to promise me that while we're out here, if you feel the need to hurt yourself again, you'll come to me first, okay?"

Naruto, who had the self-proclaimed motto to never go back on his word, naturally didn't want to make such a promise, because, honestly, he didn't think he would be able to keep it. Talking about his feelings had never been in his strong suit, sure, but that was easy in comparison to actually stepping out of his comfort zone and coming to somebody else for help. And Naruto made that clear, when he said he would try.

Kakashi didn't like it, but he decided it was better than nothing, and he would just have to accept it until they got back to the village.

...

"Um... Saburo-san....?" Sakura hoped she wasn't intruding. But when Saburo looked up at her, she figured maybe it was okay to continue. "I don't think you've said anything to us the whole time we've been here. Is there something you're afraid of...?"

Saburo looked away and Izumi took the initiative to speak up for him.

"Saburo doesn't talk..." he said. "He can't... not after the incident."

"What incident...?" Sasuke, who was standing next to Sakura, inquired, his interest peaked. He knew it probably wasn't something he should ask, but curiosity got the best of him.

Izumi was hesitant for a moment, but decided to answer his question.

"The port we're headed to... It's not actually our original home..." He explained, a downcast look in his eyes. "We're actually from a village far away from here. I doubt you've heard of it, but it was a mining town down near the border of Iwagakure, called Sankohaba... We sold coal and numerous other minerals. Some thugs got wind of it and came and ransacked the village one night. All of our buildings were set on fire, and our parents and numerous others were killed, we were two of the only survivors. After that, Saburo stopped speaking and me...? I never wanna go back there again... I'm sure you understand..."

Sasuke looked away. He did understand, all to well, what it was like to lose everything in a single night.

"Don't you want revenge, for what happened...?" He murmured.

"No..." Izumi shook his head, surprising the others, especially Sasuke. "Well, don't get me wrong. I don't really think I would let the bastards who did it get off scott free if I came into contact with them, in fact I probably would try to kill them... but... I guess didn't want to continue living in the past, which was exactly why we left. If we'd stayed, the hatred and the bitterness... it would have consumed us... If I lived for revenge, I wouldn't be able to live out my life to its fullest. Sometimes, you just have to let go and move on, despite how hard it may be. And I mean... And we have each other still, so it's better than nothing..."

"I see..." Sasuke thought about it.

Without thinking, Sakura reached out and grabbed his hand in a comforting manner, recognizing the look on his face. She knew about his clan, about his desire for revenge against his brother. How Itachi had killed his entire family and left Sasuke alone as a child.

More than anything, She just wanted him to know that he didn't have to face it by himself, that he had people who cared about him.

"You and I both have found precious friends, haven't we?"