Melancholia

Chapter 10

"Hold still , you idiot ! I'm trying to help here, but you're making this impossible!"

"Hey, it's not my fault it hurts, ya know !"

Sasuke was trying his best to clean Naruto's injuries and the dried blood, but with the blonde squirming in such a manner every time the alcohol-dampened paper towel touched his skin, he started to realize that this wasn't going to be very easy.

"I know, but you need to calm down and stop pulling away... ! I'm almost done. There." Sasuke said before grabbing the bandage wrap Saburo had given them before leaving the bathroom and going off to clean up the blood in the room they were staying in.

A long silence settled between them, and Sasuke began to dress his wounds.

"You said it was a nightmare that set this off..." Sasuke finally spoke back up. "What was it about...?"

"It..." Naruto hesitated at hearing that. He should have expected as much, but it wasn't like he didn't understood. After everything that had just happened, Sasuke deserved to know the truth. "Everybody was glaring at me... All of the villagers, even you guys... Then it just got worse and I couldn't stop them anymore... I know it was some stupid figment of my imagination, but it felt so real..."

Sasuke was silent for a moment, but quickly decided he needed to say something, so after he finished bandaging Naruto's arm, he hesitantly reached out, placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder, a tad worried when he seemed to flinch. Yet Naruto didn't stop him in the end. "Nobody's judging you... At least not anybody that matters, anyway... Just ignore them..."

"I've tried to... I always tell myself that it doesn't matter, but it's so hard sometimes, ya know...? I'm not even allowed to defend myself because if I fight back against them, I'll only prove them right."

"Hold on... What are you implying? Naruto... Has some of the villagers... hurt you before?" Sasuke asked, unable to deny the anger welling up in him. It was something Naruto had implied a few days ago as well, but he hadn't went in depth, and Sasuke had chose not to press the matter. Now, he began to question it yet again.

"No." Naruto was quick to avoid the subject, however, just like he had before. "It doesn't matter. Just forget it I said anything, okay?"

He forced himself to smile, but Sasuke could see the guilty look in his eyes. He was obviously holding things back, but Sasuke didn't have the heart to press him to talk about something he wasn't comfortable with talking about. After all, he himself had a lot of things he didn't want to talk about.

Yet despite that, he couldn't help but wonder if it was really a good idea to just drop it.

...

"It's so quiet out here..." Sakura mused as she, Kakashi, and Izumi were walking through the town.

"A little too quiet..." Kakashi added, as he looked around. "Even for night, there should at least be some activity..."

"You're right..." Izumi agreed. "Something's definitely off here. I know a few of the shops are supposed to be open all night, yet they all have their lights off..."

"It's almost like the town has been deserted..." Sakura observed. "Oh!"

"Hm?" Kakashi inquired, looking over at her.

Sakura walked over towards a lamp post, suddenly noticing what looked to be a child, a boy. He was crying.

"Hey, there, little guy... Can I ask you what your name is?" Sakura kneeled down in front of the boy. He couldn't even be eight years old. Who in their right mind would leave such a young kid outside past midnight?!