Tomorrow That Never Comes

Tomorrow That Never Comes

Warning: Violence, angst, mentions of fellatio (blowjobs for all you sexual illiterates out there) etc...

“I'm not listening, not anymore
The more I learn, the more I ignore
I'm not listening, not anymore
The more I hear, the more I ignore
I'm not listening, not anymore, No...”
- 'Not Listening' by Papa Roach


Chapter 2: Straightjacket Feeling

It goes on for months before I can conjure up a clever enough plan to kill the snake bastard. He keeps me in his room most times, making it difficult to get any time without his eyes watching me. I feel like some sort of animal, some creature he keeps for his entertainment. I feel as though I am falling, sinking really into an abyss I can't crawl out of.

I finally cook up something I think will work perfectly. I plan to act as though I've finally come around and begun to enjoy his special 'treatment' and get down on my knees to suck his cock and I had made up poison capsules to place within my mouth and I would let it seep into the sensitive flesh of his penis, poisoning him. He'd die slowly and I'd watch, or at least that's what I hope will happen.

I planned it for tonight. It wasn't unlike any of the other nights that had come before it. I have spent many weeks building up an immunity to the specific poison that I plan on using and I know that Orochimaru is not immune to it's effects. I smile as I place the poison-filled capsules beneath my tongue. He's taught me so well that it is going to be his downfall. I wander to his chambers on my own, not an unusual occurrence these days. I've learned to accept my fate. This way I can escape the worst of the pain caused by being tied down.

I don't knock as I enter the sannin's chambers. I've been here so often, I've lost count. He sits in a chair near his desk and I move towards him. He smiles like a Cheshire cat as he lays golden, slitted, reptilian eyes on me and I allow a small smile to grace my lips as well. It doesn't escape his notice.

“What'sss thisss? Have you finally come to enjoy my company Sssasssuke?” He asks arrogantly. I resist the impulse to snort. Let him delude himself. He'll be dead not long from now, I think inwardly. I nod slightly instead, catering to his deluded fantasy. I slide down to my knees in front of him and look up at him, hoping my eyes are conveying false lust. I assume they are as his smirk widens and he licks his lips hungrily. I can see the bulge within his yukata. My mouth feels dry as I lean forward of my own free will and free his erection. I stare at it, forcibly resisting my disgust as I bend to take the torrid flesh into my mouth. This is not the first time I have done this, but it will be the last for him. His hands are simultaneously in my hair, pulling and curling against my scalp as I suck, letting the poison in my saliva cover his flesh. It won't be long now before the poison's paralysis takes effect. I smirk with sick satisfaction as I feel his hands becoming limp already.

I let his quickly softening penis fall from my lips and smirk wider at him. I stand and look down upon him as he tries to speak, the poison spreads quickly and closes his airways. His eyes bulge with realization as I glare at him, emotionless. He must understand what is happening by now. I move to leave, intending to find Kabuto and finish him quickly before leaving.

It doesn't take me long to find the silver-haired nin. He's outside in the open. How convenient for me. I walk up behind him as though I have no evil intentions, almost as if I have been sent by Orochimaru. He does not even seem to notice the kunai in my hand as I close in on him. It just shows how lax they've become when around me. Too bad for them that they had forgotten that I was not loyal to them.

I slide behind him gracefully, the kunai gripped so tightly that my fingers have turned white. I rip the blade edge across his throat before he can even speak and he drops to the ground, a fatal-sounding gurgle coming from his chest as blood spills over the sides of his mouth and over his skin.

I watch with fascination as blood pools around him, gushing from the deep gash in his throat. He had not been expecting it. I lean down close to him, crouching above his face. His fading eyes watch me and I smirk as I speak to him one last time, “What was it you said to me once? Ah yes, never trust snakes. When your back is turned, they'll strike.” I say and his eyes widen a fraction before I walk away.

I am unsure where I am going. My feet carry me swiftly through the rough foliage, trees and various vegetation flickering by in my haste to get away from my home in captivity. I believe I am rushing towards my home, Konoha, but it has been so long that I am not sure if I am moving in the right direction. I pray that I am.

I steer clear of cities and towns, afraid of being recognized. I feel like I am still in danger, like I am still trapped and I keep moving on until dawn. I cannot get far enough away from that place. The landscape tells me that I am somewhere in Rice country, but little more than that. I find a river and a cave along my path and stop for rest.

I bathe within the cool, sedate water of the river, cleansing him from me. I sleep after that, plummeting into a deep slumber filled with an azure-eyed angel. He dances throughout my subconscious. I imagine him. What does he look like now? Has he changed as much as I have? Does he still wear that ridiculous orange? These questions bounce and ricochet in my mind as I rest in sweet oblivion.

The brightness of the sun's light wakes me after a day. I find I've slept for a whole day and night. I feel groggy, but more alive than I have in months. I assume it's due to my newly attained freedom. I stand, muscles rippling and joints cracking as I stretch languidly. I take a soothing drink from the river and move on through the ample forestation.

Soon enough, my stomach adamantly demands nourishment and I am forced to find a village. I purchase a cloak and cover myself in it before moving through the tiny village and eating at one of the food stalls. I purchase a few supplies and move on without more than a backward glance. I am like a shadow. I am unnoticed and I would like to keep it that way.

I slow my pace for a while and wander through the greenery, taking in the freshness of the air and the beauty of the sky which I haven't been able to do for years, not since I was a child. And I think as I am taking in all of this that I will not return to Konoha, at least not now. It's too soon to see him, to see any of them. I decide that I will wait until the news of Orochimaru's demise has reached all the villages and when things are calm once more.

I drift through many villages after that, a wanderer, until I am forced to stop when I hear the cries of a child. I cannot ignore the whimpers of the infant, so I search for where it is coming from. I find the child in a rundown building on the outskirts of a ravaged village. There are dead bodies and fire-eaten houses strewn about the torn-apart streets. I look down at the tiny bundle hidden within blood-soiled sheets. I reach down and pick the small child up. The crying immediately ebbs away to soft hiccoughs. I look around, seeing no one. How long has this child been alone? I hold it carefully, afraid that I might hurt it if i hold onto it too tight. I chuckle at my own insecurity. Maybe I am kinder than I believed I was.

I clean the infant's petite body of all the blood it had been covered in, discovering that 'it' is actually a 'she'. I find a smile on my lips as I dress her in clothing I find in the destroyed house. I collect several sets of clothing, packing them into my pack and salvage something for her to drink. I step out of the house into the warm spring and realize I need to name her. I close my eyes and she moves against my chest, cuddling into my warmth. 'Haru'(1) I think as I hold her close to me, securing her in a makeshift carrier. She is mine now. I move away from the dead village and on to another, settling in an abandoned house near a stream on the outside of the village. I purchase what I need from the village and make our home, Haru and I.

She is not so hard to take care of. I remember how the women took care of the babies in our clan and use all that I can recall to help me as I begin to raise her. She grows, blue-tinted, ebony hair on her tiny head and vibrant jade eyes rimmed with dark, sooty eyelashes, pale, ivory skin and a laugh like a bell. I grow too, into a man, a father. Spring turns to summer, summer to autumn, autumn to winter and back to spring for nearly three years before I am reminded of Konoha once again.

My daughter is the one that forces the memories from me. She asks when she'll become a shinobi like me.

“Otou-san, when will I get to go to the ninja academy?” Her soft voice reaches my ears, like the lullaby of a bird. Memories of my own years spent in the academy come rushing back like a tsunami and I am forced to recall my home. I smile at her and pull her into my lap before answering.

“Haru, we don't live in a ninja town now. There is no ninja academy here.” I say softly as I smooth her long hair back over her small shoulder. Her emerald eyes meet mine curiously. I am not even sure that I want her to become a shinobi. That would mean she may have to give up her life and I can't bear to think it. In the short span of three years, she has become my whole world.

“How will I become a Kunoichi then?” She asks, looking into the obsidian of my eyes. I smile at her.

“You really want to be a shinobi don't you?” I ask, slipping my arms around her tiny form. She nods and holds onto the strands of jet-black hair near my neck. And I make my decision. It is time to go home. I help Haru pack and we leave for Konoha that very day, setting out in the morning. The village we've been staying in isn't really that far away from my home village, but still we need to stop for the night when Haru is nearly falling asleep on her feet.

She cuddles close to me as we sleep in the solitary futon that is included with our hotel room. I hold her close, a tiny hand grasping the sensitive hairs of the nape of my neck. If we are allowed back into Konoha to live, then she will be starting the academy next year in the autumn. I sigh and seal my eyes shut even as they quarrel with my thoughts to remain unmoved. If it is what she wants, then who am I to deny her.

The morning finds us on the move once again with only a few hours until we reach our destination. I can see the gates of Konoha ahead of us as we approach the village and nervousness flutters within my gut. I swallow thickly and hold my daughter's hand as we walk towards the gates. The guards perk up as we make our way to the entrance.

“State your names.” They order curtly. I nod.

“Uchiha Haru and Uchiha Sasuke.” I state clearly and quietly and await their reply. They look at us, then the one with the spiky hair and sunglasses jumps down, half of his face obscured by an over sized sweater.

“Is it really you?” He asks incredulously, regarding me. Recognition dawns on me after another moment. Could this be one of my former comrades?

“Shino.” I say, not really meaning to say the name out loud. He nods, glancing at Haru curiously, but remaining silent. He looks at the other guard, making a signal before the other disappears in a puff of smoke.

I wait and Shino watches us. Haru shifts from foot to foot, fidgeting like children do. I smile slightly as I look at her. She catches me looking and grins back at me. Before long, the other guard returns and orders us to go directly to the Hokage tower. I lead Haru towards the tower and the nervousness I feel increases. We enter the tower and move up the stairs towards the Hokage's office. Tsunade must be in there. I take a deep breath and open the door.

TBC...

(1) Haru means Spring.