Digital Redemption: Sasuke's Awakening

Ch.001-The Offer

Written by Wolf's Honour

Summary:After nearly killing Naruto at the Valley of the End, Sasuke wonders in the dark in despair. Seeking a way to redeem himself, he meets a mysterious entity that sends him to the Digital World with a Blue Card, telling him "This is your story..." In an unknown dimension so much different from his own, Sasuke will find his destiny intertwined with three young Tamers. Will he succeed or be consumed by his own darkness?

Thank You Note: Thanks for the beta-read Sacrowhunter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Digimon. Naruto is owned and licensed by Masashi Kishimoto, Viz Media, TV Tokyo and Aniplex. Digimon is owned and licensed by Toei Animation and Creative Commons. Please support the official releases.

'* * *'

Sunset...

There was a somewhat surreal feeling from the sun as it fell, the final rays of the day illuminating the outlines of the city.

A city that, like many across the world, was currently under siege. Invaded and ever so slowly being consumed by the giant mass of red that occupied Downtown Shinjuku. Its sole purpose was only to eliminate what it deemed too intelligent to continue to exist. It was sad that a program only meant to eliminate rogue data was now slowly exterminating all of mankind and the digital world.

Sasuke Uchiha stood atop a building, watching the red mass feast. He hid his face from the other Tamers behind him, their digital partners stood at their sides. He knew that if they saw the worry on his face than all they would feel was fear and pain. Some considered him to be calm, even indifferent, in the face of danger. Others thought him arrogant, and they weren't wrong. But he also knew his attitude had given them the courage to continue forward.

Nobody knew that deep down, he actually feared for their lives.

He and his comrades had faced many trials, each one more difficult than the last. But for the first time since his return from the Digital World, Sasuke had a hidden feeling of dread, an absolute fear that they would not be able to overcome this threat.

And so he watched. He watched as the red mass slowly swallowed more of Shinjuku. The gleaming sunset behind it illuminated the sky with a tinge of dark crimson red.

He couldn't help but wonder if this was happening to his home as well. And if so, were his former comrades fighting for their very lives in the face of extermination, defiantly trying to halt this catastrophe from consuming anymore of their homeland? The very thoughts only served to make his dread and doubt grow deeper.

He felt a tug on his jacket; the Uchiha looked down to his right, seeing his partner's determined eyes. He could feel the defiance and power coming from his digital partner and slowly he felt his own doubts begin to lower. Ironic how digimon got their strength from their Tamer's emotions and here he was getting a boost from his own digimon.

Petting his partner's head, Sasuke found himself able to form a rather small smile.

"Listen to my story..."

He felt the other Tamers turn their gaze at him when he spoke and met their gaze with his own.

"This... may be our last chance..."

'* * *'

Digital Redemption: Sasuke's Awakening

'* * *'

The Valley of the End, a river valley that lies near the border of the Land of Fire and next to the Land of Sound. Some in the Land of Fire simply knew it by the name of the Final Valley, a valley with no real significance or purpose, formed over the years in the civil wars and before the ninja system was established. To others, especially those in Konohagakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, it was a memorial. A site of a terrible and brutal battle between the founders of their great and mighty village and the battle had twisted the landscape so thoroughly that in the aftermath a valley had been created.

Some decades later, sculptors hired by Konoha's Sandaime Hokage, had created statues of the two founders of the village, in honor of them both and of the battle that had been fought there. After they had completed their work, the Sandaime named the site the Valley of the End, to signify the end of an era and the beginnings of a new one.

Yet, like all people know, regardless of the outcome, in the end...

"Chidori!"

"Rasengan!"

History always found a way to repeat itself.

As the two signature jutsu of Sasuke and Naruto collided, streams of blue and red chakra circled around them, forming a condensed purple ball of chakra that enveloped them. Within the ball, the Uchiha saw an opening, lifting his free right hand before stabbing it into Naruto's chest. Wincing from the sudden pain, Naruto released his Rasengan before using his clawed right hand to slash the center of the Konoha headband that Sasuke wore.

The ball of purple chakra began to expand as it turned black, pushing against the lower carved stone of the statues, causing them to crumble as the waterfall between them fell heavily on the ball. The water was repelled as a white light slowly glowed from with the ball of chakra, continuing to grow until it engulfed the entirety of the condensed chakra and exploded in a mass ray of light.

As the light died down, the form of Sasuke Uchiha could be found standing over the unconscious form of Naruto Uzumaki, his wound bleeding badly and not showing signs of recovering.

"Naruto…" Sasuke said quietly to himself as he stared down at his opponent.

"I'm… I am..." However before he could continue he felt a drop on his face and looked up to find the sky opening up into a downpour.

'What have I done...? Was this really worth it all? A vendetta that claims the lives of my comrades... isn't worth anything at-'

Sasuke's train of thought was halted as an irrevocably powerful pain struck his left shoulder. He grabbed it out of reflex before he collapsed to his knees in pain, coughing up a small amount of blood. Sasuke stayed there for a moment, digesting the aftermath of what had transpired here before getting up off the ground and slowly walking away through the surrounding forest into the darkness. He looked back only once before turning away from the life he once knew and wondered further in to the darkness.

Inside his mind, he felt his desire for vengeance fade, slipping further and further away from him with each step he took. The only things on his mind were Naruto and the others that had come after him and what they had gone through to try to save him... only to fail. He tried to grasp the burning flame he had mustered for killing his brother but even that slipped away from him. He looked up to the sky and suddenly felt nothing. He had nothing left to him . . . and now he even felt like giving up on Orochimaru.

He finally stopped mid stride in the middle of the dark forest and once again fell to his knees, a lone tear falling from his eye before he lost consciousness, only four words escaping his lips.

"What . . . have I done?"

'* * *'

Sasuke opened his eyes and felt himself lying on the ground, the grass underneath his cheek startled him because he clearly recalled hitting the dirt of the forest floor before passing out. He sat up and scanned the area, noticing no trees at all. There was only darkness for miles.

He stood up and attempted to activate his Kekkei Genkai, the infamous Sharingan, to see if this was a genjutsu but found himself unable to do so. "What the heck? Where am I?"

"A plane that is not familiar to you, yet you know it best of all . . . "

Hearing this strange voice ring throughout his head, Sasuke instinctively went for his kunai but found that his holster was gone, along with all his shinobi gear. Growling the Uchiha glared around himself trying to find the unknown voice. "Who are you and where are my weapons?"

"You will not need them . . . I simply wish to talk."

Sasuke snarled. "I'm not in a talking mood right. How about you show yourself and tell me where the heck I am!"

"Do you seek redemption for what you have done?"

Sasuke arched an eyebrow as he tried to find the origin of the voice but to no avail. "What do you mean?"

"Do you seek redemption for the pain you brought onto your fellow comrades . . . and for nearly killing your only friend?"

Sasuke's glare disappeared as he found himself at a loss. "How do you know about what I've done?"

"You were betrayed by your closest relative at a young age and manipulated into surrendering to your hate and anger. In turn it made you not only stronger but weak as well. You failed to trust yourself or your comrades, and eventually even turned on them. Now you reside in the darkness, filled with regrets and completely alone."

Sasuke felt every word the voice spoke hit him in his heart. He did not say anything because what the voice said was true. He was alone now and had no idea how to make up for what he'd done. ". . . Why are you saying this?"

"I am offering you another path . . . a path which will grant your deepest wish."

"My deepest wish?" Sasuke echoed, looking up into the black sky. "What do you mean?"

"There is another realm similar to this one, yet entirely different all the same. It will soon bear witness to immense tragedy and pain, things that will eventually lead to its destruction."

"Another realm?" As Sasuke said that, a blue light began to shine on the opposite side of the grass field. Sasuke covered his eyes before he stared into it, feeling something warm and embracing coming from it.

"You have a grand power. A power that lies dormant inside of you . . . a power that can save both your world and others from the coming disaster. Should you accept my proposal, go to the blue light in front of you and you shall begin your journey . . ."

Another light began to shine behind him, this one cold and dark. It felt reminiscent to the feeling of hatred and anger he held for his brother.

"If you do not wish to redeem yourself and continue on your path of vengeance, go to the light behind you. You will forget everything that has transpired here and will never hear from me again. The choice is yours to make, Uchiha Sasuke."

At first Sasuke began making his way for the light behind him. He thought that by doing so he wouldn't get dragged into whatever chaos the voice was trying to lead him into. He thought by doing so he would be able to re-ignite the burning hatred he had for his brother, Uchiha Itachi.

Yet, just as he was about to grasp the light only two inches in front of him, he hesitated.

Was that what he really wanted? Was that his deepest desire? To kill and only bring more hatred into his world? It was where he belonged . . . it was his home. He had sworn himself to the life of an Avenger. His vendetta was his reason for living . . .

Or was it?

Slowly, he looked over his shoulder to the blue light that was a hundred yards away from him. Even though he was at the opposite edge of the grass field he could still feel the radiant warmth coming from the light.

It was like how the sun felt, no matter how far away it really was the warmth was still there.

If he did take the voice's offer, he'd be involved in affairs that did not involve him in the slightest. He would have no idea where he was or what he was getting himself into; for all he knew he could end up on a world filled with talking monsters that battled each other for a living like Naruto had said one night during a mission.

At odds with himself, Sasuke sighed and looked up to the black sky again with the same scowling expression he was known for. "Just tell me one thing . . . if I accept your offer . . . if I go to this dimension . . . will I ever be able to return to my own?"

"That is something only time can tell you, Sasuke."

'Well that was extremely helpful.'Sighing deeply, Sasuke turned to the light inches away from him once more before pulling his hand back much to his brain's mental protest. He pivoted on his heel and began to walk toward the blue light.

'I'm not turning away . . .'

The Uchiha found himself standing in front of the light a couple moments later and he reached out for it with his right hand, grasping the light. A strong wind enveloped Sasuke and within seconds the gust died down just as quickly as it had come.

"This is it . . ."

The Uchiha found that he was holding a glowing, metallic looking blue card with a yellow D in the center with a pixilated dinosaur coming out of it. "Just what the heck is this thing?" Sasuke asked as he inspected the card.

"This is your story . . ."

Before he could even bother to ask what the voice meant by that vague statement, the card began to glow brightly once more in his hand, enveloping Sasuke in a flash of light. "What now?" he yelled out before he felt himself fade away into the light. Just as he faded, Sasuke heard the voice speak, sounding more like a whisper than anything else.

"Your chance at redemption begins here, Uchiha Sasuke."

'* * *'

As Kakashi and Pakkun were about to leave with Naruto back to Konoha, the jounin turned around and looked up to see a large flash of light glow from the opposite forest leading to the Land of Sound's Otogakure no Sato. His eye widened when a pillar of light shot up into the sky and then disappeared in the heavens.

Pakkun stared into the sky like his life had just flashed before his eyes. "What in Kami's name was that?"

Kakashi continued to stare in the direction of the pillar of light, blinking his only visibly eye twice. He looked over his shoulder at the injured genin on his back and then shrugged in indifference. "...Nothing we should worry about. Let's go Pakkun."

"You don't think that Sasuke was in that light . . . do you?"

Kakashi looked over his shoulder, staring at the source of the light for a brief moment before turning away for Konoha. "If it was, then I'm sure he just got lost on the road of life."

'* * *'

Author's Note: Over the course of the last year, I've been going through struggles that have tested not only my sanity but my ability to keep moving forward as a writer and as a human being. I will not go into detail regarding the events that transpired during my many struggles. I will, however, shed light on why this story and my other stories have not received the attention that you all longed for. I have been in a great debate with my innermost thoughts over whether or not I should continue to write anything at all. I felt that my abilities as a writer fell short and as such, I should pursue a path which provided more opportunities to me as a man. I made that choice and realize how depressed I had become as a result.

I had institutionalized myself and surrounded myself with barriers and evils which corrupted and broke down my spirit of creativity and independence. Realizing what I have learned to be truth and self-evident, I have cut off that which has been slowly killing my spirit and myself as a man, breaking my shackles and freeing myself from the institution that would see me become a salary slave and now pursue a life that I have always wanted and will have.

You have all been waiting for this. And so, like Transcending Bonds, I shall be re-publishing Digital Redemption: Sasuke's Awakening from here. New chapters shall be posted once every two weeks or sooner. This has also come in with my notice that Digimon Adventures is coming out in OVA and the nostalgia has hit me so hard I had to continue.

They are coming back.

Sasuke and Gaomon.

At long last...

The Promise has been made.

(***)

Wolf's Honour