Chapter 6: Sasuke's return?

The play ended at long last, and long it really had been, lasting for almost three hours. Merry-making had followed, the younger ones of the 'actors' dancing in the middle of the room turned into an instant dance floor by clearing out some tables, while the older ones went around politely accepting the comments and compliments of the villagers, once in awhile also receiving small favors which came in the form of money or food. Sasuke was one of the latter, with the two genins about to approach him, before the children began to once again crowd around him. They pulled him towards the 'dance floor' and, much to his teammates' surprise, he allowed them to, laughing the entire way. Laughing! It felt so strange to hear Sasuke laugh. If they didn't know better, they would have thought they had the wrong person. But how can they both mistake the same person as their lost comrade?

"Ok, ok, stop pulling already! We have the entire night. I'll dance with all of you, alright?" he asked the children with a soft smile gracing his handsome features. The small ones around him gave sounds of delighted agreement and he quickly took the smallest girl by the hand. "I'll start with little Miri here then," he said and began 'dancing' with the girl, spinning her and with her on the floor. Out of their actors' garbs, which had been, in actuality, made only of colorful paper, both children were dressed in little more than rags but they had twin expressions of innocent bliss on their faces that for everyone else the sight of them was near majestic.

"Naruto, tell me you also see what I'm seeing right now?" Sakura shakily asked the blonde, slightly breathless. Was it really him? Sasuke, silent, stoic Sasuke whose only known expressions were that of a smirk and a frown, was he really this young man dancing with a three-year old child and looking, for everyone to see, without a care in the world? "That is Sasuke, right?"

"I think so, Sakura-chan," Naruto answered, sounding a tad bit skeptical in spite of himself. As Sasuke's eternal rival and a boy, he wasn't as smitten by the display, but he was just as puzzled. Sasuke was definitely acting...strange, not at all like himself. What was he doing and why was he doing this? He had half the mind to march there now and beat the truth out of his black-haired teammate, as well as his sudden oddness, but the sight of Sasuke taking another child's hands into his larger ones kept him in his seat.

With apparently all ramen in the kitchens eaten and all laughter spent, the customers finally began to leave. With an unspoken agreement, Sakura and Naruto both decided to confront their teammate once everyone else was gone and stayed behind, trying not to draw attention. Sasuke continued to dance, almost through with all his dance partners. The waitresses and the actors began to clear up the tables. Neither genin noticed the girl who had waited on them earlier approach their table.

"Excuse me, but I have to clean this table. Will you please move to another one?" she asked the two, who both jumped at the sudden voice.

"Oh. Um, don't mind us. You can clean the table with us here," Sakura answered the older girl with a smile. The waitress didn't say anything and just looked at them. Sakura finally consented and stood up, motioning to Naruto.

Following his teammate's lead, Naruto realized they were heading for the clean table right in front of Sasuke's little performance. Not that he overly-minded. Though a bit disturbing, it was amusing to watch his black-haired rival dance with little children and he wanted to see it close-up- the more details he could have then to annoy Sasuke with later. He just hoped the Uchiha wouldn't spot them at once and stop.

Children's laughter. "Oniichan's going to do it again!" one of them exclaimed.

"Hey, be careful!" the young man who had played 'villain' in the play shouted.

Amazed, Naruto watched as Sasuke climbed up the wooden table he and Sakura were heading for. He just stood on top of it, looking up at the exposed beams of the ceiling. Naruto wondered what in the world was his teammate planning to do. Something stupid, he answered himself. But even with that, he was still caught off his guard when Sasuke suddenly launched himself from the table towards the beams, grabbed the side of one and pulled himself up onto it. And then...began to walk the length of it while juggling what looked like origami kunais.

What the..?

The children laughed in delight, clapping their hands. Sasuke himself laughed, even as he missed one of the 'kunais' and it floated down slowly to the group of kids as if it was made of feathers instead of paper. Or maybe it was because Naruto felt as if he saw everything in slow motion.

The rest of the tavern's personnel had stopped whatever they were doing to watch the black-haired young man and his little act reminiscent of juggling on tightrope. All except one, their waitress, who still cleared their table.

"I really wish he wouldn't do that!" they heard her vaguely say.

Done with her duties, the girl held the empty bowls- quite a few, courtesy of Naruto- in front of her and stood beside the two shinobis, both of which had been both startled into silence. Like everyone else, she looked up to where Sasuke did cartwheels on the beam.

"You should have done that when there were people here to watch you, you know!" one shouted up at him.

On his feet, Sasuke placed his hands on his hips and leaned forward slightly to look at the person. "They wouldn't like a solo act!" he called down, laughing, "Maybe if you join me up here, Kira-niisan...but you'd have to learn how to get up here first!"

Most everyone else laughed, except the two genins and the waitress. No one else noticed it, but Naruto did. A pained look flickered across Sasuke's face for one moment and then one of his hands came up to clutch at his head. He staggered a little and then...

Sakura screamed.

The sound of breaking glass overpowered the laughter as the waitress behind him dropped the bowls.

Naruto's body moved even before his brain could register what was happening.

...Sasuke was falling.

-oOoOoOo-

"He just passed out," Sakura told the worried faces around them as she checked his pulse. A strange sound from Naruto reminded her that Sasuke was still lying over the blonde, and she held her black-haired teammate as the other slipped out from beneath the unconscious boy. She watched as Naruto got to his feet and stretched, relieved when she saw that he didn't seem to have broken anything.

"Is he okay?"

She nodded, repeating what she had said but seconds ago, and added, "Nice save, Naruto!"

"Heh. I tell you he's no-"

"Are you sure he's alright?" a near-frantic voice asked, cutting the blonde's statement off. It was no other than the waitress. The young girl kneeled down next to Sakura and Sasuke's prone form, brushing the hair from in front of Sasuke's closed eyes. She was maybe three or four years their senior. "He had a slight fever this afternoon! He shouldn't have been doing that- he shouldn't even have been in the play at all!"

More than one face registered surprise. It seemed as if the fact he had been sick was kept from most of the group. Quite a few of the children looked close to tears and Miri was already crying. They started to crowd around Sasuke again.

"Out of the way now, Mama is coming!" the 'villain' actor told the children and they immediately pulled back. The girl kept to her place though.

"Oh dear..." the woman who had talked on-stage before the play couldn't help but say as soon as she caught sight of Sasuke's pale face. She grabbed the waitress' arms, pulled her to her feet, and then gave brief instructions on preparing a place for Sasuke. The girl looked torn, as if she'd give anything to stay where she was, but with one last look immediately moved to do as she was bid. "I'll take him now, dear, thank you," the woman kindly told Sakura as surprisingly strong arms took Sasuke and carried him off the floor.

"Mama, I can carry-"

"It's fine, Athrun," she reassured the 'villain' actor as she walked past. They headed for the back of the large room. Naruto moved to stand behind Sakura who remained seated on the floor and grabbed the girl's arms. He gently pulled her to a stand.

"Come on. Let's follow them."

-oOoOoOo-

It was...cold. He couldn't feel it for some reason, but he knew the waters were cold. There was a sense of familiarity to it, but he couldn't remember ever being washed away like this, rushing to nowhere. But then again, he reflected, he couldn't remember much anyway.

His head went under. He couldn't breathe and his chest tightened but still he couldn't feel the pain. He didn't have the time to think this over however, before he lost consciousness and everything went black.

He blinked. There was...there was light. A blurry figure loomed over him and he was aware of green things surrounding them...trees?

"Hey, are you awake already?" the figure above him asked. It was a male's voice.

"Where...am I..?" he groaned out, finding it hard to speak.

"In Mama's room. Are you okay?"

He groaned in reply. His head felt like it was being split apart- from the inside.

"Okay, wrong question."

"We're not in…the tavern. We're in a forest. Who…are you?"

"It's me, Kira," the man said. He could almost hear the frown in the other's voice. A second equally blurry figure came into his line of sight. "I think he's a bit delirious, Athrun…"

"No, just not fully awake. Hey, wake up…"

"But I'm awake," he mumbled tiredly before falling back asleep.

-end of chapter 6-

Disclaimers: SDA. I'm lazy, I know.

Author's Notes:

1. As usual, I'm sorry for the long delay. And I think the next chapter would take even longer than this. Gomen, gomen. I have my thesis and tons of other school projects on various subjects to work on. Not to mention the exams are coming up...I really have to get serious if I want to graduate with satisfactory grades!

2. Speaking of projects, I'd like to ask your help for one of them wherein we have to get other people's opinions about us. In this case, I suppose, the readers' opinions on me as a writer. A line or two would be great. You can place them with the review or e-mail me at Arigatou!

3. Now, for a proper note...Well, there's really nothing much to say about this chapter. It's pretty straightforward except, perhaps, the last part. It's in Sasuke's POV. The first part was a dream, the latter was an amalgamation of reality and dream. He was dreaming of the time he got washed downstream and ashore where Kira and Athrun found him.

4. The tavern folk are all my original characters, although the names Kira, Athrun, and Miri come from the anime Gundam Seed. Humor me. I love this series.

5. Shameless plugging (really shameless): Please check out my other Naruto fic, Aiko High School. It's no-quick-update and there are only two chapters as of yet but nonetheless please check it out if you have the time.