Another path

Restless

< Coucou mes chéris, comment ça va ? I hope I don't trigger anyone with all those anxiety/mental disorders I picture in the story. If so, just let me know and I'll try to tune it down. I'm also going to put trigger warnings from now on so you know which parts you might not feel confortable reading and I'll put the list of potential triggers at the beginning of each chapter. However, you need to know I'm not a psychologist (just a neuroscientist and yes that's very different) so I may not always detect when something is sensitive. If you believe I missed something, please tell me so I can correct it. Safety first, ya know ?

With that being said, I hope you enjoyed a merry Christmas for those who celebrate it and happy new year to everyone !
Thanks for reading as always. >
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Triggers : none.
Topic : character introspection.
Warning ⚠️ : mentions of the Uchiha massacre.
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Sasuke was in a bad mood. Yes, some might say it wasn't very different from usual but still. It was different this time. He wasn't pissed off, he was... well, he was worried. About Sakura and Na- Suzuka. Tsunade had forbidden everyone from visiting Sakura as her condition was still critical and Suzuka had disappeared with her team right after the end of the trial. Her attitude had been weird, like she wasn't really there and he could only remember seeing her like this once and that was after she had learned of that night. So he just sat there, somewhat crouching and his chin resting in his right hand as his elbow was supported by his knee.

The Uchiha's attention was caught by a movement to his left. It was Tetsuya who seemed just as worried as he was, if not more. Sasuke internally snorted. How characteristic of the red-head. While it surprising for him to care about anyone, it was to be expected that Tetsuya would worry about anyone he's bonded with. Or anything. Just how social could someone be ? It was impressive how he managed to grow on everyone in the rookie 12 and even on the other shinobi of Konoha. Thankfully, no one had died otherwise the guy would probably have had an attack.

Well, no one had died... yet. There was a risk. A risk that... Sakura didn't make it. After saying so many times that he wished he'd be rid of his old team, Sasuke was now concerned about their safety. It felt like he'd messed up. Something important at that.

" - Sasuke ?

The raven-head gazed up and met blue eyes that he would have mistaken for Naru's if they weren't shadowed by crimson bangs. The color was honestly stunning : it was like that of the sky on sunny mornings, a gradient of azure highlighted by a tinge of turquoise blue. He'd always loved those eyes. They were beautiful. Actually, Tetsuya's eyes were even more gorgeous than Naru's. They were warmer, kinder, softer yet still retained that edge that told him never to go too far. Naru's eyes had been cold and serious if not for the occasional mischief. That's true. Sasuke should have noticed earlier how fake Naru's smiles had been. How she'd always been Suzuka. Someone that had lied through her teeth about who she was and had never trusted her own team. Tetsuya looked like Suzuka, had the same strength, the same pride and the same righteous views yet they were very different. Tetsuya felt human.

The aforementioned young man smiled awkwardly and only then did Sasuke notice that he'd been staring, probably for a long time too. He quickly broke eye contact and got up, trying to hide a very un-Uchiha-like blush.

- Uhm, yeah, what do you want ?

That sounded way less confident than intended. Fuck.

- Are you alright ?

Sasuke whipped around and stared at his teammate like he was insane. Or up to something, he wasn't sure.
Tetsuya sighed as he saw how much Sasuke had risen his guard because of a question.