Sasuke Uchiha and I

Chapter 13 - Sasuke's Choice

Sasuke's P.O.V

I hit her in the head with the rock hard enough to knock her out but soft enough to not make her bleed. She fell lightly into my arms, her blonde hair sweeping onto her face. She had a peaceful expression and her lips were curved upwards in a smile. 

I laid her down in the snow trying not to think too much about the dark red that would soon stain the pure white. I pulled out my kunai knife and let it hover over her heart. She'd die for me. For me. I looked at Winter again and thought how fitting it would be for her to die in the snow, but as I thought it that boy's face fluttered into my head. She had wanted to go back for the boy but I hadn't allowed her. 

If I had allowed her to take the boy, would we be here? Would she be here lying in the snow awaiting my blade? No. She would have run off to protect the boy, but because of my choice, I've brought her here. I've brought her to the point of life and death, a point where no fifteen-year-old girl should have to go through. She's not a ninja, she's just a normal girl.

Shaking my head I lift my kunai over her heart again. This was her choice, I shouldn't let it be in vain. Lifting my hand high, I get ready to plunge it into her heart. I swing my arm down but my kunai freezes over her chest. She made her choice to die for me, I should have a choice. What do I want?

Putting my kunai away I leave her side and look over the edge of the cliff. What do I want? I remember everything that's happened since she got here, everything that impacted me personally. I laughed, I felt pain and I ran. 

I laughed because of her silly side comments, every day I was surprised at how much confidence she had. She didn't cower, she didn't throw herself on her knees in front of me. She treated me as an equal, she gave me space when I needed it. She saw things about me that other people couldn't.

I felt pain because I hated her, I objected to teaching her Japanese and got backhanded because of it. I leaped out on her accidentally and she stabbed me with her poisonous kunai. She winced when I was in pain like she was feeling it too. She had so much empathy inside her that I could never understand how she could murder the people who killed her family. Maybe good people have dark sides too. Do evil people have good sides?

I ran because she was missing. I ran because I asked Orochimaru if I could find her, find the quirky person who shone a light down my dark path. I thought I ran because I didn't want her to kill Orochimaru, but I was wrong. I ran because I needed her. She connected me to a part of myself that I thought I had lost a very long time ago. 

Walking slowly back to Winter I made a choice. I made a choice that could end me. Instead of cutting her heart out and returning it to Orochimaru, I would hide her in my home. A home I had when I needed a place to stay beside the Leaf Village and Orochimaru's hideout. A refuge of solitude, of peace and of serenity. A place where I could be me without anyone finding out. 

Orochimaru doesn't know about it yet, and if I can help it, won't ever know about it. Sliding my hands underneath her cool body, I lift her and hold her against my chest. I'm not ready to let her go just yet, but if she ever annoys me too much or If I ever own up to the fact that this is a really terrible decision, I'll kill her and cut out her heart for real. For the time being, I'll use someone else's heart and Orochimaru will never know the difference.

Holding her close to me, I walk towards where my home is. I thought about how on the way there were two sets of footprints, but now, on the way back there was only one. 

******

After dropping Winter off at my home I found a man in a nearby village and cut out his heart. Trying not to drip any blood I wrapped the heart in my shirt and then covered my shirt with my hands just in case any blood seeped through.