Recollection

Chapter Four: Frost

Thanks for reading :) You guys are the coolest! I uploaded this way earlier than I thought I would because my teacher has been gone for a few days and our papers have been delayed :D yayyyy!! Lol but anyways the SasuSaku sorta starts in this chapter and will be in the story from here on out. I'm also starting to watch Code:Breaker so maybe there's a slight possibility of a fanfic for that in the future??? Never know. . . Also oh my god the last Naruto chapter, 652, was awesome! Wish the next chapter was uploaded already :/
But I'll stop now so you guys can read. Follow, vote, comment please!! Also check out my other story Irrelevant! I don't own Naruto either lol thanks, again!
~Kei-chan 🎀💋








Chapter Four
Frost

It was so cold. My fingers were frozen even with my gloves on. I tried to snuggle my way deeper into my fluffy jacket, but it was no more warm than it was outside.
We were in the shuttle bus, the last transit before we reached the actual Land of Winter, huddled up against the heater at the back end of it. We were the only people on here and there's no wonder why. It has taken us a total of three days, including today, to just reach the bus and the driver said it would be at least a two hour ride still.
The Land of Winter was cozily nestled in between the mountain tops on the outskirts of the Water villages. It consists of a hub of medical professions, several of the villagers are actually well know doctors, and bakers oddly enough. They're know especially for their freshly made breads. My dad brought me home some one time, banana nut bread, and it was amazing. Maybe I should bring some home for him this time, I thought.
"Look at that," Naruto commented, pointing out of the window.
There setting back off of the road was a Sakura tree, shining bright pink in the blinding white snow covered banks.
"How beautiful," Sai commented."And odd."
"I didn't think they even grew here," Kakashi mentioned.
"They don't,"The bus driver replied."That one was planted here in remembrance of our departed queen; Mai-Marie."
"How does it stay bloomed?" Kakashi asked.
"There is a ventilation system built around it. It was specially made by the Sand for us," He explained."It was their form of a gift for our loss."
"What happened to her?"Sasuke asked, buttoning his last button on his jacket.
"She suddenly fell ill and died within weeks,"He stated."Not a one of our doctors could figure it out."
"Wow,"I muttered, staring out of the back window at the tree."That's crazy."
"I bet you could of figured it out," Naruto said."You figured out everything that happened to Garra and his brother when nobody else could."
"Yeah, but that was something simple," I added."Everyone's illness is different."
"But you would of healed her," Naruto leaned his head over the seat to look at me."I know you could, believe it!"
I laughed,"It's been a long time since I've heard you say that."
"Yeah well it was needed this time," He laughed.
"We are almost there," The driver announced. "If you would like you can see the city's Reflection Lake out of the window. It's sort of our local monument."
Sai slid over into Naruto's seat to look out the window with him, Kakashi just glanced out of the corner of his eye then Sasuke slid in next to me. It was weird having him so close I could feel his body heat radiating off on me and smell his minty scent. It was nice, I liked it.
"Awesome!"Naruto exclaimed.
I looked out of the window at the sight ahead of me. It was beautiful. The lake was frozen and reflected everything that surrounded it, including the sky. The trees, bushes, and stars all were perfectly regenerated in the ice. The moon beamed down on it, illuminating the frozen masterpiece.
"Guess that's where the name comes from,"Kakashi laughed.
"Ya don't say," I said, under my breath."It is beautiful, though."
"Very,"Sasuke agreed, his breath heating my cheek.
I glanced at him and realized how close he was to me. He didn't pay any attention to me staring at him, he just kept staring quietly out of the window with a dull look on his flawless face. His face was really flawless, too. There wasn't a single blemish upon his pale skin. Lucky, I thought. I wish I could have perfect skin like that. He was so pretty. I want to feel if his skin is really as smooth as it looks.
Sasuke's eyes quickly averted from the window to me. His dark eyes seemed to naw away at my heart, making all the blood rush so the surface. I was blushing like mad woman.
And then Sasuke gave me a smirk. That same sly smirk he is use to give people when he was younger. It made my heart beat and all of the memories of my childhood rushing back through my mind. It made me want to love him again.
"We have arrived at your depot station,"The driver explained."From here, a guide will meet you inside the station an take you down on the chairlifts into the heart of the city. Thank you for choosing the Winter Way Transit and I hope you enjoy your stay."
"Thanks, man,"Naruto waved, as we gathered our things and made our way off the warm bus."Be careful on the way back."
"Haha," The man chuckled lightly."Be careful on the way there."
With a final wave goodbye, he was off leaving us by ourselves at a small cabin like station in front of us.
The road was icy and slippery as we trailed across it, Naruto falling into Kakashi a few times. I shivered as the wind ripped through me and I noticed Sasuke even gave a shiver as well. I think I need to invest in some leggings to wear underneath my pants, I thought grimacing. I don't think I can withstand this cold any longer.
"Why hello there!"A cheerfully jolly man said as we entered the toasty cabin."What can I do you for-Oh, wait you're the ninjas from Konoha! Hahaha! You'll have to excuse my forgetfulness, age has not been kind to this old man."
"That's fine, sir,"Kakashi laughed along with him.
"Let's just get you guys down to the welcome center, shall we?"He grabbed his big belly as he walked towards the sliding glass doors at the back of the cabin."Right this way lady and gentlemen."
"Thank you,"I nodded, as he allowed me to exit first.
There was a long, thick cable stretching from double post all the way down a giant mountain. You could see a curb at the end of the first strip then another set of cables vanished between the trees.
"It's two riders per chair and your bags can fit in the compartment on the back,"The man said hauling the restraints on one of the chairs up."Now it's about a ten minute ride down the mountain so make sure your good and covered. Any questions?"
"What time is it?"Naruto asked, looking to the sky trying to tell by the stars.
"It's about 9 o'clock,"He unlocked the compartment."Who's riding down with me?"
"You're just going to leave the station unguarded?" Sai questioned.
"No, there's another guard in the bathroom,"He laughed.
"I'll ride with you," Kakashi stated."I want to learn more about the town anyways."
"Alright so who's going first?"
"I will,"Naruto stepped up, throwing his bag in the compartment."If anyone's gonna see this city first it's gonna be me."
"I am interested in seeing in first as well," Sai said, putting his bag in as well.
"So that puts Sasuke and Sakura together,"Kakashi said."Alright I think we're ready."
"Boys you're up first," The man said, smacking the back of the chair.
Naruto and Sai settled into the seat then clamped the safety guard down. Sai pulled his hood up and Naruto zipped his thick orange and black sweater coat.
"No rocking the seat, no goofy off, and no throwing things off the sides,"The man instructed.
They nodded.
"Okay, here we go," He gave a hardy laugh then pressed the relief button on the panel, sending Sai and Naruto into motion."Next."
Sasuke and I put our things into the grey compartment then found our seats in the lift. We were pressed together closely, making me wonder how in the world Kakashi and that man were going to fit in the same seat.
Once we were off the departure ramp I was grateful for his warmth. The wind was blowing gently, but wickedly. I shrunk down in the seat trying to block the freezing air and Sasuke noticed.
"What are you doing?" He asked, staring at me as I was now completely sunk down beside of him.
"I'm cold,"I admitted."The wind is freezing."
"Hn," He looked away, staring at the stars.
I wasn't expecting him to put his arm around me or anything, but I was expecting him to scold me for not wearing a thicker coat. Instead he just looked away and then did the strangest thing: he turned his hands over and formed a small blue fire in the palms of them.
"It won't warm your entire body up, but it helps," He mumbled."Put your hands in it."
"In the fire?" I raised my eyebrow. "Won't it burn?"
"No, it's just the blue of the flame, it doesn't burn skin, just gives off heat," He ushered his hands toward me.
Okay, I thought. I'm desperate so I'll do it. Slowly I put my hands into his flames. It was warm, like a log fire. He was right, too, it did help.
"Frost is a bitch,"Sasuke mentioned."That's why I try to avoid the cold as much as possible."
I laughed at how unusually casual he was being.
"The flame does burn out quickly, though," Sasuke pointed out as the flame began to dull."I can't do it again for at least twenty minutes."
"Well, thank you anyways," I smiled."It was nice while it lasted."
"Sakura, can I ask you something personal?" He asked, quietly glancing away from our hands, mine still hovering over his.
"Sure,"I smiled."What is it?"
"How exactly did your mother die?"
The question startled me at first an I didn't know if I wanted to answer it after all. Talking about it would just bring back now painful memories.
"Umm,"I started out, biting my lip.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," He touched his palm against mine, his actions taking me by surprise and leaving me in a shock without words."I understand how painful it is."
It took me a moment to compose myself, but then my mouth just started to move without my control..
"In the war,"I pressed my palm against his."There was a big explosion in this building. It was the very beginning of the war and mom was there on a Mother's Alliance meeting. She was killed instantly from the impact along with several . . . Others,"I was beginning to form tears that instantly wanted to freeze from the temperature."She protected Ino's mother from the blast by throwing a table over her, but in the process she was taken out. It was painless,"I laughed darkly."So I guess that should be a good thing that came out of it."
"Do you miss her?" He asked, twining his fingers through mine.
"More than anything," I whispered."She was my best friend, we did verging together."
"I'm very sorry, Sakura," Sasuke calmly stated."But it can only go up from here."
"Yeah,"I laughed, sucking back my emotions."Let's all hope so for my dad's sake."
"It will, trust me," Sasuke layed our hands against the bar."You know how I know? Because he has you, he's not alone in this, and you would never leave him alone. You're a good person and I abused that-"
"Hey, teme,"Naruto's loud voice startled us both as he yelled from a few feet below us."Why are you holding her hand, you sly dog?"
"Shut up,"I told him, unwillingly letting go of Sasuke's warm calloused hand.
"Hn," Sasuke muttered, unlocking the chair lift as we came around the bend.
We both got off and quickly unloaded our bags just as Kakashi's chair came down.
"Well, I hope you all have a wonderful stay in our nice little city and be careful now." The man waved to us as he went back up the other side of the cable.
"He was an oddly happy man,"Kakashi commented.
"That reminds me," Sai said."What was his name?"
"He said they call him Jolly." Kakashi laughed.
"Welcome to the Land of Winter's capital!" A woman's voice came from behind us.
We turned to see who it was. She was a young blonde woman with a blood red scarf wrapped so tight around her neck it was a wonder how she could breath. She was tall and thin, if the wind blowed she'd fly away with it, with fur boots up to her knees. Her eyes were a bright purple color distracting you from her pointy hawk like nose. She wasn't ugly, though.
"My name is Bukio,"She smiled."I am your official royal welcome to Snow City. Now follow me this way to your temporary residence."
"How nice," Sai said, following behind her.
"Is he always like that?" Sasuke asked.
"What? Weird?" Naruto laughed."Hell yeah he is, better get use to it."
We were escorted by Bukio through the busy streets of the city. It was lit up with life and smelled of hot chocolate. It was actually really nice. People were laughing and some were throwing snowballs at each other in the park we walked by. It was strange to see so many smiling faces in a place where something so tragic was happening. The city's buildings were all mainly wooden with a few brick buildings here and there. Several pine trees and Juniper bushes adorned the sidewalks. It was all together a gorgeous little winter city.
Our 'temporary residents' was actually a vey expensive town house adorned with little silver lights referred to as Christmas lights. It was huge with a large glass door for the entrance. The inside was nice and warm with an inviting atmosphere. The furniture was all hand crafted with fluffy cushions added to certain items and the fireplace was made out of grey stones going all the way up the ceiling between two banisters.
"There is any and every thing you could possibly need here," Bukio informed. "From food down to a laundry room, the only downfall is there's only one bathroom. Sorry for the inconvenience, but there's only one bathroom allowed per household because of freezing and busting pipes, ya know the usual when it comes to winter temperatures."
"That's fine," Kakashi smiled."We're just grateful for the warmth."
"I'm sorry, the colds always a bit much for others to get use to," She laughed. "Just give it a little time and it'll become just like normal for you."
"I hope you're right,"Naruto yawned.
"Be ready by no later than 9 in the morning," She said, walking towards the door."The Police Chief will be by in the morning to give you an overview of the case as well as a work schedule for Miss Haruno. Have a goodnight and I will see you again soon."
"Thanks and you, too." I told her as she made her way out of the door.
"Well, I'm going to find the kitchen and make some ramen,"Naruto said, throwing his bag on the couch."You guys want any?"
"This time I actually would," Kakashi followed behind him.
"I'm going to find a room then shower," Sai disappeared upstairs.
"I'm going to put my things away," I said and Sasuke just followed me up the stairs.
The oak doors had names on them designating who's was which. Sasuke and Naruto shared a room and so did Sai and Kakashi. I had my own room next to Sasuke's room with a pretty canopy bed adorned with a giant white comforter and a multitude of pillows. It was absolutely gorgeous. The window overlooked the park along with the window seat nestle between two book shelves stocked full. There was a small vanity and an elegant wardrobe on the other wall.
"Hey," Sasuke knocked on my door."Can I come in?"
"Yeah," I answered, as I hung my last sweater up in the wardrobe."What's up?"
"About earlier, on the chair lifts, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable," He scratched the back of his head."I'm not very good at apologies, it's something I'm still working on."
"You make me uncomfortable?" I laughed, jokingly. "Are you serious?"
"You just acted like I did when you were in an extremely fast manner to get off the chair lifts."
"I thought you were uncomfortable, silly. That's why I was in a hurry," I smiled."If it were up to me I could hold your hand everyday of the week." I had blurted it out before I had time to register it with my brain."I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?" He was directly behind me, his chest touched my back.
"F-for making you uncomfortable," I whispered, leaning back on him.
"You?"He scoffed."Make me uncomfortable? Never."
His arms came around me then, wrapping lightly around my waist. I could feel my heart in my throat and I thought I would pass out. Is this really happening, I thought as he layed his chin on my shoulder. Is this real?
"Sakkuurraaa-channn!!" Naruto bellered from below.
I sighed, as Sasuke's arms disappeared and he stepped away from me. I could hear Naruto stomping up the stairs and sure enough in no time he was standing at my doorway.
"What, Naruto?" I grumbled.
"Did I interrupt something?" His eyebrows wagged.
"What do you want?" I asked.
"Did you see the huge television!?" He exclaimed."It comes up out of the floor."
"Cool," I commented, stashing my bag under the bed. "Does anything actually come in down here?"
"The movie channel does, but that's all I've checked so far," He pondered. "I hope the comedy channel comes in or this mission is gonna be boring as hell."
He walked back out of the room griping about not being able to watch his show and something about it being his bed time. It was quiet for a moment between Sasuke and I as I had my back turned to him.
Looking back over my shoulder, I saw him watching me.
"What?" I asked, smiling.
"Nothing," He mumbled, running his hand through his hair. "You just look pretty."
"Really?" I said, noticing how scuffed up my boots were and how shabby my jacket looked from the wind. "Are you seeing something I'm not?"
"I don't know if you've noticed or not but I don't like pretty frilly girls," He had somehow quickly made his way right up behind me again. "I like tough girls who can handle themselves and aren't afraid of getting dirty."
I was silent and furiously blushing. My brain took its own slow time to register how close he was and by the time I realized it, he was already gone.
"Sleep good, Sakura," He told me from the doorway.
"You, too . . . Sasuke-kun." I whispered.
What's happening? I asked myself. I'm I going insane or are these things really happening? And why did I just talk to him about my mom like it meant nothing? Like I could talk to him about anything. . .
I took a deep breath and settled on thinking it over after a long nights sleep. Tiredly I slipped on a pair of sweats and a tee shirt. I found my way to the too comfortable bed and let sleep find its way to me.
Maybe tomorrow will make more sense, I thought. But all I know is this frost is a bitch.