𝑾𝑯𝑬𝑵 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑾𝑰𝑵𝑫 𝑩𝑳𝑶𝑾𝑺 •𝒃𝒙𝒃•

The things we never had

After that, the days went by and everything was like a blur to Akashi. The month passed by and no words came from the Nine-Tails. There was no mocking tone, no promise of pain and death. Just... silence. It made things more peaceful inside Akashi's head, he had no need to worry about getting used again, no worries about him being made to kill someone.

Naruto spent time with Jiraiya, learning some 'secret technique' as he liked to call it, and Akashi wasted time in the library, further honing his skills as a medic and as a sensor. Naruto spent 70% of his time with Jiraiya, the other 30% being used to sleep and eat, and Akashi spent 70% of his time in the library, the other 30% the same as Naruto.

He found a dusty old book about sensors, which was buried deep under the other, newer ones. It was written during the reign of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, and it contained old ways of mastering one's sensory powers. It explained it in a much more detailed way than the other books Akashi read, and it helped him master his sensing even more.

He was confident enough to say he could probably find someone who was a mile away, but he needed to completely focus on doing that task. He also found some books which explained things about Nature Transformations, the five main elements. Fire, Water, Earth, Lightning and Wind. If a person's element is Fire, he can use Fire Techniques on a much higher level.

He needed to discuss this with Kakashi, because Akashi didn't know his element. The only reason he used the Wind Release: Air Current Wild Dance, was because he could blind his enemies and sense them with his sensory abilities.

He had wished to visit Sasuke, but once he got to the hospital, he was gone, and no one knew where he was. He also couldn't find Kakashi, no matter how much he searched for his Chakra, he wasn't in the village. That seemed suspicious to him, the fact that both of them were missing before the final exams, but he shook it off.

And so came the day of the final exam. Akashi hadn't seen Naruto in the morning, for once, he woke up later than the blond, or Naruto just got up too early to begin with. After making himself a small breakfast and eating it, he left his apartment, planning to waste some time before the matches begin. His plan to do nothing was interrupted when a masked Anbu appeared in front of him.

"Do you need something?" He asked, already knowing he won't like the answer he's going to get. The Anbu said nothing except a quiet 'follow me'. Sighing, Akashi quietly trailed after him. Not surprisingly, he was led to the Hokage Tower and straight to the Hokage's Office. The Anbu opened up the door and left without another word. "Thank you!" Akashi yelled after him, not receiving a response in return.

Nonchalantly walking in, he shook his head in disappointment. "Those Anbu of yours have no manners". The Hokage laughed, amused, before he stood up. "You seem to be feeling better?" Sarutobi asked, briefly taken aback at Akashi's behavior. The last time they really spoke, they ended their conversation on bad terms, but now, the boy looked like a huge burden was taken off his shoulders.

"I'm feeling peachy". Akashi looked around and stuffed his hands in his pockets. Whistling, he glanced back at the Hokage. "Your Anbu are not here, what, you wanna talk about something?" Sarutobi's expression hardened, in turn making Akashi's brows furrow. "That's a scary expression, what's going on?" He walked over to a couch, which was settled against a wall, and sat down.

The Hokage cleared his throat and put his arms behind his back. "A little birdy told me you eavesdropped on a secret conversation". Akashi suddenly found the ceiling very interesting. "Akashi...". The Hokage sighed and took a seat beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder. The hand was roughly shaken off, making Sarutobi's insides twist in discomfort.

"Yeah, I eavesdropped, because nobody wanted to tell me anything!" He stood up and started pacing around the office. "For heaven's sake! I didn't know my mother's name! What was I supposed to do? Just accept what you told me? They died on the night I was born? That's it? Nothing else?!" Sarutobi closed his eyes for a moment, before he, too, stood up.