My not so Distant Memory

I can't remember you

"Can you believe it? This expedition has a very high chance of success in discovering something new. And to believe that a whole 800 years ago, there were people like us, with exceptional elemental powers roaming the streets? They had the power to destroy whole civilizations, and start wars just with the flick of their wrists, and move mountains with just-"

"Orochimaru, for the love of Kaguya, I've heard this story for the thousandth time today. Can you just shut the fuck up already?  We've been driving for hours, isn't that bad enough?" Sasuke complained, with an eye roll so big, the amount of sass would have put Ino to shame.

"Ma ma, so rude Sasuke-kun, and to think I allowed you on this expedition after you nearly begged me to go..."

"Tch." Sasuke rolled his head to the right, and decided to favor staring out the open window over listening to the snakes crap about ninja civilizations and other shit that didn't really concern him. At least not what he was after in the first place.

The soft breeze swept through the open frames of their black jeep, the tires, worn from age and use, tripping over small rocks that jutted out of the winding dirt road. Big, leafy trees towered on either side, but were spaced out enough to let the sun's soft golden rays filter through. The warmth from the midday sun warmed his face, and the cloudless sky helped to ease his mind. 

The two of them were driving to an old excavation site of a civilization that was 800 years old. Apparently, it was a village towards a group of very powerful ninjas, or shinobi, that were greatly feared by nations all across the lands. According to old legends, these people held strange powers, which allowed them to manipulate the elements of the earth. Not much is known beyond that, however, since most of their records were burned and they completely disappeared off of the face of the earth. That was why Orochimaru wanted to come, because he wanted to be the first to discover the secrets behind these mysterious people, and Sasuke for his own personal reasons. Most of the crew, including Kabuto, had already arrived and set up to begin the excavating.

He was brought out of his daze when a pasty hand oh-so-rudely waved itself in front of his face.

"Oi, Sasuke-kun, did you hear me? I said we're here."

Slowly, he sat up in his seat, just as the trees were beginning to thin out. As he adjusted his eyes to the afternoon glare, a clearing slowly appeared its way through the barrier of trees. Around it was a large wall, decayed from years of weathering until it was just a mountain of stone. After passing through, Sasuke took a good look around at where they'd be staying for the next few months. All around him were excavating machines, digging hard to unlock the next discovery. Men and women of all ages were bustling about, marking down observations or ordering others around (Sasuke snorted when he saw that they were still forced to wear those hideous purple bows as part of their uniform). Except for the few ruined buildings that still stood, the land had been entirely torn up to make way for the next project. At the far end of the village, Sasuke spotted a large red building, towering over the rest. It looked fairly new, and compared to the others, which were practically in shambles, very out of place. Behind it, stood a looming mountain, marking the edge of the village. On its face, a line of 6 crude carvings protrude, their features so worn Sasuke probably wouldn't have been able to tell they were faces if Orochimaru hadn't already informed him in one of his five hundred rants.

They parked in a small yard around a hundred meters from the red building, next to a silver SUV that Sasuke could have only assumed was Kabuto's. As they got out of their Jeep and unloaded their luggage, Orochimaru turned around to the left and nodded his head towards a smaller excavation site farther away than the rest.

"Over there at the private digging site is where I will be working. I have heard news from Kabuto about how one of the ruins there used to house one of the most powerful ninjas in this village, and if we were to discover anything about him, I'd want to be there when it happened."