Chapter 18
Sakura Haruno
“I’m still confused,” Sakura said as she took a bite into her almost finished popsicle. Most of what was left was beginning to drip. “Fox spirit?”
“How’re you confused,” Sasuke responded as he tossed his popsicle stick. “It’s basic fucking history.”
“Well, sorry I’m not a historian!”
It had been three days since Naruto’s fight. The gang hadn’t talked about what happened again until today, the day before Madara’s rally was to be held. Instead of going home, they decided to hang out at a playground nearby Goro’s store. They all gathered by the swing when Sasuke, after some prying from Sakura, finally spoke his thoughts about the fight and why he was so hesitant to admit to his uncle what happened in school that day. That’s when he decided to go on a rant about history- about the importance of whatever the fuck. Sakura couldn’t keep track. He was handing a shit ton of information onto the group and acting like it only weighs a couple pounds.
Sakura looked around, trying to see if she was the only one lost.
I can’t be the only dumbass right, she thought.
“I’m on the same page as Sakura,” Suigetsu said also taking a bite into his popsicle. “Damn, I should’ve got a different flavor popsicle.”
“I told you cherry’s the best,” Karin said as she rode on the swing, sucking on her own. “But Sasuke, not everyone’s the nephew of the literal president. You think we know shit about history?”
“This is like RECENT history,” Sasuke exclaimed. “I swear, how do you guys not know this shit?”
“Just start from the beginning again, Sasuke,” Suigetsu said.
“Ok, who was the president before my uncle?”
“It was that one guy…” Karin said. “I remember seeing a picture and thinking he was… sort of cute?”
“I know it was an Uzumaki,” Sakura mentioned.
“His name started with an….N?” said Suigetsu.
“Minato Uzumaki,” Sasuke sighed. “C’mon you guys, I swear this was covered in middle school.”
“When did you become a nerd,” Suigetsu scoffed. “I thought you were all edgy and I don’t care about anything kind of vibe.”
“I don’t care about anything,” Sasuke said, rolling his eyes. “I’m no nerd, but even I know this.”
“Ok what about Minute Uzumaki you were saying,” Sakura said.
“It’s Minat- Ok you’re fucking with me right?”
“Yes, keep going,” she said, rolling her eyes; however, Sakura was indeed not fucking around and genuinely confused the name. She just wasn’t going to admit that.
Sasuke continues, “so during his term, The Capital was attacked by a fox spirit-.”
“Fox spirit,” Karin asked. “What the hell is that?”
“We just went over this, Karin,” Sasuke sighed.
“It was this fox spirit that used to exist a long time ago and cause a bunch of damage to the country but then stopped just because the vibes were off,” Suigetsu said.
“That’s not- Whatever,” Sasuke continued. “Look, the country used to deal with a fox spirit that’s like a natural disaster for us, but a long time ago, we finally sealed it so it could be used as a weapon by us during war. One day, it was unsealed and attacks The Capital during Minato’s term but randomly, it vanishes and no one can find it. But reports come out that he may have sealed the spirit into his wife but shortly after these reports come out, Minato is assassinated-.”
“He was assassinated?” Jugo asked. He looked completely disinterested in the conversation, reading another magazine he picked out from Goro’s shop.
“Ain’t no fucking way,” Sasuke facepalmed.
“He was shot, Jugo,” Suigetsu said.
“He was POISONED,” Sasuke exclaimed.
“Same thing,” said Suigetsu.
“No it’s no- LISTEN, all that matters is the previous president got assassinated and the fox spirit disappears during his term so when Madara becomes president, he does not have what is this country’s most powerful weapon and the only person who could possibly know where it is was killed and his wife goes missing .”
“So he may have put the fox spirit in his wife,” Sakura asked.
“Ayooo,” Karin says. “President’s into beastiality?!”
“Holy fucking shit, I am going to electrocute myself with my lightning if you shit heads don’t stop being such dumbasses,” Sasuke says with his head down, hands pulling on his now trimmed hair.
“Calm down, Karin’s just messing with you,” Sakura says in a reassuring tone. “We know that presidents don’t fuck foxes… right?”
“So you’re not fucking with me… NO! It’s more ritualistic- it’s a SPIRIT that sort of is put into someone, like the person is a vessel for the spirit to remain in them. It’s a whole thing.”
“Why,” Karin asks.
“Because…. I don’t fucking know, why do people do anything? Anyways, what you saw in Naruto was that fox spirit.”
“How do you know it was the fox spirit,” Jugo asked.
“I’m done with this conversation.” Sasuke dug his face into his hands, defeated. “It’s context clues. He doesn’t mention any other quirk and then now shows characteristics of the fox spirit.”
“…so what does this have to do with tomorrow,” Sakura asked.
“Nothing,” Sasuke said, voice muffled by his palms. “Well, a little bit. Something is going to go down tomorrow.”
“What do you mean,” Suigetsu asked.
“I don’t know the specifics. All I know is that my uncle is planning to do something tomorrow about this.”
“You told your uncle,” Suigetsu asked, his tone sounding worried.
“You ask that like that was a bad thing,” Sakura said to Suigetsu.
“Sakura… you don’t know his uncle.”
“Ahh, who cares,” Sasuke said. “All that matters is that asshole is still making me speak at the rally. He said I don’t have to do a speech, but I do have to say thank you to the audience. The dickhead.”
“What did you mean by that, Suigetsu,” Sakura asked.
“…Don’t worry about it.” He responds to her, his voice soft.
“Sakura,” Sasuke said. “My uncle is a piece of shit, that’s all you need to know.”
“Don’t say that he’s literally your uncle. That’s your family.”
“You couldn’t begin to understand, Sakura… I need to drink right now.”
“I can get us some drinks from my place,” Suigetsu said.
“Aren’t we a little to young to drink,” Sakura asked.
“We’re too young for a lot of shit.”
*********
They were all shitfaced.
Suigetsu’s home was nothing compared to the mansion that was Sasuke’s but it felt more alive. More warm, with tones of brown allover, the entire place being made of wood. It had an almost cabin feel to it.
Suigetsu’s parent’s weren’t home. After a couple shots, he revealed to Sakura they were never home.
“Come hom- *burps* home once a month,” he swoons after each word, constantly touching something or someone to keep balance. “a-a-and it’s offffffff to Kiri, t-they say. O-O-Or offffff to Suna- or wherever the *burp* the fuck!”
Sakura was drunk, but not to the gang’s level. Each in their own way shitfaced.
The most of all was Sasuke.
“F-F-FUCK YOU MADARA,” He yelled at the TV in the living room. The television had the audacity to run an campaign ad for Madara while Sasuke was watching it. Sakura watched the anger from the man ooze out from him, the mask of indifference become completely removed to reveal the truly passionate, opinionated being beneath it.
“Sakura, this man used to beat the living SHIT out of my brother,” he said, laughing. “MADARA CAN SUCK MY DICK.”
“The fuck is you on about,” Karin said in an unrecognizable accent. It was awful, and her voice had now become super high pitched, completely lacking the deep, soothing tone that she had once tried to emulate. She stood near the window in the living room. “You want ya own oon cul to suck ya dick, eh?”
“Ew, where’d you get THAT from,” Sasuke said as he walked around the living room, searching desperately for something. “I need more liquor…” he murmurs to himself yet loud enough for everyone to hear.
“I-I’m g-g-gonna call Jeessssssssiiiiccaaaa,” Suigetsu says, sassily.
“NO!” Sasuke turns immediately to Suigetsu, a face full of despair. He then looks around at everyone and composes himself. “…she’s not into you.”
“Calling your ex is never a good look, Suigetsu,” Jugo said, seated comfortably at the far end of Suigetsu’s couch. He was the calmest out of everyone though he drank the most. He sat with a pen and journal in hand, writing away.
“Sakura, t-this man is b-bullshitting,” Suigetsu said. “She’s not *burp* my ex, but more of a fling I used to have back in the day.”
“Over the summer,” Jugo corrected, his head not moving away from the journal.
“S-Sure over th-the summer, the point is-,”
“Oh shit,” Sasuke says, phone in one hand, bottle of liquor in the other. He takes a swig from the bottle, groans from the strength of the alcohol, and looks at his phone again. “I have to be home soon.”
“It’s not that late, is it?”
“It’s fucking 10 o’clock, Jugo.”
“Want me to call your butler for you?”
“Fuck no, I’ll walk. My uncle will get the news. Let me just wait a little bit to sober up then walk home.”
“You just took a huge swig from that liquor bottle and you’re trying to sober up,” Sakura asked.
“Good point,” he responded. “Maybe some sleep will help me then.”
Sasuke then collapses to the floor.
“Da fuck just happened, eh,” Karin asked.
“Sasuke’s sleeping off the alcohol,” Jugo responds. “Probably won’t wake till morning.”
“Won’t he get in trouble,” Sakura asks.
“H-he’ll be *burps* fine,” Suigetsu says. “To b-be honest, Sasuke *burps* might be on to something with t-that sleeping idea.”
Suigetsu then collapses onto the couch, his body landing into an impossible position.
“How de fuck did he land like dat,” Karin says, then proceeding to fall into a similarly impossible position.
“Well, that’s my queue,” Sakura gets up from the couch. She digs into her pockets to find her cell.
“You’re leaving,” Jugo asked.
“Yep, nothing left to do here,” Sakura responded.
Jugo continued writing into his journal.
“Who’s taking you home,” he asks.
“I’ll walk, Suigetsu’s house is like a thirty-minute walk from here.”
“At this hour? I’ll walk with you,” he gets up from his chair.
“Are you sure? That means it’s an hour walk for you to get back here,” she says as the two walk out the door.
“Walking clears my head,” he responds.
The two walk out the front door and entire the cool, night air. The crickets chirp as the two walk down the empty sidewalks that are lit by the occasional streetlamp that shone its warm yellow light.
“Interesting people, huh,” Jugo said, hands dug into his pockets.
“Very interesting,” she responded. “If that’s how they are when drunk, I can’t imagine high.”
“Them high is less obnoxious but somehow, a little more annoying.”
“And what about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You drunk. Or high. How’s that?”
“I don’t know, I’ve never been.”
“Bullshit, with those substance abusers, you’ve got to have by this point.”
“It’s true. It seems my body is incapable of succumbing to the effects of alcohol.”
“You’re interesting as well,” she said. “You always talk funny.”
“I don’t think my speech is comedic.”
“I mean, a guy like you- huge, brawn, and with a quirk like yours making you basically invincible, I would’ve thought you’d be a jock or some shit.”
“Afraid not. It’s the arts for me. Athletics are not one of my passions.”
“What kind of art?”
“All kinds. But what about you?”
“What kind of art I’m passionate about,” she looked confused. She then looked down at her phone. “I think we need to make a left here? I’m not sure.”
“Don’t worry, I know this city’s roads intimately. I’ll guide you home.”
“Really? How so?”
“Well…” the question looked to pain him. “The city is my home, at least it was for a long time…”
“What do you mean?”
“…I was homeless for most of my life. My entire family was.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t kn-.”
“It’s fine. To be frank, the group doesn’t know either. But hey, a gang like ours in which each individual is riddled with pain, it would be absurd that I be the only outlier. Considering it was pain that brought us together.”
“How did you all meet?”
“Through a summer camp the summer before school. Each one of us did not want to be there but we were for differing reasons. The reason for my attendance was that I received a grant to attend the summer camp and it meant I was guaranteed one meal a day due to it. However, attending was a reminder of my family’s inability to make money- to live in a home. So I would… skip classes. And low and behold, they happened to also skip classes often as well. And through that our friendship blossomed.”
“So do you have a home now?”
“An apartment. Acquired recently. But it seems temporary, with my mother being sick.”
“That’s terrible Jugo.”
“That’s life, Sakura,” he said, as he beckoned her to cross a desolate intersection.