Hiding in th Dark (Open)

The late night air in the village was cool as usual. The moist air and darkness of the night made it difficult to see more then a few feet in any direction. It was hard to even see the buildings lining the streets as Michishige walked alone. He preferred the night, it was hard to distinguish the scars on his body in the dim light. While he had no problem with showing them in public, he had a tendency to avoid looking at them himself, though he wasn't sure why. Holding his arms out in front of him, Michishige looked out at his barely visible hands. While the darkness hid the ridges and valleys on his arms created by the scars, it was still easy to see that there was something not quite right about his skin. Lowering his arms again, Michishige continued to walk through the empty streets. He had lost track of what time it was, or even how long he had been wandering around the village. Without his father to dictate his schedule or regiment his life, his days seemed to all just mesh together. All Michishige knew was where he wanted to end up, but he had no idea how to go about getting to his destination. He glanced down at his side, and looked at the sword on his waist. Swordplay had been one of the few things in life he excelled at without any help. Before he realized it, Michishige had reached the edge of the village. The buildings began to crowd together as Michishige came to the base of a mountain bearing the faces of the former Hokages. Looking up and squinting, he tried to make out the faces, but in the dark the proud faces were nothing but blurred shapes in the rock. Without any guidance, the only thought in Michishige's head as he looked up the mountain was Stronger. Michishige stood at the base of the mountain looking up, seemingly rooted to the spot as he was lost in thought.

Although it was late at night, Saizo had managed to sneak out of the royal palace and into the village of Konoha, just as he had been doing almost every week for the past 3 months. In his head, Saizo justified it as his 18th birthday was almost coming up, and he thought he deserved more freedom. In reality though, Saizo knew he was only a genin, and that sneaking in and out of the village was an extremely risky task. The eldest Sarutobi sibling continued on his way through the village, pumping with excitement at witnessing city life. He had always grown up secluded in the royal palace of the Fire Country, and always managed to find new locations to explore within the village.

Saizo had just been down a bustling road when he made a turn down an alleyway. All of a sudden, it was like the village had died. There were no lights to illuminate the streets, and even the din of crowds in the village's nightlife had all but died out. The world seemed to be at a standstill when a light cool breeze passed over the teen's sand-colored hair. To most it appeared white, but recently it seemed to almost tinge brown at times. He felt as though he were the only one in the village, but he knew that couldn't be. Saizo searched the sky for the stars' light, when his eyes fell upon the faces of the past hokage, forever etched into the stone. It was a testament to the reverence the village felt for its greatest leaders, and Saizo could only stand at its base and admire it.

While he was entranced with the monument's magnificence, Saizo could see  a faint silhouette no more than 20 feet from him, illuminated only by the light of the moon and stars. The shadow seemed frozen, a reflection of the monument itself as it seemed to have been there, unmoving, for as long as the hokage's faces had been engraved into the cliff. It must have taken Saizo at least 3 minutes to realize that the silhouette was in fact a person. Curious as to what the individual would be doing in this part of the village, Saizo nervously approached the individual. "Uhh... Hey, wha-what are you doing in this part of the vilage?" he managed to stammer. His voice seemed to cut through the sacred silence, almost in an act of sacrilege. Saizo immediately regretted destroying the silence, but his curiosity still prevailed. Who would ever want to be in this darkness when the rest of the village was bustling with activity?

[438 words]

So lost in thought, Michishige nearly entirely missed that someone had spoken to him. So much so that it took a long moment before he realized that it actually was another person, and not just an imagined voice. Slowly he looked over his shoulder at the man. Michishige didn't recognize him, though that was unsurprising since he could count everyone he knew on one hand. The people that he knew that were still alive numbered even fewer. In a cold monotone Michishge said "I am under the impression that I am missing something. I have been trying to find what it is." He turned his head away from the stranger and turned his gaze back to the stone faces of the Hokages as he tried to find his train of thought from before he was interrupted, but the moment had passed and he could not seem to focus.

Turning around fully so that he could face the man, Michishige raised his arms slightly to either side, motioning to the area around him. "Though as to why I am in this area in particular, I cannot say. I have been wandering this village. I am not sure for how long, though the gnawing in my stomach says it has been some days." He dropped his arms to his sides, his hands hitting the sides of his legs and causing a muted slap to echo through the empty area.

Saizo's initial feeling was to leave. The kid in front of him seemed creepy, but at the same time, he was innocent. It was obvious that the kid had experienced more in his 13 or 14 years than Saizo had in his 17, secluded in the royal palace. The kid claimed to be missing something, but had no idea where to search or even what it was. The eldest Sarutobi child's immediate response would've been food. The kid was emaciated and looked no heavier than 100 pounds. Having always been handed all the luxuries from birth, Saizo had never had to worry about food or shelter as it had all been provided.

Pondering the kid's words a little longer, Saizo constructed what he thought was an adequate response. "Whatever you are looking for, I'm sure you won't find it here. However," Saizo continued, noticing that the teen had seldom broken his gaze on the monument, "what the Hokages possessed was more than just power and a reputation. They had an intense desire to want to protect this village. They led the village through the best times and the worst times, and they embodied all the extremes that exemplify the village. They were stronger, worked harder, and wanted to defend the village more than any other, and it is through the will of others, not their own, that they took up the position. To become a Hokage, an individual would have to learn not just how to stand by their own beliefs, but also how to reconcile the differences and empathize with those that hold different beliefs." Saizo stopped himself from continuing any further. Why would he care what the Hokage did and who they were? And on top of that, who was he to lecture about them? He was just a spoiled child that would inherit a position of power, he had no right to talk about earning it.

The Sarutobi child sighed audibly. The kid had explained that he had no reason for being in this part of the village in much the same way Saizo had no business there as well. Saizo himself couldn't believe he was spending so much time near a filthy commoner, but for the first time in his life, Saizo took pity on another human being. He clearly had had no control over his life, and judging from his slight disfigurement, had been abused or taken advantage of at some point. "Sometimes the things we search hardest for are the easiest things to obtain. It's just a matter of knowing where to look."

[428]

As the man went on about the Hokages, Michishige's gaze turned and looked up at the great stone faces carved in the side of the mountain. So they were the strongest of this village. Does that mean my father meant for my face to be among them? He was only vaguely aware of what was being told to him about what it took to become one worthy of being immortalized in the mountain over looking the village, but from what he did listen to, he knew that those qualities were not ones that he possessed, at least not yet.

When he was done talking about the Hokages, Michishige looked back to the man as he let out a sigh. When the man was done, Michishige spoke in the same monotone as before "My father knew where to look. Though now that he has been taken from me, I am lost." He turned his head back to the stone faces. "You say that these men were the greatest that this village has. If that is so, then I know where my destination is."

Michishige turned back to the stranger and continued on "Though my path is still unclear. It occurs to me that I will not succeed the way I am. A science experiment is not something that people are likely to follow." His expression seemed to grow dark as finished speaking. He grew quite for a moment as he looked down and peered at his arms. With a sigh, he looked back to the man. "I said earlier that I am missing something, I was not entirely truthful. I know what it is that I am missing. I am just unsure of how one can go about finding their humanity.

Saizo's initial hunch was spot on. This guy was out of his mind, possibly even schizophrenic. It was also apparent that the boy was barely paying any attention to the one who had made the effort to initiate a conversation, so Saizo just awkwardly stood there while he rambled on about loss and broken dreams. Saizo waited for the boy to finish, and then nodded his head in silent humility. He realized that he had no experience with what this kid was dealing with, and decided to just extend his condolences. "I'm sorry for your loss," Saizo would say, dropping his head in respect.

"Whatever it is you have to face, I wish you good luck. I'm sure you'll manage somehow..." Saizo's voice trailed off. In sudden panic, he had realized how late he had stayed in the village, and even the distant clamor of the nightlife had died out during their conversation. Understanding he could not stay any longer, Saizo left the boy to his own desires, and scrambled away from the dark streets, struggling to find his way in the dark. The boy was a strange one for sure, but at the same time Saizo could only feel sadness while talking to him. It became overbearing to the point where he hoped he never had to encounter this child again, and if he did, he hoped he would be able to help in some way. Saizo couldn't help but reflect on his words to the boy. He didn't truly believe them, and felt they had no weight to them. In a strange and almost sadistic way, Saizo hoped that the boy wouldn't get by. It came as a shock to him that people lived in such an unsightly way, and Saizo quietly swore to himself that instead of patronizing these people, he would try to find a way to help them first. These muddled thoughts danced around in Saizo's head as he escaped the village and began to head back to the royal palace, praying no one had noticed his absence.

The path back through the forest was dark and tricky. There was almost no lighting outside of the moon and the stars, and there were plenty of low hanging branches making navigation difficult. Saizo had practically memorized the layout by now, however, and made the trip fairly easily. By the time he arrived back at the palace, it was nearly midnight. Managing to scale the wall of his house into his room, Saizo's heart was pounding fervently in his chest as he climbed through his bedroom window. Luckily, it appeared no one had heard him enter, and soon the teen was fast asleep.

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[EXIT]