• Published 12th Mar 2013
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Visual Prowess - UgalaaWriter



During The Fourth Great Ninja War, Sasuke is transported to Equestria. Longer summary in description.

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When An Innocent Mind Witnesses The Injustices Of The World

Sasuke leapt from branch to branch as he traveled to Zecora’s home in the Everfree forest. Ever since he’d met her two or three days ago, he’d been talking to her every day, and found that she really was as wise as he thought she was- no, perhaps wiser. She was also one of the only creatures that Sasuke could talk to in this world, and whether he knew it himself or not, he craved social interaction- and Zecora was the one that was giving it to him.

After he’d gone back the first time, he’d had to explain to her why he’d killed the shinobi- and it wasn’t easy for Sasuke to do, but he told the truth. By the end of it, when they were drinking tea, Zecora had set it down and nodded at him and went to go get herbs like nothing wrong had happened. Sasuke had been confused by her behavior, and almost immediately, he’d asked her why she wasn’t afraid of him, or why she wasn’t running.

She had only had one thing to say to that.

“You aren’t going to kill me,” she’d said.

Well, she hadn’t said that, but she’d said it in rhymes.

Zecora had not felt frightened in all by what Sasuke had said, nor she did she feel the Princesses should truly be looking for him- after all, he mostly helped them, even if he broke a law. She’d noticed that about them- they had a hard time accepting that anypony else had different ideas or ideals. She knew that Equestria was the greatest country in the world, but that didn’t mean that people from other places- or even other dimensions- could not have knowledge to offer that might also be useful to them.

Zecora believed Sasuke’s story, and for more than one reason. After hearing it from him and comparing it to what she’d heard from Fluttershy, she found that it matched. Not only that, but she also believed it just because of the general bigotry of the ponies- and she knew that it could be a lot more just than what was happening to him. Despite the fact that she was wise and that the ponies would benefit from having her in the community, she was ostracized.

Zecora noticed that, lately, more and more, she seemed to … hate them. Hating the ponies, not only for how they ignored her but for what they did to others and how they assumed they were so much better than everypony else- from something as simple as race to something more complex, like ideals. She wasn’t sure what to make of her malice- it felt almost uncontrollable at times, and she struggled to tame her disgust of them.

She was technically- the princesses- their subject, but she didn’t even really follow their rules- they didn’t bother trying to collect taxes from her, and so she didn’t pay them- she wasn’t going to pay taxes to a crown or group of ponies that intentionally avoided her and left her out of the loop, even if they had demanded the money from her. Zecora also noticed that she was enjoying her solitude more and more, and the only other being she really cared for was Sasuke.

She looked forward to their daily meetings- talking, having tea, and general discussion- though it seemed like Sasuke was more than a little… off. She noticed him talking to himself- there’s no way he could be talking to anyone else, and she knew the words and statements were not directed at her. He often whispered things about a Naruto, or was telling somepony else to shut up- somepony else that wasn’t in the room with them.

She worried for Sasuke, but she wasn’t sure how to make it stop.

A knocking at the door interrupted her thinking. She opened it and saw Sasuke there, sitting in the relative darkness of the forest. She stepped aside and allowed him entry, shutting the door behind him. Sasuke strode in and sat down- randomly, as they always did, because she had no real seats in her house- and she noticed that Sasuke looked more stressed than he ever did before. Maybe it was the way that his hair was a little disheveled, or maybe it was the look in his eye- half crazed, half paranoid, as his gaze flickered from side to side.

What was wrong with him?

“…Zecora…” Sasuke said, turning away. He faced to the window, unable to admit it. Unlike when Twilight had been tasked to help him- and betrayed him, for that matter- this was something else entirely, something else that had a much larger effect on his pride. It was hard for him to even ask for it, but he knew that he would only feel worse if he didn’t get it off of his chest. He took a deep breath and asked her again, steeling himself, and this time, the words managed to leap out of his throat without become entangled because of his pride.

“Zecora, I need… advice,” Sasuke said, and he glanced down, looking into his lap, as Zecora handed him a small cup of tea. He looked inside of the cup and watched the green liquid swirl- he’d always found her tea to be calming, and now he probably needed it more than ever. Guilt hadn’t been quiet in the past few days, but it was more than that- he hadn’t been able to sleep. Maybe it was all too much- it was just finally really starting to get to him- but he was more stressed out than he’d thought he’d maybe ever been.

Zecora nodded to him, and lifted the kettle that had been squealing a few moments ago, and lifted it off the place it had been resting one more time, pouring herself her own cup before setting it down on the desk, calmly, and walking over before planting herself on the floor on her rump firmly. She sipped at her cup with her two hooves, taking some time to think about what Sasuke could need advice for- the Princesses? Or did he have other problems.

“What is it that ails you so greatly? Is it something old- or something that’s happened lately?” Zecora asked, holding her cup in her hooves, staring intensely into the tea inside.

She was aware- perhaps more than Sasuke realized she was- of his pride. After only a few discussions with him, she’d picked up on his personality, and as the thoughts raced through her head, she understood just how hard it must’ve been to come to her with whatever problem he had- and all the more reason that she had to help. It made her feel good that there was one pony- no, not actually ponies, for they were stupid- but still, something else that actually trusted her enough to confide something important like this in her.

She sipped at the cup in her hooves watched as Sasuke struggled to begin speaking. Even though he’d admitted his problem, he still had trouble starting- his pride wouldn’t allow someone else to help him. “Sasuke, no matter what, I will not judge you. You’ve spoke to me, and know this to be true,” she said. Sasuke nodded stiffly, and sighed. He eventually began after a few more moments of painful, awkward silence.

“Ever since I’ve come to Equestria,” Sasuke said, “I’ve been hearing voices. In my head. It’s troubling… in more than one way, is the only way I think I can put it. It’s disconcerting because I’ve never had to face this problem before- and… I’m losing control,” he admitted, as he stared into his teacup, “and it... it scares me. It really does scare me. More than I’ve ever been scared in a long time. I… I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

Sasuke slurped his tea, hesitant to speak again, but Zecora’s face told him to continue.

“I wasn’t always like this- this calm, like I am now. Before I came here, to Equestria, I was a lot… crueler, I’ve realized. I did terrible things to get what I needed to get done, and I didn’t think twice about it- not then, at least. I… I am, now. Only because of the voices, though,” Sasuke said, shivering, “and not anything else. I haven’t gained any compassion of my own accord. This place has changed me… but, it’s only calmed me down. My anger, my hatred… it’s all still…” Sasuke touched at his chest, before dropping his hand to his side, “here.”

“It’s just controlled now,” he said, sipping tea, even as his hands shook in pain as Guilt cackled and blabbed on and on in some dark, untouchable corner of his mind.

Zecora didn’t comment for several minutes, watching Sasuke shake in pain. She didn’t know what to tell him. It sounded like his pain sprang from whatever he’d regretted that he’d done- and that he’d have to accept the wrong that he’d done if he had to heal. He didn’t sound happy about his anger and his hatred- perhaps he had once been proud of it, or used it for more, but now it was simply sitting like dead tissue inside his heart- and it seemed that he wanted to get rid of it, but it clung on endlessly despite this.

Just as she was about to comment on what Sasuke should do- and she’d formed a good idea in her mind, one that probably would’ve helped him out, a good herbal remedy for mental illness that she still remembered from her homeland- a few things happened at once.

They heard the stomping of hooves outside the door- as if there were groups and groups of guards all running around outside. Even as Sasuke heard this, he began to act, and he was pulling out his sword when the next thing happened.

The wall behind Zecora exploded, and the debris nearly hit her and Sasuke. Sasuke activated Susanoo and tried to grab Zecora- but all he managed to do was surround her in the barrier so what she wasn’t hit by what happened next.

Princess Luna crashed through the top of the forest cottage violently, and the entire roof collapsed as she landed- and both her and Sasuke had their own versions of shields to help them defend from it. She whispered in the cacophony- and somehow, Sasuke could still hear her. Zecora hid behind him as he drew his sword in response to what she said.

“I FOUND you!” She crowed, triumphantly, and Sasuke grunted as she rushed at him- before having Susanoo toss her off with one of its hands, throwing her hard against one of the walls. She blew through it like it was paper, and continued sailing on, but Sasuke knew that she’d be right back. He struggled to think of a plan quickly- before he leapt through the top of the roof, carrying Zecora, and leapt through the forest, using multiple substitutions to throw them off for a minute as he found a safe place to hide Zecora.

He placed her down on the forest floor, and Zecora was still panting- and called after Sasuke as he jumped off a branch and leapt back in the direction of the cottage.

He was pissed. He may have been a criminal- even if he really fucking wasn’t because Celestia refused to recognize her arrogance- but there was a difference between hunting him down, and attacking an innocent Zebra in the process of all of it. He snarled as he left from tree to tree, specifically seeking out Luna, now. He wasn’t fucking around anymore. He saw her flying when he got closer towards the ruins of what had been Zecora’s home- instantly, Sasuke rushed at her with his blade.

She tried to enact a barrier, but it didn’t work- too much force in the electrical blade, and it forced itself right through, tearing through the barrier like it was rotten wood and then impacting into Luna’s side with just as much strength. She grunted, and then spat blood as Sasuke dug the weapon in deeper, enjoying the moment. She starting choking and coughing up a lot of blood as Sasuke tore his weapon free, doing even more damage in the process, and showering the nearby area in Luna’s blood.

“You’re pathetic,” Sasuke said, even as Luna looked up to him in confusion- her side was slowly healing, much to Sasuke’s displeasure, as her horn lit up and she used healing magic- but that could wait for a moment. She had to stay still, at least for now- and that also meant that she couldn’t run from his words, and that she had to listen. He swung his sword and flicked the blood off of it, before letting it rest on his shoulder as he continued to berate Luna.

“It’s one thing to attack a criminal,” he said, walking forward slowly, electricity charging inside of his steel blade, “but an entirely different thing to attack an innocent. Zecora hasn’t done anything to any of you. If anything, the ponies ignore her, and she hates them for it. I know the feeling all too well, and so, for the past few days, we’ve been talking on our free time. It doesn’t mean that you can attack her- if anything, since you’re so good and just, you should know this- and it doesn’t mean that the ends justify the means.”

“S-she interacted with you, the enemy. She didn’t die in the crossfire and would’ve been a regrettable casualty had it happened, but she was none of our concern all the same because of the betrayal of Equestria-“ Luna couldn’t finished as she gurgled some blood up, and coughed it up and spat a few times. Sasuke waited patiently as she rose to her hooves slowly, her healing magic almost complete and her strength almost returned.

“I see how it is now, pony. Even though I saved you from multiple deaths- or, at the very least, more emotional trauma and more injuries from that shinobi, the law must be obeyed at all times, even if it doesn’t make sense, right? That’s fine. I wouldn’t have fought you seriously if you hadn’t done what you’d just done. Now you’re going to learn what a Kirin is. Attack me now, Princess. If I get this attack off, you won’t be getting up for a while. I’ll surely win the fight.” Luna staggered, but charged at him nonetheless, her horn lighting up as she did so.

Sasuke shot multiple fireballs into the sky- large, swirling masses of red-orange flame that crashed through the forest canopy and burst in the sky above the Everfree forest- slowly creating thunderheads. He managed to do one of these every few seconds as he fought Luna- and Luna had no idea what he was doing, as it looked like to her that he had incredibly bad aim. Regardless, it was her duty to capture him, and she was going to do it. She charged her horn and launched at him- with more speed than he anticipated.

If Susanoo hadn’t been in the way, she might’ve dealt serious damage to Sasuke- or, he may have avoided it. If her horn hit his chest like it looked like it was going to, he might’ve not gotten up again. All it did was anger Sasuke more, it seemed, as her horn was now stuck inside Susanoo. Furious, Sasuke’s Susanoo grabbed her horn and held it tight, before lifting her up by it as Sasuke directed it with his hands. She was lifted high into the air.

Then, she was slammed into the ground, and she lost control of herself- and her vision, as it became blurry- as she was slammed into the ground, again, again, and again. He repeated it more than a few times, terribly furious, and with each slam he became more and more satisfied by the pain that Luna was experiencing. He still couldn’t believe that she did that, despite the fact that there had been an innocent in the house with him.

At his camp, sure. Do what she did. But not at Zecora’s home.

He spat a few more mouthfuls of fire into the atmosphere, and looked upwards, happy at the thunderheads that were forming. It was nearly complete, now. He resolved to continue smashing Luna into the ground for a little while longer as his final technique formed. It was revenge in a different way, perhaps- and still not morally right, because he’d technically started everything- but what she had done was unacceptable. If Zecora had been closer, she would’ve been killed by the explosion, and there wouldn’t have been much Sasuke could’ve done.

And then, his Guilt would be right. He didn’t want that.

Sasuke shivered at the thought of it.

If anything, it reminded him of how Fluttershy had been injured- and he realized, idly, as he smashed the Princess of The Night into the ground repeatedly, that that had also been his fault- even if only slightly more indirectly. Luna moaned from the ground- but still tried to get up anyway, only to fall back down on her bottom, still groaning. Sasuke kept up his Susanoo, but began to get Kirin ready.

“My attack that I can use now is called the Kirin,” Sasuke said, as he raised a hand to the air and pointed to the thunderheads that were visible in the sky. He’d burned several holes through the canopy of the Everfree forest- and some light was finally shining into it, now. “It’s a blast of real lightning that will strike you in one thousandth of a second. It is impossible to dodge or avoid. It is my ultimate technique- and I do not control the lightning. I merely guide it, and it finishes the job for me.”

The clouds rumbled and lightning began to crackle in them as they charged themselves.

The electricity sparked from one cloud to another, jumping and jumping until they were all sharing the same source of electricity-and it built up inside of them, growing and growing- by now, a regular blast of lightning would’ve been discharged, but not for this, it had to be withheld until the moment was right- and it grew, and grew, until the electricity was huge bolts jumping from cloud to cloud, ready to turn into Kirin at any time Sasuke directed it to.

“You’ve been hunting me for days, and I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t want to kill you, Luna. Because I do. I really, really do. I want to kill you, but mostly because of what almost happened to Zecora. I’ve never killed anyone in this place, besides the shinobi, who I had to- even the dragon, though injured, remains with its life. Yet you all blame me for it like it was some great, terrible tragedy and that he would’ve reformed himself and obeyed your laws.”

“He wouldn’t have. Much like me, in my world, that man is a missing-nin- and he would’ve carried on terrorizing and doing as he liked for a while longer, basically, until either you or Celestia came. If you sent squads of normal guards, there’s no doubt that they would’ve been defeated- and probably, most of them would’ve been killed as well. You may wonder why I’m even sparing you if I’m so angry.”

Luna barely managed a nod- a jerk of her neck that was so fast, Sasuke wasn’t sure that it had happened. Nonetheless, he continued, striding closer to Luna as he spoke.

“The thing is, I have things to be grateful for from this land. When I came here- and even now, although it’s not as bad now- I have hatred in my heart, and anger, too. Back then in The Elemental Nations, it blinded me-and I was so obsessed with revenge, that I’d do anything to get it. After spending so much time here, though, and whether it’s rubbed off on me, or it was of my own doing, I’ve calmed down thanks to the ponies in Ponyville.”

“And even if they hate me and are scared of me- after all the things that I’ve done in the town square, I wouldn’t blame them- I’m not going to fear them, or hate them back. I was so hateful; it was on the border of insanity- my obsession was completely unhealthy. In a way, this place helped me become sane again, so I have to thank it for that.”

“And I know that they wouldn’t want their Princess dying. So, I’m not going to strike you down with Kirin. Provided you listen to my conditions, of course.”

Luna frantically nodded as Sasuke’s Susanoo held her in its powerful, violet hands.

“There’s really only two or three. The first and foremost one is that you stop chasing me and leave me alone. The second is that you don’t harm or harass any of the ponies in Ponyville about me. Thirdly, you have to leave Zecora alone, especially. After what you did, she deserves to be away from you. You ponies ostracize her beyond belief anyway.”

“There is no real choice for you here. Accept the conditions. When I take you go back to wherever it is you two live, you can tell Celestia what happened. It’s completely ridiculous how unwilling you two are- you won’t even listen to reason, or my side of the argument. Regardless, leave, now. Don’t you dare think of going back on the deal, either, or both you and your sister will regret it. Dearly. Trust me that I’ll come through on that.”

The gigantic purple hands released her, and Luna spent a few humiliating minutes on the ground, coughing, and regaining her strength, healing herself, before she got to her feet. She watched as Sasuke gazed at her, observing carefully, for any signs of aggression. His terrible, red eyes burned into her core, and she turned away, and shivered, and took off into the sky, figuring that he completely controlled the lightning and she wouldn’t be struck because he’d promised that he would not. Sasuke watched her go, still full of fury and hatred.

Guilt and Pride babbled in his head, and so did Hatred- and he stumbled the second Luna left, swearing loudly at the horrible pounding pain that was exploding inside of his head- it felt like a gigantic, muscular man was on the inside of his skull, picking up his brain and slamming it down, over and over again, repeatedly. He struggled to stay conscious through the phantom pain. He knew that it wasn’t real- just like the voices weren’t- but his body thought it was, and because it did, he had to deal with the pain.

It took a little while for the agony to dissipate, but once it did, Sasuke rose to his feet, barely steady. He looked above, through the canopy of the Everfree forest- through the holes he’d burned in the forest, and watched as the thunderheads slowly disappeared. It took them a little while, but eventually, the rumbling, deadly clouds faded back to white, and it looked like no one had ever tampered with the weather.

He raced back to where he left Zecora and took her, leaping without a word. She was silent as well, and didn’t ask what happened. For the rest of the short trip back to her home, there was no talking, from either party- and it didn’t seem like either wanted to talk, anyway. Eventually, they reached her house, and they stared at the smoking mess that it had become. There were still a few guards around, but a few glares from Sasuke made them leave.

They’d probably gotten orders from Luna or somepony else by now, to leave, anyway.

Sasuke walked up to the smoking home, and picked through the smoking wreckage. It seemed that after Luna had both blasted through the side of one wall with a large fireball, and crashed through the top, it had probably completely collapsed. It didn’t help that there had probably been guards trampling through it- uncaring about Zecora’s supplies that she stored in there, or the status of her home- which was now completely destroyed.

Sasuke crushed a piece of wood in his hands, and sighed, and looked back at Zecora. She seemed upset- for good reason. She wasn’t crying or incredibly furious, but… almost seemed disappointed in the ponies, as if she’d expected better of them, and again, they had failed her. He sorted through the wreckage some more, but all Sasuke found was a few pieces of burnt wood, some broken jars, and scattered remains of various herbs that Zecora had once held in her storehouse/home. The cauldron was tipped over, and multiple holes had been bashed into it. Sasuke glared at this, and stepped back, standing next to Zecora.

For the next several days, Sasuke let Zecora stay at his camp, and in the morning, they’d return to where she once had her house, and he’d help rebuild it. With his strength, it was easy to cut gigantic logs and get supplies from all sorts of places without the danger that Zecora would’ve faced before. Even she hesitated to go too far into an entire pack of ten or twelve timber wolves, but with Sasuke there, they were able to access the best materials with which to rebuild her broken, burnt home.

It took them a few days to get the framework done-a few days which Sasuke enjoyed greatly. All the guards had been called off, it seemed that neither Luna nor Celestia were hunting him, and it was only Zecora and him in the forest, alone. No one was annoying him or bothering him, and for once, in a long, long while, Sasuke felt content. In a few days, they had completed the framework- and now, instead of smoking ruins, a large, wooden structure stood where Zecora’s old home once was.

Then, after that, they’d gathered more materials and had managed to finish it up that day- while it was bare inside, the structure was finished. Sasuke had used Kage Bunshin more than once, and it had sped up the work a lot. Not to mention that the home wasn’t that large, either, because it still was the home for a zebra- and it wasn’t like Zecora was huge. It had been fairly simple- if he’d been Tendo, it would’ve been done in seconds, but he wasn’t, so it had taken them three or four days.

Afterwards, Sasuke decided to leave, saying goodbye to Zecora as she got settled in to her new home. He went to visit Ponyville- he wanted to visit Fluttershy, specifically. Despite making up fake reasons in his head, like he was only doing it because he had to, the smallest morsels of kindness and sympathy were beginning to nest in his heart- even if he himself wouldn’t recognize it or admit to it.

Somehow, they were also avoiding being devoured by the large seas of hatred and frustration that were still within Sasuke’s heart. He wasn’t sure that he could ever forgive The Leaf- for what they’d done to the Uchiha. But, he felt that over time, he could fit in here.

He was inside the town square when it happened.

Celestia dropped out of the sky, but held up a hoof as he began to draw his sword.

“No. Wait, Sasuke. I don’t want to fight you. I want to know… your past.”

Sasuke only looked at her, confused. She elaborated.

“My student, Twilight Sparkle, mentioned it in at least one or two letters. She’d said that you’d hinted at a past that was terrible- and that was the reason that you’re like this. So hateful, so angry… all the time,” Celestia turned away from him, and continued, “Luna told me about how she nearly damaged an innocent. I’ve been thinking about it, Sasuke. It was a boon to… t-to kill that man… even if it was against our laws. It would’ve only resulted in the blood of more innocents. You even warned me against my arrogance in sending Twilight against a dragon, but Fluttershy is permanently disabled because of it.”

“I’m sorry for not… believing you further, in the power of violence. It’s not something I like to subscribe to,” she muttered, and Sasuke looked more than shocked as she lowered her head in front of him, almost bowing to him,” but I’d like to apologize to you for terrorizing you, while you’ve helped the kingdom multiple times. You’ve even held back from killing anypony, even though we’ve attacked you multiple times.”

“I’d like to offer you citizenship in Equestria- you don’t really have rights here. You can imagine the boons that this would provide. Since you’re so powerful, you could maybe join the military or… well, I digress. The point is, I feel that even though the other ponies have given you multiple chances, I haven’t- and if anything, I should be the one that’s the kindest, here. They look up to me as a Princess, but… I have my own failings,” she whispered.

“I’d like to know your story.”

“You really, really wouldn’t,” Sasuke replied stiffly, but Celestia was persistent.

“Please, Sasuke. Is it so painful that you can’t talk about it?”

“I’d prefer not to. I don’t feel like talking about it- it’d take way too long. There’s another way- and it would be quicker and easier for me. It’d be a little more… jarring, to you. But it would probably get the point across faster,” Sasuke said.

“Whatever you need. I feel that I should be more than welcoming after the way that I’ve… been,” Celestia said, looking at the ground morosely, and Sasuke winced, but she didn’t notice it.

It felt wrong to see her so sad- even though she’d been the cause of a lot of annoyance and misfortune, he couldn’t help but feel that she didn’t know any better- and couldn’t do anything about it. And unlike his heart, she’d feel the pain forever- and she didn’t know when to forgive herself. Sasuke said a few words before he began.

“Fine, but… cheer up. It’s unbecoming of you to be so full of sorrow.”

She snapped her head up, not expecting that from him, but he was already starting before she could comment on it.

“Look deeply into my eyes.”

As Celestia did, Sasuke’s red eyes spun into more complex designs, and the world turned dark, before Celestia saw Sasuke’s life.

And when she witnessed the injustices of the shinobi world, she screamed.

TO BE CONTINUED