Two is a company, three is a crowd.
Shinobi never bothered with that rule, otherwise, why would they put all their genin into squads of three?
She only wanted him by her side.
He only wanted her to acknowledge him.
He only wanted power. And revenge.
But despite what they wanted, they needed each other. Not as a crowd, but as support.
The strongest shape is a triangle, with three sides and three angles.
It was all too obvious when the crowd was reduced to a company. Two of the three got what they wanted, but none were happy.
They would try to laugh and smile, he and her, but it was always fake. The silences lingered as both waited for the empty chair to say something, knowing full well no reply would come.
No reply would ever come.
It was painful to wait. It was impossible not to.
They both left her now, and she was alone. One would come back, one day.
One day soon.
He would be here, by her side.
Glowing.
She knew it so clearly, it was as if he were already back.
The other was a shadow. A hope. A false hope but a hope so strong it couldn't fail. He would bring him back. He would. She knew it.
They would both come back, she just had to wait.
The blossoms on the cherry trees wilted, but refused to die, giving life to the cherries themselves. Stronger, better, superior in every way to the blossoms they once were. They got stronger.
And they waited.
He trained long and hard.
He felt like falling to his knees and giving up sometimes, but he wouldn't let himself.
If he fell, the shadow on the edge of his vision would not materialize into his friend.
If he fell, she would fall with him.
So he kept training until he was unable to stand and until his consciousness gave out.
The shadow wasn't meant to be a shadow. Shadows are cast by an object blocking out light. There was something else to that shadow, there had to be. It was too dark to tell, but he would go to the edge of the earth to prove there was.
There was, and he would banish the shadow and get it out.
He would drag the him out of the dark, no matter what it took.
He knew he wouldn't get stronger if they found him.
Kill.
Kill.
Kill him.
That was impossible with them holding him back.
He was a hunter, a creature of night and evil. His purpose was clear before him.
Make the traitor pay.
Spill his blood like he spilled theirs.
Let him suffer. Let him see his hatred.
Hunt in the night, hide in the day. Hide from the sun. Hide from him.
No, not hide. Avoid.
If the sun came to try to halt his journey, he would extinguish it.
The cherries grew stronger in the glow of the sun.
The sun smiled, seeing the changes from wilting blossom to fruit.
They had waited long enough. The time had come for the shadow to return to the light.
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A/N: This was inspired by something I read today. Besides that, I wanted to try writing something that didn't use names. I really hope it isn't too confusing.