Sasori looked at the falling Shota. The boy had lost consciousness midair after using up every last bit of his strength in the last insane jutsu of bis.
His body was about to drop limply toward the scorching desert sand. Sasori gazed at the destruction around them. The sand for several kilometers had turned into glass from the extreme heat of Shota's jutsu.
Large craters glowed with molten remains, and pillars of smoke still rose high into the sky. The desert landscape had been permanently changed by the jutsu.
He sent out chakra strings toward the falling boy's body. The thin strings moved quickly and wrapped gently around Shota. Sasori thought for a moment about simply snapping the strings around the annoying brat's neck to end it. But his hands did not move to do so.
'Why can't I do it?' Sasori asked himself. Deep down, he already knew the answer. The boy understood him in a way almost no one else ever had.
*Flashback*
A young Sasori was busy working on his puppets, working relentlessly as he still processed the death of his parents that had happened a year ago.
The workshop was quiet except for the sounds of tools shaping wood and metal. The young puppet master poured all his pain and focus into creating perfect creations that would never betray him or leave him.
The annoying brat sat on the couch.
The five-year-old Shota had insisted on the couch so he could nap there while keeping Sasori company. He often fell asleep with a small blanket wrapped around him, snoring softly while Sasori worked late into the night.
The boy's presence had slowly become a strange but constant part of the workshop for Sasori.
Sasori was against this arrangement at first. He preferred working alone in silence. But Lady Chiyo seemed to have agreed that he needed company, and that company came in the form of a child fifteen years younger than him.
She believed the boy's presence might help heal some of the emptiness inside Sasori. So the couch stayed, and the five-year-old kept coming back every day.
"Sasori nii-san, let us go eat something already," the five-year-old Shota said with a big yawn, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
Sasori looked at the brat and asked with a frown, "Why are you even here if you are not interested in the art of puppets?"
Shota's face turned serious, which was very unusual for a five-year-old brat. "I am not here to watch your puppets, Sasori-san. I am here for you."
"Here for me?" Sasori asked, confused.
"Sasori-san, I cannot understand the pain that you feel after losing your parents. But I can understand the loneliness that you feel since I feel the same sometimes," the little boy said softly.
'A five-year-old brat feeling lonely?' Sasori thought, surprised by the words.
"But do not worry. We can be lonely together and then we will not be lonely ever again," Shota said with a bright, innocent smile that lit up his whole face.
"Lonely together, huh..." Sasori mumbled, the words sinking into his heart.
"It would be the start of our everlasting bond..." Shota declared, spreading his small arms wide like he was announcing something grand.
He stood on the couch with a proud pose, looking like a tiny hero from a storybook. "We will be the best lonely duo in the whole village! No one will be able to separate us. We can eat sweets together, nap together, and fight loneliness together forever!"
The little boy continued with full seriousness. "When you feel sad, I will bring you cookies from the matron. When I feel lonely, you can show me your cool puppets and a puppets show."
Shota then paused, tilted his head, and said thoughtfully, "Now that I hear it again, that sounded so gay." He started chuckling at his own words. "Just to tell you, Sasori-san, I am not interested in you romantically. Not that you need me for that stuff — you have your puppets for that, hehehe."
Sasori stared at the boy in complete silence for a few seconds, his tools forgotten in his hands. "How do you know that stuff? You are five!"
"I am five, not stupid," Shota said with a casual shrug, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"I will have to talk to the matron about this," Sasori said sternly, crossing his arms.
"Do not do it! She will not give me any more of her sweet stuff!" Shota cried out. He jumped off the couch and ran over to Sasori, grabbing onto his leg with both small arms. "Please, nii-san! I will be good! I will not say funny words anymore. Just do not tell the matron. Her sweet rice balls are the best in the whole village. I need them for my lonely days!"
Shota looked up with big pleading eyes. "I will even help you with your puppets! I can hold the tools or bring water. Please reconsider. I promise I will only say normal things from now on. No more gay jokes. Well, maybe one more if it is really funny, but that is it!"
Sasori tried to keep a straight face but felt the corners of his mouth twitch. The boy was still clinging to his leg, refusing to let go. "You are too troublesome for a five-year-old."
"But I am your troublesome friend!" Shota argued back, tightening his grip. "Lonely together, remember? You cannot abandon me now. That would make you a bad nii-san. I will cry really loud if you tell the matron. Everyone in the village will hear me."
Sasori sighed deeply, but there was a small, rare smile on his face. It was the first time he had smiled since the death of his parents. The little brat had somehow managed to bring a tiny bit of warmth back into his cold world without even trying hard.
**Flashback End**
The chakra strings took hold of Shota's body and gently landed him on the sand. Sasori walked over to him slowly. A thought crossed his mind to just make the brat a puppet, his greatest art so they could be lonely together just like the boy once wanted. But he could not bring himself to do it. Something in his cold puppet heart stopped him.
--------Author Notes---------
Thankyou Eric Hicks for supporting me!
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