Against All Odds: A Fanfiction Collection

He lied there motionless.

After fighting and running to keep himself alive, he had lost all of his energy to even stand.

Is this all his struggling were for? Is this all where his revenge ends?

Is this the end?

“No it isn’t, Sasuke…I’ll… I’ll make sure of that…”

Hikari. That was the name that she was given when that Light created her, just like any other angels. And like the other angels, she had been assigned to countless Guidances—which meant, taking souls of humans and guiding them to the place where they should be after death.

And right now, she was assigned to Guide a soul. Normally, people would think that it were reapers or dark devils who take human souls. The truth is…there were no such things. And the rumor about angels helping humans to live their life to the fullest was a lie. All angels do was to take souls away from the world once the last speck of sand fell in their hourglass whether the souls were ready to leave or not.

Hikari flew nearby to where a school stood. There was a soul that needed to be taken away in a few hours. And she flew down as she saw the soul and walked alongside him as he walked out of the school gates.

The bell rang and the students ran excitedly out of the room. Sasuke was the only one who calmly stood up and walked out. He wanted to get away from there as soon as possible before that loser Naruto or his fan girls could bother him again.

When he walked out of the school gates though, there was someone different who bothered him. She just suddenly skipped beside him and it seemed that she jumped down from somewhere. She didn’t say anything to him though. She just simply walked with him. But she was odd. She was wearing a white summer dress that swayed along as she moved and she was barefooted! And it was the middle of autumn! And the oddest thing was that…she had wings.

Sasuke stopped walking and as soon as he did, she stopped also. He then stared at her with a bored expression. “Quit it,” said he. “Quit following me.”

Hikari stared at him, stunned. ‘He can see me?’

“You know, I really hate stalkers so if I were you, just go home,” he stated annoyed.

“You…” Hikari began. “You can see me?” and she pointed to herself.

“Yes, I can,” Sasuke replied as he eyed her. “Look, if you think that outfit and those wings will make me like you, then, quit dreaming ’cause that ain’t gonna happen.”

‘Damn…but if he can see me, then I guess there’s no harm in telling him. After all…he’s going to die.’ Hikari thought as she looked at him after recovering from her initial shock. “I’m an angel.”

Sasuke blinked at her then his lips formed a smirk. “Yeah right…what next? You’re going to say that you’re going to make my dreams come true?”

“I am here to take your soul,” Hikari continued. “Once you die.”

“Prove it,” Sasuke challenged her, still thinking that she was playing around.

Hikari faintly smirked at him as she flapped her wings and flew five feet above him. He gave the slightest hint of gasp but astonishment was written all over his eyes.

“You will die at exactly 6PM today,” Hikari told as she settled down to the ground.

“If you’re an angel,” Sasuke began, now recovered from his previous emotion. “Shouldn’t you be helping me?”

“Angels don’t help humans,” Hikari simply stated. “It’s a fact.”

“Then let me live longer.”

Hikari looked at him curiously. “Why would I do that?”

“Since I’m going to die, let me do something first before I die,” he said with fire in his eyes. “You said that you don’t help humans so it means that you don’t care about them also.”

She nodded.

“So keep me alive for some time,” Sasuke said firmly. “I just need to kill someone.”

Hikari thought about it. What did she have to lose? It would be even good for her to also take the soul of this man’s target.

“Deal.”

Hikari learned that his name was Sasuke Uchiha. His parents were murdered when he was little. All he was left with was his elder brother, Itachi. But Itachi died also. And before he died, he told Sasuke of the truth behind their parents’ murder. It was their very own relative’s doing. The murderer’s name was Madara. From that day on, Sasuke vowed to take Madara’s life with his very own hands.

Sasuke had also learned that the angel’s name was Hikari. Hikari told him about what angels do but mostly, he was the one who would always ask her and would force her to answer every time she hesitated.

“So your wings are equivalent to your life?” Sasuke asked. He was yet again pestering her with his questions. Things that came from his world bored him but things that she told him of were the most interesting things he had ever heard.

“My wings are equivalent to my existence,” Hikari corrected him. “We, angels, don’t have life, Sasuke. We are not alive nor are we dead. We just simply exist.”

“What will happen to my soul anyway? Sasuke asked curiously.

“It will be recycled,” Hikari sighed. “You’ll be just reincarnated.” Though angels didn’t usually feel tired, her mind is so tired right now from the questions Sasuke was giving her.

“I see,” Sasuke uttered, not really knowing how he should answer. His phone then received a mail and he read it. “I think it’s about time…”

After one month...

He had successfully found the man that he was after. Hikari didn’t know why but she found herself helping him in every way she could. Didn’t she say that angels don’t help humans? So why was she helping him? Why did she even want to help him to begin with?!

She sat high on the wall of an alley. She knew that sooner or later, Sasuke would go there after he finished his ‘mission’. Then she would take his soul away since it was all over. But somehow, somewhere in her heart, she felt like she couldn’t do it. Sure that she was used to taking souls but…he was different. Every soul that she had taken was either ready or not ready to die but all of them had lived their lives and had experience a good and happy life. But Sasuke, he had continued living only to achieve one goal: revenge. But was he truly happy? She knew that he was not. She knew that she wanted him to live on after this. But if she let him go, she would break the Rules. And she would have to give up her wings. She would cease to exist…

Sasuke ran. He had done it. He killed Madara. But he was badly shot by some men who worked for his victim. And they were running after him. And he was exhausted. His injury was only making it worse. At long last, he collapsed unwillingly to the ground. He couldn’t move his body. He heard footsteps.

“I think he’s dead,” a man’s voice. It was one of Madara’s goons.

“Let’s just leave before the police find us!” the other said.

And they all left.

Sasuke just laid there motionless. He knew that this was his limit. This was his end.

“I’m going to die…” he murmured. “It’s the end…”

“No it isn’t, Sasuke,” A voice whispered to him. It was Hikari’s. “I’ll… I’ll make sure of that…”

Sasuke spent all of his energy to move his head until he saw her face. She was leaning over him. She then moved him until his head rested on her lap. She was crying.

“I thought you’re supposed to take my soul now?” Sasuke forced a smirk.

“I-I can’t…” she sobbed. “I’m sorry…”

“Are you sorry for me?” his voice was now faint. “Or are you sorry for yourself?”

“For both of us… I will let you live, Sasuke… But promise me one thing…”

He just looked at her, waiting for her next words.

“Try to live happily…”

Then she smiled at him. And he thought that he could see heaven already.

“I will…” he uttered.

She then wrapped her wings around him. “In exchange of this man’s life…I now abandon my wings…” she whispered.

Sasuke’s eyes widen. He knew what that meant. If she abandoned her wings then she would… “No…” the word slipped from his lips. “No!”

“Goodbye, Sasuke,” she leaned to his face, “Live,” and placed a soft kiss on his lips…and she disappeared as the snowflakes started to fall.

“Hikari…” he whispered to the empty air as a lone tear fell from his eye.

Sasuke came back to the school. Lucky for him, when the police found Madara’s dead body, they didn’t find out who did it and the case was closed after some time. He was now living normally. But unlike to what he was like before, he had started to open his self to the world. Naruto, who was once his number one enemy in school, somehow became a friend though he was still as annoying as before. The fan girls were still a bother to him but unlike what he usually did like saying cold things to them, he would now merely ignore them and would try not to say harsh things.

He knew that he had changed after…after that day. That angel had taught him many things. She showed her a different view of life though he knew that she wasn’t aware of that. Sometimes, when he would sometime see an angel or two flying near a person without anyone else seeing, he remembered her. Where could she be now? Did angels have souls, too? Could they be reincarnated, too? Or…were they lost forever once they lost their wings?

The school bell rang and he knew that it was time to go to his class. He sat on the back as always, second seat from the window on the left side of the room. He was thankful that the seat on the window was empty so he could stare outside the window directly whenever he was bored of class.

But today was different. Students in the room were gossiping and their topic were the same: about the new student. He rolled his eyes. ‘There they go again.’

By the time the teacher entered with the new student, Sasuke was staring out the window. He didn’t really give a damn about new students especially when he found out from Naruto that it was a girl. ‘Great, I know that she would soon join the fan girls in bothering me,’ he sighed.

He blocked his mind from the noises in the classroom as Hikari crossed his mind again. He couldn’t help but feel empty now she was gone. She was important to him. He knew it. The time that he spent with her was precious to him as well as the memories they shared. She was special to him. He…he loved her…

“Excuse me, can I take this seat by the window, sensei?”

Someone had just stood in front of his eyesight but it was only the person’s upper body in his view. He then sighed and turned his head to the front of the room, not bothering to look at the new student. He heard the teacher said yes.

And as the new student sat, she uttered, “Long time no see, Sasuke.”

His eyes widened. He knew that voice! He quickly turned his head to the student and his mouth slightly fell. Silky black hair, mesmerizing brown eyes, and that angelic face…It was her!

“H-Hikari…” he whispered.

She looked at him and smiled…the same smile that she gave him before she vanished.

He could feel the tears threatening in his eyes but he blinked them away and smiled back at her. “Long time no see, Hikari…”

And he knew…now…he was no longer empty. He could now be truly happy.