Second Chance: Rebirth

Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Nothing is left, but cold remains strewn around. They are all gone because he was unable to save them yet again. He has failed to save his home, his friends, and his family. He was alone once more, alone in this forsaken place.

He had to leave his village for long missions to ensure the safety of his family, even if it meant bearing the yearning and solitude, even if it meant not being with his family, even if it meant being absent from their lives. For the sake of his family, he must endure. He believed he could make a difference, a difference that would secure his family's bright future but he was entirely wrong. He had failed, and he was left with nothing but himself.

He sat alone under the sakura tree, watching its flowers dance gravely in the breeze. As the sakura petals fall around him, he can't help but endure his sorrow silently as tears stream down his face while he reminisces his past with his family. It was brief but worthwhile; everything with them is priceless.

Sakura... Sarada... the twins... His precious treasures, he failed them, and now they're gone.

"You appear to be lost, Uchiha." the voice in front of him drew his attention, but he never lifted his head or acknowledged her presence. "Fate is cruel, was it not?" he didn't respond; instead, he stared at the sakura petals on his palms, silently mourning the loss of his wife and children.

"What do you want?" his voice was cold and lethal, with no warmth in his tone, but the old lady didn't waver as she just sat beside the Uchiha.

"Ah, Uchihas," the old lady mumbled, but as she faced the man, she became solemn. "When you were younger, Uchiha Sasuke, you allowed hatred and vengeance to obscure your heart enough so you couldn't see the people who deeply loved and cared for you. They spend their lives trying to drag you out from the darkness, but you didn't budge since it had already swallowed you. They never gave up, though, did they? And it was overwhelming the moment you opened your heart; mixed sensations washed over you as you contemplated what may have happened if you had stayed. If you had just listened to them sooner. If you hadn't let hatred and revenge consume you." As the lone survivor lifted his head to face the darkened sky, she sighed. He was completely oblivious to the fact that he was now listening intently to the old woman beside him.

"You swore to keep the peace after reflecting on your actions. To protect your loved ones, yet before you let the pink-haired kunoichi into your life, you were still scared." this time, the Uchiha's frigid eyes flashed to the person sitting next to him with furrowed eyebrows. "But even though you let her enter your life, you were still afraid, especially when she gave birth. You wanted them to live in peace even if it means leaving them behind. You isolate yourself once more, convinced that it is for the best. Maybe it is, but a visit to your family every once in a while wouldn't hurt, would it? And now, you regretted not being with them, now that you had lost them forever."

"Who are you, and what do you want?"

"I want nothing Uchiha, but you do." Sasuke was still glaring at her intently, intimidating her, but she just smiled warmly at him. "A chance. A chance of changing the past to alter the future. A chance of rebirth. Do you accept, Uchiha Sasuke?"

Sasuke wasn't swayed by her claims; it was too late for everything for him. And he had accepted the reality that he would die alone; he wanted to die, to be with them once more.

"Just leave and let me grieve in peace." But the old lady didn't listen to him and instead sang a lullaby, a melody that soothed Sasuke's lost soul and lulled him to sleep. He had no idea what was happening to him; all he knew was that his eyelids were becoming heavy. But he was well aware that it was the old lady's fault. He scowled at her once more but was rewarded with a sweet smile.

"Remember, Uchiha. This is your only chance. Change the past to alter the future. I will see you again." with that, everything went blank as Sasuke Uchiha fell with a thud.