It had been a while since Sasuke had had the time to go wandering through some of further stretches of forest around Konoha, busy as he'd been. This particular weekend had turned up like an unexpected and inexplicable gift: totally empty of clan engagements, missions, or leads to follow. He'd taken the span of perhaps five minutes to feel guilt about not taking the time to spend with his family before he'd packed a tackle kit and the minimum complement of weapons and taken off for the weekend, goshawks in tow.

The stream he'd sought was a distant tributary of the Nakano River that ended up in Konoha. It was one of those locations that was quiet and felt uninhabited despite its proximity to the road, tucked away behind uncomfortable brambles and a strange overhang of rock that made it look more desolate than it was.

That same overhang meant that fish tended to gather in its shadow in the late afternoon, enjoying the cooler water, so Sasuke was perched just out of sight on a convenient flat rock, line dangling in the water and goshawks behaving themselves in order not to alarm any of the regular forest creatures around. It was so rare that he was interrupted, and by anyone with enough chakra to be a threat, that he almost didn't lift his head when the sound of footsteps came from upstream, assuming that whoever it was would find the road and leave.

They neared rather than departed, however. He glanced up at the same time as a tall stranger emerged, not much older than him by the looks of it. No village marker, and dressed like a civilian, but there was enough chakra present that there was no way to write it off to a fluke.

Sasuke stayed where he was, both hands still on his fishing rod, but his gaze locked on the stranger's with an assessing look.