10 Things You Didn't Know About Path of No Regrets
Consider this a really big author’s note, I guess-kind of the fanfic equivalent of a DVD extra. :P 
1. As of its completion, it will be officially subtitled Renewal, and in fact I had planned that before I ever put up the prologue. The only reason I didn’t submit the story as such from day one is that I figured subtitling it would only make sense once there was actually more than one fic. XD Kind of like how Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was just annoying until Dead Man’s Chest finally came out. So I simply titled it Path of No Regrets for the time being, even though I was already referring to it as Renewal in my mind.
2. The title Path of No Regrets itself is of course a reference to Naruto’s line when he first comes up with his nindo (“I’m gonna run straight down a path of no regrets!”), but when I was brainstorming on titles for the fic, the idea first came to me because of a song lyric that also included the “no regrets” line. It wasn’t until a little while later that I made the connection to the series, and that was pretty much when I decided this was the way to go. I had originally planned on using the lyrics in question at the beginning of the Renewal epilogue, but I decided against it because this is supposed to be a story in three parts, all of which will be under the PonR name, so it would really be best if I saved those lyrics for the very end. …So, ages and ages from now, when I finally post the very last chapter, you’ll know just how far ahead this part of it was planned. :P
3. I actually had to work out a timeline for the first part of the fic because I was having too much trouble keeping track of who was where (mostly with Naruto and Sasuke’s/Kakashi and Sasuke’s interactions) and how long it had been since this and that happened. Here it is:
16 October -
03:47 - Naruto and Sasuke get back to Konoha.
13:00 - Naruto wakes; has talk with Kakashi and many others.
13:30 - Kakashi discusses things with Tsunade (takes about 20 minutes), then goes back to Sasuke vigil
20:00 - Visiting hours end; Naruto angsts. End of Ch. 1.
17 October -
10:00 - Naruto is discharged from hospital.
14:00 - Sakura goes to visit Sasuke, is again denied, and leaves to ask Tsunade to be her apprentice.
Sasuke still asleep; Kakashi still waiting.
18 October -
10:00 - Sasuke wakes; talks with Kakashi.
11:30 - Kakashi talks with Tsunade and the Advisors. This takes about an hour.
12:30 - Kakashi finishes and goes off to work on his mission overview (and all the other paperwork he’s left hanging, and sleep).
15:50 - Sasuke wakes up, angsts, changes clothes, and angsts more.
16:30 - Sasuke leaves the hospital and heads to da docks.
17:40 - Naruto finds Sasuke at da docks, and they talk. Naruto leaves.
18:00 - Sasuke leaves da docks, goes home, and sleeps.
23:30 - Sasuke wakes up after a nightmare and heads to his parents’ room for the first time in ages. He falls asleep a little after midnight.
23:35 - Kakashi hands Tsunade the paperwork; sees evidence of Sakura’s having been there for her first lesson.
19 October -
01:00 - Kakashi finds Sasuke, and leaves.
06:00 - Sasuke wakes up bitterly.
08:00 - Kakashi gets back and tells him he’s moving in with Naruto.
I even picked out dates and everything, as you can see. The part about it being October is probably off, but it’s based on the Chuunin Finals being in early August, and then adding a couple of months onto that for Itachi’s return and the Search for Tsunade arc (since the Rescue Sasuke arc takes place immediately afterward and only lasts a couple of days). Fun fact: as you can see from the start date, I placed the Rescue Sasuke arc only days after Naruto's 13th birthday. XD Anyway, for better or worse, this is the timeline I’m sticking with now. I think.
4. The scene in chapter 2 where Sasuke wakes up and talks to Kakashi was one of the earliest-written scenes in the fic, written months before I ever worked up the courage to start writing the entire thing. The scene with Naruto and Sasuke talking on the dock (and Sasuke pointing out the Anbu, heh) was also written early, as was-for some reason I’m not completely sure of-the scene where Sasuke talks with Chouji. Inspiration was striking me pretty much at random back then. XD
5. In my original outline for Renewal, there actually was a scene where Sasuke had another nightmare after moving in with Naruto, and Naruto sorta comforted him and Sasuke sorta let him and the whole thing was very, very awkward in general. I mention this because I got several reviews mentioning the nightmare thing and wondering what would happen if Sasuke had another one with Naruto there. What happened, though, was that I removed the scene very early on because I realized it would be absurdly out of character for Sasuke to have continual breakdowns in the fic, and he’d had the one at his house already (which I felt was a little more IC because he was alone, and which I liked too much to get rid of). What was more, as a way of resolving all the tension that had built up to that point, it really didn’t work. So instead, I reworked it to add the huge fight instead, and Sasuke’s apology in the aftermath, which worked out much, much better and which I afterwards wondered why I hadn’t just done it in the first place. I also realized after the fact that Grown Up Orphans already dealt with Naruto comforting Sasuke after a bad dream, in a way, so I had already done the thing already, and in a much more IC way than I had previously been heading toward. So it worked out great, really.
6. The scene in chapter 3 where Sasuke slowly touches his shoulder blades is meant to be a reference to his level 2 curse seal form. I wasn’t ever quite sure about how clearly I got that across, so just in case. (And Kakashi was visiting Obito prior to giving Tsunade the reports in chapter 4, though that one probably was obvious.)
7. At the very end of chapter 4, the dream Sasuke had of his family actually surviving and them being normal and happy was actually, while pleasant-sounding, the dream he hated the most out of all the ones he’d been having lately. The thing was that it reminded him of all the things he wanted to have and had hoped to have, but couldn’t now-it was a reminder in the most painful way of everything he’d lost. That was why he went along with it when Kakashi told him he was going to move-he realized he’d finally had enough of that place. He really couldn’t bear to be around his family’s ghosts any longer. Again, this is one of those things I wasn’t sure if I really got across in the actual fic.
8. Another thing I never got to expand on-the height charts in chapter 5 were an idea I’d had for a while, and the original concept wasn’t just that they both had height charts scribbled on their walls, but that they actually completed each other. Sasuke’s chart only goes up to when he was seven (almost eight), because after that his parents died and it had been his mom who used to measure him. And Naruto’s chart begins from when he was seven and continues to his current age, because I had it in my head that when the Uchihas were killed was also around the same time that Naruto was finally allowed to live in an apartment of his own. (I figured that before then he was stuck in a foster home or orphanage or something.) So Naruto’s chart picks up from where Sasuke’s left off; if you somehow put them together, they would probably complete each other. Yes, there is a metaphor in that. :P There was also a bit of symbolism in the fact that Sasuke’s growth had stopped while Naruto’s was only getting started. Of course, that refers more to Sasuke’s own doubts than anything I actually believe about the two of them.
9. The fight in chapter 6… like I said, it wasn’t originally planned, but it soon became apparent that it was needed. So I then spent ages and ages trying to figure out of how to set Naruto off, since I had already established that he was being so painstakingly careful around Sasuke and trying to suppress all the anger and betrayal he didn’t really want to be feeling. I went over all of Naruto and Sasuke’s issues over and over and nothing seemed right-either I didn’t think it would be big enough, or I didn’t think I could bring it up without it seeming forced. I needed something that would come up naturally but lead to all the rest. And then finally, out of the blue it hit me that I was wasting my time looking at issues relating only to Naruto and Sasuke when all I really needed to do to make Naruto mad was to use Sakura. So Sasuke ended up saying the wrong thing about her and voila, fight. Ridiculously simple in the end.
10. I really wanted to get the Naruto/Sakura/Sasuke scene in chapter 7-the first Team 7 scene in the entire fic-just right, so I ended up writing it in a sort of script/outline form before I wrote the prose, just so I could be clear on what everyone was thinking during the scene and get their behavior and dialogue just right. I kept the outline afterward because there were several tidbits there I thought were kind of cool and that never got mentioned in the actual scene-how much of Naruto and Sakura’s conversation Sasuke actually heard, for example (he showed up just in time to hear “I don’t care if it’s hard for him…” onward). And a little more insight into Sasuke and Sakura’s silent chit-chat (Sakura’s “How are you doing?” was a combination “I missed you”, “I love you”, “I forgive you”, and especially, “I’m glad to see you” all rolled into one question and tone. Meanwhile, Sasuke’s “I hope you do well” and so forth was his version of an apology to Sakura, and his very last unreadable glance to her was a “thank you” for being understanding and for convincing Naruto to go with him. …He really does have a lot of trouble actually getting these things out, but Sakura is subtle enough to more or less understand). Naruto’s own thoughts did, of course, make it to the final version because it was in his POV, so yeah. Anyway, I always liked how much was going on in that scene, because their relationships are so complex.
11. I plan to post the epilogue at long last by this time next week.
EDIT: OBVIOUSLY I FAILED THE LAST ONE BIG TIME, but it's okay because I put it in strikethrough tags. >_>
;)
1. As of its completion, it will be officially subtitled Renewal, and in fact I had planned that before I ever put up the prologue. The only reason I didn’t submit the story as such from day one is that I figured subtitling it would only make sense once there was actually more than one fic. XD Kind of like how Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was just annoying until Dead Man’s Chest finally came out. So I simply titled it Path of No Regrets for the time being, even though I was already referring to it as Renewal in my mind.
2. The title Path of No Regrets itself is of course a reference to Naruto’s line when he first comes up with his nindo (“I’m gonna run straight down a path of no regrets!”), but when I was brainstorming on titles for the fic, the idea first came to me because of a song lyric that also included the “no regrets” line. It wasn’t until a little while later that I made the connection to the series, and that was pretty much when I decided this was the way to go. I had originally planned on using the lyrics in question at the beginning of the Renewal epilogue, but I decided against it because this is supposed to be a story in three parts, all of which will be under the PonR name, so it would really be best if I saved those lyrics for the very end. …So, ages and ages from now, when I finally post the very last chapter, you’ll know just how far ahead this part of it was planned. :P
3. I actually had to work out a timeline for the first part of the fic because I was having too much trouble keeping track of who was where (mostly with Naruto and Sasuke’s/Kakashi and Sasuke’s interactions) and how long it had been since this and that happened. Here it is:
16 October -
03:47 - Naruto and Sasuke get back to Konoha.
13:00 - Naruto wakes; has talk with Kakashi and many others.
13:30 - Kakashi discusses things with Tsunade (takes about 20 minutes), then goes back to Sasuke vigil
20:00 - Visiting hours end; Naruto angsts. End of Ch. 1.
17 October -
10:00 - Naruto is discharged from hospital.
14:00 - Sakura goes to visit Sasuke, is again denied, and leaves to ask Tsunade to be her apprentice.
Sasuke still asleep; Kakashi still waiting.
18 October -
10:00 - Sasuke wakes; talks with Kakashi.
11:30 - Kakashi talks with Tsunade and the Advisors. This takes about an hour.
12:30 - Kakashi finishes and goes off to work on his mission overview (and all the other paperwork he’s left hanging, and sleep).
15:50 - Sasuke wakes up, angsts, changes clothes, and angsts more.
16:30 - Sasuke leaves the hospital and heads to da docks.
17:40 - Naruto finds Sasuke at da docks, and they talk. Naruto leaves.
18:00 - Sasuke leaves da docks, goes home, and sleeps.
23:30 - Sasuke wakes up after a nightmare and heads to his parents’ room for the first time in ages. He falls asleep a little after midnight.
23:35 - Kakashi hands Tsunade the paperwork; sees evidence of Sakura’s having been there for her first lesson.
19 October -
01:00 - Kakashi finds Sasuke, and leaves.
06:00 - Sasuke wakes up bitterly.
08:00 - Kakashi gets back and tells him he’s moving in with Naruto.
I even picked out dates and everything, as you can see. The part about it being October is probably off, but it’s based on the Chuunin Finals being in early August, and then adding a couple of months onto that for Itachi’s return and the Search for Tsunade arc (since the Rescue Sasuke arc takes place immediately afterward and only lasts a couple of days). Fun fact: as you can see from the start date, I placed the Rescue Sasuke arc only days after Naruto's 13th birthday. XD Anyway, for better or worse, this is the timeline I’m sticking with now. I think.
4. The scene in chapter 2 where Sasuke wakes up and talks to Kakashi was one of the earliest-written scenes in the fic, written months before I ever worked up the courage to start writing the entire thing. The scene with Naruto and Sasuke talking on the dock (and Sasuke pointing out the Anbu, heh) was also written early, as was-for some reason I’m not completely sure of-the scene where Sasuke talks with Chouji. Inspiration was striking me pretty much at random back then. XD
5. In my original outline for Renewal, there actually was a scene where Sasuke had another nightmare after moving in with Naruto, and Naruto sorta comforted him and Sasuke sorta let him and the whole thing was very, very awkward in general. I mention this because I got several reviews mentioning the nightmare thing and wondering what would happen if Sasuke had another one with Naruto there. What happened, though, was that I removed the scene very early on because I realized it would be absurdly out of character for Sasuke to have continual breakdowns in the fic, and he’d had the one at his house already (which I felt was a little more IC because he was alone, and which I liked too much to get rid of). What was more, as a way of resolving all the tension that had built up to that point, it really didn’t work. So instead, I reworked it to add the huge fight instead, and Sasuke’s apology in the aftermath, which worked out much, much better and which I afterwards wondered why I hadn’t just done it in the first place. I also realized after the fact that Grown Up Orphans already dealt with Naruto comforting Sasuke after a bad dream, in a way, so I had already done the thing already, and in a much more IC way than I had previously been heading toward. So it worked out great, really.
6. The scene in chapter 3 where Sasuke slowly touches his shoulder blades is meant to be a reference to his level 2 curse seal form. I wasn’t ever quite sure about how clearly I got that across, so just in case. (And Kakashi was visiting Obito prior to giving Tsunade the reports in chapter 4, though that one probably was obvious.)
7. At the very end of chapter 4, the dream Sasuke had of his family actually surviving and them being normal and happy was actually, while pleasant-sounding, the dream he hated the most out of all the ones he’d been having lately. The thing was that it reminded him of all the things he wanted to have and had hoped to have, but couldn’t now-it was a reminder in the most painful way of everything he’d lost. That was why he went along with it when Kakashi told him he was going to move-he realized he’d finally had enough of that place. He really couldn’t bear to be around his family’s ghosts any longer. Again, this is one of those things I wasn’t sure if I really got across in the actual fic.
8. Another thing I never got to expand on-the height charts in chapter 5 were an idea I’d had for a while, and the original concept wasn’t just that they both had height charts scribbled on their walls, but that they actually completed each other. Sasuke’s chart only goes up to when he was seven (almost eight), because after that his parents died and it had been his mom who used to measure him. And Naruto’s chart begins from when he was seven and continues to his current age, because I had it in my head that when the Uchihas were killed was also around the same time that Naruto was finally allowed to live in an apartment of his own. (I figured that before then he was stuck in a foster home or orphanage or something.) So Naruto’s chart picks up from where Sasuke’s left off; if you somehow put them together, they would probably complete each other. Yes, there is a metaphor in that. :P There was also a bit of symbolism in the fact that Sasuke’s growth had stopped while Naruto’s was only getting started. Of course, that refers more to Sasuke’s own doubts than anything I actually believe about the two of them.
9. The fight in chapter 6… like I said, it wasn’t originally planned, but it soon became apparent that it was needed. So I then spent ages and ages trying to figure out of how to set Naruto off, since I had already established that he was being so painstakingly careful around Sasuke and trying to suppress all the anger and betrayal he didn’t really want to be feeling. I went over all of Naruto and Sasuke’s issues over and over and nothing seemed right-either I didn’t think it would be big enough, or I didn’t think I could bring it up without it seeming forced. I needed something that would come up naturally but lead to all the rest. And then finally, out of the blue it hit me that I was wasting my time looking at issues relating only to Naruto and Sasuke when all I really needed to do to make Naruto mad was to use Sakura. So Sasuke ended up saying the wrong thing about her and voila, fight. Ridiculously simple in the end.
10. I really wanted to get the Naruto/Sakura/Sasuke scene in chapter 7-the first Team 7 scene in the entire fic-just right, so I ended up writing it in a sort of script/outline form before I wrote the prose, just so I could be clear on what everyone was thinking during the scene and get their behavior and dialogue just right. I kept the outline afterward because there were several tidbits there I thought were kind of cool and that never got mentioned in the actual scene-how much of Naruto and Sakura’s conversation Sasuke actually heard, for example (he showed up just in time to hear “I don’t care if it’s hard for him…” onward). And a little more insight into Sasuke and Sakura’s silent chit-chat (Sakura’s “How are you doing?” was a combination “I missed you”, “I love you”, “I forgive you”, and especially, “I’m glad to see you” all rolled into one question and tone. Meanwhile, Sasuke’s “I hope you do well” and so forth was his version of an apology to Sakura, and his very last unreadable glance to her was a “thank you” for being understanding and for convincing Naruto to go with him. …He really does have a lot of trouble actually getting these things out, but Sakura is subtle enough to more or less understand). Naruto’s own thoughts did, of course, make it to the final version because it was in his POV, so yeah. Anyway, I always liked how much was going on in that scene, because their relationships are so complex.
11. I plan to post the epilogue at long last by this time next week.
EDIT: OBVIOUSLY I FAILED THE LAST ONE BIG TIME, but it's okay because I put it in strikethrough tags. >_>
;)