History Sandbox / Quietus

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone

* ForcedKiss: A couple here and there, most notably in Chapter 49.

* LongingLook; Sasuke is deeply infatuated with Sakura and he is often and unwittingly giving her passive yet intense stares of desire right to her face which leaves her caught of guard, nervous and embarrassed. She later lampshades this, in Chpt 46/47, during an argument about his overall selfish behavior toward her.

-->'''''[Sasuke stares at her]'''''...

* BelligerentSexualTension

* OneHundredPercentAdorationRating: His fellow chthonic gods, on the other hand, happily pledge their fealty to him as their patriarch due to his charisma, ambition, and steadfast loyalty to the clan.[[spoiler:..or at least, most of them did when they were still alive, having known nothing about Cronus' true nature. It turns out Thanatos and Hypnos (Itachi and Shisui respectively) had allied themselves in secret with Zeus aka Minato in a vain attempt to halt the impending Titanomachy, thereby subverting this trope. Hades (aka Sasuke) had also grown to distrust Cronus after witnessing the latter's indifferent, even disappointed, response to his parents' murder.]]
* AbductionIsLove: Double subverted, surprisingly. While Sakura does eventually develop an attraction to Sasuke, who himself grows kinder and more considerate through her influence, she's not above calling him out on his cryptic demeanor and efforts to isolate her [[spoiler:in her final conversation with him before she returns to the surface]].

* BastardBoyfriend: Sasuke zigzags the Conflicted version of this trope in his treatment of Sakura.
** On the one hand, he has no issues violating her personal autonomy--stealing her away, isolating her underground, even touching her constantly just because he feels like it. [[spoiler:He even throws her into a trance to punish her hunger strike against him ''while she is still enthralled''. Though he backs away at the last minute, he still [[UsefulNotes/VictimBlaming pins the blame]] for his lack of self-control on Sakura for being so alluring to him.]] He also eagerly needles Sakura when he finds her behavior frivolous or foolishly human, nor does he refrain from using her naïveté [[spoiler:about her past and her family's true divine heritage]] as a vehicle for deriding her or her loved ones. He also keeps her under surveillance [[spoiler:through a pair of magical anklets]] and isn't willing to let her go home, so much so that [[spoiler:he coaxes her into eating six pomegranate seeds that will compel her to return underground for half the year until she dies]].
** On the other hand, he is just as quick to defend her from any physical harm (even teaching her basic combat skills at her behest), insists on keeping her well fed and clothed (even if she has no say in what she wears [[spoiler:or eats, in the case of her failed hunger strike]]), tells her the truth about her existence when her family kept her in the dark, and willingly guides her on grand tours around his domain simply for her pleasure. In time he grows comfortable enough around her to open up about his domain and his tortured past[[spoiler:, and even removes her tracking anklets as a further sign of trust. Even so, Sakura recognizes that for all his many kindnesses toward her, he is still loath to release her or to explain why she must stay with him, and eventually exploits his burgeoning trust in her to engineer her escape]].
** All of this being said, the primary character arc for Sasuke is one of repentence, redepmption, and acceptance. He showed no indication of being this toxic or dismissive of Kore [[spoiler: when they were first lovers, only trying to separate himself from her for her protection, but to no avail]]. His subsequent severe trauma [[spoiler: (with the murder of his parents apparently at the hand of his beloved brother, the murder of his entire people, and being thrust into kinghood), the fact that he was mind-raped and his memories severely manipulated, and his isolation for over 2,000 years are all things that are recognised as having seriously impacted his mental state and interpersonal relationships. While Sakura returns to the mortal realm for a year, he takes it upon himself to do all that he can to support her autonomy and to face justice. He endangers his own life by acquiring the necessary Senju DNA to eventually activiate the rinnegan, which he hoped would help to reveal the secret of Sakura's seal, he actively targets Orochimaru's bases and destroys them, and he saves her life several times without ever trying to push himself on her. At his trial overseen by the council dieties, he refuses to defend himself on almost all accounts as he believes that he was wrong in his past actions]].

* ActionGirl: Sakura morphs into one when Sasuke begins training her in swordsmanship at her request, [[spoiler:which she'd put forth as part of her ruse to borrow Sasuke's sword,]] and even gets some practice in combating [[KrakenAndLeviathan a legendary creature]] via simulation at one point. After she returns to the surface, her friends and family continue to teach her everything they know about chakra and combat [[spoiler:in preparation for the second war against Madara-as-Cronus]], then during the Winter Ball she takes control of a panicking mob and doles out a couple of devastating punches [[spoiler:to the beasts hijacking the dance at Orochimaru-as-Deimos' command]]. We later see her not only [[SmartGuy devise successful combat strategies and puzzle solutions]] on her own, but also back Sasuke in combat with her sword [[spoiler:while he is fighting the griffins guarding the first of the four relics to be used in unsealing the surviving Olympians' powers]].

%% Tropes have been sorted by folders mainly for ease of navigation; however, I may resort or remove folders depending on how many tropes I am able to expand (or end up removing). I'm also aware that many of the tropes recently added may be redundant or even irrelevant; rest assured I'll be cleaning up the tropes list before I take the page out of the Sandbox. %%

''Quietus'' is an ongoing, M-rated FusionFic by Seraphina Scribes [[note]]known as [=AngeLhearteD=] before 2020[[/note]] that blends ''{{Manga/Naruto}}'' and [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek mythology]] in a modern-day alternate timeline, first published on [=FanFiction.Net=] in 2011 and added to [=Archive of Our Own=] in 2014. It should be noted that this is not a professionally edited work and that the story at this time consists of an inital draft, as many fanfictions do. Initially a by-the-book adaptation of the Rape of Persephone, it has expanded over the years to incorporate the Titanomachy alongside the Uchiha Clan Massacre and Shinobi Wars from ''Naruto''. The fanfic is best known for its focus on Sakura Haruno's [[UnresolvedSexualTension growing]] and initially [[MasochismTango uncomfortable]] relationship with Sasuke Uchiha, though it also contains a myriad of subplots both original and adapted from the source material which are being addressed as the story enters its final arcs.

''Quietus'' is an ongoing, M-rated FusionFic by Seraphina Scribes [[note]]known as [=AngeLhearteD=] before October 5, 2020[[/note]] that blends ''{{Manga/Naruto}}'' and [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek mythology]] in a modern-day alternate timeline, first published on [=FanFiction.Net=] in 2011 and added to [=Archive of Our Own=] in 2014. It should be noted that this is not a professionally edited work and that the story at this time consists of an inital draft, as many fanfictions do. Initially a by-the-book adaptation of the Rape of Persephone, it has expanded over the years to incorporate the Titanomachy alongside the Uchiha Clan Massacre and Shinobi Wars from ''Naruto''. The fanfic is best known for its focus on Sakura Haruno's [[UnresolvedSexualTension growing]] and initially [[MasochismTango uncomfortable]] relationship with Sasuke Uchiha, though it also contains a myriad of subplots both original and adapted from the source material which are being addressed as the story enters its final arcs.

''Quietus'' is an ongoing, M-rated FusionFic by Seraphina Scribes [[note]]known as [=AngeLhearteD=] before October 5, 2020[[/note]] that blends ''{{Manga/Naruto}}'' and [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek mythology]] in a modern-day alternate timeline, first published on [=FanFiction.Net=] in 2011 and added to [=Archive of Our Own=] in 2014. It should be noted that this is not a professionally edited work and that the story at this time consists of an inital draft, as many fanfictions do. Initially a by-the-book adaptation of the Rape of Persephone, it has expanded over the years to incorporate the Titanomachy alongside the Uchiha Clan Massacre and Shinobi Wars from ''Naruto''. The fanfic is best known for its focus on Sakura Haruno's [[UnresolvedSexualTension growing]] and at times [[MasochismTango uncomfortable]] relationship with Sasuke Uchiha, though it also contains a myriad of subplots both original and adapted from the source material which are being addressed as the story enters its final arcs.

* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Sasuke and Sakura. Also applies to Naruto and Hinata, as in cannon.

** Sai-as-Hermes' bears a seal on his tongue that physically blocked him from revealing the truth about Sakura's abduction until Saskue released it. Moreover, he has been targeted [[spoiler:and at one point nearly killed]] by Sasuke for intuiting, perhaps instinctively and unintentionally, where Sakura had gone. He also once had a brother [[spoiler:who offered himself up to be killed when pitted against Sai during their first and only battle, mirroring Sai's cannon story arc]].

* DisproportionateRetribution: One could argue that Itachi [[spoiler: ripping off Orochimaru's arm]] falls into the trope, which mirrors the scene in cannon, but this would ignore the fact that Itachi was well aware of Orochimaru's machinations and true intents toward his brother (i.e. finding a perfect vessel, as in Naruto cannon).

* KiManipulation: Chakra shows up here in virtually the same form as the cannon.

** Applies to Sakura, natch. When read last name first, her full name Haruno Sakura means "spring field of cherry blossoms" in Japanese.[[note]]At least it does when written 春野サクラ ''Haruno Sakura'' as in the cannon, where 春野 ''Haruno'' means "spring field". Coincidentally, her name can also be interpreted as 春の桜 ''haru no sakura'', or "cherry blossoms of spring".[[/note]] Considering her role here [[spoiler:as an endlessly dying and reincarnating spring goddess]], the name suits her to a tee.

* SaidBookism: ''Everywhere.'' The author loves to use action verbs as speech tags, especially in the chapters published before 2015.
* SceneryPorn: Let's just say a good chunk of Sakura's time in the Underworld (spanning around Chapters 5 to 49) is spent gushing over the impressive scenery, indoors and out. Later chapters [[spoiler:particularly those revolving around Minato's lost seals]] still contain some detailed depictions of the characters' surroundings, but not to the same effusive extent as in the Underworld arc.

* SingleTargetSexuality: Karin to Sasuke to Sakura. Sakura manages to avoid this thanks to her crush on [[DoggedNiceGuy resident nice guy]] (and original character) [[{{Muggles}} Kenji]].

* SmugSnake: Orochimaru [[spoiler:aka Deimos, god of dread and terror]], natch. He's essentially the same villain he was in Part 1 and early Part 2 of his canon series.

* StalkerWithACrush: Sasuke is fixated enough on Sakura to haunt her from the shadows for two years, to say nothing of [[AbductionIsLove nabbing her off the surface to keep all to himself]], but the depths of his obsession are even more thoroughly reinforced by [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7997200/2/Quietus-The-Appendices these]] [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7997200/3/Quietus-The-Appendices three]] [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7997200/5/Quietus-The-Appendices chapters]] of the ''Appendices''.
* StalkingIsLove: Sakura downplays this trope in her views of Sasuke; she starts off less than flattered by his tracking her every movement, but in time her growing affection for Sasuke begins to edge out her dread of him. Or as she drunkenly confesses to Kenji:
--> Sometimes I think... if I stare into the dark for long enough... I'll find him. But he's never there. [...] I think... that he really cared about me. In his own, messed up way, y'know? Hmm? That's funny...I didn't think so back then, but now, when I think about how much I hurt him, too... and that [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy he still helped me]]...

* TallDarkAndSnarky: On top of possessing [[HotGod divine]] [[TallDarkAndHandsome good]] [[RavenHairIvorySkin looks]], Sasuke is also given to offering acerbic observations of others’ incompetence or [[SilentSnarker letting his visible silence]] [[DisapprovingLook speak for him]].

* TitleDrop: One finally shows up, albeit it doesn't significantly impact the plot, in Chapter 67 when Sakura is consulting with a fortune teller at the Spring Festival.

* TraumaCongaLine: See everything under the Broken Bird page, especially for Sakura's past life Kore and Sasuke/Hades.

* YouDoNotHaveToSayAnything: Sasuke deliberately exploits this trope in Chapter 70 [[spoiler:during his trial before the divine High Council. Upon being informed that his silence will be seen as an admission of guilt, he chooses to remain largely silent when prompted to explain his crimes against Sakura and his fellow gods, despite Danzou's unsubtle attempts to bait him in the trial.]]

* LongRunner: First published in 2011 (2014 on Archive of Our Own), this story currently spans nearly eighty chapters with semi-regular updates and shows no signs of ending anytime soon.

* LustObject: Sakura to Sasuke to Karin. Sakura subverts this when Sasuke develops a genuine affection for and interest in her for her personality.

** Applies to Sakura, natch. When read last name first, her full name Haruno Sakura means "spring field of cherry blossoms" in Japanese.[[note]]At least it does when written 春野サクラ ''Haruno Sakura'' as in the canon, where 春野 ''Haruno'' means "spring field". Coincidentally, her name can also be interpreted as 春の桜 ''haru no sakura'', or "cherry blossoms of spring".[[/note]] Considering her role here [[spoiler:as an endlessly dying and reincarnating spring goddess]], the name suits her to a tee.

* NoSenseOfPersonalSpace: Sasuke is weirdly fond of holding Sakura by the waist and has no qualms about touching her even when she's not awake.

* NoSympathy: Chiyo's response to Sasuke nearly succumbing to grief and severe depression in Chapter 64 shows signs of this. In Chapter 69 she [[PetTheDog averts this completely]] in her final meeting with Shisui and Itachi, the latter of whom pleads for her to protect Sasuke from their family enemies (but especially Madara/Cronus) in his stead.

* Really700YearsOld: Pretty much all of the gods and seraphs. Double subverted with Kore, who has been dying and being reborn in a mortal shell for a couple thousand years. Sakura is her final life and apparently the one most closely resembling Kore in personality and appearance.

* RescuedFromTheUnderworld: Sakura's friends and family try to invoke this to no avail. Eventually Sakura manages to abscond to the entrance on her own, but is dragged away after Sasuke discovers her and Suigetsu escaping his realm. Then Sasuke flings her into [[PsychologicalTormentZone an illusory version of Tartarus]] and she wakes up on the surface shortly afterward.

* EntitledToHaveYou: This is Sasuke's modus operandi for the first arc, where it seems like he's a Type A (he wants Sakura to sleep with him/return his affections because he is a god and he says so). As the story progresses he turns out to be a partial Type D as well (he's been isolated underground for so long that he has virtually no social skills, on top of [[spoiler:subconsciously recognizing Sakura as the reincarnation of his lost partner]]).

* ForceFeeding: In her despair and frustration over her abduction, Sakura attempts to go on a hunger strike when presented with a lavish meal in Chapter 11. (She even [[TantrumThrowing trashes the table]] to vent her anger.) Sasuke rewards her tenacity by [[spoiler: sticking her in [[{{Brainwashing}} an unbreakable trance]] and]] ordering his servants to feed her until she's sated.

* FortuneTeller: Sakura consults a fortune teller, predictably named Madame Mystic, at the second Spring Festival in Chapter 67. The fortune teller proceeds to tell Sakura [[spoiler:she is marked by death and must die to be released from her cycle of mortal rebirth]].
* FusionFic: Magic ninjas possessing a panoply of personality problems? Check. Greek myth in all its dysfunctional glory? Check. Abrahamic angels (seraphim in-text)? Check and check. Shinto and Japanese lore references ripped straight from ''Naruto'' itself? Check ''all'' the checks.

* GreenThumb: Kore can command plants to grow as she pleases on the surface, being a vegetation goddess in charge of plant fertility. [[spoiler:Then in Chapter 60 she gets trapped in the Underworld, where the plants [[DefiedTrope defy her command]].]]

* HateSink: The main traits associated with Karin are her obsessive devotion to Sasuke, her irrational disdain for Sakura (whom she sees as a romantic rival), and her belligerence toward most folks, Suigetsu in particular.

* HypnoticEyes: The Sharingan, of course--it offers the ability to entrance just about anyone with a single glance, among other less mundane abilities. Makes you wonder why nobody ever [[TakeAThirdOption just closes]] [[CuttingTheKnot their eyes]] if it explicitly relies on eye contact, which the wielders don't even bother enforcing physically.

* IHaveManyNames: Downplayed, but many members of the ''Naruto'' cast are known by both their canon names and the most commonly used names of the Greek deities they're intended to impersonate.[[labelnote:*]]"Kore" is a partial exception to the latter, being one of Persephone's many epithets.[[/labelnote]] So far no in-universe explanation has been offered for why the supposedly-Greek divinities bear Japanese true names, and mildly punny ones at that.

* KiManipulation: Chakra shows up here in virtually the same form as the canon, right down to the flashy and overpowered attacks (which are [[CallingYourAttacks frequently announced]] as well, whether aloud or not).

* KudzuPlot: See the summary up top for some of the more significant subplots. Just based on the Prologue and first few chapters, you’d think this was just another “Beauty meets Beast” story.

* DisproportionateRetribution: Chapter 65. Oh so very much.

* {{Doorstopper}}: As can be seen on [=FanFiction.Net=] and Archive of Our Own, this story spans over 900,000 words and 70+ chapters (plus a prologue) ''and counting''. It doesn't help that the author pumps out semi-regular updates measuring around 15-20k words per chapter (sometimes shorter), or that the prose itself tends toward the [[PurpleProse exhaustive]] end of things.

* CostumePorn: The author just enjoys describing the characters' outfits, especially during Sakura's extended stay in the Underworld from Chapters 5 to 49. Downplayed since the outfits themselves aren't that over the top but still primarily designed to make the wearer attractive.

* DarkAndTroubledPast: Quite a few members of the main cast have had trauma after trauma thrust upon them in the past.

*** [[spoiler:Shortly after that, his family kidnapped her as collateral in their campaign against the Olympians and put on display as Hades' dance partner during their final masquerade ball, where she confessed her undying hatred and resentment of him before attempting her escape. To no avail, unfortunately: she ended up captured again, poisoned, and brainwashed into using her powers over nature to bring decay, the latter of which inevitably killed her as she was violating her divine duty.]]

** Ino-as-Aphrodite. Poor girl has been spending the past [[spoiler:two millennia growing up and regressing to childhood ad infinitum just so Kore's reincarnations won't have to be alone]]. And did we mention she [[spoiler:[[StayWithMeUntilIDie held her best friend]] as the latter died in her first life]]? Or that her best friend's ex-boyfriend showed up [[spoiler: during Kore’s death and was unable to do anything but watch]]? Oh, and [[spoiler:most of her powers have been relinquished so she can protect Kore's mortal shells, making her one of the few Olympians unable to access even an iota of her divine energy and almost as mortal as Sakura herself]].

*** On top of that he has to run an entire kingdom on his own, with no advisors shown or even mentioned at any point. It's even stated later on that [[spoiler:if he ignores his subjects for any reason, their endless entreaties (which only he can hear) will eventually drive him mad--which nearly happened when he first ascended to the throne]].

** Naruto counts as well. In his past life as Apollo he had sworn to protect Hinata-as-Selene [[spoiler:after the rest of the Hyuuga clan, save Neji, was killed]] in battle against the Underworld-dwellers[[spoiler:, and his subsequent failure to do so continues to haunt him to this day]]. And that's not getting into his issues with his erstwhile best friend Sasuke, or his trauma over his dead parents[[spoiler:, the latter of whose bodies Madara has been preserving in crystal]] since the first Titanomachy.
** Sai-as-Hermes too. His social awkwardness among his classmates is just the tip of the iceberg: He bears a seal on his tongue that physically blocks him from revealing the truth about Sakura's abduction. And as if that's not castigation enough, he is constantly terrorized [[spoiler:and at one point nearly killed]] by Sasuke for intuiting, perhaps instinctively and unintentionally, where Sakura had gone. Then we find out that he once had a brother [[spoiler:who offered himself up to be killed when pitted against Sai during their first and only battle]].
** Some of the old(er) guard might count as well, particularly Tsunade-as-Demeter who [[spoiler: not only lost her mortal lover to death in her youth, but has had to watch her only daughter endlessly die and be reborn for ''over two thousand years'']].
* DeathAndTheMaiden: Tack "a love story" to the end of this trope, throw in [[AbductionIsLove some]] [[ReincarnationRomance extra]] [[MasochismTango spice]], and you have the romantic arc of ''Quietus'' in a nutshell.

* DesperatelyCravesAffection: As the story progresses, this is revealed as Sasuke's true impetus for stalking and abducting Sakura. Loving childhood or not, centuries of living alone in the Underworld, with only subjects and servants for company, has left him bereft of the unconditional love he expects (or rather, hopes) Sakura will give him.

** All of this being said, the primary character arc for Sasuke is one of repentence, redepmption, and acceptance. He showed no indication of being this toxic or dismissive of Kore [[spoiler: when they were first lovers, only trying to separate himself from her for her protection, but to no avail]]. His subsequent severe trauma [[spoiler: (with the murder of his parents apparently at the hand of his beloved brother, the murder of his entire people, and being thrust into kinghood), the fact that he was mind-raped and his memories severely manipulated, and his isolation for over 2,000 years are all things that are recognised as having seriously impacted his mental state and interpersonal relationships. While Sakura returns to the mortal realm for a year, he takes it upon himself to do all that he can to support her autonomy and to face justice. He endangers his own live by taking acquiring the necessary Senju DNA to eventually activiate the rinnegan, which he hoped would help to reveal the secret of Sakura's seal, he actively targets Orochimaru's bases and destroys them, and he saves her life several times without ever trying to push himself on her. At his trial overseen by the council dieties, he refuses to defend himself on almost all accounts as he believes that he was wrong in his past actions]].

* BoyMeetsGirl: More like "boy ''steals'' girl", given that it's based off the Rape of Persephone.

* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Guess who (Sasuke and Sakura, obviously). Also applies to Naruto and Hinata, of all people.

** And there's the requisite invocation of traditional Japanese culture which she manages to fulfill partially ''twice''. While her absence of affinity for traditional Japanese culture keeps her from being a complete YamatoNadeshiko, she nevertheless comes off as [[SilkHidingSteel graceful, polite, and nurturing yet fierce]] most of the time...and she [[BreadEggsMilkSquick also practices ninjutsu]] as found in ''Naruto'', despite not being a ninja.

* CostumePorn: The author just LOVES to describe the characters' outfits, especially during Sakura's extended stay in the Underworld from Chapters 5 to 49. Downplayed since the outfits themselves aren't that over the top but still primarily designed to make the wearer attractive.
** Then we have the clubbing outfits for Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto in Chapter 71, which serve little purpose given that their only time spent in [[CoolestClubEver the nightclub]] is to [[StrollingThroughTheChaos walk through the frenetically dancing crowd]]...to head into [[AbsurdlySpaciousSewer the sewers]] below. [[spoiler:In the next chapter they do in fact return to the bar for a few drinks, so their club-ready outfits aren't completely pointless.]]

* DarkFic: Just skim this page, and you'll see everything from abduction to mental injuries to death. Thankfully there are lighthearted moments of friendship and affection scattered throughout the chapters.

* BeautifulAllAlong: Sakura starts off [[IJustWantToBeBeautiful feeling sorely]] [[IAmNotPretty inadequate]] compared to the other women around her, namely her mother Tsunade and her best friend Ino, and lamenting her [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair unusual, even abnormal, colorings]]. Then Ino picks out a more fashionable outfit for her and does her hair before the first Spring Festival, and Sakura instantly attracts the attention of the boys around her. You could even say that the Underground arc reinforces this trope where Sakura is concerned, given that she has to spend virtually all of her time in lavish dresses and makeup designed to flatter her unique features.

''Quietus'' is an ongoing, M-rated FusionFic by Seraphina Scribes [[note]]known as [=AngeLhearteD=] before October 5, 2020[[/note]] that blends ''{{Manga/Naruto}}'' and [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek mythology]] in a modern-day alternate timeline, first published on [=FanFiction.Net=] in 2011 and added to [=Archive of Our Own=] in 2014. Initially a by-the-book adaptation of the Rape of Persephone, it has expanded over the years to incorporate the Titanomachy alongside the Uchiha Clan Massacre and Shinobi Wars from ''Naruto''. The fanfic is best known for its focus on Sakura Haruno's [[UnresolvedSexualTension growing]] and at times [[MasochismTango uncomfortable]] relationship with Sasuke Uchiha, though it also contains a myriad of subplots both original and adapted from the source material which are being addressed as the story enters its final arcs.

* AMatchMadeInStockholm: Well, it ''is'' based off the Rape of Persephone. Zigzagged up the wazoo though: Sakura initially despises and fears Sasuke for abducting her but grows to empathize with and even desire him, only to [[spoiler:exploit their mutual affection to secure her escape after which she continues to pine for him]].
* AmnesiacLover: Both Sakura and Sasuke count, what with Sakura not remembering [[spoiler:her past as Kore]] and Sasuke-as-Hades not remembering Kore or his relationship with her at all. Later, we learn that [[spoiler:Kore's and Hades' memories were locked away by Thanatos and Hypnos in a complicated ploy to protect both the troubled young deities and the life-death balance in the world]].

** If Sakura is miserable underground, at least Sasuke cares for her wellbeing and general existence. Not so with Sai, aka Hermes: the poor boy bears [[TongueTied a seal on his tongue]], courtesy of Sasuke, that is cursed to [[KillTheGod terminate his existence]] if he so much as hints at Sakura's true whereabouts to anyone, his fellow surface gods in particular. On top of that Sasuke has no qualms whatsoever about physically abusing or stalking Sai to ensure the latter's complicity [[spoiler:culminating in Sai nearly dying during his confrontation with an enraged Sasuke at the entrance of the Underworld]].
** Sasuke's general existence can be summed up thusly as well. Not only does he live alone in the Underworld, he has to run the entire joint by himself with no chance of retiring or quitting [[spoiler:because he's preordained to wield all the powers of the chthonic deities alone]]. If he dies, [[spoiler: as had nearly happened once,]] the balance of life and death will be irreversibly overturned.

* AuthorAppeal: The author is pretty much in love with all things upper-class and "cultured", and it shows in their work.
** For starters, the architecture in ''Quietus'' tends toward the opulent side of things, featuring such elements as Palladian windows framed by silk drapes, ceilings covered in elaborate heavenly tableaux, and gem-encrusted double doors. Hell, Sasuke's entire palace is so loaded with precious materials that selling the materials in just one of his rooms could solve world hunger for good or supply at least a year's universal basic income to a small country. Even Sakura's and Ino's houses on the surface are [[BigFancyHouse fairly grand]], if not outright mansions.

** On the one hand, he has no issues violating her personal autonomy--stealing her away, isolating her underground, even touching her constantly just because he feels like it. [[spoiler:He even throws her into a trance to punish her hunger strike against him and nearly rapes her afterward ''while she is still enthralled''. Though he backs away at the last minute, he still [[UsefulNotes/VictimBlaming pins the blame]] for his lack of self-control on Sakura for being so alluring to him.]] He also eagerly needles Sakura when he finds her behavior frivolous or foolishly human, nor does he refrain from using her naïveté [[spoiler:about her past and her family's true divine heritage]] as a vehicle for deriding her or her loved ones. Oh, and did we mention he also keeps her under surveillance [[spoiler:through a pair of magical anklets]] and isn't willing to let her go home, so much so that [[spoiler:he coaxes her into eating six pomegranate seeds that will compel her to return underground for half the year until she dies]]?
** On the other hand, he is just as quick to defend her from any physical harm (even teaching her basic combat skills at her behest), insists on keeping her well fed and clothed (even if she has no say in what she wears [[spoiler:or eats, in the case of her failed hunger strike]]), and willingly guides her on grand tours around his domain simply for her pleasure. In time he grows comfortable enough around her to open up about his domain and his lonely past[[spoiler:, and even removes her tracking anklets as a further sign of trust. Even so, Sakura recognizes that for all his many kindnesses toward her, he is still loath to release her or to explain why she must stay with him, and eventually exploits his burgeoning trust in her to engineer her escape]].

''Quietus'' is an ongoing, M-rated FusionFic by Seraphina Scribes [[note]]known as [=AngeLhearteD=] before October 5, 2020[[/note]] that blends ''{{Manga/Naruto}}'' and [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek mythology]] in a modern-day alternate timeline, first published on [=FanFiction.Net=] in 2011 and added to [=Archive of Our Own=] in 2014. Initially a by-the-book adaptation of the Rape of Persephone, it has expanded over the years to incorporate the Titanomachy alongside the Uchiha Clan Massacre and Shinobi Wars from ''Naruto''. The fanfic is best known for its focus on Sakura Haruno's [[UnresolvedSexualTension growing]] and at times [[MasochismTango uncomfortable]] relationship with Sasuke Uchiha, though it also contains [[KudzuPlot a myriad of subplots]] both original and adapted from the source material.

* DepravedHomosexual: Orochimaru is a downplayed version of this trope only because nothing has been explicitly established about his sexual identity in ''Quietus''. Not that it helps his characterization any here, given the author's insistence on sticking to the canon.
** He alone exhibits sibilant speech, a linguistic feature [[https://web.archive.org/web/20101027153157/http://speech-language-therapy.com/codemix.htm commonly associated with stereotypes of gay men]].
** In addition to that, he fixates on Sasuke to an unhealthy degree, [[GrandTheftMe desiring the latter's body for his own use]] despite being detached from his canon struggles with mortality. To this end he manages to foist the Curse Seal of Heaven on Sasuke (in the midst of a battle, no less) in Chapter 67, which among other things allows him to [[SinisterSurveillance keep tabs on the bearer]] and even [[MeatPuppet take control of them]].
** It's also worth noting that he is the only character who expresses any non-platonic interest in someone of the same gender in earnest. For comparison, Ino is the only other character who even remotely mentions [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7449361/3/Quietus same-gender]] [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7997200/5/Quietus-The-Appendices attraction]], and both times are [[QueerPeopleAreFunny largely in jest]].
** As the cherry on top, Orochimaru is the only villain-antagonist in the entire narrative who attempts to exploit and violate a child, who by dint of inexperience is unable to defend themselves against a full-grown god. To explain: He once had an encounter with Sasuke [[spoiler:when the latter was a child as seen in the flashback in Chapter 64]]. Upon discovering Sasuke’s affiliation with the Uchiha, he proceeded to [[spoiler:hypnotize the boy and nearly succeeded in abducting Sasuke before Itachi came to the rescue]].