one_long_mission | [Letters]

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[Letters]

They died because of you.

It was lying innocently on the desk in her room, window open and making other papers on the table flutter softly and then fall on ground.

Naruto was nowhere in sight.

Scenarios:

a)Sitting on the rooftop of Mikoto-san's house, Naruto stared at the village below her and let out a shaky breath. That's not true... right? They can't be dead... not because of her. She will protect them all so they will not die! A small, choked sob escaped her before she buried head into her hands.

b)Naruto dashed madly through the people on the open market. She had to get away. Somewhere... somewhere to clear her mind. With bag slung over her back, she tried to reach the exit of the village while not being noticed by anyone... well anyone she knew. She can't look them in the eye now...

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She's heard about the female Naruto, and she'd even watched her sons perform the orioke a few times so that she knew what her daughter would look like when she showed back up. So, it wasn't that hard for Kushina to spot the two long streaming ponytails of blonde. However, nearly running her over wasn't what she'd expected.

"Hey, is that how you greet your mother?" she said, hands on her hips but a large smile on her face, until she saw the tears. She rushed over to the girl to wrap her into a tight hug. "What's the matter, Naruto?"

Naruto didn't expect to get noticed so soon, especially in huge crowd like this. She should have probably listened to Neji and wore her hair down... or maybe even cut it short. Then she won't be easily spotted.

The first question just fell on deaf ears but the hug made her freeze completely in spot, staring wide-eyed up at the woman. Hands that were rubbing her eyes (reddish now from crying), just fell limply next to her.

"M..mom...?"

"Hey, you," Kushina said softly. "You know, you're prettier than your stupid brothers are when they perform that jutsu." She ran a hand down her daughter's back, over the long hair, to calm her. "What's the matter, baby?"

She..her mom... she was really there! Right beside her, trying to comfort here. Another choked sob escaped Naruto and she pressed hand to muffle it before giving Kushina back a firm hug, muffling her sobs into her shoulder. She shouldn't act like this, damn it all! "I-I'm sorry... I just--" and for first time, Naruto didn't have words to express what she felt and what was wrong.

Kushina, not sure what was going on, continued to hold her daughter in the middle of the crowded street. She didn't care if the villagers were looking at them. This was her daughter, dammit, and if there was something wrong, well, Kushina was going to fix it!

"Don't be sorry, sweetie," she replied. "It's okay to be upset, but I'd like to know what's got you so wound up. Is it boy trouble?"

Not that Kushina knew much about that....

Naruto shook her head and pulled away slightly, having calmed down a little. She still sniffed from time to time and rubbed her eyes, but didn't dare to look up at her mom. How can she after that note?

"No i-it's not about that," she mumbled softly. She hiccuped:"I-It must be just a prank, 'tebbane..." very cruel prank if so.

She tilted her daughter's chin up, forcing their eyes to meet finally. "It's those nasty little notes floating around this village lately, isn't it?" Her face grew tight. "What did yours say?"

She winced slightly- holding her mother's gaze at this moment is the hardest thing she ever had to do. Fighting Pain is piece of cake compared to this. She wanted to look down again but refrained from it.

The whole sentence was bundled up together:"Theydiedbecauseofyou" so it will be a miracle if Kushina understood her. Not to mention another hiccup followed after.

That was beyond cruel. Who was doing this? "Alright, so, let me get this straight. Your paper said they died because of you and you were going to do what? Run away? Not try to find your father and me?" She crushed her daughter to her in a bruising hug.

"Naruto, did anyone ever tell you why it was exactly that we fought and died?"

Yup. She wanted to run away... at least for few days until she calmed down. Not that it would fix anything, she knew that, but at the moment she read that paper, she didn't feel as if she could handle it. She was embarrassed at the run-away attempt now."I-I'm sorry.. I know I shouldn't have-" but she was too upset to think rationally.

The hug was warm and comforting, and Kushina's hair tickled her cheeks and Naruto wanted to stay like this forever. She shook her head slowly and sighed, her voice slightly muffled:"No... I never.. never met anyone that knew what happened.."

She sighed in irritation. "What you mean is that no one told you because Hiruzen-sama forbade everyone who knew from talking to you about it. Come with me so we can sit down, Naru-chan."

She headed towards a smallish park that had benches surrounding some grassy area so that they could sit and talk about these things.

Naruto just stared at Kushina for a moment before nodding and following after her. She rubbed her eyes again and subsided the embarrassing hiccups, sighing heavily.
She placed her bag on the ground and sat down on bench, leaving space for her mom to sit down as well.

She sat down next to her daughter, taking one long pony tail in her hands and combing her fingers through it as she thought about how to start her explanation.

"When Minato and I found out that I was pregnant, we were so happy. We'd finally have a family, a child, of our own. And, well, we chose Jiraiya-sama to be your godfather because we both loved and admired him. However, we knew that with me being the jinchuuriki for the kyuubi that there was a big chance of the seal weakening when I gave birth to you."

Kushina gave her daughter a sad smile. "There were many ANBU around and midwives and your father. We were in a cave, away from the village, to avoid any sort of destruction. But a masked man came and killed everyone while Minato and Hiruzen-sama were distracted. He released the kyuubi... And only Minato and I could stop Konoha from being destroyed."

Tears fell down Kushina's normally happy face. "It was the last thing we wanted. We didn't want to leave our newborn baby alone in the world, but it took the two of us to defeat that thing, for Minato to complete the resealing of it inside of you. We gave you a bit of our chakra in case of emergencies, but that was all we could do before we died. Forgive us, please, my beautiful baby."

He had thought it to be just another day -- a day to train with Lee, to teach the Uchiha children, perhaps to find some time for himself to perhaps purchase some tea or something of the like. Instead, as he exited the house, there was someone there. A familiar presence, one he had finally given up searching for.

He turned slowly and just looked up at her, lips parting in visible surprise. "...Naruto...?"

She hiccuped and pulled away from her hands, rubbing her eyes. She's acting stupid. What kind of a kunoichi she is if she's crying over a prank?...Cruel prank, but prank nonetheless.

It was prank, right? She pulled them all the time too! She stood up and leaned against chimney, slightly wobbly. She should get down and just go on with what she was doing

...and then memory of what it was written on paper made her break into another onslaught of tears, making her slide dangerously since she's not paying any attention or using chakra to stand.

She wouldn't have had the time to fall, anyway -- as soon as she wobbled, Neji was on the move, all that vaunted speed from being a member of Team Gai bringing him to the roof to take her arm, heart pounding in his throat.

"Naruto...? It is...?"

To say she was surprised at the sudden grab was understatement. She gasped and really lost her balance, but both Neji's grip and (finally) remembering to use chakra in her feet, got her steady.

"Ne-Neji? What are you--?" Crap. She hoped that no one would see her in this state, with eyes red and cheeks wet from tears. Tough luck.

What was he supposed to say...? After all this time, was it truly her? He had given up hope completely, but now...

He shifted his sleeve to cover his fingers to lightly wipe at her tears, feeling his heart aching as he did. "Naruto... I had thought you gone."

That gesture... it was so familiar but she wasn't sure why. This is Neji. And what did he mean by 'gone'?
"B-But Neji, I never left." Something's missing here, or at least that's how she feels at the moment. It's as if something very important is slipping out of her grasp.

"What are you..." she glanced nervously at his hand then back at him. Did he... did he also... Stop it Naruto! Neji can't die so easily.

He drew his hand back when she didn't pursue it, lip firming even as he felt something within him starting to crumple all over again. She didn't... whether it was her, or another her, or if she had only forgotten...

It took all of his self-control to smooth his face into its customary impassiveness. Voice short, he took a step back to a more proper distance and asked, "Please, forgive me. What is troubling you, Naruto?"

She waved her hand, rubbing her cheek and eye again:"No it's fine... fine, 'tebbane." She sniffed slightly and rubbed back of her neck.

"And i-it's nothing. Just some really mean prank, 'tebbane," she tried to laugh it off, but she didn't meet his eyes. She just couldn't do it for some reason. She tired to fix herself:"So-sorry that you had to see me like this. I am not usually..." crying "...this bothered and all."

"What kind of prank could have inspired a reaction such as this?" The question he truly wished to ask was who had hurt you and how close to death shall I bring them, but he forced those thoughts away. They were meant for... another woman, someone he had thought he had loved. Perhaps it had been admiration that he had mistaken for love, or respect, or thankfulness, but it had no bearing on the woman before him now. He would not allow himself to project upon her that way.

She mumbled quietly:"Someone... someone left really mean note in my room downstairs, 'tebbane. I know it's a prank but it didn't have to be--" that mean! She hiccuped and then pressed hand to her lips to stop any other embarrassing hiccups.

Edited 2013-03-29 01:08 (UTC)

So she was in that room. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a breath, centering himself. The same woman, then, but she did not remember him...

In some ways, that was for the best, but in others...? It hurt, taking all of his willpower not to show it on his face. "I am certain it is merely another... trick of this village," he said finally, folding his hands within his sleeves and exhaling again. "Please, pay it no mind. Whatever the note said, I am certain it is not true."

She shook her head:"E-Easier said than done. Especially if..." if it was true. After all, how many people died because she didn't finish her training on time and stopped Pain from blowing up the village?

She hiccuped again and blushed- damn it was embarrassing. Note to self- never, ever to cry this much again.

"What did it say...?" He looked to her for another moment, then closed his eyes and shook his head. "If you do not wish to speak of it, that is your prerogative. Please, why don't you come down from the roof, and have a cup of tea."

Even speaking hurt like this, knowing what he knew, what he was not about to tell her. What right did he truly have...?

Edited 2013-03-29 01:20 (UTC)

She moved back up against the chimney again, shaking her head. "I... it said: 'they died b-because of you...' " she hiccuped again as she shuddered, trying to keep back the tears. "I... I can't go down. I can't..." look anyone in the eye.

She crouched again, leaning forehead on her knees. She needed a moment to calm down again. Why was this stupid prank affecting her this much?!

...He could not have been more grateful that she had chosen that moment to rest her head against her knees instead of look to him, as a distinct flash of pain crossed his face before he hid it again. A breath of hesitation before he moved in close, eyes falling shut again. "You and I both know that is not true, Naruto. Please, take that note, and burn it."

She sighed:"I am trying to tell myself that too but... but it doesn't feels that way." She looked up at him:"How can I be sure that it is not true?"

"Because were someone to choose to give his life, he would not wish you to shoulder the guilt for his own decision." His words were firm, then, as he approached the edge of the roof, ready to jump down. "He would not wish to see you cry, or cause you pain."

She stood up and followed him, with firm look on her face:"But you would still have to live with it." She sighed and slid next to him.

"I don't want anyone dead, dattebane. Anyone..." it was impossible, she knew that. But it still didn't change the fact that it hurt. And was it only her or did Neji sounded as if he knew someone who died for her already?

...probably just imagining things. He's speaking in general.

It seemed a bit too dark to say but the aforementioned person wouldn't, and inside just shook his head. "Then you will do as you have always done, and protect those... closest to you. As they will do for you. That is what a comrade is, Naruto."

She gave him a pout:"I... I know that, dattebane. I will always be there to protect everyone- that goes without saying." But how to explain and admit that she is scared losing anyone close to her? That note... she really hoped that it was just a quirk of the village and that everything... that everything is fine.

"Please, pay that note no mind, Naruto." Just briefly, he let his hand touch her shoulder, swallowing hard at the memory of her skin, her touch, the way her smile had turned on him...

"You are strong and determined. Certainly nothing can happen that is not your will."

She sighed heavily:"I am trying not to... it's hard though, dattebane." She wondered how Neji always found right words to use. She was always clumsy with stuff like that and just talked- speaking whatever comes to her mind.

She gave him a smile:"Thanks a lot."

He closed his eyes and bowed his head at her smile, just gesturing to the ground. "Please... come down from the roof?"

"Ah yes, let's go. Are you..." she blinked, slightly confused, "...are you okay, 'tebbane?" Did she say something wrong?

"Fine," he answered shortly, not trusting himself to speak much more than that as he leapt down from the roof, catching himself easily. "Come, let's get you inside."

She scowled a bit but shrugged anyway, still feeling as if she missed something important right now. It was that bad vibe again.

She jumped down from the roof, dusting off her clothes and fixing hair. "...that crying kind of made me hungry, 'tebbane... Let's go get something to eat!" She threw hands in the air and grabbed Neji for the sleeve, tugging him with her.

Edited 2013-04-02 21:58 (UTC)

Being tugged, as if nothing had changed between them...

It was a smooth, quick motion to rotate his arm and shoulder, tugging his sleeve out of her grasp. "I am sorry, but I have an prior obligation," he answered, inclining his head. "Perhaps another time, Naruto."

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[Letters]

Taking scenario b!

83 <3

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