Flower in the Mirror [Hatake Kakashi] [1]

❄️ Chapter 30 ❄️

The days following the Uchiha Massacre went by in almost a blur and the whispers of gossip were slowly settling like dust. The futures of both the sole persecutor and sole survivor were still uncertain. Uchiha Itachi was still somewhere out there, and from what Yumetsuki had heard, he had joined other elusive criminals from distant lands. And Uchiha Sasuke was still within his unconscious until Yumetsuki deemed that it would be good for him to rise from his comatose state.

It was a sensitive issue, Yumetsuki knew, as she supplied him with the Chakra to wake up from his sleep. She knew that all of his physical injuries were healed but the ailment of his mind was far from over. Given the volatile situation, no one but Yumetsuki remained in Sasuke's hospital room. She had to make sure that she could give her everything to him. She had to do right by him now.

Uchiha Sasuke woke up slowly, the sleep dissipating in a haze as he adjusted to his surroundings. To him, everything must be similar to waking up from a deep sleep. Yumetsuki remained seated quietly, allowing him to discover her on his own accord. She watched as his dark eyes turned to look at her.

For quite some time, Sasuke only stared at her in silence. It did not appear that he was aware of what was going on or that he even registered her properly. Yumetsuki did not overwhelm him, but she gave him a gentle look that made him realise that she was not a figment of his imagination.

"They're all gone, aren't they?"

"... yes,"

It was clear that Sasuke remembered most, if not all, of what had happened that night. And her presence rather than his loving mother's smile had confirmed this to him. Sasuke had fell back into silence for a moment, seemingly going over what the situation was, and then Yumetsuki felt his Chakra spike so hard that it hit his threshold –

Yumetsuki reacted just as Sasuke burst out of his bed, reacting in a frenzied anger as he tried to express his frustration with the world in the form of destruction – but Yumetsuki was much faster than him. She caught his arms as the two of them flew from the force of his jump, and the woman spun around just in time for her to cradle Sasuke away from harm, letting her back slam against the ground.

There was a loud crash as the two of them fell against the floor, making the medicine trolley slid, tipping over the flower vase and the water jug. Yumetsuki covered Sasuke from the shards of glass as they hit her, while she kept her hold onto him as he tried to free himself from her once more.

It went on for several minutes until all the energy built up was exhausted out of Sasuke's body, and Yumetsuki felt the fight in his body drain out and tears began to soak into her skin. She slowly sat up, allowing the young boy to clutch onto her body and sob as he let out everything that was left in him.

Sasuke cried against Yumetsuki, and she held onto him in silence, stroking the length of his back to soothe him out. She could only imagine what he had gone through, and she frowned at the thought of what Itachi may have put him through. Itachi had always been a very competent Ninja.

But to use that strength against someone like this...?

Yumetsuki did not like the thought of that.

When Sasuke had finally calmed down, or so it seemed, Yumetsuki let him have some rest in his bed. She poured him some water and let him slowly sip it while she cleaned everything up. There were plenty of scratches on her skin from the glass, but Yumetsuki did not feel them very much.

"... Sasuke-Chan," Yumetsuki spoke carefully. "I can see how distressed you are, and I do not blame you for it. What happened to your family is absolutely heinous and should have never happened. And I am sorry that I – for one – could not have found a way to prevent it,"