A Bug's Life (A Shino Aburame Love Story and Naruto Shippuden Fanfiction) ON HOLD

Warmth

It took quite some time for everyone to readjust from Mei's jutsu. There was some stretching, some complaining, and grumpy mumbling as well. Shino was resting against a tree during this, his eyes wanting to remain open, but also tugging at sleep. I sat beside him, watching with worry as Sakura checked me over for wounds. Under those heavy eyelids of his, Shino met my eyes. His hand slowly found its way to mine, and I held it for dear life, squeezing it tightly until his knuckles turned white.

“I'm sorry for my trouble, really,” I whispered, both to Shino and Sakura. Sakura must have thought I was only speaking to her, retorting almost immediately.

“Really, Hotaru,” she sighed, sitting up from her finished work, “You can't blame this on yourself.” She held out a hand, and, though I was reluctant to stand from Shino's side, I took it, accepting her help and standing to my feet. “You really stuck to it, and the two of you saved our butts.”

“I was weak,” I whispered, rolling my shoulders in a stretch. “Shino is the reason we're all okay.”

Sakura raised a pink eye brow, placing a hand on her hip. “Hotaru,” she grumbled, “from the looks of it, someone healed Shino. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to stand, let alone take out the enemy. I could still hear, Hotaru. We all could. If you are of the Gomi clan, then you should accept that quickly. We've made enemies with your so-called sisters, and that's not going to help our case. It's going to be even worse if we have so many injured teammates.”

Turning to Shino, who'd conked out during Sakura's speech, Sakura made it clear what she wanted me to do. I had to use this 'Vita Morsque' jutsu to heal the others. I'd be happy to, that is, if I knew how to control it. You see, when I was healing Shino, that was out of desperation. It came from need, not from skill. But if I was to heal Riko and Sora, then I'd have to master it. Which, as you may presume, I wasn't sure how to do. Taking a deep breath, I approached my injured comrades, placing a hand on Sora's chest.

Ever-so-calmly, I recalled the moment just minutes before, when I healed Shino's concussion. I focused myself on him, and it felt as though a little piece of me was leaving my body and transferring into his. I tried it once again, allowing a bit of myself to escape. Sure enough, a lump of warmth crawled down my arm and into Sora's chest. After it escaped me and joined him, his eyelids fluttered slightly, soon opening to peer up at me.

“Hotaru,” he whispered, his eyes growing wide. His sat up quickly, something he quickly regretted. Gasping, he gripped his forehead in one hand, the other squeezing my arm. “They brainwashed me, Hotaru,” he seethed through heavy pants. I quickly put my hand over-top his temple, doing my best to use the Vita Morsque to ease his pain.

Since I was sitting next to his makeshift bed, I quickly rested his head on my thigh. As soon as I did, his pain eased, and he allowed his arms to fall back by his sides. As I healed him, our eyes met. His were desperate, pleading with me. “Please, Hotaru,” he gasped, “believe me. They used a jutsu on my chakra. I didn't mean to-”

“I know, Sora. Riko fell victim as well,” I said, trying my best to calm him down. It isn't often that Sora acts ashamed, especially on this level. After he rested a bit, he seemed to settle down. When I asked him if he was feeling okay, he nodded 'yes'. Sakura came to check on him, and I made my way over to Riko.