Sown

twenty-four

Recovery began immediately. Those who had been revived lead the effort, more full of vigor and chakra than those who had survived the attack. While only the handful of buildings built above Hokage Rock were left standing, everyone could be considered lucky as one of those buildings happened to be dedicated to storage. Tents were set up as treatment centers for the still wounded. Children were corralled into another to be comforted and cared for by the Allied Mothers Force. Remaining tents acted as rest shelters for those active in the rebuild to take breaks, eat, and recover their chakra.

Villagers split into groups to perform various tasks. Medic-nin gathered to treat the injured. Students and the less able with favorable chakra natures recreated the simple pleasures ; water release users created bathing areas and supplied hydration, fire release users cooked the wild game caught in the area, and earth release users moved rubble and created temporary infrastructure. Some of the grown and able bodied went into the wreck to find anything salvageable while most set on the daunting task of felling, debarking, and bucking the trees in the area.

Hanae herself became part of the lumber team. After having her arm treated by the medic-nin (and apologizing to the nurses she had snapped at earlier in the day shortly before they forced her shattered bone back under the skin), the woman took a short bath with to rid herself of the grime and set to work. Yuki no Michi was an invaluable tool and the same could be said for her mastery in the Samurai Sabre Technique. When paired with her affinity for wind release, the trees practically cut themselves.

She watched as another tree dropped to the ground. Her area was practically empty, this being the twentieth tree she had felled since starting.

"Impressive." She jumped and turned quick on her heel.

Kakashi sat on a nearby stump with two clay cups of water in his hands and a killer one-eyed smile. "Break time," he offered, patting the space beside him when she took one of the cups.

Hanae plopped down with a quiet huff. Once the shock from earlier had worn off she realized that her body was quite sore. The fall into the village had been padded by Katsuyu's body but it didn't keep the tsuba of her blade from leaving a nasty vertical bruise on her back. The absence of adrenaline make her legs quake but it was easily overcome by her deep rooted work ethic. "My heart is going to stop if you keep sneaking up on me like that," she said around the rim of the glass.

"Like mine did?" The resurrected jounin quipped. He was as lively as ever, acting like his death had never even happened.

"Please don't remind me of that."

"Sorry, sorry," Kakashi hummed. He looked over the area she had cleared, drumming his fingers against the cup. The outside of the village was beginning to look as empty as the inside. "How's your arm doing?"

She raised her left arm, rolling her wrist and clenching her fingers into a fist one by one. "Good! Lucky for me none of the nerves were damaged so I still have full mobility. It'll make rebuilding my farm a whole lot easier."

There it was. That endless optimism. While everyone was dwelling on the past and missing what used to be, she was looking to what the future held and what she could make of it. As if Konoha being wiped off the face of the earth was nothing more than a clean slate being created, a sorrowful end becoming a new beginning.

"You should have been a motivational speaker instead of a farmer."

Hanae gave him an incredulous look, "what do you mean?"

Kakashi chuckled, both at her expression and how quickly she looked away when he removed his mask for a drink of water. "Everything's gone. You lost your house, your shop, your farm, your possessions. You almost lost your arm. And yet you keep on smiling like it doesn't bother you." Anyone listening in on the couple would have thought he was angry had it not been for his soft tone.