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chapter thirteen.

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Aoi woke up with cold sweat running down her back and her breathing quickened. Her body was stiff and her arms were itchy and sore. And by all gods, she was exhausted.

Chakra exhaustion, Aoi thought, and something was stuck on her body, dry and cracky and wet in spots. Aoi opened her eyes in groggy confusion and winced at the sight of her blood-caked everything. It was itchy and disgusting and most of all it wasn't hers.

An undignified sound escaped Aoi's throat as she clawed at her arms, at the blood that was stuck to her skin and oh god those people had to have families and she had killed them all! She couldn't do this, she couldn't save the world she couldn'tcouldn'tcouldn't-

"Aoi, are you awake?" 

"Tobirama-San?" Aoi croaked, tears brimming in her eyes but she refused to let them fall.

Tobirama stared at Aoi with a frown on his face, "We didn't think you'd wake up so soon."

"Oh..."

Tobirama grimaced, "We ran you a bath after you're clean and dressed in some of Tsunade's clothes you can meet us downstairs, we have to talk about some things."

Aoi hesitated, "Am I in trouble? For killing all those people and for the mokuton thing."

"No," Tobirama said, his face a perfect mask, "You aren't in trouble, Aoi."

Aoi nodded, her fingers clawing into her bloodied arms, "Okay."

"You aren't in trouble, Aoi," Tobirama repeated, his eyes softer, "You're fine, just go wash off the blood."

"Right," Aoi whispered still not moving from where she was sitting on the bed.

Tobirama hesitated before he sighed and walked into the room, "Arms up."

Aoi blinked up at him before doing as he said, chin trembling as she held in her tears. Tobirama pull her torn and dirty shirt over her chest before he started to unwrap the bandages she had on her arms and then he picked her up. Walking through the door that led to a connected bathroom he carefully set her on the edge of the tub that was filled with warm water and bubbles and pulled off her shoes, talking to her quietly as he did so.

"Orochimaru is alive because of you, Aoi. He wanted to thank you."

"His parents are dead because of me," She murmured numbly.

"They're dead because of the Iwagakure shinobi," Tobirama replied as he calmly cut off her pants that had stuck her legs because of the blood, "You did what you had to do and so did they."

"They're dead," Aoi choked out, her head resting on Tobirama's chest, "They're dead and I could've done something! I could've saved them but I didn't!"

"It wasn't your responsibility Aoi, they were jounin, you're an academy student, it was never your responsibility to save them."

"But I should've," Aoi said, "I should've done something, anything."

Her hands curled into his chest, fisting the material in her small hands, tears spilled down her cheeks as she hid her head in his chest, "I should've done something."

Tobirama silently rubbed her back, holding her close to his chest as he checked the temperature of the tub, "You didn't have to do anything, Aoi, Orochimaru doesn't blame you, you're fine, Aoi."

He gently lowered Aoi into the tub and the girl awkwardly took off her undergarments once she was underneath the bubbles. Tobirama carefully scooped water into his hands and dumped it on her head carefully, humming a song quietly. Aoi was still quietly crying but her body was less tense, relaxing as Tobirama washed her hair and hummed in his deep baritone.

Aoi pulled her knees to her chest, ignoring the way the water was stained red as blood was washed off her body, "He wasn't mad that I couldn't save his parents?"

"No Aoi, Orochimaru was not mad because he knew, he knows, it isn't your fault."

"Okay," Aoi said, her voice small and weak.

Tobirama stared down at the pink haired girl and frowned, she was plagued with survivors guilt, not that he was surprised, she had probably watched Echigo and Ryuchi die. She was covered in blood, after all, it wasn't too much of a stretch to imagine some of it belonged to her best friends parents.

Tobirama closed his eyes and began to hum again, this would make breaking the news of being banished from her clan even harder for her to bare. Tobirama felt a harsh rage swell within him as he washed his daughter's hair, she would be alone because he wouldn't be able to legally adopt her without political repercussions but... if he was to wait until he became Hokage as Hashirama had said he would be then he could adopt her afterwards and perhaps even Orochimaru simply so the boy wasn't alone.

Tobirama nodded his head, he would wait, he would wait and make sure his daughter was safe. 

He would make sure she lived.