"Pain is only relevant if it still hurts."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Minxie's POV
"You're... You're my father?" I asked, unable to believe it. Looking at him, I actually found myself believing his claim. He looked so much like Ryuu and I. The same jawline, the same eyes... And hadn't Orochimaru once told me that my father's name was Hasashi? "Dad?"
Hasashi smiled, "My little princess... It's been so long since I've heard you say that."
"Neither of you will be able to say anything once I tear you apart!" the monster, who has indeed the Creator, hissed from behind the gate.
"We should probably move. I'm not a fan of being threatened by thousand-year-old spirits," Hasashi said. He snapped his fingers, placing us in a grassy field. I recognized it as the dream world Mai had taken me too when Zabuza had stabbed me. "Much better. Does it look familiar?"
"Mai took me here once," I replied. I bent down, my hand stroking a few purple flowers. "It's so peaceful here."
"I created it for you, back then, when Mai became your Guardian," He said. "I figured you could use a place of your own. You know, one where you could be happy."
"Right... You wanted me to be happy," I echoed. "Was that before or after you decided it was okay to seal a spirit inside of me that made my life a living hell?"
He sighed, "Emi-"
"Minxie," I interrupted him. He raised an eyebrow. "Minxie. My name is Minxie. It's the name I got in the dimension Mom sent me to. It kind of stuck."
"It suits you," He said quietly. "I have no right to ask you to listen to me... But I'd really like a chance to tell you the truth about what happened when you were born." He sat down, looking up at me expectantly.
I stared at him for a few moments before giving in, sitting down next to him. "You have five minutes. If I don't like where the story's going, I'll leave without looking back."
He smiled, "You remind me a lot of your mother. You... You don't remember her much, do you?"
"... No," I replied, swallowing. "I don't remember her at all. Ryuu does, though."
He sighed in relief. "So you and Ryuu did find each other again... I'm so glad."
"It was tough, but we managed. Although... We wouldn't have had to find each other if you hadn't separated us in the first place," I said bitterly, glaring at the grass.
"... I know you're angry with me. You have every right to be. But you must know the truth. Even before you and Ryuu were born, the Takeda clan was in madness. My own twin brother, Hitoshi, actively despised me and wanted to overthrow me. The night you were born, he came after the one thing he knew would make me obey him. He came after you and your brother.
"The Creator was a spirit our family had captured many decades before you were born. It was something that proved almost impossible to contain. Hitoshi came forward, searching for the spirit. I had to protect the clan, and I had to protect you, so... I sealed it inside of you. No one knew this, of course, with the exception of your mother, Lord Tamotsu, and the Third and Fourth Hokages.
"For six years, you and your brother lived together as heirs to the Takeda clan. I don't know how it happened, but Hitoshi found out that I had sealed the spirit inside of you, with your mother's help. On your sixth birthday, he attacked with a few dozen other Takeda shinobi who followed him. I still had shinobi who were loyal to me in our family, but as you can guess, facing a Takeda isn't the easiest thing in the world.
"While I fought Hitoshi, your mother, Kimiko, took you and Ryuu to safety. She took Ryuu to the Hidden Dragon Village, placing him in the care of Lord Tamotsu. And then she sent you to your own dimension, where you would be safe from anyone who wanted to use your power for themselves."
"But... I wasn't really ever safe, was I?" I questioned quietly.
He shook his head, smiling sadly, "... No, you weren't. But, by yourself, in another dimension, you were safer than you would have been if you had remained here, in this world. I know you're angry that I separated you from Ryuu... But you have to understand, there was nothing else I could do. Keeping you and Ryuu together would've attracted too much attention. It may not seem like it... But all your mother and I ever wanted to do was protect you."
"Then why seal the Creator inside of me in the first place!?" I exclaimed, suddenly angry. "If you really wanted to protect me... Why didn't you just seal it inside of someone else?"
"Because I believe in you," He answered simply, making my eyes widen. "From the moment you were born, I knew you'd grow up to be strong. I sealed the Creator inside of you because you're my daughter, and I knew that if anyone could handle it, it was you. You were the only one in our entire clan whose will was strong enough to suppress it on a daily basis."
"... You were wrong," I said, looking down. "If you hadn't stopped me just now, I would've broken the seal and unleashed the very thing that you trusted me to keep locked away."
"Minxie... How old are you, now?" He inquired.
"Sixteen..." I replied, not sure where he was going with this.
"Sixteen, huh? Listen, Minxie, no matter how much responsibility you're given, you must never forget that at the end of the day... You're still human. You have your own feelings, and there's nothing wrong with that. We all can get tempted, sometimes. Nobody's perfect," He said.
"... It makes me feel weak," I admitted, looking down.
"Minxie... You are anything but weak. Since you were born, you've been facing struggle after struggle, but you've never given up, not once," He said. "True strength doesn't mean the absence of fear. True strength is having that fear, true strength is getting knocked down, but even when it seems hopeless... True strength is never giving up. And that, Minxie, is a quality that you are simply full of." He smiled.
I, too, found myself smiling. Then, I frowned. "Dad... I don't know what to do. Everything's falling apart... I want so badly to give up, with everything that's happened."
"But you won't give up, will you?" He asked.
"No... No, I won't. I never will."
He smiled, "There's my girl. You see, in this situation, not even I know what you should do. Pain doesn't seem like someone whose views can be easily swayed, but I know that you can do it."
"Why do you trust me so much?"
"Because you're my daughter," He replied, smiling at me, "And because I love you."
I couldn't help it, then. I smiled, throwing my arms around him and hugging him. "I love you, too, Dad."
His arms wrapped around me, giving me a tight hug. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that after all this time."
When I felt his presence go dimmer, I realized that this would probably be my only time seeing him. "I'm not gonna see you again after this, am I?" I asked, pulling away to look at him.
"Sadly, you aren't. The seal I placed limited my time with you," He said, sighing. "But that's the beauty of this, isn't it? Remember, Minxie... There will be many things you can do only once in life. However, if you do them right... Once is more than enough." He kissed the top of my head. "Your mother and I believe in you, in both you and your brother. Whenever you feel like giving up, remember that. And most of all... Remember that we love you."
He smiled at me one final time before his essence faded away. But instead of leaving me in the darkness of my mind, I was left in beautiful light, light that could only be formed by the unconditional love a father has for his children.
::In Real World::
I gasped, sitting up quickly. I looked around me, trying to figure out what had happened while I had been unconscious.
Although it seemed impossible, the landscape had become even more disastrous than it once was. There was rubble all over the place, and I raised an eyebrow, wondering what in the world had caused it.
"I see you're finally awake, dear one," a voice said, and I looked up to meet Mai's ice blue eyes.
"Mai..." I muttered, looking around. "The whole landscape is destroyed... What happened?"
"Naruto happened," Katsuyu said, emerging from my shoulder. "When he saw you cut down in front of him... He thought you were gone, Minxie. He lost control and transformed into Nine-Tails."
My eyes widened, "Oh my god... Where is he now!?"
"Relax, dear one," Mai directed calmly, "His transformation was halted."
"So Yamato-sensei arrived in time?" I asked hopefully.
"No, he didn't," She answered. "It's a mystery how Naruto was able to stop himself from sprouting nine tails... But he did. He defeated the final Pain and left to find the Pain Master."
"Well, where are they? I need to see him," I said, standing up.
"Naruto asked that no one interfere," Katsuyu put in, "He wanted to talk to Pain alone."
"Yeah, well, I want to show him that I'm not dead," I deadpanned. I looked down, putting a hand to my stomach. Surprisingly, there was no blood on my hand when I removed it. My wound was completely sealed. "How am I not dead, by the way?"
"Something seems to have healed you... It wasn't one of Konoha's medics," Mai replied.
"Dad..." I muttered, smiling.
"What is it, dear one?" She inquired.
"Nothing," I shook my head, a smile on my face, "I'll tell you about it later. Think you can take me to Naruto?"
"Of course," the leopard answered, lowering her head. I mounted on her back, Katsuyu on my shoulder.
As Mai ran, the world blurred past me. Katsuyu told me that Scarlett, Rin, and Mitchell had successfully completed their mission. Of course, that backfired when Scarlett gained the same wound I had because of our Doppelganger link.
Katsuyu informed me that Scarlett was better, now that I was healed. I asked her to make sure to tell everyone that I wasn't dead, although I was still confused about it myself.
I knew where Pain was hiding even before Mai stopped running. The aura emitting from the paper tree was just like the one I had felt when he'd stabbed me with his chakra receivers.
I was very surprised when I saw Naruto and Konan having a discussion on a rock formation surrounding the tree. I hopped off Mai's back, approaching the pair slowly.
The relief I felt when I saw Naruto standing there, completely unharmed, was indescribable. I felt my heart lift at the mere sight of him, and I thought that if I really had died, I wouldn't have minded it much, so long as Naruto was alive and well.
"Naruto..." I called out softly, making both Naruto and Konan turn to me. I forgot all about Konan when Naruto's eyes met mine, however. His sapphire blue eyes widened, and I smiled when I saw tears gather at their edges.
"Minxie..." He whispered, as if he couldn't believe it, either.
It took about two seconds for me to run towards him, throwing myself into his arms. His arms wound around my torso tightly, his face burying into my shoulder.
"You're... You're alive...?" He questioned after a while, his voice cracking.
"You can't get rid of me that easily..." I whispered into his ear, my hand gently stroking the back of his neck.
I wasn't sure how long we stayed like that, holding each other. Eventually, we pulled away, but his arm was still around my shoulders, as if he was afraid to ever let me go again.
"What'd I miss?" I asked, looking at Konan.
"Naruto convinced Nagato to believe in him," Konan replied. "Pain has performed his final jutsu."
I raised an eyebrow, but Katsuyu said, "More and more of the villagers are coming back to life. It seems that Pain has restored all the lives he took."
Konan didn't say anything after that. She merely raised her hand, her slips of paper encasing the main Pain.
"You're taking him with you, too?" Naruto questioned.
"This Tendo Pain was created from Yahiko's body," Konan answered. Again, I raised an eyebrow, but Naruto squeezed my shoulder, signaling that he'd tell me later. "He's... Someone precious to us..."
"You aren't going back to the Akatsuki, are you, Konan?" I asked the blue-haired woman.
"No... I'm leaving the Akatsuki," She answered. "Yahiko and Nagato were everything to me. Their dreams... Have been passed onto you, Naruto. Because Nagato was willing to believe in you, I believe in you as well. We of Amegakure shall chase their dreams together with you."
"The name Naruto, the guts to never give up... And pain... Those are the things I've inherited from my teacher and my brother-in-training!" Naruto announced, his blue eyes sincere.
Konan stared at him for a few moments before raising her hand. She manipulated her paper to form a bouquet of paper roses, holding them out to Naruto, "This time... You will be the blossom of hope that never wilts."
Naruto took the bouquet from her, a smile on his face. I was surprised when Konan made another rose, this time a single one, and held it out to me.
"I can't take that," I said quietly, "I didn't even do anything-"
"On the contrary, Minxie, you've done everything," Konan said, interrupting me. "Nagato saw something different in you. He chose to believe in you, as well, and I will do the same. Together, you and Naruto will bring this world to peace."
I smiled, taking the paper rose from her. "Thanks, Konan."
"I found this, back in the rubble of your village," She said, holding out something to me. I blinked, realizing that it was the fire opal anklet Pain had given me for my birthday. Now, it seemed like that had been so long ago.
"You can keep it, if you want," I offered, knowing it'd be hard to give up something Nagato himself had created.
"It wasn't met for me," She replied, shaking her head. "It was meant for you. Wear it for me, will you? That way, you will always have a part of us with you."
I nodded, taking the anklet from her, "I will, I promise."
She smiled, nodding. "Thank you. Both of you." And with that, she disappeared, along with Nagato and Yahiko's bodies.
Naruto and I didn't say anything for a while. It was a very comfortable silence that I hadn't had in a long time. Carefully, Naruto took the anklet out of my hand and kneeled down, clasping it around my ankle.
"Might as well get a head start on that promise," He said, smiling.
"I think we can do something else, too," I said, and he raised an eyebrow. I took his hand, leading him over to a rock that lay in front of a tree. I took out three kunai and looped a string through them. Then, I placed one kunai in the rock at the center and the other two on either side of the rock.
Naruto saw what I was doing and took out a book I had never seen before. It was titled 'Tales of a Gutsy Shinobi.' I smiled when I saw that it was written by Jiraiya-sensei. He leaned the book against the rock and placed the bouquet of paper roses Konan had given him next to it. I did the same with the paper rose she'd given me.
We stood up and admired our work for a few moments, quietly.
"We should get back home," Naruto said after a while, beginning to walk away.
"Yeah, we should," I agreed. I wasn't sure what it was, but something inside my made my reach out and take his hand, intertwining it with my own.
Naruto watched as our fingers wound around each other, his blue eyes widening. He looked at me, as if asking if I really meant to do that. I smiled at him in response, showing him that yes, I really did mean to do that. He grinned back at me.
"Now," I said, "Why don't you tell me exactly what happened with Pain?"
And with that, he told me everything as we walked back to the village, never once letting go of each other's hands.
~*~
Halfway through our journey back to the village, Naruto's fatigue finally caught up to him. He stumbled and almost fell forward, but I caught him, letting him lean on me for support as we continued to walk.
"It was about time you two got together," Kakashi-sensei's teasing voice said, smirking at us from behind his mask and leaning against a tree.
"Oh, shut up, sensei," I said, rolling my eyes and continuing to walk past him. I stopped walking when I realized that Kakashi-sensei, who had died, was here and talking to me.
Slowly, I turned back to him with Naruto at my side, my eyes widening.
"Kakashi-sensei?" I whispered, tears of happiness gathering in my eyes. He smiled his closed-eye smile, and without thinking about it, I released Naruto and ran towards Kakashi-sensei. I hugged him tightly, a tear falling down my face.
"You aren't allowed to die ever again!" I shouted at him. "Understood?"
"Got it," Kakashi-sensei chuckled, hugging me back. "I missed you, too, kid."
"And what about me?" Naruto exclaimed from his position on the floor. I laughed, pulling away from Kakashi-sensei and scratching my head. "I'm on the floor, believe it!"
"You'll survive, hero," Kakashi-sensei said, making Naruto smile. He lifted the blonde up onto his back, turning to me, "I've got him."
I nodded, too happy to object.
"Good job..." Kasashi-sensei said as we continued walking. "I'm proud of you both."
I smiled, nodding. "Now, if you'll excuse me... Mai!" I whistled, and Mai stepped forward. I laid on her back, burying my face into her fur. "I don't know about you, but after almost dying, I am exhausted. Wake me up when we're back at the village."
~*~
Kakashi-sensei did wake up when we arrived back at the village. However, considering how loudly the villagers were cheering, I didn't exactly need him to wake me up after all.
Naruto stared at the large crowd of villagers, the same villagers who had once rejected and scorned him. Now, those very villagers were cheering for him and thanking him. There were cheers for me, too, but I didn't need them, although I did appreciate them. Watching Naruto's eyes light up at their praises was enough to have me grinning from ear to ear.
Sakura walked towards Naruto and I, and then she did something I hadn't expected. She knocked us both on the head. "You idiots! How dare you take such risks!? I was going crazy with worry!"
"OW!" I exclaimed, rubbing my head. "Damnit, Sakura, we help save our village, and we get smacked!? WHAT IS THIS SORCERY!?"
Sakura rolled her eyes and surprised me again, but this time, she surprised me by wrapping an arm around Naruto and I. "Thank you both... So much..."
Normally, I would've screamed at her hugging and ran away, proclaiming that I was going to get pink diabetes, but seeing as I had almost died, I warmed up to her hug. She released us, a smile on her face.
"Minxie!" a familiar voice shouted, and I looked up to see Kylie running towards me. Before I could process what was happening, she had tackled me onto the floor, hugging me.
"AH! STOP! I'M NOT INTO THIS!" I shouted, covering my eyes.
"Psh, you're not even my type," Kylie said, rolling her eyes with a smile on her face.
"Yeah, the type that enjoys risking her life for idiot blondes and almost dying," I heard Mitchell's voice say, making me roll my eyes.
"Oh, shut up! You love me," I said, standing up once Kylie got off of me.
"Yeah, I do, which is why I'm angry," Mitchell continued. "But, if it helps, I'm glad you're not dead. Come here, midget." I rolled my eyes, going over to him and giving him a hug.
Before I could reply with something snippy, another pair of arms wrapped themselves around me, pulling me into hug. I realized that these arms belonged to my twin brother, who rarely hugged anyone.
"Woah..." I whispered, my eyes wide, once he let me go. "Did you just... Hug me? Are you sick?" I touched a hand to feel his forehead.
Ryuu smacked my hand away. "Don't get used to it. But remember, next time you risk your life like that, I will never let you out of my sight. Clear?"
"Crystal," I replied, grinning at him.
"What he means is that he loves you, and that he's happy you're alive," Rin put in, appearing at Ryuu's side. "And so am I."
I smiled at her, stepping forward and giving her a tight hug.
"I don't do emotional reunions," Scarlett's smirking voice said, "But congrats on not dying, my little Doppelganger."
"Missed you too, Scarlett," I said sarcastically, making her smirk at me. It was then I noticed a girl with dark, indigo-colored hair and golden eyes standing next to Scarlett.
"You must be Luna," I guessed, extending my hand out for her to shake.
"And you're Minxie," Luna stated, shaking my hand. "I've heard a lot about you. There was something about you threatening to beat your friends with a hockey stick...?"
I groaned, turning to Mitchell and Kimi, "GUYS! You need to stop telling people that story!"
"What!?" Kylie exclaimed. "It's the truth!"
"The violent, contract-creating truth," Mitchell agreed.
"So!? You give people the worst impression of me!" I exclaimed, putting my hands on my hips. And just like that, the three of us began to bicker.
Luna laughed, watching us, and I decided that she was definitely friend material.
Our village may have been in ruins, but we were alive, and at that moment, nothing else mattered.
~*~
The next few days were passed in a blur. Everyone was working on rebuilding the village. Whatever materials had survived were being conserved for later use. Yamato-sensei and I worked hard, using our Wood Style Ninjutsu to construct new buildings for the village.
I learned that Luna would be staying in our village. It would be a rough adjustment for her, but she told me that she'd made a bet on Rin that she wasn't going to give up on anytime soon. Like I predicted, Luna and I became good friends in a short time. She reminded me of Kylie, what with all of her boy-crazy tendencies, but I admired her inner strength.
Sakura and Kylie informed me about Lady Tsunade's condition. The Hokage was unconscious. She had used Katsuyu's jutsu to protect everyone in her village, and it had exhausted her. Neither Kylie nor Sakura knew when she was going to wake up.
Currently, I was with Kakashi-sensei and Yamato-sensei, working on rebuilding houses in the village. Because of my large chakra span, I didn't get exhausted as quickly as Yamato-sensei did, which meant the reconstruction of our village was well on its way.
"You're not complaining," Kakashi-sensei commented, hammering a nail down.
"Wow, sensei, thanks for the confidence boost," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.
He chuckled, "You know that's not what I meant. It's just that I know how much you hate doing work."
"I know," I smiled. "I do hate working, since I'm so lazy. But... It's different, this time. It's not only that I have to work to rebuild our village, but it's that I want to. It's... Nice."
"How so?" He inquired.
"Pain destroying our village was a terrible thing," I said, "But if you think about it... It kind of brought our village even closer than it was before. People that would have never spoken to each other in a million years are talking like old friends, now that we're all working together." I activated my Mind's Eye, using it to help me levitate into the air to hammer down a nail. "That's why it's nice, if you think about it."
"How do you do that?" Yamato-sensei asked.
"What? Float?" I inquired. "Kakashi-sensei taught it to me back when-"
"That's not what I meant," He said, cutting me off. "I meant how do you do that? How do you find the good in everything?"
I smiled, shrugging. "I'm not exactly sure. I guess it just happens." I finished hammering the nail when I got an idea. I elbowed a bucket of water that was on the roof, making it fall on Yamato-sensei. "And it's not like the work's boring, either!" I began to laugh.
Yamato-sensei's eye twitched as he lifted the bucket off of his head. He was trying really hard to be angry, but I saw the smile tugging at his lips.
Kakashi-sensei chuckled, "I haven't heard you laugh like that in a while."
My laughter died down. "Yeah... I haven't laughed like that in a long time." I floated back down with the hammer, deactivating my Mind's Eye. "It's almost like I forgot how..."
"How to have fun?" Yamato-sensei guessed, grabbing a towel to dry himself.
"No," I replied sadly, "How to be happy."
He stopped drying himself to look at me sadly, and Kakashi-sensei stopped his movements as well.
"You won't be sad forever, Minxie," Kakashi-sensei said, giving me sincere eyes.
I half-smiled at him, my eyes distant, "I hope not."
He exchanged a glance with Yamato-sensei before opening his mouth to say something else, but he was cut off by Kylie's voice.
"Minxie!" my blue-haired best friend shouted, "Sakura and Naruto are looking for you! Come on!"
"I better go," I said, putting the hammer down. "I'll see you two later."
And with that, I followed after Kylie to join my teammates.
~*~
I sat on Naruto's left while Sakura sat on his right on a wooden bench Yamato-sensei had constructed a few days earlier.
"There's so much I want to tell Granny Tsunade..." Naruto muttered, looking down.
"It's okay, she'll wake up soon!" Sakura assured, but I knew that she didn't really mean it. "I mean, she's super strong... And she's Hokage! Don't worry about it!" But I saw the way her green eyes faltered, the way her smile didn't truly reach her eyes. Hopeful as she was, Sakura couldn't hide the fact that she was extremely worried.
"Everything's going to be okay," I assured, placing a hand on Naruto's knee comfortingly. I extended my other hand to Sakura, placing it on her knee. "She'll be fine. She's strong. She'll pull through, I know she will."
Sakura smiled gratefully at me, and I returned the gesture, even if I wasn't sure of it myself.
Our little scene was interrupted when a loud but familiar voice said, "Wow! Super long time no see, Naruto, Minxie, Sakura!"
We looked up to see two very familiar-looking people. I blinked, realizing that these two people were Tazuna and Inari, the grandfather and grandson we had helped in the Land of Waves.
"Inari!" Naruto exclaimed, standing up. "And old man Tazuna!"
"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, smiling at them.
"I'm a carpenter now," Inari said proudly, "I accepted Konoha's commission. And here we are!"
"Wow, you really have grown up," I observed, a bit baffled.
"And you've gotten even older, old man," Naruto put in, making Tazuna scowl at him.
"Don't push it, brat," Tazuna warned, making Sakura and I giggle.
"Sakura! Minxie!" Inari called, making Sakura and I look at him. "You guys are so pretty now!" The blush on his face was too adorable.
"Are you saying we weren't pretty before?" I inquired, getting a dull expression on my face.
Inari's eyes widened. "No, no! I-I didn't mean it like that-"
I laughed, "I know you didn't, kid. I'm just messing with you. Thanks." I ruffled his hair, making him laugh.
"I'm so sorry for deceiving you all with the whole Gato incident," Tazuna apologized, making us look at him. "But thanks to you, the Land of Waves is very prosperous now."
"And now it's our turn to repay you!" Inari exclaimed, grinning at us. Naruto, Sakura, and I smiled back at him.
"Oh, you're already here," Kakashi-sensei's voice said, and we looked up to see our silver-haired teacher approaching us.
"Kakashi!" Tazuna greeted. "Konoha's in crisis, so we rushed over!"
"Of course," Kakashi-sensei smiled.
Tazuna gained a distant expression, looking around us, an eyebrow raised. "Hm... That's strange..."
"What is it?" Kakashi-sensei asked. "If there's anything you need, I'll have someone get it for you."
"That's not it..." Tazuna muttered. "Where's Sasuke? I'd like to talk to him, too. I assumed he'd be here with you four."
The smile instantly vanished from my face, and I felt a pang in my heart. I couldn't get angry at Tazuna for mentioning Sasuke because he didn't know what had happened, but that didn't make it hurt any less.
"Uh..." Kakashi-sensei sweatdropped, searching for an explanation. "Sasuke's... Erm..."
"Sasuke's... Not around right now," Naruto said quickly, scratching the back of his head with a smile. "We kind of had a fight, and he left the village. But don't worry! I'll go get him. You can say hello to him when we get back. I'm sure he'd be really happy to see you... Right, girls?"
"... Y-Yeah..." Sakura muttered after a while, looking down.
"Minx?" Naruto questioned, his blue eyes searching for my voice.
I quickly plastered a smile onto my face, "Oh... Right. Yeah. Sasuke'd be really happy to see you."
"What..." Tazuna eyed us. "Were you three tangled up in a love triangle or something?"
I wanted to scream. My eyes were wide, and I felt my heart crack.
Naruto's eyes were also wide, and he had a guilty blush on his face, "No, no... It wasn't like that..." His eyes met mine, and I received his unasked question, 'Was it?'
But I didn't answer him.
Sakura sensed the awkwardness and spoke up quickly, "He'll be back soon. It was nice seeing you two again."
"Just like it was to see you all again!" Inari grinned.
"We'd better get to work," Tazuna smiled. "We'll see you all later!" Together, they walked off.
Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Sakura, and I stayed together for a while, locked in an extremely awkward silence.
Naruto, as expected, broke it, "Now I finally understand... How Sasuke feels... What vengeance is really about."
I looked up at him, completely surprised.
"I thought I knew what he was going through, how he felt... But I didn't. Whatever I said to Sasuke in Final Valley, he wasn't going to..." Naruto's voice trailed off. "Without understanding his pain, there's no way we could ever laugh together. Or even argue with each other again."
I stared at him, an eyebrow raised.
"It's probably going to hurt really bad... But next time, I want to have a proper fight with him," Naruto finished. "And then, someday, Team 7, including Sasuke, can all laugh together like we used to!" He grinned.
It seemed impossible, but I started smiling, just like Kakashi-sensei and Sakura did. I was about to thank him for that when Kiba jumped in front of, perched on Akamaru's back as he usually was.
"There you are! Hey!" Kiba shouted, making my eyes widen.
"Kiba, hey," I greeted, "What's wrong?"
Kiba's eyes met mine, and he faltered, as if he didn't want to say what he had to say anymore. He shut his eyes, sighing. "Listen up... And just stay calm, all right!? Lady Tsunade has been relieved of her title of Hokage!"
"What!?" Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Sakura, and I exclaimed.
"The Sixth Hokage is apparently some guy named Danzo!" Kiba shouted. "I don't know too much, but he's supposed to be some inside guy!"
"Did you just say Danzo!?" Sakura exclaimed. I didn't have to yell. Sakura's yell was enough to remind me of all the horrible things Danzo had done.
"This can't be good..." Kakashi-sensei muttered.
"But that's not the end of it!" Kiba continued. He looked at me, his eyes faltering once again. "Minxie... I..."
"Kiba, what is it?" I was becoming frantic. Why was Kiba being so hesitant? He was never hesitant. "Just tell me already!"
"I can't..." He looked away.
"Kiba, tell me! Now!" I was nervous. If Kiba didn't tell me what was wrong, I was going to scream.
He didn't want to, but he shouted, "Danzo declared Sasuke a rogue shinobi... And issued a decree permitting his disposal!"