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contents: set during pain's ambush against konoha. (established relationship).
cw: angst, death, hurt/comfort
A Second Chance
The sound of cries and groans of pain filled the air of the emergency shelter, almost drowned out by the destructive events still occurring just beyond the doors.
Nozomi worked quickly as she helped Sakura heal the critically wounded, her limbs aching, her eyes tired, but her determination pushed her through.
"Nozomi-sensei!" a voice called out, causing her to turn around in question.
"Choji?" She questioned as she finished wrapping a bandage around the wrist of an injured child. "What's wron-"
"It's Kakashi-sensei and my father," the boy breathlessly called out, hands on his knees as he panted. "They need medical aid right away."
Nozomi sprang to her feet in alarm, her eyes locking with Sakura's as she turned to face the girl.
"We can take care of things here," the pink-haired girl assured her with a nod. "Go."
Nozomi uttered a quick thanks before nin-shunning after Choji, her throat closing up at the idea of losing the love of her life. She prayed and prayed as she followed the boy, her thoughts racing a million miles an hour as they tried to weave their way through the collapsed buildings whilst avoiding any fights.
The woman could have cried as Kakashi finally came into her view. The sight of the nearly unconscious man half buried under rubble was almost enough to send her to her knees, despite all her years of medical-nin training to keep her emotions in check on the battlefield.
Despite every cell in her body screaming at her to run to Kakashi, she moved to kneel beside Choji's father who laid across the ground, his eyes closed.
"Will he be okay?" The younger boy questioned as Nozomi's hands hovered over the man's chest, the healing chakra in her body flowing to the tips of her fingers as she scanned his chakra network.
"He's unconscious, but doesn't appear to have any serious injuries," Nozomi answered as she allowed healing energy to transfer into the man. Her head moved instinctively as she heard a groan to her left, her eyes falling on Kakashi who looked dangerously close to passing out, or worse, dying.
"I've got my father. Please help Kakashi-sensei."
Nozomi didn't need to be told twice.
She was by Kakashi's side in an instant, her hands moving to hold his face and support his neck.
"Hey, baby," she called out desperately, her hands moving to shake his head slightly. "Stay awake for me Kakashi, please. God, please stay awake."
"Zomi.." he murmured in response, his eyes still closed and his head still weighing heavily in her hands.
"It's okay, Kashi," she murmured softly, her eyes watering, her heart hurting. "I've got you, I promise. Just.. stay awake."
She allowed one hand to support his head, and attempted to use her other hand to pull away at the rubble burying his legs. Tears began to steadily fall down her face as the larger pieces of debris refused to budge, only increasing the level of panic she was feeling at that moment.
"We've got it, Nozomi."
The girl looked up, tears blurring her vision, and to her surprise found Choji and his now conscious father working quickly to remove the heavier pieces of the rubble.
Once Choji's father placed Kakashi against the flat floor, Nozomi worked quickly to press her hands against his chest, chakra forcefully flowing to her hands and into his body.
"I'm sorry.. Nozomi.." the silver-haired man groaned out, his non-sharingan eye opening to look up at her, one hand moving to hold onto hers. "I love you.."
"No, no don't say things like you're on your deathbed Kakashi," Nozomi cried out as she leaned over him, her free hand moving to hold his cheek. "Don't you dare die on me!"
"Say it.. back," he murmured, his eye fluttering to a close.
"No," she said more forcefully this time, tears still falling down her face as she manoeuvred Kakashi's upper body onto her lap. "I'll say it back when you recover, cause you're not gonna die." She pressed her right hand against his heart, waves of healing chakra still flowing through her body and transferring into his. She didn't care if she had to use up every ounce of chakra in her body. She needed him to live.
She froze as the chakra suddenly stopped flowing through her fingertips, almost as if it had hit a wall. She choked back a sob as the man stilled under her hold, his head falling back, his eyes firmly closed.
"No," she mumbled in shock. "No! Kakashi, wake up!" she exclaimed, her arms desperately shaking the man. She began to sob as she pulled him close to her body, his head firmly pressed into the crook of her neck. "No, please no," she cried out, her shoulders shaking and her fingers fisting the material of his jacket.
Nozomi wanted to sit there for hours, days, weeks even. She couldn't bear to let go, knowing it would be the last time she would be able to embrace him like this.
But the sad reality is that battles stopped for no one, not even for Kakashi Hatake. She especially didn't want to abandon her love on the middle of the battlefield, but her duty as a medical-nin would always come first. She would have to mourn later.
The devastated woman gently laid the man against the floor for the final time, her body leaning down to place a gentle kiss against his masked lips before she leaned back up again. "I love you, Kakashi," she spoke softly as tears continued to fall down her face, her hand moving to press against his heart. "I'm sorry I didn't say it back, but I'm sure you knew. You always knew how much love I had for you."
She stood up shakily and used the back of her hands to hastily wipe away her tears. Her body turned towards Choji's father. "Are you feeling okay?"
The man simply nodded in response.
"I'd advise against taking on those guys again," she said softly, her voice still wavering. "Could you help with rescue attempts? There are probably more people trapped in the debris, and your strength would really help out."
"Of course." He said gently. His mouth opened as if he was going to say something else, but then he proceeded to not say anything at all.
"I'll be going back to the shelter."
With a nod, Nozomi nin-shunned back to where all the other medical shinobi were. She worked wordlessly as she continued to treat the wounded, her heart heavy, her eyes probably rimmed red. She wanted to collapse in a corner and cry, but she certainly didn't have time for that. She would help heal every person she could, and make sure that those who died didn't die in vain.
《《》》
"What the hell is that?" Nozomi questioned as she stood in the doorway of the shelter, her eyes fixed on the giant glowing orb floating high in the sky. She watched as it split into hundreds of smaller green orbs and rained from the skies, scattering in random directions. She gasped and stepped out of the way as several of them zoomed towards her and into the shelter, before zooming into another room that was closed off.
She turned towards the other medics with a questioning gaze. "Isn't that..?"
"Yeah.."
Nozomi ran as quickly as she could towards the door, careful not to step on anyone who was huddled on the floor. She burst through the doorway, and was met with an unbelievable sight.
The room previously housed the bodies of those who had passed due to the extent of their injuries, but to her astonishment, those people were now.. alive and well?
Nozomi scrambled out of the doorway and raced out of the shelter, her legs moving hastily to get to a high vantage point. Previously, the village was littered with bodies of fallen shinobi, but not anymore. Those same shinobi were now getting up, almost as if they had simply stirred from a long nap they had taken.
"Oh my god," Nozomi breathed out as she took several steps backwards, almost tripping as she stepped on an uneven piece of debris. Her heart hammered loudly in her chest as she turned and ran, the blood in her ears rushing so loudly she couldn't hear anything but her thoughts.
She stumbled as she stopped moving suddenly, her wide eyes falling on the man sitting upright just a few paces away.
"Kakashi!" She called out as she rushed at him and painfully fell to her knees, her arms immediately wrapping around his neck and almost knocking him over due to the force of her body barreling into him. "I love you. I love you." she breathlessly spoke into his neck, her words barely coherent. "I'm so sorry I didn't say it back, I love you so much, I'm-"
She let out a choked sob as felt a tight grip around her waist, the feeling of being in her lover's arms causing her to forget how to function properly.
"It's okay, angel," he murmured, his head moving to lean against hers. "I know. I love you too."
Tears continued to fall down her face as she pulled away slightly, a shaky smile forming on her face as she felt Kakashi's warm hand resting against her cheek. She couldn't help but lean into his touch, the simple gesture being enough to send her into yet another breakdown.
"Come here," he murmured softly as he pulled down his mask, his hand moving to the back of Nozomi's neck to pull her face closer. Their lips connected in a gentle yet urgent kiss, one that filled Nozomi with the light of a thousand suns, the warmth filling her entire body.
The two breathed heavily when they finally pulled away, but not wanting to break the distance, Nozomi leaned her forehead against Kakashi's.
"What happened? The man questioned once Nozomi pulled his mask back over his face. "Is it over?"
"I think so," she nodded. "Apparently Naruto single-handedly defeated them."
Kakashi's brows raised in shock.
"Naruto did?"
Nozomi nodded once again. "I don't know what happened at the end though. He ended up releasing all nine of the kyuubi's tails, but then the fight moved away from here. He must've won though, considering you came back to me."
Kakashi's arm tightened around her waist, his loving gaze locked on her own.
"I love you," she whispered, almost as if it was a secret that only Kakashi could know.
"Are you gonna keep saying it now?" he questioned, his lips turning up into a smile behind his mask.
"I'll keep reminding you every second of every day. I'll never stop."
"I'm counting on it," he whispered back, before placing a quick kiss against her lips through the cloth of his mask. "Cause I love you too."
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I have so many fluff one shots that I've started but of course the one I've managed to finish first is the angsty/death one smh. speaks volumes about me as a writer.
hope you enjoyed
A x