Hey, Hi, Hello.
Welcome to chapter seventeen of 'The Memory Keeper'. I'm surprised I've made it this far- I thought I'd give up on this story. Well, I didn't~ I'm proud of myself. Anyway, on with the chapter! This chapter is pretty important. It's essentially dialogue and memories. Enjoy it, please? It was interesting to write this one. The song is 'The Silence' by Mayday Parade. I feel that the particular pieces I chose describes the current relationship between Kimi-chan and her brothers, and how she feels about the situation as a whole.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto (I'm getting tired of putting this every time): )
WARNING: Angst. Anger. Cussing (Kimi-chan!).
Anything in bold is important or with emphasis.
This is what memories, recalling of something, or showing of a memory to another looks like.
This is what Kimi's thoughts look like.
'This is what song lyrics look like.'
And so they talk~~
--
'The blood that's running through her veins
With every beat, there's no escape
Lost in everything she trusts
Still can't seem to get enough.'
'Memories, they take her back
Every moment fades to black.'
'She wishes time would ease the pain.'
--
"Yeah," Kazuo says, looking down at his feet. "I guess we have a lot of talking to do."
I roll my eyes and laugh humorlessly. "You guess?"
They both wince at my tone. "Well," Daichi says, "how about we go sit with your team and heal our wounds? I saw what that Zaku gaki did."
I nod, turning and walking back to where Sasuke and Naruto lay without a word. Both of them follow me there without speaking. The atmosphere between the three of is tense. I kneel next to Sasuke, feeling his forehead. It was a bit warm, but not much to worry about. Then I feel Naruto's forehead. His was fine as well. Just to be safe, though, I put fresh rags on their foreheads. It was a meager effort, but I didn't have any fever reducing medicine to give them, and even if I did I couldn't easily give it to them while they were unconscious. After sitting there, legs crossed, for a moment, simply waiting for one of them to speak, Kazuo finally speaks up.
"So, uh, about Masao..." Kazuo asks, catching my gaze.
"You mean you don't know?" I ask, brows furrowed.
"No, we don't. We know the clan was...killed...but Masao was supposed to live," Daichi says, frowning slightly.
I look at my hands, knotted together in my lap, for a moment, just thinking. Then something clicks. Something that made perfect, painful and sickening sense. "Y-you KNEW?!" I shrieked, jumping up and staring at them accusingly. "Here I fucking am, living in some stupid fucking apartment since January when you disappeared off the face of the earth-" -I gesture to Kazuo- "wondering what the hell I'm going to do with myself and why in the world has this happened to me...when it was all fucking PLANNED?!" I growl senselessly, immediately diving for Daichi's neck. I manage to get a good hold on it and I'm squeezing his neck as hard as I could, watching him gasp for air and claw at my hands. I growl again, pushing him into the ground. I was determined to hurt him as much as he had. Planned! Fucking planned!
Kazuo manages to pull me off of him. I lower my hands but that doesn't stop me from cursing him with every single unsavory word I could possibly come up with. "Fucking fuck both of you! Die in a hole!" How eloquent.
Kazuo lets go of my arms and steps back once I spin around to look at him. I manage to reign my anger in enough to simply clench my fists at my sides and mentally curse both of them to the very depths of hell.
Fury is clear on my face, and they both shrink back from me. "Kimi-chan, what are you- Where is Masao?" Daichi asks. "Tell us!"
I roll my eyes again, gesturing wildly in the air and say, voice full of sarcasm, "Oh, I guess I'd better show you! Since you deserve answers!" Without warning, I lean directly over Naruto and Sasuke and press the palms of my hands to the foreheads of my brothers.
--
"Where the hell are we?"
I look over my shoulder to Kazuo and Daichi, where both are looking around in surprise. "It appears that I have taken you into one of my memories," I reply. "C'mon. Look, there I am now. We have to go-we've got things to see."
Both of them follow after me. I had taken them back to the memory of when I discovered the murder of my entire clan. We were standing just before the main clan house in my clan's district, where I used to live. I remember this moment precisely- the nerves jumbling in my stomach, the knowing something was up because absolutely no one was outside. The stench of blood was in the air. I look back at them- they both appear guilty. They knew what was going to happen. The reality of it all, what I had to see seemed to be really setting in right about now. Good. I hope they felt guilty as hell.
We step up the stairs, following right after the Me in the memory. She pauses momentarily to remove her shoes before moving on to look into the living room. And then we step in the living room. They both gasp in horror at the sight-the blood, the bodies, all of the horrible things that made my chest ache even now. They look around quickly, soaking in every detail-then they see the memory Masao.
"Oh, god," Kazuo says, hand flying up to his mouth. The memory Me spots him too, running through pools of blood to reach his side. He breathes out- shaky and uneven and shallow.
"Masao-nii-san!" the memory Me shouts, tears pouring freely. "We need to get you to a hospital!"
"N-no...Kimi...imouto...I love you," the memory Masao stutters out, jerking his head in a weak shake. He pats my hand gently. "I'm a goner...but K-Kazuo...he got out. Safe."
"N-no! We have to save you! I love you too m-much to let go!" the memory Me protests. I mouth the words along with her.
"L-love you. I..don't let yourself get filled with h-hate," Masao whispers, a ghost of his former self. He smiles softly, gently, before his eyes slip closed and he fades away. The memory Me just sits there, frozen for several minutes. The three of us stand there too, quietly observing the whole fucked up scene. After what we wait for what feels like forever, the memory Me shakily stands, backing away. She slips in a pile of blood, falling back and landing painfully, right next to the torso of father. She whimpers and winces, recognizing who it was a part of before scrambling up again. She glances, eyes full of fear and disgust and pure horror back at the room before running straight past us and out the front doors. I know where she's heading. Towards the Hokage tower, and halfway there she'll literally run into someone in full ANBU gear who picks her up, cradles her in their arms and runs straight to the Hokage. She's covered in blood. It's everywhere-in her hair, on her clothes, underneath her fingernails, soaking into her skin and staying there forever, no matter how much she tried to scrub it off. I still felt the blood, even now.
We follow her out the doors, watching as she runs barefoot straight through the clan grounds, occasionally hitting a corner or stumbling over a rock. We follow her as she reaches the gates, throwing them open with a violent shove. We follow her as she runs out into the streets, shocking every single person she passes by. She runs into someone, soaking them in the blood before running on, not even offering any apology. I recognize that person now- it was Shikamaru Nara's father. He looks disgusted and confused and just a little bit pitying. She keeps running before knocking into that ANBU. The ANBU was a male, that much was clear. He had inky black hair and a cat mask. He doesn't say anything. He grabs her by the arm and she pauses, though not willingly. Her eyes are wild and she begins tugging at his hand, trying to get him to remove it and let her keep running. She says things that don't make much sense, just crazed objections. With his other hand, he touches her cheek, showing a brief feeling of pity. Then there's a blur of movement and she's cradled in his arms. They disappear from sight as she's carried off to the Hokage, and the memory ends.
--
I withdraw my hands from their foreheads, leaning back and observing their faces. They both look so completely guilty and for a moment I feel a little bit sorry for forcing them to witness that. I push that emotion away to the far corners of my mind and sit on the ground again, crossing my legs underneath myself and looking to the forest floor. We remain in silence for several minutes. I lift my head, ready to say something. "So. I want an explanation, right now."
Daichi and Kazuo share a look that makes my stomach drop. "Well..." Daichi starts.
"We can't give you one," Kazuo finishes, fingers knotting together.
I raise a hand to my face and pinch the bridge of my nose, eyes fluttering closed. Through gritted teeth, I grate out the words, "And. Why. Not." I could feel a headache swiftly developing, right behind my eyes. This was quite possibly one of the worst weeks of my entire life.
"It's for your safety," Daichi assures.
I laugh bitterly, the sound harsh coming from me. "Do you realize how fucking stupid that sounds?" My voice heightens by a few octaves, giving away my frustration. A murderous aura was emanating from my entire body, seeping out of every pore. I wanted to hurt something. Badly.
"Uh, yeah," Kazuo chuckles nervously. "We're really sorry, but we can't. We want to. But we can't."
"Thank you for such an amazing answer, Kazuo! Really enlightening. Makes me wonder why in the hell I should even be talking to you!" I snap, standing up swiftly. Kazuo and Daichi both stand up, clearly worried about what I might do.
"Kimi-chan, we understand how angry you must be-" Daichi begins.
"Yeah, I'm pretty fucking angry! I haven't seen you since I was five-" -gesture to Daichi- "-I thought you both were dead, and then here you guys are, alive and well, asking questions and you won't even tell me what's happening! I think I have a right to know why this is happening!" I rant, angrier than before. How dare they tell me all of that, concluding 'it's for my own safety'! I haven't been safe! I wasn't safe when the clan was still around, because Masao was crazy!
They sigh. "Ah, um, I guess we could tell you a little bit..." Daichi mutters.
"Yeah, but not everything. We're really pushing ourselves by telling you anything, okay?" Kazuo tells me. "Just please, sit down." I roll my eyes derisively and comply, not missing the hurt and guilty looks on both of their faces. Whatever, I don't care.
"You see, our clan's powerful. We have perfect memories, amazing genjutsu abilities that rival the sharingan, and all-around valuable skills. There is a certain...group...that wants us to join up and help them. They have for a while now, but we've denied. They're persistent, though, and they killed the clan. Kazuo and I managed to get away from it by careful planning, and you were simply not there," Daichi explains.
I was frowning at the ground through out the speech. I turn to look Daichi directly in the eyes and I give him the angriest glare I possibly could, the kind of glare that burned flowers and killed puppies. "What group is it." I don't word it like a question- it was a statement. I wasn't asking them for anything; I was demanding it. I was getting fed-up with not knowing anything. I did not like it when someone else knew something, and I knew that they knew something and they wouldn't tell me or they were trying to avoid talking about it.
"I...uh, well, they call themselves the Akatsuki," Daichi informs me.
"And who the hell are they," I reply, still glaring at him. The way he almost imperceptibly shrunk away from my gaze was not lost on me.
"A highly dangerous group of S-class criminals," Kazuo answers, "and they are the sort of-"
"Kimiko? Who are these people?"
All three of us immediately look to the source of the noise. It's Sasuke. He's halfway sitting up, eyes wide but still alert and focused on Daichi and Kazuo. His body is tensed, ready to move if need be. "Ah, Sasuke," I answer, crouching next to him, "I was worried about you. You got chakra exhaustion."
His gaze flickers for a moment over to me before it goes straight back to my brothers. "That's nice," he replies slowly, "but that didn't answer my question."
I roll my eyes for the millionth time. "I realize that, Sasuke. These are...my brothers."
"What?" He asks, eyes on me again. He's surprised, too. "I thought they were dead or missing?"
"Apparently not," I tell him. Both of my brothers are observing Sasuke quietly, measuring him up. Kazuo's eyes are blazing. Daichi's eyes are narrowed. They've both gone into overprotective brother mode. They seem to approve of him, for they lean back and nod slightly.
"Hm," Kazuo says, "he is sufficient."
"Yes, it appears so," Daichi replies, nodding. "Well, Uchiha, you pass. For now."
"Pass what?" Sasuke asks, sitting up all the way. He looks over to me again. "What are they talking about? And what are they doing here?"
"Poor clueless Uchiha," Daichi says, answering for me. "We were summoned via a special little scroll."
"Yup," Kazuo adds, "Summoned. Oh, my name is Kazuo, by the way."
"And I'm Daichi," Daichi tells him. "Now, imouto, I need to take a look at your throat. I saw what that Zaku gaki did."
I nod, but then hesitate slightly when I realize I'd have to remove the bandages from my neck. He'd see the scar, ask about it, and I would have to tell him. In front of Sasuke, who consequently would hear it. I move to sit next to Daichi and I slowly remove them. Sasuke was being checked on by Kazuo, who was also telling him what happened when he was out. When the bandages are all removed and Daichi's eyes narrow in on the scar that trailed from one side of my neck to the other and down my right shoulder and arm, all the way until an inch or so before the bend of my elbow he whistles loudly, drawing the attention of Kazuo and Sasuke.
"Imouto," he says, "Where the hell did you get that scar?"
My eyes flicker over to Sasuke and Kazuo, both of who were looking at the scar. Sasuke looked in obvious curiosity and Kazuo looked with guilt. "Uh," I swallow hard, "when I was eight, Masao-nii-san was already a jonin. He went on an 'A' ranked mission and when he came back, he wasn't the same. He would sometimes have these...moods...where he would kind of loose himself."
"Masao did this?" Daichi asks.
"Uh, yeah," I answer uneasily. Daichi looks really angry and upset, and also slightly pitying and guilty. "Don't worry about it! He did it often. It wasn't such a big deal."
Lie. That was a lielielie. It was a really big deal. And Daichi can probably tell I'm lying, too. I look at him. His brow is furrowed and he's frowning. Yes, he can tell. He can definitely tell.
"Can I see?" He asks.
I look down at my hands, hyper aware of the fact that yes, Sasuke could very well hear me and he was paying attention. "I...I guess." He nods at this and leans forward. I glance at Sasuke, who looks a little bit worried. I smile slightly, trying to reassure him. He catches the meaning behind it and nods slightly. Then I turn back to Daichi and press my hand to his forehead, just like I had done before.
--
The clearing is small, about fifteen feet across in total. Daichi and I are standing in the middle of it. I hear the sounds of branches breaking and someone protesting-the beginnings of Masao-nii-san's negative mood. "Where are we now? And when?" Daichi asks, looking around.
"The forest by the north training grounds. A week after my tenth birthday," I answer plainly. "Look, there I am with Masao." I point to where the two of us were entering the clearing. Masao-nii-san has his hand knotted through her hair, pulling memory Me alongside him viciously. She stumbles as her foot gets caught on a tree root sticking up from the ground; Masao-nii-san pulls her back up with a sharp yank on her hair. I glance at Daichi-he's wincing with every yank or tug.
"You're fucking pathetic," Masao snaps, tossing her to the ground. She winces and scrambles up, backing away. The memory Me is too scared to do much else but stare in fear. The memory Masao is behind her in an instant, twisting her arm behind her and pressing a kunai to her throat. She winces as blood is drawn. "Well? What're you gonna do? Just keep being pathetic, huh?"
She bites her lip so hard it bleeds. The blood trickles down her chin and mixes with the blood from her neck, pouring down to stain her shirt. He twists her arm again and drags the blade slowly, agonizingly across her neck and down the exposed inside of her arm. Looking back, I realize I was lucky he didn't end up slitting my throat and killing me.
His grip on her slackens and the blade is lowered. "Masao," Kazuo says, "Let her go."
Masao sighs heavily. The wicked scowl on his face only deepens. "No," he answers heavily. A dark shape darts out, tackling him to the ground and thrown against a tree. The memory Me stumbles forward, whirling around and facing them. Kazuo whispers to Masao, and Masao relaxes, realizing who he is again. His eyes fill with tears at the sight of her and he begs, pleads for her forgiveness. And she grants it to him.
--
As I pull away from Daichi, I ignore the horribly guilty look on his face. I ignore the tear trickling down his cheek. He doesn't say anything. He just swallows and raises his hand to heal my neck.
Thirty minutes later finds me bidding my brothers goodbye. Naruto had woken up a few minutes after Daichi healed my neck, and while packing up camp my brothers, Sasuke and I all explained to him what happened. Unfortunately, it was mentioned I had a peculiar scar and Naruto gave me a questioning look. I told him that once it was all over I had quite a bit of talking to do to both him and Sasuke, and likely Kakashi-sensei as well. Thankfully, Naruto accepted this answer and kept quiet about it. After we finished packing, my brothers informed me that they couldn't stay right now but they'd try to be present at the time of the third exam. They did let me know they would keep contact with me and tell me know when it was okay to summon them again, so they could permanently stay. I told them I would have to tell the Hokage all about this. They accepted that, and even told me it was for the best.
Daichi stands to the side as Kazuo tells me goodbye. Kazuo engulfs me in a hug. "Goodbye, imouto. I recommend you go to the clan grounds and search through some of the stuff there. You might find some interesting things," he whispers, pulling me close. He kisses my forehead and I think of that night years ago when I was sick and he took care of me. Then he's pulling away and I banish the memory from the front of my mind. I needed to focus. Part of me wonders what he meant when he said to go searching through stuff at the clan grounds. What for?
"Goodbye, Kazuo," I answer
Daichi steps forward to hug me, too. "Oh, dear imouto," he murmurs, "I'll be giving you many hugs to make up for all the ones I missed. Especially the birthday ones."
We step back. "Goodbye, Daichi-nii-san. Goodbye, Kazuo-nii-san," I say. They smile at me, picking up on the fact I purposefully included the 'nii-san' honorific at the end. I had forgiven them, at least part way. Then they're making several complicated hand signs and the clearing fills with thick smoke again. When it clears, they're finally gone.
Again.
--
TADA!
The end. I'm cutting the chapter off here. The next chapter will start at the beginning of part three. I hope you enjoyed this chapter(: It took a while for me to write the memories, so they'd better be good, haha:P Please comment and vote. Expect chapter eighteen in a week! Oh, and a side note- I plan on starting a second fanfic here in a few months. It'll probably be AU.