So this is kind of an update. I already posted Chapter Four but realised I hadn't even finished it, so here's the complete version. I'll also be uploading the fifth chapter alongside this so check that out too!
Please let me know what you all think and leave a comment below or follow/add the story to your list.
It was a couple of days since the fight when Kakashi woke up. Still feeling groggy, he looked around and saw Hotaru asleep in the corner, her expression pained. That same dull glow surrounded her body again, but this time it seemed to fade a little now and again. Kakashi watched her for a little longer, wondering what that chakra was about.
He thought back to before Team Seven, when he was reading through the students' files. There were so many questions that had no answers. The girl had no family information, no birth place information. Nothing. Was she even from the Leaf Village? Nonetheless, he figured it would be best to let her rest and get her strength back.
Outside, Kakashi rounded up the rest of his team, informing them of a new exercise: a chakra control exercise.
"Simply climb the tree without using your hands." He stated, before following it up with a very simple demonstration, as though it took no effort at all.
Sakura was the first to try – and succeed – in climbing the tree. Kakashi applauded her with a smile, before gesturing towards the boys who were far from successful.
While the boys continued running at the tree, Hotaru finally appeared. She was visibly exhausted.
"Want to give this a go, Hotaru?" Kakashi asked, not wanting her to push herself too much but, at the same time, wanted to get her back into training too.
Hotaru paused for a moment, trying to figure out what everyone was doing. She could feel a lot of chakra presence, but only when the others were running at the trees. Chakra control... not my strong point... she thought to herself, a little apprehensive right now. Kakashi noticed and walked over.
"Just focus the chakra like you did during our fight," he offered, about to place his hand on her shoulder. But Hotaru flinched away, and nodded.
She inhaled deeply, knowing exactly how this would work out. She had no control over her chakra – it wasn't her who decided when it would come out.
It was... something else.
As she exhaled, she made a run for the tree, listening carefully to the sounds of her footsteps before finally going for the jump. From just her momentum, she was able to run a decent way up the tree but soon lost her footing and stumbled back, head first.
Everyone ran over to try and catch her, but just before she hit the ground, her feet emitted a bright white glow, making contact with the trunk. She stuck tight and the rest of her fell limply against the bark, leaving her hanging upside down like a cut of meat at a butcher shop.
"That was close!" Naruto exclaimed, as he went to help her upright, but she quickly released herself and somersaulted down the side of the tree, landing perfectly on her feet.
"I'm fine," she muttered coldly, brushing the boy away from her. Not wanting any fuss, she decided to head back inside so Kakashi could continue with the lesson. She felt humiliated, just like her days back in the academy.
Later that night, Hotaru stepped outside, welcoming the cool air around her. She made a beeline straight for the trees where the others were training earlier and simply stood still. Why can't I control this? With her hands held out, she tried forcing energy to her palms, but it was useless.
"It appears to me, that your chakra is more reactive than proactive." Kakashi said calmly as he appeared from behind her. "It's almost as though it's acting with a will of its own..."
"But that's impossible," the two of them said simultaneously.
"It's not chakra," Hotaru explained, "at least not entirely. It's an energy." She pulled out her katana and held the blade with her other hand until the metal sliced into her skin. Next, she dropped the sword and felt heat focus into her palm. "See? The energy focuses to where it needs to be to keep me alive."
Kakashi watched in silent awe as her hand completely healed itself.
"It overrides my will and, as you said, it acts on its own accord." Hotaru murmured, letting out a sigh. "I don't know what it is, really."
"Do you know when you first felt it?" Kakashi asked curiously, his gaze swapping between the girl's emotionless expression and her hand.
Like it was just yesterday, Hotaru thought to herself...
Hotaru was transported back in time, when she was just four years old again. She could feel a chakra presence nearby, which she soon identified as being her best friend's. He was rushing around the bedroom, overturning boxes and searching through drawers until he found what he was looking for.
"At last!" He beamed, as he whipped out a long, leather-handled katana, encased in its scabbard and tossed it to Hotaru, who caught it with ease. "Strap that on your back and we can go. Quickly, now, Ru-chan!" Her friend, Sora was brimming with excitement as he then grabbed her by the wrist, dragging her outside as fast as they could go.
"Sora, where are we going?" She asked, as she ran after him, catching up as best she could, until she suddenly felt an overwhelmingly powerful source of chakra and her smile dropped like a weight. She knew exactly where they were and she now realised why he made her take her sword.
"Why are we at the meteor's crater?" She asked, apprehensively, scanning the area for any other sign of life. Nobody was around – at least nobody with chakra that would overpower that of the star's, but she wasn't going to relax. It was very rare that Sora would insist on her being armed unless it was to help her train – and this didn't seem like one of those times.
"Don't you see, Hotaru? This is the star that gave the First Hoshikage his power. All our leaders and the adults are hiding this form us and the rest of the village so that we don't overthrow their iron-fist way of ruling our lives!" Sora announced, clenching his fists. It was the first time in a long time that Hotaru was feeling genuinely nervous around her friend. Never before had he displayed such hunger for power nor a desire to overhaul the elders of the village. What was his plan?
"I am so close to finishing my training, Ru-chan." His voice suddenly softened, as he turned around, taking her hands in his, squeezing them lightly. "I can finally give you the life you deserve... the life we deserve." The fervour in his voice was undoubtedly captivating and Hotaru, being as young as she was, knew no other life than the one she shared with her friend in the orphanage.
"But," she stammered, finally having the confidence to speak her mind, "that training could kill you... it's why the Third Hoshikage banned it's use... When did you even start this?" She asked, her face etched with concern.
"Of course he did. He wants the power for himself. He's a disingenuous, deceitful old man. All of them are the same, Ru-chan... you can't trust anyone but yourself." He told her, with all the passion of a leader in his voice. His hands were shaking with excitement at the prospect of revealing his hard work to his friend at long last. "I want this for you. I did all of this for you, so you no longer need to feel afraid at night when they turn off the lights. Never again will you have to fear falling asleep... I can protect you now... let me show you."
Hotaru followed her friend blindly, like a moth to a flame. All of her trust was with him, as it always had been... and always would be.
Inside the shrine-like building, where they kept the meteor, Sora made his way instantly over to the rock. Hotaru could only shield her face from the intense wave of chakra that was pounding into her every second. This chakra level was surreal... it was beyond her wildest expectations.
"I don't think this is a good idea, Sora-kun... please..." She pleaded, feeling her body shudder from the power around her. Something inside her was definitely not happy.
Her words fell on deaf ears however, as the young boy, just a couple of years older than Hotaru, sat In front of the star, like he was meditating. Every word Hotaru spoke was ignored as he focused all his energy into the star.
Almost a quarter of an hour passed when Sora announced he was done. This time, his voice sounded a little flat and weak and it worried the young girl. "Let's go... let's finally get out of-"
"Who's in there?!" A loud voice boomed from outside the building doors. Sora swore and grabbed hold of Hotaru's arm, pulling her with him as he sprinted towards the exit, determined to make it out.
"Ninja-Art: Mysterious Peacock!" Sora used one hand to summon the protective chakra formation around him. "Attack!" In that moment, the tail that fanned out behind him transformed into a bullet that blasted through the doors to the shrine, sending whoever it was outside, flying into the air.
"Ru-chan, let's go – towards the ravine!" He barked, darting outside and along the dirt path.
"Sora... we'll die!" Hotaru cried out, tears forming in her eyes. Something was going wrong – she could sense the anomaly within the boy's body. "Your chakra it's... it's..."
"Powered up." Sora growled, as they ran. He knew something malicious was happening to him, but he was intent on pushing through it. It was just a small side effect of the grand power that he was harnessing. He was sure his body would soon get used to it.
They ran for what seemed like hours, with some of the village shinobi in hot pursuit. Up ahead was the canyon – also known as the Devil's Ravine: a poison-gas filled fissure in the ground that protected the village from outsiders.
"We're here. Come on, keep going – we can make this!" Sora shouted, adrenaline surging furiously through his body. All the while, Hotaru was closing her eyes – her friend had truly lost his mind. They just kept running and her feet were tiring quickly until suddenly she realised she wasn't running any more. She was airborne!
Sora had done it... he had finally done it! Purple wings sprouted from his back and carried them over the ravine with such immense ease.
Sora had really done it... they would finally be free now. Hotaru could only smile as she felt the village shinobi's chakra fade away behind them. Joy and relief washed over her and she called out to the sky in delight. Sora grinned and did the same, ready to start their new adventure at long last.
But suddenly, Sora winced in pain and the chakra evaporated into nothing in an instant. The pair shot down towards the ground like lightning, crashing into the canopies of the trees in the forest. Now, Hotaru knew something was seriously wrong. His chakra was all over the place. His energies were fading.
Hotaru frantically started shaking Sora, but there was no response. His body was burning and she could feel something taking over. The boy coughed up a mouthful of thick blood, and cupped Hotaru's cheek in his trembling hand.
"You're... going to be okay, Ru-chan..." He spluttered, wrapping his free arm around Hotaru's shoulders, pulling himself up a little. "We're going to be okay. I believe in you... don't let me down" Hotaru nodded her head furiously, and then got to her feet, pulling her friend up with her. His body was starting to let him down and his legs buckled with each step, but the white-haired girl refused to give up.
The pair walked through the forest as fast as they could. Night was setting in and Sora was growing slowly weaker and fear was setting in. Sora's gentle breaths warmed her neck and his slow heartbeat seemed to give her a new sense of resolve as she walked, refusing to permit her body to give up or give in.
However, each step was beginning to get longer. Gravity felt as though it was growing stronger. Hotaru was struggling to really make progress now.
Finally, she collapsed to the floor, with Sora's weight completely on top of her. Neither of them made an effort to move and Hotaru started sobbing, finally facing her reality: he was gone...
And it was all her fault...
Guilt was eating away at her like a tick to a stray dog. She failed him. All she could do was sit up and hold him tightly to her, trying to find some comfort in what was left of his warmth.
Kakashi watched as this young girl tell her story, and a small tear dare to fall from the corners of her eyes but he knew better than to interrupt her. This was the first glimpse he had of her life before. He was finally able to start piecing together the puzzle that was Hotaru Akiko's life. He patiently waited for her to regain her composure and finish.
"He was gone, and I... I had killed him... I failed to see the damage he was doing to himself and I killed him. I... I killed him." Hotaru fell to her knees, throwing her head into her hands as all the memories came flooding back.
It was a feeling of guilt that Kakashi was all too familiar with. Bearing the responsibility of your comrades' deaths was a feeling that was nearly impossible to shake off and it could destroy a person without mercy. But before he could say anything, Hotaru shook her head.
"But they were still chasing us – the village, I mean." She added, her voice breaking as she fought back tears. "I wasn't strong enough to take him with me. I was scared and I let him go...I ran away."
Kakashi offered a sympathetic hand, which he simply rested on her shoulder.
"I couldn't live with the guilt.." She finally said after a long pause. Her voice suddenly became much clearer as she lifted her chin to look up at her teacher. "So I did the only thing I could think of in that moment..." Her fingers stroked the blade of her sword, and Kakashi pieced together the rest of her sentence. He couldn't fathom a child as young as herself even knowing what suicide was, let alone contemplate committing the act.
"Anyway," Hotaru finally stood and returned the sword to it's sheath on her back. "I better go... we still have a while to go before we reach the bridge."
Before she could leave, Kakashi took her by the shoulder, forcing her to face his way. There was so much he needed to let her know: that it wasn't her fault, that she shouldn't be carrying the blame and that she no longer needed to feel alone now – but he said nothing and let her go, watching as she made her way back to the house, but not before she paused and turned her head.
"Thank you." And with that, she let herself indoors, leaving Kakashi to his thoughts.