‟So half your body got crushed? ˮ, asked the young girl wide-eyed. Her new friend was recalling the events of the Chunin exam a few months prior, when he had been severely injured by his opponent.
‟Wait, but if that's true, how are you even able to move nowˮ, she asked, skeptical, ‟your left arm and leg were broken, weren't they ˮ. Lee tried not to cringe. Losing two of his limbs meant he couldn't be a ninja, which was his main goal in life. He wanted to prove that even with taijutsu as his only ability, he could be a great ninja and serve Konoha like all his peers.
‟Tsunade-sama, Konoha's Hokage, is the best medical ninja there is. She was able to fix me ˮ, he grinned. Mayou had a perplexed look on her face; she didn't quite comprehend the dynamics of all the ninja levels. She knew that there was a top ninja, and all the others under that, but she didn't want to bother herself with learning all the skills each level involved. Besides, being a ninja was not part of her life plan at all. That thought got her thinking, what was her life's goal? She listened to her new friend Lee's story about how he wanted to be recognized as a ninja, even without ninjutsu or genjutsu. He even told her about a young boy who swore he would be the Hokage one day. It seemed to her like everyone had a path, except her. All her life, all she did was survive. She never gave thought into her future. Her present was what was important; each day was about getting to the next day alive.
Mayou didn't remember her parents. She knew that there was an incident in her home village as a child, and that she's the only one who survived from her nuclear family. A vague memory of bursting flames got her teary eyed. It wasn't something she liked to think about. As a child, it was easier. The people in her village each chipped in so the infant wouldn't starve to death. However, as she reached adolescence, she got ignored and had to fend for herself. She enjoyed the freedom of living on her own. Every day was an adventure. But as she got older, her feelings caught up to her, and she got lonely. She didn't push people away consciously; she just never really learned how to make a friend. She and Lee had been training together for three days now. Each day, he'd come meet her at the clearing. Sometimes he would bring a snack. She particularly liked Dango. The sweet dumplings tasted so much better than the food she usually took from garbage behind houses in small villages. Lee even brought her replacement bandages. The repetitive punching of trees with her bare fists had greatly damaged her knuckles over the years. The redness clashed on her pale white skin.
‟You should've put on the ones I gave you that first time ˮ, Lee joked, as he helped her wrap the fabric around her hands. She did notice a hint of sadness in his eyes as he carefully maneuvered the bandages.
‟Lee-san… ˮ, started Mayou hesitantly.
‟Hm? ˮ, the boy looked at the girl.
‟I don't think we should train together anymore... ˮ, she muttered.
‟Nanda? Nande? ˮ, he replied, taken aback.
‟Gomen… ˮ, she said looking away. She clearly saw that Lee's feelings were hurt. He was staring at her, probably awaiting an explanation to her sudden confession.
‟I'm not quite familiar with the whole friendship thing ˮ, she started, ‟but I am sure that it requires some sort of give and take… ˮ
‟I don't understand ˮ, said the boy puzzled.
‟Well, you've just been so nice to me. You know, with the bandages, and sweets. I haven't given you anything but a black eye ˮ, she said looking down.
Lee felt a pit at the bottom of his stomach. He knew that Mayou would be out of his life one day. He was going to be a ninja, going on missions. He lived in a big village. She slept in the woods and travelled around. His logical mind told him this, but for some reason, he couldn't picture himself letting her go. He had grown fond of the girl. He understood what that meant. He had once developed a crush on Sakura, a girl one year his junior. They were now friends. However, his feelings for Mayou weren't the same. Ever since he had laid eyes on her, all he could think about was her. She even had him lying to Gai-sensei so he could keep her presence in his life secret, which before meeting her would've been unconceivable. Now that she had rejected him, his problem was solved, right? But still, the bad feeling was lingering.
‟Mayou-san… ˮ, he muttered, looking at her with a mix of sadness and confusion in his eyes.
‟No, Lee, I can't ˮ, she said abruptly. ‟I'm just a burden. You will be a ninja, and what am I: a thug. You shouldn't even associate with me, let alone be so nice to me. I'm sorry, but this is goodbye ˮ. She reached over and quickly hugged the boy, as he stood in silence. She then let go, gave him a last look, and ran off. Lee was left alone with the dead tree keeping him company. The whole exchange happened so fast. He suddenly felt anger rush through him.
Why am I so stupid?!, he raged inwardly. I just stood there, and now she's gone… He stared at the spot where she had vanished through the trees for what seemed like a few minutes. He felt something wet on his face, but didn't move. The rain slowly started to seep through the thick foliage above, and rapidly came to a downpour.
That night, Lee couldn't sleep. Partly due to the heavy rain hitting the roof, windows, and ground outside. The racket piled on to the heavy thoughts in his head. The events from that afternoon left him with a disheartened feeling. His room was suddenly filled by a bright flash of light. The thunder roared and more light filled the sky. A huge storm was passing over the Country of Fire. Lee moved out of bed and towards his window. He wasn't getting any sleep, so he figured he might as well observe the electricity moving through the sky. Suddenly, two Jonins appeared below his window. He couldn't distinguish the identity of the figures because of the heavy rain, but their voices managed to reach his ear.
‟The Hokage has called any available Jonins to order ˮ, said the tallest figure on the right, from the voice, the genin could tell that the figure was a man.
‟The storm has caused quite the amount of damage in the forest ˮ, he continued. Lee's bushy eyebrows rose at that statement.
The shorter Jonin on the right replied, ‟What type of damage are we talking about here? ˮ (Lee noted that the one on the left was a female ninja).
‟Tsunade-sama said that the reconnaissance squad reported many cases of fallen trees. The lighting is not forgiving, a forest fire started north-east of the village ˮ. Lee thought that these directions sounded familiar. North-east was the approximate location of the clearing. Mayou had admitted to him that she never camped too far from there, since she went there every day. She didn't like to sleep in an open space, in fear of being discovered. Lee immediately panicked. Mayou was still in the forest! Exactly where the Jonins described that the fire was. His heart started beating really fast. If anything happened to her, he would never forgive himself. He was out in the rain instantly. He speeded past the Jonins that were still discussing outside his window. He heard them call after him, but he didn't look back. No one knew about Mayou, and by the time he explained the situation to someone, it might be too late.
No!, he told himself. She's fine. But he couldn't shake the worried feeling from his mind. Please let her be fine… he thought, hopeful.
As he approached the area with the clearing, he could feel the heat in the air. Despite the heavy rain, a huge fire was burning that section of the forest. The rough terrain from the multiple fallen trees slowed the boy down, but he pushed himself towards the core of the flames.
‟Mayou! ˮ, he yelled, rushing through the forest without any distinct destination. He called his friend's name over and over, but couldn't hear much over the sound of the rain and the crackling of the flames. Finally, he caught a glimpse of thin, white fabric flying in the wind.
‟Mayou? ˮ, he tried. He heard a faint moan coming from behind a fallen trunk.
‟Kuso! ˮ, he said under his breath. ‟Mayou! ˮ
‟Lee? ˮ, he heard. The genin reached the place where the voice came from and took in the scene. Half of the girl's body was crushed under the body of the fallen tree. One of her arms was free, it rested over the trunk, but the other was beneath the trunk.
‟I.. I'm.. stuck... ˮ, she managed to let out with little energy.
‟I'll get you out of here! ˮ, he yelled out. The girl looked at her friend, who she thought she'd never see again, as he lifted the trunk from her limp body with incredible strength. The pain from her broken arm and ribs was too much to handle. The last thing she saw as her eyes shut was Lee's green uniform.
After he pushed the trunk aside, he looked towards Mayou. Lee saw her lose consciousness.
‟No! Mayou! Stay with me! ˮ, he shouted, but it was too late. He approached his ear to her mouth and felt some breathing, but it was weak. He picked up the girl's body in his arms, carefully putting her broken arm over her chest, and headed towards Konoha.