"I know you're afraid, but being afraid is alright. Because didn't anybody ever tell you? Fear is a superpower. Fear can make you faster and cleverer and stronger. And one day you're gonna come back to this barn and on that day you're going to be very afraid indeed. But that's okay, because if you're very wise and very strong fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind. It doesn't matter if there's nothing under the bed or in the dark so long as you know it's okay to be afraid of it. So listen. If you listen to anything else, listen to this. You're always gonna be afraid even if you learn to hide it. Fear is like a companion, a constant companion, always there. But that's okay because fear can bring us together. Fear can bring you home. I'm gonna leave you something just so you'll always remember. Fear makes companions of us all." ~ Clara Oswald, Doctor Who (Listen)
.7
It's all downhill from here, she mused dryly to herself. The deployment orders held loosely in her hands. A grimace on her face. Combat had never really been her forte, not in large quantities at least. She was an intelligence officer who favored desk work above anything else.
Sakumo glanced at her from the corner of his eye, she was quiet. Perhaps too quiet. He expected her to protest, expected her to be upset, but instead she was quiet. Eerily so. It was not a good sign. The last time she'd been this quiet, this unresponsive, unemotional was when her mother died. Ten years ago.
He hoped, although he knew the unlikely hood, that she wouldn't see the combat. That they could utilized her skills at whatever base they'd set up, that they needed her on the front for something other than the fighting. Hibiki hated fighting. She hated everything about the concept. It had only gotten worse.
For that same reason you would never want to go one on one with her. Because she hated fighting, she always did her best to end the fight quickly. But she wasn't sloppy with it, everything she did, her coding, personnel files, and training, all of it she did with her absolute best. Complete perfection she strived for it every single time. She was only a chunin is rank, and that was of her own choosing. The girl should have been a jonin by now but she kept turning down the offer of promotion, to his amusement.
She didn't say much after they received their orders, except to say she needed to go say goodbye. He watched her walked away until she disappeared into a puff of smoke. He let out a sigh. This feeling of dreed building up in the pit of his stomach. It all felt wrong.
The sixteen year old ended up at Kushina's first, she knocked timidly. Kushina opened the door slowly, her face had splashes of ink on it. Hibiki cracked a small smile. "I'm leaving for the border." She says before the red head even has a chance to say anything.
Kushina freezes. "When?" She ask after a moment once she processes the news.
"Tomorrow morning, early. Maybe sooner." Kushina pulls the girl close, wrapping her arms around her smaller frame.
"Be safe." She insists.
"I'll try, Kushina I need you to promise me something." Hibiki bites her lip and Kushina gives a sad smile.
"I'll keep an eye on them." The dark haired girl nods her head. Kushina knew her so well.
"Thank you." The smile on Kushina's lips wavers and she nods.
"Of course." Hibiki doesn't stay long, her heart to heavy her lungs to tight. She says a goodbye before disappearing.
Mikoto doesn't flinch when Hibiki appears next to her in the garden. She barely cast her second glance. "You're leaving." The Uchiha matron states, her tone knowing.
"I got my orders this morning." Mikoto nods, Hibiki doesn't take a seat next to her.
"I see. Come home in one piece." There is a clear threat in that line Hibiki thinks. But she pays it no mind.
"Of course, I'd hate to miss his arrival." Mikoto shot a brow at her, placing a hand on the growing bump. A smirk on her face as she did so.
"Kushina wants a girl." Hibiki rolled her eyes. That sounded like her, she was going to be disappointed.
"Well Shina can't always get what she wants. Take care." The older woman smiled, and shook her head. Hibiki didn't stay to hear her response.
Obito was out on a D-rank with the newly formed team 7, so he wasn't home when she arrived at Atsuko-obaa's house. She let herself in quietly. The old woman was sitting in her chair reading, slowly she set the book down watching the teen as she crossed the living room and took a seat on the couch. Atsuko gives her a sad but telling look and then in a light hearten tone speaks.
"You're going to miss my birthday." Although her tone is teasing, and her voice gentle Hibiki still feels guilty. Because she is, because it's not the only thing she's going to miss. Deployments were a long and messy business, it's why she'd hoped they'd never pick her.
"I am, I'll miss his too." Atsuko gets up from her seat and crosses the room to sit next to the teen.
"You'll be home before we know it, this isn't goodbye forever." The old woman pulls the teen close to her in a comforting side embrace. Hibiki places her hand on top of Atsuko's.
"It still feels like an ending though. As if once I'm gone I'll never come back, I'm terrified obaasan." Atsuko runs her fingers through the girl's hair in a slow soothing manor. It was something she used to do for the girl's mother when Moriko was stressed out.
Moriko was like the daughter she never had.
"You will come back." The old woman sounds sure, as if she believes this without a doubt. "Use your fear Hibiki, use it as fuel and stay alive." She is vaguely reminded of something she once heard, but shakes her head. There is no time to dwell on the past.
"Thank you obaasan." Atsuko has a ghost of a smile. She pats the girl's shoulder.
"On with you now. You need to get ready." Hibiki stands, Atsuko walks with her too the door.
"Obito said something about training after D-ranks today." She nods her head in understanding."He's not going to take this well." Hibiki frowns, the old woman offers her a kind smile but she doesn't comment for she knows there is truth in those words. Atsuko watches as the teen silently slips out the door and heads towards the team training grounds. The old woman prayed for her safe return.
Training field three, looked exactly as it did in the anime. Three warn post, the over hang of trees and in the distance you could see a small reflection from the memorial stone. Hibiki frowned. She had no way of knowing if she'd end up on that stone or not. She felt that way each and every time she got sent out of the village. Except now, since they were at war the feeling was only worse.
She watched as Minato interacted with the children. He was a good teacher, and he was good for them. They were so young. Obito and Rin were both nine and eight respectively and had been genin for almost six months, Kakashi was seven and was a chunin for a period of time she had not yet determined. Sakumo didn't tell her of his son's promotion seeing as she knew it would only anger her. He was too young, still a baby in her eyes. Minato had been a good choice, he was fair to them and considered there age. For now.
Hibiki watched for a few more minutes, a strained smile on her face as the boys argued and Minato stood by an amused look on his face. Her heart constricted in her chest again. This was going to hurt so badly. After a moment longer of watching and once she was sure the blonde had realized her presence she jumped down right between the two arguing boys. Minto bit back a snicker.
"Hello Hibiki." He called to her, and she offered him small smirk over her shoulder.
"Hello Minato, do you mind if I borrow Obi-chan for a minute." It wasn't a question, he knew by the serious look in her eye. Minato knew that there age group would be getting orders. He just hadn't thought she'd be picked. Hibiki hated combat. Sha had always opperated best at a desk, somewhere surrounded by files. Claiming it was easier to see the big picture that way.
"Sure." Hibiki placed one hand on Obito's shoulder and shunshined them away from everyone else. Coincidentally she landed them right next to the memorial stone. Her sweet naive little brother gave her a startled look. Probably at the sudden displacement.
She squatted down so she was looking up at him, her hand on his arm. "Nee-san?" He tilts his head, his expression confused. Hibiki sighs, there is no easy way to tell him this. No easy way to break the news to him. He's going to be upset no matter how she does this, so in that case it was better to just rip the band-aid off.
"I'm being deployed, I will be gone for at least six months." His expression changes quickly, from confusion to upset. She hates to watch it happen, hates to be the cause of it.
"No." He denies. Hibiki shakes her head.
"I'm sorry." His expression hardens. Her heart breaks.
"No! You promise! That you wouldn't leave me like they did." Like his parents did. His voice is cold. Anger has settled in.
"I know, I'm sorry." Obito shakes her hand off his arm, he crosses his arms across his chest. She is reminded of his age, of how much a child he still is.
"Obi-"He cuts her off. "Go away, I hate you!" Obito turns and runs from her then. Hibiki is too frozen in her spot to react, to reach for him, to stop him. His words cut her deep. She watches with a hurt expression as he disappears into the surrounding forest.
For a moment she's just frozen in her spot, hurting. She knew he wouldn't take it kindly. But she never thought he'd react like that. Hibiki stands, but she doesn't move not until a hand lands on her shoulder prompting her to turn her head back. Minato gives her a sad smile.
"How much did you hear?" She mumbles, her eyes meet his and he sighs. There a tears building in her eyes. Hibiki looks so broken.
"All of it, Kakashi and Rin didn't hear anything but I did send them to find Obito. He'll come around." She doesn't understand where the people around her keep getting their unfailing optimism from and quite frankly she isn't sure she wants too.
"I leave tonight, technically early tomorrow morning. But I won't be sleeping. Just keep me updated on him? Please?" Minato gives her a small reassuring smile.
"Certainly, you as well when you can." He pats her shoulder before heading off in the direction of team seven's fading chakra signatures.
Her fingers trace over their names, slowly. She can't shake this doubt bubbling in her chest or the pain in her heart. Obito's words spoken in a childish rage had struck deep. Hibiki prayed they wouldn't be the last she'd hear from him. Then she prayed for this to all be over soon.
Although she doubted it.
She was heading into the unknown, all the prayers and knowing couldn't change a thing. The only thing she knew for certain is that she couldn't die here. There was still so much she wanted to do and if she died who was going to make sure they lived. Hibiki had no other choice, no matter what happened, no matter what came to be, she had to survive.
It was going to be a very long six months.
XOXOX
Hope you guys like this chapter! Please let me know what you think, as always I love hearing from all of you.
If you were wondering about the ages of the characters, here is a short explanation and then a list.
First of all the ages for Kushina and Minato's group is very confusing, and not very well explained I think in the manga or anime. As if the time tables don't really add up so I tweaked them to fit what I needed. So yah...
Anyway here is a short list.
Hibiki (16 as stated in the chapter)
Kushina, Minato (19)
Inoichi(18-19 range)
Mikoto(22, the wiki says she is 22 when she has Itachi)
Obito(9)
Rin(8)
Kakashi(7)
I hope that helps clears up any confusion!
Sincerely, La'Rae
