I don't own anything but OC's.

Chapter 10

The fist gripping her smaller hand could have broken it. Probably quite easily too.

Kirno in strange moments could exuberate a strength that she'd never passed onto her young student. Inare admired that about her. She could remain level headed no matter the situation, which Inare chalked that up to be being a medic for a number of years prior to meeting her and having dealt with a large number of casualties in less than favourable conditions.

Inare had yet to experience treating an individual outdoors with nothing but her hands and having to return the innards to a dying body in the small hopes that they might live. Nor had she ever had to heal an individual under the stress of a live battle.

There's were things that she had just not yet experienced.

While it was never outwardly said, Inare had the faintest impression that Kirno had done all of this, and more.

So when Inare panicked at the sight of her very first bleeding, crying, screaming and thrashing patient. She froze. "Useless," was screamed at her as she was shoved out of the way for Kirno to take over.

Inare wanted to blame it on the fact that she didn't have the experience, but a stronger part of her would whisper that it was just her character. That she would never have the strength to overcome fear and the stress.

No more had that been apparent that when Kirno had pulled her out of the line of fire of a barrage of shuriken. Inare had been left in a frozen daze as Kirno took over and near pulled her arm out of its socket to drag her towards cover from the attacks by the Yotsuki Clan.

Inare remembering crying to Kirno, begging her to take her home.

"Useless," Kirno has snarled at the young child, dragging them further away from the fight as the village behind them burned, the smoke that blew over them a perfect cover for their escape. There was never really a home.

"There you are," his voice started from behind her, gleeful in his discovery of her hiding spot. His hand smacked down on her injured leg. The sharp pain that sprung from her leg combined with the terror of Shun finding her and Inare almost fell to the ground. She barely managed to catch herself on her walking stick slash possible weapon.

Finding her balance quickly, Inare face Shun. He'd backed away a little and had begun to slowly circle her.

"Look at that. You look absolutely furious. Had enough yet? Give up sweetie while your still able to walk."

Inare ignored all his words, as she leaned heavily against her support. Shun began to advance on her again, closing up the short distance between them.

"Don't come any closer!" She warned him.

Shun paused, his face lighting up with curiosity. "Oh?" Then a smile grew. "And if I do?" Making another step towards her. Inare could only manage a feeble shift backwards as she tried to make up for the distance between them. He was only an arms span away.

Inare shifted her legs to give her weakest one the greatest support she could. A flash of lightning lit the sky and both their eyes where momentarily blinded to the dramatic change in light.

The pole tightly in her fist, Inare lifted it and swung it straight around at the man without restraint not wasting for a second while she had the slightest chance. It made impact with his skull and Shun fell to the ground, momentarily stunned. The movement disrupted Inare's balance and she followed him to the ground.

Shoulder smacking into the mud, Inare gasped in pain as her leg twisted horribly underneath her.

Still in a daze from the impact with his head, Inare had a moments head start to crawl over closer to him before raising the piping over her head and bringing it down over his middle with as much force as she could.

It wasn't enough, she needed him to feel the extreme pain and fear she had. Crawling closer she moved to straddle him dropping her weapon as she used one hand to support herself.

Her fist slammed down unto Shun's face, her eyes wild with the delight at finally having the control. That he was hurting, he was being wounded by her. Her fist wouldn't stop, she no longer had control of her body as her fist pounded down again for a third time.

Her lack of control was her downfall as Shu deflected her next punch leading her to make impact with the ground and tilt her far enough to her left that Shun rolled over their positions to straddle her.

Once again her leg was twisted and she howled in pain of her leg and as Shun's fist met her cheek. Inare waited for more to come, for him to loose himself as she had, but he didn't. Instead his hands wrapped around her neck and he leaned in, "Sleep for now." He hissed, saliva splattering over her face as his jaw was struggling to stay in place after she had beat his face. The pressure at her neck tightened and her mouth gaped open as she desperately tried to draw in air.

Her fist flung out wildly to hit him, missing as he leaned his head out of her reach.

Pale blue eyes looked down at her with glee, narrowing as her fist managed a light smack on his face.

She gripped the arms that where killing her and dragged her nails right down the length of then, gouging out skin and leaving trails of blood as she went. The pressure lessened as he removed one hand to deliver another punch to the same cheek. Weaker than the fist.

"Bitch… just stay still…" his grip tightened again as black spots where beginning to appear before her, her hands now reaching his face and she dug a finger into one eye and forced her chakra right into it. Inare felt fluid erupt around where she had pierce before a howl of raged pain reached her ears.

The pressure on her neck vanished. Air flooded her lung and she gasped it all in.

"You bitch!" He howled as he returned to her, a palm spreading over her face as if he was trying to crush her skull with one hand. "You just have to stop!" Inare's hands dove for his face again but where held off by Shun's free hand that gripped and twisted her already injured wrist that it felt ready to snap.

"Sorry-" was all Inare vaguely registered before Shun was flung right off her. The weight of his body vanished and Inare was startled into a sitting position. Her head was spinning, a heavy headache had settled on her that made her just want to lie down and sleep… but she couldn't… the was no time…

Shun was thrown a good few meters to her left, groaning on the ground holding the left side of his body. His face contorted with pain as his breathing laboured. Suddenly aware of the presence to her left, Inare slowly turned to face a tall shinobi with what appeared to look like a giant mace supported over one shoulder.

A flash of lightning revealed a near manic grin spread over his face. "-but she's my medic,"

Large steps followed, one that took him right over her body, as he advanced on Shun, who Inare suspected had been the victim of pure blunt force trauma inflicted by, what she now knew, the Madara's war fan.

He advanced onto the shinobi till he was at his side and dropped down to one knee. A kunai appeared in his hands and Inare gave a little gasp, "and a injured medic isn't very useful." Then kunai plunged downwards to the broken man, impaling right into his skull.

Inare wasn't sure if it was relief that flooded her in that moment as she witnessed Shun die. That the man could never terrorise her again was a pleasant thought, but that did not mean things were all good from this point onwards.

Yet the vague sight of a kunai sticking out of a man's head, his body shaking as is struggled to establish a connection with its head before falling deadly still had her emptying her filling her lungs in one both awed and disgusted gasp.

Inare felt like she might faint as the last shred of energy chose that moment to leave her body.

"I got you Inare." It was Daichi's gruff voice that spoke, and it sounded heavenly to her in that moment. He appeared from behind her instantly placing a hand at her back, supporting the weight that had been ready to drop back to the ground. Inare tiredly nodded in acknowledgment to the shinobi.

Looking up somewhat gratefully at Madara he met her eyes and Inare felt her herself take a deep breath of relief. She watched him then give Daichi a nod. "Get her out of the fight and make sure she lives passed the night." He had no soon finished his sentence before he vanished.

Inare was left in awe at his disappearance not really understanding how it all could have happed so quickly. It was only the firm grip at her shoulder that seemed to ground her into reality.

"Aye." Daichi responded, despite the fact that Madara was nowhere in sight, before his arms slipped under her knees and he made to lift her up. Not even stopping at Inare's delayed panicked yells of, "Don't! Don't! My leg!"

He lifted her and she screamed when the bottom half of her broken thigh bone slipped out of alignment with the top half.

Daichi's kneejerk reaction to undo his lift as quickly as possible was to near drop her as he dropped to the floor with her still in his arms, resulting in her heel then hitting the ground sending further thundering shocks of pain right up her leg. Now sobbing, Inare had bit right through her lip again.

"Shit, shit, shit," he chanted, sounding oh so very sincere. Which Inare didn't give two shits about as she flung out every possible curse she could think off towards him. "I didn't meant to. I need to get you out of here. How do I lift you?"

"You don't!" She snarled through tears, her voice hoarse from her scream.

"I have to move you."

"You have to carry me. While supporting my leg. The bone is broken right through."

"I only have one set or arms here." "Think of something." "A stretcher?" "Preferable, but you need two people." She was actually crying at this point from the pain, biting out each word bitterly. "Realign the bone first." "I am not doing that." "I may not walk again. And you will be responsible for it. Realign the bone, now!"

"How?" Daichi snarled back at her, his visible frustration conflicting with his willingness to act. After some quick instructions, Daichi was kneeling on her injured side with one hand holding her thin waist and the other grasping just under the knee. "On three."

"Don't do that!"

"Do what?"

"Count."

"So what do I do?"

"Just do it randomly." She sobbed out, her horribly wounded body and psyche not able to endure the anticipation if he actually counted down.

"Whenever I want?"

"Yes. But don't let me know!" Inare was looking away and gritting her teeth the entire time, her whole body tense as she waited for the pain to come.

"Okay. So I won't count then." Inare wanted to start shouting at him again for acting so dumb, except she just ended up letting loose a painful screech as he unexpectedly began straightening out her leg. He wasn't doing it right, he was hesitating too much and she could feel every grate of bone against bone. Her howls of pain pitched through the fight as her bone was finally put back into place. At the final pull, Inare's second, and uninjured, leg swiftly kicked him in the chin.

He fell backwards cupping his chin and also howling in pain. "You bitch! You did that on purpose."

"Fuck you, I did not!" She lied, but now Inare was satisfied he would never repeat that same mistake to anyone again. Also learn to keep away from her when she was injured.

With her leg straightened out, Inare then instructed him to grab wood and she tightly strapped thick wooden branches to hold her thigh bone straight. She had used the material of her dress skirts as the bandages, and now her skirt was at a ridiculous length halfway between her ankles and knees. The tight support dug uncomfortably into her skin. Still, her leg would hold out till she could properly begin fusing the bones. If it wasn't already too late for that. Not to mention if she lived passed the night.

Dacihi tried one more time to lift her, this time just ended up having her thrown over his shoulder with her upper body dangling loosely over his back while one of Daichi's arm was holding at the waist and the other gently at the back of her injured leg. The pain to her leg remained horrendous the entire time she was rushed out to the final rendezvous point of the division sent out to attack the Kaguya clan and where the reserve group would be waiting on command.

There she was greeted with an awful sight of five shinobi that had been evacuated from the battle, three suffering serious blood loss and trauma and the other two mild but incapacitated for now.

Despite her worrying low chakra reserves, Inare directed Daichi to leave her near them so that she could begin helping them as best she could, even in her own feeble state.

The edge of his war fan parried downward and away from his body as a strike from a white haired nameless shinobi that had pulled bone after bone from his own body to use as weapon.

The familial dojutsu was incredible in its deadliness, one to be cautious of as an unexpected rib bones shot out from his opponents chest like projectiles towards him. Shifting his grip on the handle of his fan, Madara then used the wide flat surface to take the blunt of the attack while he sent his sickle flying in a large oval to come flying towards the both them and lodging directly into the back of his opponent who went down heavily after blood erupted from his mouth.

Pulling out the sickle with no great sense of urgency, Madara looked up to the now decimated camp of the Kaguya. He had been aware that some had likely escaped, but decided that was something he could let slide. He had not been there to annihilate their clan, only destroy any chances they had of endangering his own.

They'd learn not to come back.

Tents, bodies, clothing, food and weapons lay flattered to the ground, now all under a layer of cold mug. The rain was beginning to lessen as faint speckles of daylight could be seen to the east. Rolling his shoulders at the tension that had built up in them over the last few months, Madara groaned at feeling of his joints loosening up with all the battling.

His time away in the northern camp had been extended unexpectedly when a separate group of shinobi from Kamizuru clan had decided to push southwards in order to attain greater strength to take on the Kamizuru.

It had led to an unexpected temporary alliance between the Uchiha and the Kamizuru, as the two worked tirelessly for a whole month to reduce both of their enemy forces to nothing. Their operations had been on small scales, consisting of no open battles.

It was sly, snakelike approach to war, every battle having taken place under a moonless night sky. Madara would not deny having enjoyed himself, yet the stress of having been away from the eastern front bore heavily on him the entire time.

That he had only returned for fifteen minutes to find that the foreign medic that had caused him so much trouble had either been kidnapped or extracted, was a moderate shock that he could have done without. Yet upon seeing her fend for her life, Madara had no doubt which of the two scenarios had occurred.

He had not slept in three days, and he was beginning to feel the effects. Especially if he was impressed in the wild manner that Inare had fought that one Kaguya shinobi. From a distance she had eradiated a certain madness that he had always enjoyed on the battlefield. A consuming euphoria that would spread through his entire body.

He had not seen or felt that sensation since his last battle with Hashirama now nearly three months ago - possibly with the exception of those two earth ninja he had encountered with an unusual dust release.

Seeing Inare fight with that same mad desperation.

It had been thrilling to witness.

Madara did not think he had ever seen her so alive. Alive with such fury, energy, desperation…

It left him longing for another fight with Hashirama, if only to burn off the restlessness that had built up over two and a half months in the northern territories.

Grinning to himself as another Kaguya shinobi began charging in his direction, a desperate war cry accompanying him. Madara shifted into a stance to parry the oncoming shuriken he had thrown in his direction. They bounced off harmlessly from his fan, and Madara with great strength whipped his fan creating a strong air current that pushed his enemy back enough for him to make the hand signs.

Madara was midway through the sequence for his jutsu when heated air washed over his enemy like a wave.

After looking mildly disappointed at the collapsed, screaming charring shinobi that failed at escaping the blaze as he double over onto the floor, Madara turned his attention over to his brother who had delivered the katon. Izuna waved over to him with a competitive grin.

Not interested enough to join in, Madara decided to let his brother have it and flipped him off in return. Izuna cackled and sped off to regroup his team. Madara's team already knew what they had to do and did not need him overseeing it.

From a distance he could see that Isshin's section were already regrouping.

The battle was over it would seem.

The sun was now in the process of rising, yet the sky still remained a dreary grey and the cracks of thunder could be heard from the distance. Madara wanted to groan at the awful weather. At least when he'd been at their northern base he could see the sky.

Isshin had begun approaching him quietly. Madara caught his eye when he was a couple of feet from him, the section two leader greeting him formally with none of his usual snide tones. Madara nodded silently for him to continue. "What are we doing with the prisoners? There are fifteen badly injured, but breathing, and four that surrendered."

Looking back over what was once the Kaguya camp, now nothing but an empty field dotted with craters, weapons, tents and amenities.

He repeated to himself in his mind that they were not here to entirely obliterate the Kaguya clan, only destroy their chances of endangering his own clan.

With that reaffirmed, he turned to Isshin. "Leave none alive."

Isshin flexed his hands, feeling the strain of each finger. Looking down at scared hands, he could see and feel the telling signs of blisters forming on some fingers. It had been a rough night and Isshin had dived right into the fight without restraint.

Yet could not find a single sign of Inare.

While he wanted to ask his clan leader if the medic had been retrieved, he knew that doing so would only get himself reprimanded. And he had been on probation by Madara's orders enough times to know that it was best avoided.

His team were in charge of the clean-up and swept through the clan ensuring that there were no surviving shinobi.

The entire time Isshin had kept out keen eyes for the sight of auburn hair.

A raging storm combined with the battle had utterly destroyed the camp beyond recognition, leaving nothing but broken tents to stand out like crooked wooden headstones in a unkempt graveyard.

As there were no orders to deal with the bodies, they would let them rot in the ground, so in a few days this place would be a foul and diseased place. Isshin made a mental note of the area in case his team were sent out on a mission this way, so that he could take them well around this battlefield.

After his sections task was done, they began slowly advancing back to the final rendezvous point where they would regroup with the entire division. And from there, back to camp.

Isshin did not think he would ever be so glad to be returning. Battle in the rain was always more draining. He was soaked to the bone, his head was throbbing and his back hurt.

He wasn't one to too often complain about back ache for fear of sounding like an old man, but now he really wanted to whine about it. He wondered idly is his sister would be willing to give him a back massage for returning safely. Maybe even Inare would be generous.

The thought was cut short when he realised that both women would likely look at him sinisterly and refuse him flat-out. Still, asking them would be a fun tease.

He really hoped that Inare had been secured.

Looking around at the familiar but unclose faces of his team, Isshin missed his usual team. The three misfits as he had dubbed them in his own mind had a unique dynamic that Isshin - depending on when he was asked - missed.

Jian had not been selected for this mission and remained back at the camp, but Toke had. Which had concerned Isshin the entire battle just as much as Inare's safety had. Although he was in the reserve, Toke had the least experience in his team and while the boy would be ashamed to admit it, did tend to require the most assistance.

The reserve had not been deployed in the end, which gladdened Isshin greatly, yet he still sped up unconsciously for the last few meters just to ensure that Toke was still there and in good form. He might have also been a little concerned for Daichi who would have been in the heavy battle as Madara's second in section one.

Through the dense forest it was difficult to see very far, but once they passed the checkpoint of the temporary base Isshin quickly spotted from a distance Toke's unique light brown scruffy unkempt hair with a nauseatingly dirty sludge green headband that Daichi had given him, pushing it all off his face.

A smile of relief spread on him as he advanced to check on the boy.

As he got closer the smile only widened at seeing that Toke was supporting Inare's back and leg as she appeared to be doing something to her openly exposed, quesrtionably splintered, thigh.

Upon seeing a scrap of cloth between her teeth, and her strained face, he dashed over quickly. He dropped to a knee beside her, concern now having taken over his former relief. Covered in mud - in fact there was more mud than Inare- and from the little of her face that he could, see she was horridly pale.

The only part of her that was clean was her leg which contained no trace of dirt, permitting him to see the ghastly puncture wound of her leg.

Spitting out the cloth in her mouth she offered him a smile and croaked out. "Hi Isshin. Didn't think I would see you again."

Nodding silently in agreement to something he rather not have thought about, "You're okay?"

"Not yet," she mumbled, before looking up as Daichi returned with a red glowing kunai with part of his shirt wrapped around the grip.

"Shit. Your cauterising?" Isshin looked between Daichi and Inare, who both nodded grimly.

"I'm still losing blood. Not enough chakra." Her words where tired, her body was tired. She looked ready to pass out.

"I'll do it," Isshin offered, not really wanting to but deciding that he rather it was him than her given her current state.

At that both Daichi and Toke shared a look that Isshin missed, but had he seen would have likely correctly interpreted.

It was very much like the look that all three of them would share whenever Jian asked if he could any food they didn't want. To which they would always respond with a resounding never in a thousand years.

"No offence Isshin. But I don't like anyone but myself, or an equally trained medic, handling my injuries." Inare grumbled out, as she took the kunai off Daichi and sucked in a breath before shoving the scrap of clothe back in. Daichi took a step back and looked away while Toke grabbed her shoulder reassuringly. Kunai hovering over the still bleeding piercing wound, before she scrunched her eyes tightly closed and pressed the kunai down.

At that point Isshin looked away and focused anything but Inare's deep and long whine as well as the smell and sound of burning flesh. She held it there for what must have been a whole minute, before she quickly pulled it off her skin, melted skin sticking to the blade. The burned skin was an angry red. Inare's entire body was shaking, she spat out the cloth and panted deeply. Her teeth visibly gritted together while tears ran tracks down her mud smeared face.

Isshin wanted to tell her how strong she was being. He didn't, thinking that wasn't what she really wanted to hear. Instead mistakenly attempted to lighten her pain by commenting. "Well, at least that's over."

Inare huffed a short laughter before slowly shaking her head, "Exit side next." She panted out, her face flushed with the effort it took just to speak. Isshin winced at not remembering that the Kaguya shinobi had stabbed a bone right through her thigh bone.

"You're doing great Inare," Daichi thought to cheer from the side-lines, a healthy distance away from her and her limbs. "When this is all over and you're back on your feet, I'll show you the proper way not to get your leg impaled by someone."

She laughed dryly, looking over at Daichi with bloodshot and tired eyes. "'Cus' that just happens so much around here," she seethed out.

"You'll be surprised," he came back with and Inare couldn't tell if he had picked up on her sarcasm at all.

"Should we flip you over?" Toke spoke up from her left drawing her attention.

She shook her head again. "Won't reach." She passed the kunai back to Daichi, managing to get out the words 'clean' and 'reheat', before her body collapsed against Toke's support releasing a shaky breaths, eyes drifting close.

Toke gently shook her back to consciousness, reminding her that she had told him to keep her awake. She smiled gently at him and commended him for his effort, before then snarling at him to let her fucking rest. An injured Inare was clearly not an Inare that anyone wanted to deal with.

Isshin briefly wondered how Toke and Daichi had coped this long.

Toke blanched and looked stunted as to what he should do, but kept to her orders and kept waking her up despite her protests. Daichi returned soon with the reheated kunai and both Isshin and Toke helped her move her leg so that she had access to the exit wound.

The process was repeated. This time Inare dropping the kunai halfway through the minute. Isshin again offered to take over but she refused, just in a not-so-polite way.

It was not something that he wanted to be around for, feeling useless the entire time. Once she had cauterised the entire wound, Inare then seemed to collapse against Toke for good this time, her body shaking.

Relieved that her face was no longer contorted with such agonising pain, Isshin stood remembering that he should have reported to Madara upon his return to the rendezvous point.

Both section leaders, Izuna and Madara, were already together. Which was no surprise to Isshin as he was the one that was late. Madara looked a little annoyed at his late arrive and commented. "Took you long enough."

"Sorry sir. I had to check on something."

"The medic," Madara commented. Seeing no reason in lying, Isshin confirmed, "She needed to cauterise some of her wounds."

"And were you the one cauterising them?" Izuna asked, looking equally annoyed at having been kept waiting. Madara at this point did look mildly concerned.

"No. She did them herself."

"Then there was no need for you to be there. Don't keep us waiting next time." Izuna continued, before he looked at his brother.

Madara gave a curt nod, choosing not to comment, before he continued, "So the mission was a success. Scouts reported only three shinobi managing to get passed them, but I hardly think they will be returning this way any time soon. Let's get everyone home. The reserves team," he looked at Izuna "will be providing perimeter support while the rest provide as much support to the injured as possible. Other than that, we keep to staggered file the entire way. Isshin, you leading with your section, my section will provide rear defence. Keep the injured to the centre." It was a standard formation, but the confirmation needed to be given by the operation leader.

Quick nods, and everyone moved out to begin passing down the chain of command their next movements.

All the Uchiha shinobi moved like well oil machines, not a single pause of hesitation once their orders had been relayed. In their order of march, they moved through the forest without rush. The pace was kept to that of the slowest man, which was Inare as she hobbled along with one arm slung over Toke.

She categorically refused to be carried, and after Daichi showed off his bruised chin no one really wanted to carry her. Toke held pretty much her entire body weight, and an hour into the slow trek he began to tire as for most of it he might as well have been dragging her as she seemed to fall in and out of a dazed or unconscious state.

He swapped over with some random shinobi from Madara's section who scowled and snarled foul remarks the entire time till Daichi just up and took hold over the honourable duty of dragging her, snarling and complaining just as much.

When they braked halfway, Inare drank all of Daichi and Toke's combined water supply in three deep glugs. Incredibly at the break, Inare mustered from somewhere the energy to half hop and half drag herself over to the three severely injured and check their injuries for any problems that may have occurred during their transportation.

Much to Toke's outrage she began using what little chakra she may have restored to begin healing a deep and concerning wound on one shinobi. When Madara gave the order that they should continue on, the party rose and they slowly headed off again. Inare knew that she wasn't really thinking straight, but this was necessity for now. She couldn't entirely figure it out in her mind that moment why, but it needed to be done.

With her arm now slung back over Toke, she now actively hopped-slash-limped and their party's speed increased fractionally.

Inare visibly tired after only a short while, and her speed dropped nearly to nothing till she gasped out to Toke for them to stop. Toke tried to reassure her that they were just over a kilometre away and if she wanted he could carry her there quickly. Inare, remembering what being carried a quarter of that distance had felt like on her leg, refused and was on the verge of begging him to let her rest.

Frantically looking around for Daichi he passed on the message that ended up going to Madara.

Madara refused to halt their advancement, but permitted that she rest and placed Daichi in charge of the section while he would remain with the medic. Daichi took over the section, Madara advanced through and assigned Toke as a runner to inform both Izuna and Isshin before taking Inare to the side and out of the advancing division.

He leaned her up against a tree and she slid down it quickly, landing harshly onto the floor. Wincing and cursing gently the entire way. Panting, her eyes where closed as she leaned backwards, a near sickly shade had taken her complexion.

Not saying anything, Madara leant against the same tree waiting for her to recover enough to move again.

Her panting has lessened to nothing after a couple of minutes, but she was showing no signs of wanting to get up. The division, now that they could move a lot faster, had probably nearly reached the camp by now. It was barely over a kilometre away.

Irritation that derived from his own tiredness began to rise and he told her to get up. From her lack of response he figured that she had likely fallen unconscious once again, and leaned down to pull her up by her arm.

Making to take hold of a thin arm, Madara was shocked when she smacked his hand away with a good deal of force. She looked up to him with dark eyes, and slowly made to get to her feet alone.

Stepping back and letting her have her dramatic show of independence, Madara made no move when she nearly fell. If she wanted to do this alone, no matter how careless it was to her injury, then he was not going to stop her.

She took almost as much time steadying herself as she had resting and Madara's patience had near reached its end.

Three days of barely any rest and minimal food, and now he had to endure this?

"Ready?" He finally asked when she looked a little less fragile. Instead of demurely standing and annoyingly struggling her way towards the camp, she shocked him again when her hard eyes levelled him with a dirty look, "Get the fuck away from me." It was weak, but the ferociousness was unmissable.

Taken aback, Madara did not respond as she turned her back on him and began to limp painfully slow away from him. Now understanding a little more what was going on here, Madara waited till she had gained enough distance before he spoke.

"The nearest town is twenty kilometres in the direction you are going right now. The nearest water source is twenty eighteen. Give or take, you could probably make a kilometre in an hour. If you can actually keep to that course and not stray, and given the frequency at which you require a break, you may reach that town by tomorrow evening. That is if you don't take breaks of more than ten minutes."

She ignored him, continuing to limp her way. Despite having told himself that he would not move, Madara did take a few steps before he continued.

"Then again, by any smart persons estimation you won't make that trek. At least three Kaguya shinobi managed to escape, maybe more, and will have drifted off randomly, there are many ronnin that dot this area who will rob, kill… and to a lone injured woman are likely to do much worse."

Still she refused to heed his advice at which Madara grit his teeth in annoyance at her sheer stubbornness and took a few more steps.

"But let's say chance works in your favour, and you defy all odds and manage to drag your body to nearest town all the while avoiding every possible dangerous individual on the way." Now he was walking to catch up with her, which did not take long.

"What money or tradable goods do you possess on you right now that will get you food, water and treatment? Which by the time you get there you are desperately going to need."

She stopped as he rounded to stand in front of her, which was when he saw the tears streaming down her mud splattered face. She stared up defiantly at him, brown eyes telling him that she believed she could defy those odd. Which when he remembered that she had made the trek from the Lightning field, Madara for a second thought that maybe she might.

Pausing for a moment, Madara quickly rethought his next words.

"You are a smart enough woman not to make such a careless decision based on your current fear and pain alone."

The sneer that had been on her face since she had stood on her own, now morphed into a bitter humour. The sad transition painfully familiar to Madara. "What have I done in life… to deserve this?" The question really was not meant to have an answer, anyone could see as clear as day that she was just venting. Did not mean he had to care though, "I have healed that worst kind of scum alive. I have healed people that hate me. I have saved lives of children on the verge of death as often as I have held them with bloody hands while they died. I have been a good person," she bit out the word with a struggle, voice breaking and more tears trickling from her eyes. "So why do I have to suffer with this pain, this life, while someone like you gets to be all fucking fine and dandy all the god dammed time.? You who kill needlessly. You are so filled with hate. You who…" her words died off when she openly sobbed.

Madara's featured remained impassive as he looked down on her, seemingly unaffected by her words. "Go on." He urged her, and did exactly that as fury burned in her eyes and she broke like a damn.

"You, who have the support of a brother. You, who is strong enough to protect yourself. You, who can just do whatever the fuck you want." Her hands rose to roughly shove him away from her, which backfired and nearly sent her toppling to the ground if Madara had not unconsciously reached out and steadied her. Which only pissed her off more.

"You have everything that you could possibly want! And I have to live here, in these horrible lands with people that hate me! Why must I live like this? With people chasing me down in the rain and hurting me… and…and… I don't want any of this!" She smacked the hand supporting her off before attempting to shove him away again. This time she really did stumble and fall and Madara did not stop her from doing so. She fell fast and hit the ground hard, her eyes cringing with the pain that must have shot right up her leg.

She sobbed a little longer, and Madara remained impassive till she stopped crying. No longer feeling the urge to rush her, despite his own impatience.

"Have you finished you self-pitying?"

"Yes!" She snarled, restless fingers pulling and digging away angrily at the grass within her reach. Glad that she had at least acknowledged that, Madara dropped to a crouch. "Now breathe. Slowly." Her mouth stuck in an unattractive frown, but she breathed in through a blocked nose.

He gave her a few moments of just breathing, "have you calmed down?"

Her frown dropped, and the bitterness that had filled her face followed. "Fuck off," she responded with none of the previous venom, her face still drained of so much.

Sighing out at that, Madara felt his exhaustion come back and hit him full in the chest. "Good," he mumbled in response as he rolled onto his rear and crossed his legs, facing Inare as she continued to focus on the ground.

"Life right now is fucking shit. And it's not about to get any better." When she seemed to be completely ignoring him Madara sighed out the irritation. The build-up frustration and irritation from the last few days seemed to follow and all the sudden his body felt heavier. He just wanted to sleep already.

"I won't insult you by telling you that my clan bares no animosity to you. Uchiha have been very cautious of anyone that is not family for many years now. So I understand that can cause a strain. There 'aint anyone here that'll argue with you on that.

"You have done a lot of people some good today, yet at the same time what is good to us is bad to someone else out there. But I really couldn't give two shits about any moral conflictions right now." Inare briefly glanced up as she huffed a tiny laugh.

Despite himself, he grinned a little at her humour. "You've lost a lot of blood, your tired, in pain and probably hungry." Pushing a hand against her forehead to feel the heat he had expected to find, "not to mention a little feverish. So I'm not taking anything you said personally. I just seem to be the unlucky fucker that had to be around when you decide to have an emotional breakdown."

"You say it like there a choice in it all," the ferocity of her words was definitely weaker than before. Madara figured that was progress.

"In your metal state… nope, there is no choice. But you still have a choice to make here. You can leave, or return with me. Either one you make, there is no one here to stop you. It is your choice entirely.

You can carry on and likely kill yourself before the day is out, or you can stay here. Where you can continue to help my people, even if they are still to prideful to admit it I am not. I won't attempt to persuade you towards either choice, but I will say that I am grateful for what you have done so far, and I would like for you to stay."

Nodding slowly, Inare remained looking down. "I don't want to be here."

Her response stalled him, and he caught her downtrodden eyes when she eventually decided the browning grass was no longer interesting. Eyes that were sunken into her pretty face that looked older than he suspected she was. Dried and broken lips, swelling and bruised face. She looked both broken and whole. Grounded and so very lost. And he knew she wasn't talking about any location, any single spot.

"None of us do."

Well that the end of this lil' three part 'arc' (I suppose you could call it). I wanted to get this all out relatively quickly so now we progress into the next stages...

Let me know what you thought of this arc! :) Leave a review! I enjoy all forms of feedback, the good, bad and ugly!