twenty-nine.

Shosa was panicking—she could tell from the way his eyes spun, darting everywhere except her face. Surprisingly, Hinata didn't feel anything apart from the feeling of missing something important. It wasn't a big deal.

"First-aid, now!" The Major shouted and she flinched. What a terrifying tone, she thought to herself. She caused him to become like this…

Hinata blinked slowly, distinctly feeling steady hands on her shoulder as two Anbu medics worked to stop the blood from flowing too much. Even now, she still couldn't feel any pain. Aftershock, most likely. But wouldn't it have worn off by now?

She shook her head. "Shosa, I'm fine." The words tasted like dirt on her tongue. "Let us continue."

"Hina—"

"Shosa, pardon me for interrupting. We've stopped the blood for now," the medic Anbu informed the Uchiha, frowning. "It's fine as of the moment. However, we can't do much with our situation—we're not in a position to stop and treat hime as we are in enemy territory. I advise we continue the plan and finish it as soon as possible."

Hinata was glad. This way, she could continue to be of use to the Major even with her newfound liability. This was just like one of Master's exercises—

No—no longer her master.

Get rid of those memories.

She dared to look at the Major and saw that weird look on his face again. She didn't know what it was called—she had never seen anyone else but Shosa wear it. She offered a small nod to assure him that she was alright and a smile to get rid of that awful expression. Though she did not know what it meant, she didn't like it one bit.

The Major seemed to snap out of it, eyes hardening into something that she—once again—did not recognize. "We finish this within thirty minutes or else we will blow this place up, got it?"

They saluted, the action being returned by Shosa, and when they finally resumed moving, the world blurred.

The pain came like a tidal wave.

Everything flashed. The ocean, his voice, the cold, wooden floor beneath her bleeding back as she slept like the dead throughout her first night on that ship. The seagulls circling above her. The clear, blue sky, always mocking her failure. Hinata dug deeper, into that well of memories so she could forget—think of anything but that agonizing pain ripping her apart. Anything but that thing tearing through her right limb like it wanted to devour her whole.

Do not scream, she reminded herself. Begged, even. Never scream, he had told her once. Scream and there will be no dinner for you.

So she did not. Instead, Hinata focused on the task at hand. Eliminate the enemy. End the war. Protect Shosa.

She swallowed the bile that rose up. She felt like collapsing. This is so painful, Master, she cried internally. I am sorry. Bring me back.

The ocean. The calm waves on a particularly grueling day of training.

Master, I apologize for my misbehavior.

This was too much.

Master—

"Hinata-chan."

She broke through her memories like she had been drowning, gasping, gulping for air greedily. When she turned, she found herself staring at Shisui-san, a sad smile on his face.

"Keep it together, Hinata-chan," he murmured and she felt his hand squeeze her left shoulder gently before he returned to his position beside the Major.

Hinata trembled, eyes on the strong back of her sun. That's right. She did not need the ocean or anyone else. She had the Major, and she vowed to protect him. What use was she if she could not even focus after such pain?

She would not fail her sun. And so, gritting her teeth, she lifted her chin and narrowed her eyes, the path ahead of them clearing as the remains of the previous smoke dissipated. And before anyone else ordered her to, she charged forward, teeth bared, and delivered chaos.


a/n: There you go! I feel horrible, putting Hinata through such pain, but worry not. She will be alright, I promise you that. I'm grateful for all the supportive reviews I've received. As my first fanfic for Naruto, I was worried I'd do a bad job at writing, but it seems good so far. I hope you liked this chapter. A bit shorter, but I've put down the cards for this one.