Chapter 33:
Neji took them to a spot in the fog and stood where he was. Before anything else, he told Boruto, "I lost my father when I was young. You haven't lost yours yet." It was his way of encouraging Boruto to keep going and not lose hope. It was possible that Neji didn't believe Naruto was dead, be it intuition or faith.
A portal open before them and Neji urged them to jump through before it closed. This portal wasn't like Ryosuke's fox fire or like the tear the pangolin made with its claws. It warbled faintly and started to appear slowly like someone had splash a white piece of paper with water. The image of the human world was like looking through foggy glass. When it became clear, Neji practically shoved them through. The portal them closed behind them.
Sarada wondered if that was Neji's attempt at opening a portal on his own which might explain why it wasn't as good as the others. It could easily have been a natural occurrence in that area. She didn't know and couldn't ask Neji now.
They were back in the headman's village. Little time had passed, it seemed but the sun was starting to dip in the sky.
Mitsuki was sitting on a wooden crate near the road. He stood when he saw them.
"We should leave the village," Mitsuki advised before asking them where they had been, this information clearly priority.
"Why?" Sarada asked. She knew with the mission done, there was no reason to stay but she sensed this wasn't why they needed to vacate.
Mitsuki looked back at the headman's house on the other side of the street. Even from here, Boruto could see the blood stains on the ground and grimaced at the memory.
"The headman is alive but bedridden. The people were so afraid of him that no one came to help when he was on the ground. I had to carry him inside and request a doctor."
"Seriously? No one helped him?"
Mitsuki shrugged. "It seemed they were too afraid to come close after that display. They seemed willing to do whatever he wanted before. I guess they didn't know what to do when he wasn't yelling at them."
Sarada sighed. "Mitsuki, it's not that they needed to have him yell at them. They were afraid of what he would do if they didn't listen to a direct order. Having him on the ground like that probably sent them into shock. I mean, they did help him, didn't they?"
"Yes. A doctor arrived and sutured up his hands. He lost a lot of blood. It was a while before he woke up. He seemed different when he did and everyone looked relieved."
"Oh, good. That means he's back to normal."
"Then why do we have to leave so quick?" Boruto asked, sensing there was more to the story.
Mitsuki wasn't smiling anymore. "The staff, including that man who asked for our help, didn't like how we handled the situation. Said we caused his injuries and nearly killed him. They wanted us to help him, not hurt him. Because of this, we've been ordered to get out immediately."
"And what'd you say?"
"I said I had to wait for you guys to get back," answered Mitsuki. "They allowed it but I had to stay away from the headman. They said as soon as you arrive, we have to leave. They don't want us around, even if we did help him get back to normal. I was the one who got him a doctor but they said he wouldn't need one if it hadn't been for us. I'm not sure what they were expecting."
Boruto sighed. "I don't blame them. I screwed up. Maybe I should apologize."
Mitsuki cocked his head slightly. "They said it wouldn't be necessary. Which I don't really understand. They didn't like how we handled the situation but don't want an apology. I don't get it."
Sarada figured it would be hard to explain, so she didn't bother and instead led the way out of the village, moving quickly.
Boruto looked over his shoulder at the headman's house and whispered, "I'm sorry," before looking forward and grimaced in shame. He wanted to say it in person but knew they wouldn't allow it and probably chase him away. He wanted them to accept his apology.
"I still don't know what they expected," said Mitsuki as they moved. "Injuries happen in missions. And he is alive. It's not like we were trying to hurt him and we weren't the ones who cut him. He did that himself. We didn't use any weapons. Why are they so upset with us?"
"Because I provoked him," Boruto admitted. "If I hadn't used jutsu, he wouldn't have lost his head and stabbed himself."
"But you didn't know he'd do that," Mitsuki defended.
"The bottom line is that we could have handled it better," said Sarada.
"It's not like we were being paid for the mission," commented Mitsuki.
"Still."
"The headman was very strong. I don't think we could have done the mission without using force. All three of us combined wasn't enough to overpower him. I didn't expect such strength."
"Having that Deidara person sharing a body with him must have given him inhuman strength or something." Sarada shook her head to get rid of the thought. "But I'm sure there was another way we could have resolved the issue. I mean, Ryosuke got him to stop by just talking to him."
"When I spoke to him, he was unstable," said Mitsuki. "When you spoke to him, he ignored you."
"But I was fighting him," said Boruto. "If we all hadn't been doing our own things, we might have been able to calm him down somehow. I was looking for the quick fix. Sarada might have gotten through to him if I hadn't been battling him."
"But we were working together to bring him down," said Mitsuki. "We each had our roles so it's not like we had no teamwork."
"I'm not saying that. I'm saying that we should have worked together differently. We should have tried talking to him and if he got out of control, we shouldn't have fought him. We could have figured out another way. I was just too impatient."
Mitsuki was usually pretty good about being able to tell where Boruto and Sarada could improve on battle strategy when facing a foe, but having never faced anyone like that before, it was harder for Mitsuki to tell what they had done wrong. They were organized but not in the right way for this situation.
Watching how Ryosuke handled the headman made it clear that they could have resolved the issue without force. Mitsuki thought it was because Ryosuke was a kitsune and therefore had an advantage they didn't have which was why he could calm the headman down and they couldn't. Mitsuki wasn't around when they faced the lizard spirit who had no visible form in the human world. Without anything to grab, Boruto had no other option but to use his voice. He had no power and neither did Sarada but they still managed to send the lizard back to the spirit realm without throwing a single punch.
Maybe if they had done that, the situation wouldn't have escalated and the villagers wouldn't have blamed the Genin for the headman attacking himself. He would live, but he was injured.
Mitsuki still thought the villagers weren't completely free of blame either, given that they hesitated to help him when he was on the ground, but they put the fault solely on the shinobi who irritated him.
Further down the road, the Genin came to another village. It was small but it offered an inn for travelers. Since there was still daylight, Boruto refused to check in, insisting they get to the next village.
Pulling out her map, Sarada shook her head. "According to this, the next village isn't for miles. It'll be night before we reach it, even if we run."
"We can camp," said Boruto. "And we have tons of supplies."
"Boruto, I know how important it is for you to get this mission done quickly, but we have to be smart about this."
"I'm fine with camping," chimed in Mitsuki.
Boruto checked on Mitsuki's condition but it seemed he wasn't winded at all, assuring Boruto that he wasn't pushing himself for Boruto's sake.
"How about we keep going a little while longer, then set up camp?"
Sarada sighed loudly, showing her disapproval.
"Inns cost money, Sarada. Camping is free."
"Alright, fine. But make sure there's still daylight to set things up. No one likes making camp in the dark."
They kept going and as they did, the sky grew darker. More rapidly than expected. Boruto knew sunset wasn't for another hour so seeing the sky change so quickly was unusual.
"Storm clouds," said Mitsuki. "Looks like rain."
Sarada gave Boruto a frustrated look. "Boruto, we don't have a tent. We have supplies but no tent because you wanted to travel light. We'll get caught in the rain. See? We should have checked in at that inn. We can't turn back now after all the progress we've made."
Boruto examined the clouds and looked down the stretch of road ahead. There were no buildings and no signs welcoming them to a nearby village. Nothing but nature for miles.
"We can keep going," he told them. "We'll go as far as we can and see what we can find."
They moved quickly to beat the storm but a damp wind blew and Boruto felt something wet on his check. It was another minute before he felt another. Then it started pouring. Throwing his arms over his head, Boruto bolted to the side of the road, hoping the trees would help shield them from the rain. His feet slid on the damp grass and mud. He moved off road and into the woods.
The trees offered little protection as the rain and wind pelted them relentlessly. It was difficult to see in the sudden downpour and the wind beat their faces with raindrops that felt like tiny needles. They were soaked but hardly noticed their clothes sticking to their bodies as they ran.
Deeper and deeper until…
Boruto stopped, squinting in the rain. A dilapidated shack with a mossy roof sat among the trees, long abandoned but still useable. Most importantly, it was shelter.
Boruto led them to the shack and forced open the door which swung inward at an angle. He closed the door to keep out the rain. Light from the stained windows allowed them to see well enough to grab their flashlights.
The inside was dry and spacious. It looked like there was only one room at first, but there were two doors on the opposite wall which beckoned further investigation. They set down their belongings and started to prepare dinner. The shack had a firepit in the center of the room which Boruto was eager to use. Mitsuki started to look around the shack, opening the two doors along the wall and sticking his head inside.
As Sarada took out the rations, she noticed oil lamps stationed along the walls, none of which were dusty. If this shack had been abandoned, the lamps should have been dirtier. Not even spiderwebs hung from them, though there were webs in the ceiling corners and in the windows. The floor had leaves and dirt, but what Boruto found strange was that the firepit had ashes in it and pieces of charred wood which crumbled easily in his hand. This didn't indicate recent use necessarily but the firewood laying nearby was freshly gathered.
"We are in the woods and this place is clearly abandoned," said Boruto. "But maybe some kids discovered it and turned it into a clubhouse."
"Wouldn't there be more things laying around? Like drawings or a flag? Clubhouses tend to have flags, especially if kids established it."
"Maybe they got yelled at for playing here and were told to leave."
Mitsuki came into the room. "I found something you might want to see."
The two followed him into the room on the left which used to be a small bedroom judging from the size and musty futon laying on the floor in the corner. Behind the door was a sack which Mitsuki pulled closer and opened. Inside were various pieces of jewelry and trinkets, including a carefully craved stone lion and a fancy-looking picture frame, photo removed. Also in the bag were coins and some silverware.
"Stolen property," Boruto deduced.
"Looks recent," said Mitsuki. "Everything in here is still shiny and new. The sack itself isn't very dirty either."
"Robbers must have stashed this away in this old shack thinking no one would come here and find it," added Sarada.
"What should we do with it? We have no idea whose it is or where to bring it."
"It must be from somewhere nearby, possibly the village we're trying to reach or the one we passed by. I doubt the thieves would have gotten far with this sack unnoticed. Plus, the picture frame in here might have broken if they traveled some someplace far, it rattling around in this sack with everything else."
"Should we just leave it here and come back for it after the mission is over?" asked Mitsuki.
"We could take it with us so the thieves don't take off with it," said Boruto. Then he frowned. "Oh, just that would be impractical. Plus, people might think we stole it."
"What if we take it to the next village and ask around?"
"We could…" Sarada stopped, hearing something other than the rain.
Several thuds, like stomping feet. Then a sharp voice cut through the shack.
"Who's in here?" a man's voice demanded.
Sarada's eyes widened. They had left their things in the front room. The owner of the voice knew they were here.
Knowing this was possibly the thief returning for his loot, Boruto braced himself for a fight. There were three of them and only one of him. Whoever took these things were aware of their actions so Boruto was confident that this wasn't going to be like last time and it would be ok to use force against this man. No jutsu this time, of course. Boruto learned his lesson.
The footsteps came closer and the door they were crouched behind was nudged open. It bumped against Sarada's hip, unable to go any further. Noticing the door wouldn't open all the way, the stranger moved to look behind it.
As he did, Boruto sprang at the man like a cat and punched him in the face. He grabbed the front of the man's shirt and began to beat him, only getting in two punches before he was grabbed by another set of hands.
The man wasn't alone after all. There were four other men, making it five in total.
Boruto was forced to the ground as his friends were grabbed from their compromised hiding place. They were thrown into the main room on their chins and the lamps were lit, revealing everyone in the shack clearly for the first time.
"Just some kids."
"Kids who were playing in the wrong shack."
Boruto stole a peek at the men who varied in age. Some looked to be in their thirties and some were only twenty or so. The oldest member was also their most important as the man with the salt and pepper stubble standing in front of them was clearly the leader.
"Looks like they were planning to camp here," said one of the men behind them, holding up their bags.
"They have more food than for one night. Might be runaways."
"Heh, then they won't be missed."
Sarada's eyes darted from side to side, gathering information on the enemy. They had yet to learn that they were shinobi, which meant they expected a pretty one-sided fight. They were outnumbered, though. Even without the restraints put on them by Ryosuke, it wasn't wise to think their training would be enough to win. They had yet to know what these men were capable of. So far, she didn't see any weapons, but that didn't mean anything.
She felt a hand on her jaw and her head was forced upward to look at the face of the leader. He appraised her silently then scoffed.
"This one's female."
"We could sell her," suggested one of the men. "I heard stories of what goes on in a black market. They might pay handsomely for a young girl."
"Too risky," said another. "We're better off keeping her with us. Or killing her."
"The hell you are!" Boruto shouted from the floor.
"Shut up!" The leader delivered Boruto a swift kick to his face.
"What should we do with them?" asked another.
"Everything's here," said the man holding the sack of goods.
"They saw our faces and found the stash. There's no way we can let them live."
"Let's not do anything too messy yet," said he leader. "There might be a chance these brats can get us even more riches."
"Ransom, you mean?"
"Maybe not. Ransom has its flaws. Any payment we get can be tracked. Plus, they would still know our faces."
"Then what?"
The leader of the group scratched his beard. "Hmm… I'm thinking we can put them to work. Have them go places we can't reach. Plus, this way we'd have a scapegoat. Blame the brats."
"We'd refuse!" Boruto snapped, the kick to the face not enough to silence him or diminish the fight in him.
"If you want to live, you'll do as we say, boy," snarled the leader.
Boruto pushed himself up on his hands, getting ready to lunge. "Bring it on, old man! I'll kick your ass!"
A boot went in Boruto's back, forcing him back to the floor. One of the men watching from behind kept his foot on Boruto, preventing him from getting back up.
At the same time, the leader grabbed Sarada by her hair and hoisted her onto his lap. One arm was wrapped around her torso, pressing her into his chest and the other drew a knife from his belt and let it rest under her chin.
"You may not care what happens to you, but do you care about her?"
Boruto seethed with rage, glaring at the tip pointed toward Sarada's neck.
"If you give a damn about your friend here, you won't talk out of turn again."
Through clenched teeth, Boruto started to slowly bring his hands together under his chin, fingers flexing.
Sensing what he was tempted to do, Sarada pled to her friend in an intimidated tone, hoping her unusual manner of speech along with her slowly drawn words would signal her message to him.
"Boruto, we're in no position to fight back. We're limited. Don't make this into a thing, ok?"
He knew Sarada got scared sometimes but being taken hostage never caused her voice to sound like that. She sounded like a helpless, frightened girl, something she refused to let anyone see or hear from her. He also understood that there was a reason she chose those words and not something along the lines of 'don't worry about me' or 'shut up and don't be stupid' as she probably would in this situation.
No jutsu.
What happened at the other village was still fresh in his mind and he regretted his actions. The hostage back there was nearly killed because of him. If he made the wrong move here, Sarada, not a stranger, would be killed. He couldn't be reckless. Too much was at stake.
These men did not appear to be under any spirit influence and weren't spirits themselves, but, as Neji pointed out, he couldn't be sure. If he couldn't tell the difference between Reki and Mitsuki, how could he tell none of these strangers weren't just spirits putting real effort into their guise?
Boruto pulled his hands apart and lowered his head in submission.
"Good boy." The leader took the blade away and shoved Sarada over to a different man. "Hold her for me," he ordered and the man delightedly pulled Sarada into his lap and held her in place.
The man was behind Boruto and Mitsuki, so neither of them could she her condition. Sarada saw a glint from the corner of her eye and decided for her own safety to presume it was a blade. She sat still and silent in the man's lap, ignoring the man's shameless grin, clearly enjoying this.
Outside, the rain continued to fall but the wind wasn't as violent as before. One of the men started a fire in the pit while another collected rain in a kettle. As it was placed over the burning wood, the flickering flame caught the eye of the man watching from the opposite wall. Not the fire itself but what it illuminated.
"Boss, I think these kids are shinobi."
"Impossible. Shinobi are warriors and these are children. Too young and too soft."
"Then what's that on the girl's forehead?" He pointed at the headband catching the light of the fire on its smooth surface. "Why does she have that headband?"
Another man took a closer look at the two boys. "They have them, too."
"They could have stolen them. Or made it themselves. Playing pretend."
"Ninja have weapons, don't they? Search them."
Boruto gulped and tried to maneuver to hide the bag on his belt. If they got their hands on that, they would never find Naruto. The lizard creature was very clear that no one else could have it.
While the men argued over how to do this and if they should waste their time with the effort, Boruto silently prayed for something to come help them.
If they could use jutsu, this fight would be over in seconds. Having to restrain himself was difficult in more ways than one. If he attacked without jutsu, Sarada would be killed.
He looked over at Mitsuki who silently asked with his eyes if he should use his snakes as a distraction and Boruto gave his head a shake. Too risky and it was still jutsu, he believed.
"Can we make a deal?" Boruto asked the leader, trying to buy some time to think of a plan.
"I doubt you have anything we want, but go on."
Boruto gulped, thinking fast. "Uh, what if we give you our food supply? Would you let us go?"
The leader burst out laughing. "And let you run off and tell people we're here and what we look like? Hardly!"
"What if you just let the girl go?" he rephrased. "We'll stay but she goes free."
"Same issue," said one of the men.
The leader held up his hand to silence further comments. "So she does mean something to you, then. Interesting."
"She's just a girl," Boruto said, giving a sly smile. "She's obviously no threat to you. Why not let her go?"
Sarada saw what Boruto was doing and hoped it would work. As long as they believed she was helpless, things might go in their favor.
The leader scratched his beard again. "If we do, what's stopping her from telling others who and where we are?"
"Like they'll believe her," said Boruto dismissively. "A silly girl with an overactive imagination. They'll probably think she made the whole thing up to get attention."
The leader nodded with a smile and for a moment, Boruto believed they would do what he wanted.
Much to his dismay, the leader said, "I think we'll keep the girl. She's much better company."
Boruto grit his teeth, fighting back the urge to growl.
"Nice try, though."
Boruto's eyes drifted from the man to something over his shoulder. Boruto blinked, unsure if he was seeing this right.
Nestled by the leader's left shoulder was a very faded image of Neji. He looked like a reflection in a glass window, but it was him.
He looked down at Boruto with quiet eyes. He said nothing. He glanced at the leader and back at Boruto. He nodded.
Thinking the nod was a signal of some sort, Boruto nodded back, hoping doing so would confirm that they needed help which Neji would give to them.
Boruto lifted his head after the nod and waited for Neji to do something. To his alarm, Neji faded away.
The leader saw Boruto's panic and looked over his own shoulder, but, seeing nothing there, turned back around and chalked it up to Boruto's woeful situation. Thinking Boruto was beside himself with worry and terror over their predicament, the leader smiled boastfully, enjoying the boy's fear.
"There are no weapons in the bags," said one of the men, turning the one in his hand upside-down.
"Clean that up," ordered the leader. "I don't want to step on all that and fall on my face."
"Yessir."
The leader looked back at Boruto with a smirk. "Let's make this fun, shall we?"
Boruto glowered at him hatefully.
"The girl is coming with us, of course, but what to do with you?" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "We could just leave you here, tied up and let you starve. We could just kill you quick and easily."
The leader tugged at his collar, uncomfortable.
"But having you work for us might be good."
The light in the lamps flickered one after the other, going around the room in a circle.
"You can crawl into small places we cannot reach. Go in through windows and take from rich houses. Or use your face to distract the people in the homes while we go around back to take… to take the things."
He unbuttoned the top two buttons on his shirt and wiped his brow which had started to sweat.
The man holding Sarada leaned away from her, suddenly finding her body too warm. Or perhaps it was his body that was burning up. He wiped his face off on his sleeve.
The men started taking drinks from their bottles, their throats suddenly dry. They looked dizzy from the heat only they could feel.
The one standing on Boruto's back opened his shirt and gave a long exhale, sweltering in his own skin. He was too focused on his own discomfort to notice Boruto was still underfoot.
Again, the leader wiped his brow. "Why is it so hot in here?"
Boruto felt a little warm but these men clearly felt it more strongly than he did. Mitsuki looked indifferent.
The man holding Sarada let his arm drop so he could unzip his jacket to cool himself. Despite no longer being held in place, Sarada did not move. Now wasn't the time.
"Open the damn window," the leader ordered to anyone who would obey. "I'm boiling here."
One of the men crossed the room, all too happy to open the window and let in some cool, refreshing rain. The window hadn't been opened it years, thick cobwebs in the corners. It took great effort to pry it open. The wood cracked and groaned and squeaked.
"Now, dammit!" the leader ordered.
Finally, the man wrenched it open. The glass rattled, the hinges shrieked as if being forced open was somehow painful for it.
A cool, damp breeze blew into the room. Boruto could hear the rain hitting the floor as the wind blew inward. Thick drops of rain pelted the floorboards, dripping from the saturated windowpane.
The next thing Boruto heard was the man yelp in surprise.
Before he could move away from the window, something flew at his face from outside.
After startling the man, the black blur flew at the leader with a loud cry.
"Caw! Caw!"
It was a black crow.
The leader screamed and covered his face with his arms as the crow pecked and scratched at his face and neck.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Boruto sprang to his feet and called for Mitsuki to grab their things as he made a break for the door behind him.
Sarada jumped from the man's lap and kicked him when he tried to grab her, running to grab her bag which was unzipped but had everything in it. Seizing the strap, she flung it over her shoulder and rushed to the door, beating Boruto to the handle.
Mitsuki slid on the ground and between legs to reach the other bag then popped up and followed his friends to the door.
"Stop them!"
Sarada threw open the door and they ran back into the rain.
The men were chasing them, crowding the door.
Boruto let out a gasp of surprise and ducked down, seeing something fly towards them from the trees. Sarada and Mitsuki ducked as well as a swarm of shrieking back feathers forced its way toward the open door of the shack. The men inside screamed and tried to slam the door shut, unsure of what it was coming their way. It looked like thick black smoke but it was actually a flock of crows. Dozens, maybe hundreds of crows, all fixated on those five men in the shack.
"Look!" Sarada shouted, pointing forward.
Another portal had opened and they ran towards it. Boruto, Sarada and Mitsuki jumped into the portal and landed in a field of mist.
Neji was standing above them. "Are you all alright?"
They nodded.
"Did you do that?" Boruto asked, pointed at the still open portal. "I saw you and then those guys… Thanks. How did you get those crows to do that?"
"Actually, I…" Neji looked back at the portal and moved closer to the Genin.
A single crow flew through the open portal and as soon as it did, the portal closed. The crow flew in a wide arc before slowing and coming to land a few yards away.
As it neared the ground, it started to change shape. Its black feathers fluttered and fanned then washed off the hunched form of a man slowly rising from a crouched position.
Neji stood in front of the Genin protectively but made no move to harm the man standing with his back to them. Other than a wary look, Neji did and said nothing.
Boruto wasn't sure if this was an enemy or not. If this man saved them, he must have been a good guy.
The man lifted his head, long black hair fanning down his back. He slowly turned, keeping his body sideways as if to make a quick getaway if he was unwanted. From here, Boruto could see the man had a pair of dark eyes that looked very familiar and a line down either side of his nose. He was pale with a stern yet calm expression and handsome.
"Um," said Sarada, feeling the need to say something to him. "Thank you for helping us. You… were the crows, right?"
He gave a single nod. "If it weren't for your friend there, I wouldn't have been able to do much." He was looking at Neji. "Nice trick, by the way."
Neji didn't acknowledge the complement.
"Don't worry. I'm not lingering. That was about all I could do."
"Why did you come?" Neji asked. He didn't sound angry or suspicious but the firm look in his eyes suggested he didn't fully trust this man.
"Word of what's happening has even reached my ears," he answered. "The Hokage must be found and returned."
"You know about my dad?" Boruto's question was ignored.
"I don't know if the two are related, but I suspect that once that matter is settled, things will calm down in both worlds."
"That was reckless, you know. Entering the human world in that manner without protection. Even if it was only for a moment."
The man nodded solemnly at Neji's words. "Yes. I've done all I can. And I'm feeling it even now." The man looked at his hand as if it were foreign to him. "You… will have to do it. I just…" He sighed, lowering his hand. "It doesn't matter."
As the man turned to go, Boruto took a few steps towards him. "Hey!" he called and the man stopped. "Thanks. You must really care about my dad."
The man looked over his shoulder. "Naruto is important and I do care about him. But I didn't do it for him."
Puzzled, Boruto cocked his head, not expecting this response. "Then… why'd you help us?"
The man's eyes turned sad then, as he scanned the collected faces, hopeful, spotting someone among the Genin.
"It is the least I can do for Sasuke."
Sarada's heart skipped a beat at the mention of her father.
"Good-bye." The man started to turn again and this time it was Sarada who called out to him.
"Wait! Who are you? How do you know my dad? Can you please tell me your name?"
The man smiled at her, tapped the air with his index and middle finger once, then turned and disappeared into the fog.
Boruto thought it was a weird hand gesture and presumed it was something spirits did in this world, perhaps to open a path to where they came from. Sarada, however, saw the gesture differently. If the air he tapped with those fingers had been a person, then that was the same gesture…
Sarada put a hand to her forehead, imagining for a moment that feeling.
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