Chapter 25

Gods, maybe it was a terrible idea wanting kids after all. Susumu stared in growing horror as tears sprang into the young chunin's eyes before she even had made up her mind to make her way over to him. It was obvious she wanted to have someone to talk to- what a pity she considered him to be the perfect man for the job. Just because he was the most normal among their squad and actually fucking talked with people.

Ugh. He really wanted to find some excuse to get out of babysitting duty. Apparently sharpening and polishing his weapons wasn't good enough. And getting up now would make it only too obvious that he was trying to avoid her.

Better to swallow the bitter pill and get this over with.

"Hatake-san." Her voice wobbled and was strained as she stood before him, wringing her delicate fingers so nervously, it made him actually scared that she would break them.

"Kuma."

"What?"

"Kuma-san, if anything. But I thought we had established we didn't use surnames." He had to supress the urge to sigh.

"But- they said you're Hatake-san's brother-"

He put down his cloth and sword and shot a quick glance at where Koguma would be holding watch now. "I am. But I wouldn't address him with Hatake-san either."

Big, fat droplets of tears now ran down her chubby cheeks, even as she tried blinking against them. She glanced up at the sky and took a deep breath. "I'm doing a terrible job, aren't I?"

Accepting his fate, he padded the vacant spot beside him. She sat down immediately. "No, you don't."

Yes, she did.

Every beehive she could have stepped into, she had taken along. Addressed Koguma as Hatake twice and called all others by their surname as well. She was downright bubbly and hadn't stopped prodding them with personal questions, chattering away about her own family in a constant stream. Joking that Kama was awfully close with Koguma, while in the same breath saying he had a lovely wife had surely made her lose any puppy-points she might have had in the Hatake's eyes. Stepped into a damn mind-field with that and made both squad five and four tense. Not that she had noticed. Afterwards, Kama had begun looking at her as if she were some prey way beneath him- a wolf glancing at a broken-winged sparrow. And when she actually had to be rescued three times during this mission alone, resulting in Jiro losing the tip of his ring finger on his left hand and Koguma getting a nasty stab to his upper back, had made her lose any lingering respect from the squad. She was lucky she had a whole naive-bravery going on, otherwise they would have plucked her back into main camp already.

She sniffed and rubbed her nose with her too-long sleeve. They couldn't even give chunin proper uniforms before sending them to their deaths- disgusting. "It's just- I just- I don't know how to do better. You all know each other and are like way older than I am. I don't know how to fit in. How to help." Again her eyelids fluttered as she tried to blink the tears away. "I'm only a chunin on paper, really. I should have never passed the exam."

Oh, he could certainly agree on that. "How old are you even?"

"Twelve." He cringed upon her answer. "But I'm going to be thirteen in two months!"

"Who the hell let you pass?"

Wrong question- her shoulders shook with a new wave of sobs. "My sensei did," she hiccupped miserably. "We were out here together- Uri-sensei, Doro-kun, Yasiko-kun and me. It went bad. And now I'm being shoved from one squad to the next."

"How many already?"

"Seven." Sage- "And either they kick me out, or they all die and I'm the only one left. And I know I'm not good and more of a hindrance, but still I'm always the one coming out alright, because everyone keeps saving me-" She was talking herself into a frenzy. "-and I try, I really try, but always they have to save me and then I'm left-"

"Listen, Ena-chan," Oh, how terribly Koguma had flinched upon hearing her name. Kama's own staring and Gengaku's nervous chewing on his lips had left him convinced they had known someone being called by that. He had refrained from asking, no matter how curious it had left him. Had probably been a dead Hatake anyway. "You're right. It's not easy getting into our squad. I'm not going to lie- we've been a team for two winters already and have lost one of ours only recently. And we're a bit gruff on the outside and a bit wary of newcomers-" Oh, boy, his improvised speech really wasn't going the way he wanted to, if Ena's dejected look was anything to go by. How did Koguma pull this shit off? Surely a clan thing.

"What I'm trying to say," he corrected, "is that you're on the right track. You obviously want to be part of us and want to improve and you are brave- even if you're bravery doesn't really match your current skill-level. We all appreciate hard work and dedication."

"But taicho hates me-" she cried, looking at him with her doe-eyes.

"He doesn't hate you. He's harsh and tough like that to everyone." Not that it had gotten any better since the incident at the northern beach three weeks ago. He was still sparse in his words and only Kama got to really touch him. Susumu fucking hated it. He missed his rough head pats and his excuses to sniff at him by bumping their heads together or pulling him into side hugs. "Koguma's simple to get along with if you know what you're at. First, never call him Hatake-san and better to not mention the clan at all. Secondly, don't ask him any personal questions or assume anything. He's a private man. And lastly-" He took a deep breath. "Just don't ever be a coward or let someone else take the fall. You should be fine if you stick to that."

He wiped her runny nose once more before taking care of the tears still sticking to her cheeks. "Thank you, Susumu-san."

"No problem. If you ever need some training- just join us for our kata's in the morning when we actually have time to do them. And I'm sure any of us would gladly show you some tricks during breaks. Just ask them or me whenever you want. Even Koguma wouldn't deny you." His eyebrows raised as he stared into the distance. "Better not ask Kama though. Between the both of us- That man's a pain in the ass." His following cheeky wink had her actually give of a wet chuckle. He counted that as a win.

"Susumu-san?"

He hummed.

"How are you even his brother? I mean I get the white hair and all, but you really are nothing alike-"

Now he did actually give off an exhausted sigh. It was going to be a long road ahead of them.

"Clumsy," Gengaku murmured.

"Downright sloppy," Kama added with a drawl. Koguma said nothing, but his brows were furrowed and his lips pressed into a thin line. "How the hell are they letting kids like that graduate?"

"Cannon fodder." The men's heads snapped over to Koguma while he continued looking on as Jiro held a friendly spar with Ena. He hadn't really said anything beside the absolute necessary in a long while. Having him comment was downright shocking. "The albino's always acting so benevolent with his academy and raising the age of graduation to twelve years old. In the end, they are nothing more but cannon fodder."

"Civilians don't stand a goddamn chance," Kama spat. "All clan pups get trained from a young age, have the necessary equipment, mentorship, predisposition- They're naïve to think civilians could ever reach their level in just six years of training. All they have is academy standard, which is really just the bare minimum to get by."

"Jiro's doing fine-" Asa ventured.

"Jiro's lucky he had a knack for seals and got mentored by Mito-hime herself." Naoaki scowled terribly as he watched the girl's slow and uncoordinated movements- at least it didn't look too ridiculous when she tried taking on Jiro. When she had sparred against Ren, the difference in skill had been too glaring and had downright discouraged her and anyone watching.

"What are we going to do with her?" Shushi spoke up, one hand propped on his hip.

Susumu sent him an irritated look. "There's nothing to do. We train her and get her to live another day."

"She endangers us and the missions."

"And what would you propose? Send her back to head camp until she gets assigned a squad that will actually let her die, or should we do the honours ourselves and just cut her throat?" Fucking Hatake- anything for pack and all others may die for all they cared.

Koguma's scowl turned even more fierce at that. "As captain, she's my responsibility. I don't want any of you risking yourselves for her sake. I'll keep her at my side. And anything that happens to her is my burden to carry." He shot a hard look at the young Hatake. "And I don't give a damn about the missions. They always come second. The albino may throw a hissy fit and die of a blood-cloth."

Genkai snorted at that and shot a gleeful look at the retorted teenager. All of them craved Koguma's approval and downright dreaded his disapproval. Didn't mean they pitied those that drew his displeasure- they knew him all well enough by now to spot any possible beehives from miles away.

"Kogu, you better make sure she doesn't become a weight at your ancles." Kama sneered as he watched her get kicked onto her butt once more. "If she manages to get you injured or killed, I'll personally make sure she'll feed my summons." He paused. "Not that there would be much meat to chew on."

Koguma's eyebrows shot up to his hairline and Susumu could have sworn his lips were tugging into a shadow of a smile- if it was out of pure surprise over Kama's ferocious statement or that he actually found the idea amusing, he couldn't tell. Squad five sure as hell looked shocked, even as they didn't rebuke his statement. They most likely shared the sentiment. Susumu did to some degree. Probably wouldn't feed her to fucking wolves though.

"You think the albino appointed her to us on purpose?" Asa spoke up after a while. "What's a little girl even supposed to do in our group? We're a tracking and hunting squad."

Ren crossed his arms before his chest, his eyes flickering red for a moment. "Wouldn't put it above him. That man always gives us the most dreadful assignments. Does with all Uchiha-heavy squads." Both men paused in their quiet exchange as they noticed Koguma's intense gaze. Very slowly, a pleased smile spread onto his lips, making the tip of his fangs peak out and there was something close to pride shining in his beady eyes.

Right- It had been the first time the men of squad five had talked of the hokage like that.

"Ten minutes, then we get moving," he called as he turned around and walked out of the clearing.

Seeing that for once Kama wouldn't follow him at his heels, Susumu took the chance himself. It didn't took too long to find him- Koguma had simply leaned against a tree and was busy draining his water canteen. A displeased look crossed his face when he found it empty soon enough.

"There's a creek just a couple hundred metres from here." With rather more ferocity than necessary, his brother screwed the canteen shut once more and put it into his pouch. "Ya can fetch some new there-"

"No need." His voice was still as gruff as always but sounded almost- what? Dejected? Bitter?

Susumu walked up closer but kept his distance by choosing not to shuffle right beside him. "Ya gonna be like this forever? I get if you don't wanna talk to me about it-" His beady eyes flickered to the fingers he had started tapping against his upper thigh. "It's just- could you please not just let Kama get close? I'm your brother-"

"I haven't talked to Kama about it."

"What?"

"I haven't talked to him about it either."

"But-" Rage welled up inside of him at the stupid Hatake- that goddamn idiot had probably chosen to rather go along with Koguma's silence just to get him in his bed again. He had thought Koguma had talked about his near-death experience with him at least! Selfish fucking prick. Susumu had only heard the bare necessary from the men that had actually been with Koguma when he had nearly drowned. Asa an Jiro were rather stubbornly reluctant in sharing anything. "Then what is it? You know, talking it out could certainly help. Are you angry at me-"

His eyes narrowed dangerously at that. "No."

"You're being a real asshole lately, you know? Not only to me, but the squad as well. Like an irritated bear snapping at everyone."

Koguma began rubbing at his jaw- good. It meant he was at least thinking his words over. It was always a balancing act to see how far one should push Koguma until he either snapped or shut off completely. Susumu already wanted to open his mouth once more, when he murmured, "I can't fill my canteen."

What.

He stared at him, completely shocked. "As in having twisted the cap too harshly-"

"As in getting a fucking panic attack every time I'm getting close to water." A nasty smirk stretched his lips- it looked rather self-loathing. "Asa saw. Once. When I had to finally acknowledge that I actually would need to take a bath at some point." He took in a harsh breath. "I slipped. Slipped at the bank and fell- only my legs had dipped into the water and still I panicked. He had to talk me through it."

His eyes snapped over to him. "Can you swim?"

"I- what?"

"I never taught you, because I barely can myself. And I can't remember Risu or Jin teaching you." He could only reply with silence. "That's what I thought. Fuck, Susumu, what if you would've been down there with me? You would have drowned right beside me- because I wouldn't have been able to help you. At all. Would have probably dragged you under myself." He took in a shaky breath and tugged through his hair with his hand. "You would have died. Because of me. Because it took both Asa and Jiro to get me out of there."

Susumu was so overwhelmed, he didn't really know what to reply. He was still reeling from the idea that Koguma could be scared of anything so mundane. He hadn't even known that his dislike for water was actually blank terror hiding beneath. And thinking about it, he never had gone deeper than up to his hips into it- always only shallow water. The tension in his body when they had to save the kidnapped Hyuuga- how scared must he have been then? And still he had sat down into it countless times whenever he had been getting angry.

Talking about self-loathing.

"I can't fill my canteen, so Asa does for me. I can't bear to be close to a body of water now, so Jiro gets me buckets to clean myself with." His joints grounded as he clenched his fists. "A Kuma scared of water. Pathetic. Ridiculous. And still I freeze up every time I try to get near it." The muscles of his arm twitched as they helplessly moved to do something. "I dragged my fucking ojisan through a river when I was but six. And now I can't fucking fill my canteen!" He almost shouted the last words. Susumu idly wondered somewhere in the back of his mind if the squad could hear.

The look he shot him was almost begging him to offer him a solution. Koguma, opened up and actually to god vulnerable for once. But Susumu, like the absolute idiot he was, could only joke weakly, "So you haven't had a bath in like ages?"

Koguma stared at him for a long moment, the fear and helplessness still burning in his eyes and making his limbs shake. Then he straightened himself and his face fell completely blank. "Ten minutes are up."

Susumu didn't even dare to move when he strode past him and back to the others.

Distracted. That was the word Susumu had been looking for.

Koguma sat in front of the fire, the orange light flickering over his face and reflecting in his beady eyes, but it didn't look like he was actually seeing it. His legs were angled in a relaxed manner and arms drooping loosely across them, although it rather felt like he had forgotten to actually pull them closer to himself.

Kama sitting down next to him didn't even draw a proper reaction. Instead he continued being leagues away with his mind. And when the Hatake started talking about some mundane shit, he just gave him a quiet hum in reply.

Susumu had expected him to be angry after his stupid joke, or maybe turn cold and irreproachable. Him being so out of it, however, was somehow all the more concerning.

Other eyes sometimes flickering nervously and rather worried over to him made it certain that the squad felt the same.

"Hata-" All sets of eyes snapped over to Ena and reproached her for her fuck-up. "Koguma-san," she called more demur. Another distracted hum answered her. "Can you train with me?" Susumu had to actively close his slacked jaw. Either she was incredibly oblivious to ask, or she understood what was going on better than any of them.

For a moment nothing happened, until Koguma's eyebrows slowly raised on his forehead. Upon the silent request, she added, "Well, they say you're the best at body-switching and I never really got the hang of it. So maybe, if you have some time you can give me some tips-" Her voice had turned quieter and quieter towards the end, seeing that Koguma was still facing the fire and hadn't shifted his attention to her.

Their camp had fallen silent again, so it was rather startling when Koguma actually spoke up. "Lock eyes with it. It's easier that way in the beginning. Then reach out as if with invisible hands. Tug at it with your chakra." His voice was deep and gruff but still had that absent-minded quality to it.

Her face lit up at the small victory she had just claimed- no one else had gotten him to hold a conversation the last few days. "And if I can't see the object?" he pushed, apparently spun on by her success.

It took some time, but once again he hummed, "Once done often enough, you can feel them call out. The hum of the chakra caught inside of them. Experience dictates distance. But go too far and you'll rip yourself in two."

"What was the farthest you managed?"

His fingers twitched. "Without seeing?" The fire gave off a loud pop and sparks flew into the air. "Training pole two houses over. Four hundred metres give or take."

Her eyes were big as saucers. "Two houses? You swapped through two houses?"

He hummed, his fingers once again twitching. "Left me dizzy though." The other squad members looked at him in shock as well. Susumu found it impressive every time Koguma used kawarimi, because he still hadn't gotten the hang of it, but he had never considered just how impressive his skills at it were.

"Why did you do it?" That had apparently been a push too far. There was no true outside sign of him shutting off again, but his eyes regained their vacant quality and his twitching fingers stilled once more.

Still, it was the first time Kama didn't regard her as scum underneath his boots.

"Koguma-san." Really, they had to grant her that- she was a dedicated one.

His brother shortly stopped in binding his bandages, before he picked it up again. Seeing that that was the only sign of him listening she was going to get today, she ventured on, "Can you show me?"

He was silent for a long while, but then his lips slightly pinched until finally he spoke up, "Show you what?"

"How to bind my hands like that." The fabric groaned as he stopped once again in his movements and tugged the strip tight.

"Why?"

She flexed her delicate fingers while looking at them. "Because it sometimes hurts when I do tai-jutsu."

"Why?"

Having gained his full attention now, she shot him a foolish grin. "Well, my hands aren't that strong. And using weapons has always given me terrible blisters and bloody spots, but never any callouses. I don't think I was ever truly meant to be a shinobi."

His eyebrows furrowed at that, his hands once again picking up to finish their task. "Then why did you?"

"Because my mum gave birth to a child every year until they had sucked everything out of her. I didn't want that."

Koguma didn't show any outward reaction to her words. For a long moment he simply stared right through the ground, his hands braced onto his upper thighs- the right one bandaged, the left one bare and displaying the scars. Then he got up and reached into his pouch. Ena could barely catch the bandages he threw at her. Taking up position a few steps next to her, he pulled out a third set of the fabric and rolled up his sleeve. Without saying anything, he started wrapping his arm much slower than he usually would. Taking the instruction for what it was, the girl scrambled to copy him.

Naoaki missed reaching for the cup of tea Asa offered him three times- not that either of them noticed with their eyes glued to the scene.

Maybe Koguma found as much comfort in children as children seemed to find in him.

Today was a bad day.

Jiro had brought up a bucket of water from the lake half a kilometre further down and sat it up in camp for anyone to use. Susumu had to truly acknowledge that the man managed to make it appear inconspicuous- he was sure Kama's squad had yet to realise just who the buckets of water were actually for.

But Koguma had already woken up with a bad temper. The targets they had been tracing for the past four days had disappeared without another clue which surely hadn't helped to improve his already weird mood. Instead he had snapped and growled at everything since. Their men had soon recognised that they should rather leave him be if they did value not becoming the object of his displeasure.

And when Jiro had sat down the bucket at the edge of their make-shift camp, his brother had simply stared at it for a long time. So long in fact, that when Kama had put a worried hand onto his shoulder, he had simply shot up from his spot, walked over to the object and chugged it across the clearing in a vicious swipe. It had shattered against one of the rocks jutting out of the ground and made splinters race through the air. Kama, that madman, had actually tried to step up to him after that. It had only earned him a deep growl that had raised the back of Susumu's hair and a shaking finger pointed at him, paired with a vicious baring of teeth.

The Hatake had hastily swallowed his words again.

When Koguma came back over an hour later from wherever he had stomped off too, hair and clothes damp with sweat and the knuckles underneath the worn-out bandages stained with blood, no one had dared to move, not to mention comment.

So, when Ena actually to god picked that moment to bother Koguma with one of her questions, Susumu nearly wanted to jump at her and clamp his hand onto her too chatty mouth. "Koguma-san," she started, jutting her chin forward as she swallowed hard. It made his brother stop in his angered glaring at some distant spot while was sitting somewhat offside and almost snap his head over to her.

"What?" he barked, his lips still stretched taunt enough to show the tip of his fangs. He looked positively feral with that wild hair of his and the beady eyes zeroing in on her trembling form.

She swallowed hard once more. "Can- Can you teach me how to water walk?"

Well, it had been nice knowing her.

"What?" His tone was low and carried a hint of disbelieve, but his leaning forward and twitching muscles truly didn't promise anything good.

"I- Can you teach me how to water walk? I never learned. And I thought-"

"Why me?" She stilled at his tone and took an almost subconscious step backward- Wrong move, really. Now Koguma really looked like he had locked onto prey. "Why me?" he repeated and carefully got out of his sitting position.

She steadied her stance, even pushing her feet further apart when Koguma began looming over her, although there were still ten metres between them. "Because your tip on the kawarimi helped. And Susumu-san isn't nearly as patient as one would think. Neither are the other clan-members. You're my captain. I want you to teach me."

Susumu stared at her in disbelieve. They had severely underestimated her. She knew exactly what she was doing and who she was asking to help her. Ena may not be a warrior, but there was maybe yet a good shinobi to be made out of her.

If she'd survive this, that is.

Koguma looked at her as if he were seeing her for the first time as well. But there was not the same begrudging awe Susumu felt reflecting in his gaze, but sudden and deep distrust. With lightning-speed, a kunai raced past her cheek, leaving a straight red slice on the soft skin. Her reaction only came when it had already pierced a tree behind her and the blood started seeping out of it. A sloppy reaction time.

"What is your name?"

She touched the wound and winced upon the pain she must be feeling. "Ena. Umaki, Ena."

"What was your sensei's name?"

"Zenebu, Uri."

"How old are you?"

Her eyes fluttered over to Susumu as if asking for support. "Thirteen. I turned thirteen three days ago."

"Parents?"

"I don't know why-"

Koguma crossed the last distance between them and grabbed her harshly by her chin. "Seven squads, Susumu told me. Either you're extremely lucky-" He didn't continue, but Susumu suddenly got what he must have been thinking. Ena the bubbly and clumsy little girl surviving seven squads during a war that had already claimed some of the best of them. Maybe a distraction planted by someone. A spy of the albino's. "Why ask me?"

"I-"

"Why ask me?" he hissed once more.

"Because if I were to fall into the water, I'm sure you'd get me out. I can't swim. And you could use the dip." Her voice was muffled by her locked jaw as Koguma held it in an iron grip and her eyes were blown wide with fear.

So much boldness had everyone hold their breaths.

"Are you saying I stink?" His voice was dripping with incredulity. Upon her short nod, he released his hold.

Then he laughed. It was short and shallow, stained with a whole lot of bitterness. But he actually laughed.

"You better not get into my sight again today." She nodded upon his low threat, which made him turn around and head into the direction to where the lake was.

Kama shot her a bewildered look and hastily followed him. As soon as both were out of sight, she collapsed onto her knees, her limbs shaking violently and breathing erratic. Ite was the first to get out of the stupor everyone had found themselves in (Koguma's killing intent, although rare, truly was a thing to behold and could rob anyone of their breath) and walked over to her, pushing a cup of strong tea into her hands when she had finally managed to calm down.

Naively brave indeed.

Everyone was clever enough to look occupied when Koguma and Kama limbed back into camp two hours later, both their hair dripping wet and clothes soaked to the bones, sporting several nasty bruises. He still looked angered, but that deeply-rooted rage he had sported all day had muted down somewhat- probably because he had beat the living shit out of Kama by the looks of it. And had gotten punched down in return.

And Susumu may be damned, but his brother actually smelled of fresh water and trampled grass instead of sweat as he walked past him.

It was raining in big fat droplets and didn't look like it would stop anytime soon. The rocky hills they were scouting had turned into slippery fields of mud, whole streams of water racing downwards from who knows where. It didn't really help that Kama's squad had been stuck to the other side of the hills, due to a massive earth slide splitting their groups. Them even being here was only to find the long way around back to squad four. And long way it was. It has been eight hours already.

"Koguma-san!" Ena called out.

He didn't pause in his run, probably too fucking focused on getting back to Kama.

"Koguma-san!" Susumu bothered to humour her instead and follow the line her finger was pointing out. In the distance he saw flashes of light- lighting jutsu. "Koguma-san, there's fighting going on there!"

He must have snapped a look at it, because his run slowed down until it stopped completely.

"Squad four?" Asa called out.

"If they also tried to make their way to us-" Jiro replied, wiping the rain out of his eyes to get a closer look at it.

Shushi's nose scrunched as he tried to sniff the air. "They should've run at a neck-breaking speed-"

All men exchanged looks. Of course Kama would have.

Without another word, Koguma adapted their route and went straight towards the fight. If it really were Kama, there wasn't even a question as to whether or not they'd help them.

Ena had slipped twice, Koguma's harsh grip at the back of her shirt the only thing saving her from splitting her skull in two. Rain ran down from Susumu's hair, into his collar and down the front of his clothes. His feet squelched inside the stupid open-toed sandals- he swore, he would wear boots just like Koguma after this. Even the Uchiha's looked like drowned cats, their otherwise shiny dark hair sticking to their skulls and pale faces almost ghostly in the surrounding grey.

It would have almost been funny, if it wasn't so very unfunny. He just wanted a nice warm fire, some dry clothing, a strong cup of sake-

and maybe Kikyo, stroking through his hair. It would surely feel really nice now. There had to be a reason Koguma had grown out his hair for Risu. Didn't do it for Kama now- it was a comforting thought, making him smirk with glee. Maybe Kikyo would even grab a brush. Her long, deft fingers, with the neat fingernails, trailing along his skull, picking up strands, the soft kisses she would press against his shoulder-

Oh, he missed her.

Maybe he was a bit attention starved. Normally, before that stupid silver-haired stalker had ensnared him, Koguma would be right beside him. Sharing bedrolls with him. It did get cold during the night and he really didn't care for shuffling up next to someone else. Casual caress- a pat on the head, a slap on his shoulder, a comforting side hug, his warm face in his hair, the way his breath tickled against his nose when he bumped their foreheads together-

Oh, he really needed to take leave soon. See Kikyo again. Because-

A weird shudder ran down his spine. Ugh.

Ugh.

Weird thoughts. Although Susumu was sure Koguma would get them. Would even make them seem normal. Maybe they were. Maybe he was just totally overthinking it.

He was luckily pulled out of his musing by Koguma's stopping- the sound of fighting was distinct now, even through the rain. His brother slowly made his way towards the ledge to get a look at the scene, his own hair slick with rain. Then many things happened at once.

First, the last sound of steel clashing upon steel stopped, leaving only the sound of rain hitting the earth, their clothes. Next Koguma stilled completely, breath caught in his chest, fingers gripping harshly at the rock. He heard the sound of commands being shouted, Maku's sharp inhale-

Then Koguma was gone.

Susumu shunshined beside him in a second, already being certain of what he would get to see- Kama's dead body, staring up blankly into the sky, blood soaking the ground, limbs twisted in his last stumble-

He wasn't too far off. And couldn't have been more wrong.

A choked whimper had him snap his attention from the dead littering the ground to Koguma's pained expression. Squad five had collected behind them, weapons drawn and ready to defend, as he stumbled towards one of the bodies lying on the ground-

Intricate braids of warm brown hair, the tips soaked by the blood pooling on the ground, tan skin looking ashen, the scars on the face distorting the path of water running down it-

Not Kama. But the guard from the raikage. The man having introduced himself as Koguma's cousin. The one that had thanked him, Susumu, for keeping him safe all these years.

"Yasashiko." The sheer desperation and grief speaking from the name had Susumu's heart clench. Only when Koguma fell onto his knees, right into the mud beside and cradled him into his arms, did he lay notice to the tensing figures standing opposite them. The enemies still standing.

Only they weren't.

A female kunoichi was facing him and he had seen her often with the albino- a cousin of his? And then some other Senju, plus, if the grey hair could be believed, an actual Hatake to top it off. Appears one more had volunteered to come.

When squad five still didn't move to put their weapons away, too shocked over Koguma's open grieving, the stark contrast from the silent figure he had been for weeks now, the kunoichi snarled, "Stand down. Squad three. Senju, Touka. We had engaged a Kumo squad and taken care of them." Her gaze tried to impale the Uchiha still displaying their blazing red eyes at her. "I said stand down."

Susumu sure as hell didn't put his weapon away, seeing that her men hadn't either- all their eyes were glued to Koguma and his gentle nuzzling of the dead man's neck, his bandaged hands caressing and shoulders trembling.

"Tell your men to stand down," she barked, nervousness making her shuffle in her position. They were only five and injured to some degree, while they were still relatively fresh and clearly ready to await their captain's orders.

When Koguma finally laid down the body and came back up on his feet, his limbs were shaking, head dipped low, shoulders hunched and knees slightly bend. But his expression- eyes burning and teeth clenched as he bared them at her. It was almost as if the growl erupting from his throat fought its way out between them. Steel hummed as he drew his sword.

He was on them in a second.

Susumu reacted on instinct. No thought process. This was Koguma, his brother after all.

As he pushed back the kunoichi with his odachi, Susumu was by his side, keeping the other men from falling at his back. They may have been injured, but they were still strong. And all of them had recognized this for the battle for life and death that it was.

Blood sprayed and chokes filled the air as Susumu managed to cut the throat of one of the Senju. Only when a shallow cut burned along his upper right shoulder, did he notice that Ren had actually saved him from getting it chopped off completely. The attacker (or attacked?) suddenly found himself herded by two Uchiha when Asa joined him.

Turning back to Koguma, he found him engaged in a two-way fight with the new Hatake and Touka- the other two Senju had their hands full with Jiro, Naoaki and Genkai closing in on them.

Susumu managed to block a blow from the kunoichi at his brother, who moved in a frantic madness. It made his swings sloppy, if brutal. But a sharp cut from the Hatake's sword had Koguma stagger backwards, his left arm rendered immobile. The Hatake raised his blade once more, blood and rain dripping from it. Susumu nearly wanted to cry out in frustration when he noticed that Touka snared him into gen-jutsu after gen-jutsu, her sword crashing down again and again to keep him from helping.

He couldn't reach him.

Being occupied as he was, Susumu didn't see what happened exactly. But suddenly Shushi and Maku were there as well. Ena, screaming in fury and slashing with a kunai and then she fell face first into the muck, still clutching at her spilling guts. Koguma roared. Despite both Maku and Shushi suddenly coming at him, he still cut down the Hatake's head. Before the enraged teenager actually managed drilling his sword into his exposed back, making bile come up Susumu's throat as he was still busy keeping the slippery Touka in check, Naoaki stepped in and pushed him away.

Then Koguma was beside him- his face covered in rain, tears, blood, dripping with madness, absolutely feral in his movements- and his sword glid into an exposed spot of the Senju's chest. Steel screeched as he pinned her right against the rock looming behind. And when she crashed into the rough surface, gasping in disbelieve, it broke with a snap.

Her head tumbled off in a messy cut by what was left of the blade.

Koguma twisted around, his eyes locking onto Maku, who had just managed cutting off Jiro's left hand, making him howl in pain- the man didn't even see the shattered sword coming as it pierced him from behind.

Shushi screamed, exchanging terrifyingly quick blows with the Uchiha herding in on him- senbon to the back of his arm made him falter in his move to cut down Genkai. Koguma was upon the youth in a second, throwing both of them to the ground with his momentum. They groaned and growled as he pushed the tip of the broken sword closer and closer to his chest- Shushi fighting against his weight and force and Koguma pressing down with all he got.

The Hatake died slowly and with a pained gurgle. Fighting for his life until the very end.

Silence had pressed down onto Susumu's ear and the sound of rain was the first thing that registered in his mind as the world shifted back into focus. Ite was crouching down beside Jiro and had started to heal the bloody stump of his left arm. Naoaki helped a stumbling Genkai back to his feet. Ren wiped at the blood running into his eyes from a cut on his temple. Asa grimaced as he stiffly adjusted his right arm in front of his chest.

Ena, Shushi and Maku lay dead.

So did the other Konoha squad, Touka stilled pinned to the rock by the other half of the shattered blade.

As if coming out of a daze himself, Koguma turned around to them, still kneeling on top of the silver-haired teenager. His bandages were red with blood. There was a silent challenge in his eyes and tension to his body.

They had killed their own comrades. Not only other Konoha-nin, but their own squad members. Koguma had even killed his own clan-men.

Susumu still gripped tightly to his sword, ready to defend his brother with his life should the rest of their squad turn on him now.

Naoaki looked wary, but not nearly as vigilant as he should be with Koguma tensed like that. "We should burn them."

Koguma got out of his crouch, paying no mind to the dead teenager lying at his feet as he stepped away from him. "Not him. He shall be buried." The Uchiha simply dipped his head at that, not even needing to ask who he meant. Koguma's attention turned back to the broken sword he still clutched in his hands. After a while, he murmured, "May loyalty sharpen the blade and render it unbreakable."

Beady eyes stared at the reflecting surface for a long time- the wildness seeped out of them and got replaced with something unyielding. "A foul kind of loyalty then." He grabbed onto the steel still left and broke it once more over his knee- his right hand bled deeply from where the edge had cut into the flesh. The casual display of massive strength didn't seem to scare the Uchiha watching. Instead they looked as if they drank in the sight, sharingan spinning lazily. His father's odachi landed discarded into the mud beside Shushi's lifeless corpse.

Susumu shuffled over to him, his blade now dipping low as he held onto it, but not yet sheathed. "I am humbled by your display of loyalty. And it is a debt I will never be able to pay in kind." Koguma's voice was raw from all the shouting, but the tone was slow, deliberate.

Ite and Jiro shifted their attention to him as well, even as the medic continued wrapping the tender stump.

"I killed my own men. The ones I had promised to look after. I am not the kind of man you should give your loyalty to." He paused to let his words sink in. "If you decide to split from this squad, I will not fault you. Find another one, go home to your family or leave Konoha altogether. And whenever you want me to return the favour, come and find me."

Ren's eyebrows furrowed terribly at that. Irritation strained his voice as he hissed, "I'm not going anywhere. They attacked you. They had it coming." He spat onto the ground and crossed his arms. "And I don't give a shit about the Senju-bitch or her team. She had it coming as well."

"Who's the man?" Asa spoke up, jutting his chin towards the corpse Koguma had cradled.

Susumu tensed at the question, sure it would make his brother tip back and decide to take care of the last of their squad after all. "My cousin. The only kin that had still been alive." All of them looked back at the massive body- their relation was obvious, really.

Asa had stared at Koguma the whole time, as if waiting for him to hesitate or be dishonest. Susumu had the feeling the question had been some kind of test. Of what, he didn't know. "I will stay as well."

Genkai looked as if he too wanted to say something, but a grip at his shoulder from Naoaki had him shut up. "I think it is time I take you upon your offer of forming my own squad, Koguma." Upon Ren's snarling he added, "Not because I mistrust your leadership now, but because I want to give others what you have given us." A pause. "You will always have our loyalty." Genkai nodded in agreement.

Jiro's strained chuckle had Susumu's weapon twitch and ready his stance. "Damn, taicho. Who else is supposed to blow shit up for you? Ain't getting someone as good as me." He waved his stump through the air. "If you'll still have me, that is."

Upon his strained joke, Ite came out of his crouch. "There is no debt, Koguma-san. Let me heal your wounds, but then I will go back to the hospital. I am getting tired of fighting." Sadness flickered across his face. "When I first saw those burned out bitemarks, I was starting to realise just what kind of man was sitting in front of me. Had Risu been like that as well, I wonder?"

"He would have burned them out more neatly and reproached me for getting bitten in the very first place. Had he been there, those beasts would have died choking on poison before they'd have ever gotten close to me."

Ite nodded and suddenly looked ten years older. "That's what I thought."

Koguma let his gaze wander from one man to the next once more. Finally, he loosened his defensive stance, making Susumu sheath his sword as well. "Let's clean up then."

The fire was blazing hot against the dreary wet of the pouring rain, and steam rose as the Uchiha's fire jutsu hit the puddles littering the earth. Still the bodies and their weapons burned down into ashes and clumps of metal underneath the assault. The air no longer smelled of rain, blood and spilled guts, but of burned flesh. Hadn't Susumu been so used to it by now, he would have gotten sick to his stomach.

They had finished up at the same time that Koguma was ready to lower Yasashiko into the hole he had dug out for him with an earth jutsu. A long blade, rather similar to Koguma's, was splayed between his folded hands, tip facing his knees. It's deep green hilt was almost ridiculously colourful as it lay next to the broken odachi and its simple dark leather. His brother lowered the man rather gently into the hole, before climbing out of it again.

"How did you do it with your uncle?" Susumu asked, shocked by his own bold question. But imagining a six year old Koguma climbing out of a man-deep hole, after having dragged a man the size of a bear into it, was rather mind boggling.

"It had been shallow." He stared down into the pit already filling with water. "I had to dig it with my own hands." With a simple seal, the pit filled up with earth once more, burying the corpse underneath in a swift movement. Susumu lifted his gaze from the now undisturbed looking soil. A rock was resting at the head of the grave- it wasn't all that distinct. But maybe that had been Koguma's intention in the first place.

"I had to dig it with my own hands," he repeated, a hysterical chuckle coming up inside of him.

"Kogu-"

Instead of answering, his brother grabbed him by his shoulder and pulled him into a tight hug. He was by now shaking with strained laughter, clutching at him so hard that Susumu had a tough time breathing. But when the laughter began sounding wet and his shoulders shook with sobs instead, Susumu gripped back just as harshly. For a moment he remembered a little, hysterical boy and his scrawny, hot-headed friend trying to calm him down after his first kill.

"It's okay, Kogu. It's okay." The tears falling down onto his exposed neck were warm in contrast to the cold rain. "I've got you."

It didn't take too long for him to calm down again- Koguma had never been one prone to long outbursts of emotion. Stepping back from him, his large hand laid down onto his head and gave him a short pat. Then he turned to the rest of their squad who had looked on silently and solemn, gave them a short nod and walked up to return to their original route.

Kama looked frantic as finally squad four stumbled across them two hours later. He saw him do a quick head count and take in their injuries, the ripped clothing and bloody skin. His fingers twitched as if wanting to pull Koguma close and never let him slip away again and Susumu was sure Koguma could truly need that right now. Then his eyes flickered over to Koguma's left side- one sword hanging there instead of two.

"What happened?" he breathed. Gengaku's expression darkened as he laid notice to who exactly was missing to their squad. Susumu could have sword his eyes shortly flickered to Koguma and saw accusation inside of it. "Where's your odachi?"

Susumu was the one to start laughing now.

He was laughing even harder when Koguma refused to let him sleep alone that night and instead tugged him close as he sat at the campfire. While Kama had already snuggled up to his right-hand side, seeing that his brother really was in an affectionate mood that evening. The man nearly hissed like a boiling water kettle, but Koguma simply gave a low growl, before falling asleep as soon as he stilled underneath the sound.

Susumu felt like a kid again.

This had been a weird day.