"Stop, stop. Do not speak. The ultimate truth is not even to think." ~Buddha~
Bonds II
1.
Soon after the entrance of Kakashi and the aid from the Grass village, it became clear to everyone that the Reanimated Shinobi could not be destructed since their bodies would recover instantly, even after several deadly blows. Mirai and Kakashi had been trying to keep them at bay since the rest of the shinobi had been attacking Orochimaru and Sasuke, in hopes that they could at least keep them away from the Village. Little did they know that Orochimaru's true aim was Mirai and that he wouldn't stop until he had obtained her.
"We have to get you away from here!" Kakashi yelled.
"Do you think there is a chance I could get away?" She countered. "My condition is worsening!"
"Damn it!"
He dodged another attack of the Fourth Kazekage.
"If I could- kite them away- would you be able- to follow up?" Mirai inquired through her attacks towards her deceased grandfather.
"We will be crushed otherwise, Mirai!" he responded, his irritation coloring his voice.
Mirai had less than thirty seconds to act on her decision. She would probably faint after that.
"Rai-sama!" She screamed towards the sky, trying to be heard against the raging thunders.
'I hear you, Mirai' the voice of the dragon echoed in her mind.
"Come to me!"
'Jump high.'
The dark winged creature dove from the sky as Mirai locked eyes with Kakashi and they nodded in agreement. She then leaped as high as she could, using chakra to expand her physical limitations. Rai smoothly moved above the trees and gracefully lowered his head so that the kunoichi could manage to land on him. Mirai fell awkwardly on the dragon's head and rolled on his long neck as he climbed higher on the night sky. She finally stopped moving somewhere between his wings.
'Are you hurt, young Mirai?' Rai asked politely, his deep voice resembling the distant sound of thunder.
"I am. I will probably lose consciousness soon. Can I give you my remaining chakra, so you can fly us away from here?" She asked, staring breathlessly at the stellar valley of the night sky.
'Of course. Where are we travelling?' The dragon wondered while Mirai felt the small vibration beneath his scales, indicating that the creature was satisfied with the prospect of a stroll in the clouds.
"Fly us to the Temple of Heavens. Rai-sama… Thank you. I am forever indebted to you." She claimed as she poured chakra directly into the dragon's chakra points, using her byakugan.
'You know how much we could spoil you if would only let us, little one. You owe us nothing, our goals are the same. Now, stop resisting and rest. I will take you to the monks.'
"Thank you, Rai-sama" Mirai mumbled.
She started sensing the condition of her body and it was in a horrible shape. Her right leg wasn't responding to any movement, since the bones and part of its muscle were prosthetic, she figured it would be the first limb to die out. Breathing became insufferable.
Her left ankle was starting to swell up dangerously. Her tissue there was teared apart and it felt unnaturally soft. Several of her ribs were fractured and she had suffered severe damage on her stomach and lungs. Additionally, some of her chakra points around her heart muscle and her liver were blocked, thanks to her grandfather.
Mirai sighed and curled up against the hard, warm scales of the dragon, hoping not to vomit. Her eyes closed and she crawled into the darkest corners of her mind.
2.
Neji returned home without his wife after many hours of search. The combat was brutal. Thirty six shinobi died that night and one went missing. The young man was exhausted and felt a strange numbness all over his body after the shocking developments during Orochimaru's attack…
Hyuuga Shizuka, his mother-in-law, had passed away during the last combat. Apparently -for reasons unknown to him and most of the clan members- she had been injured even before she reached the battlefield from what it appeared to be a previous secret mission. Her condition was critical already when she fiercely commanded her troops to follow her in battle. Neji couldn't understand why she chose to die that night but he knew that she had no intention to return from the beginning.
The last words he heard her speak were now haunting his troubled head:
"Orochimaru, keep your sly hands away from my clan or we will finish what the Third Hokage begun! The Grass Village represents neutrality and balance. We have no intention of going into a blood-hunt after your childish ambition to live.
As for you, Uchiha… You are a shame to the history of your clan but not an exception, really. You are following your entire family's tradition when it comes to being irrational, petty and dishonored…"
Neji sighed as he removed his blood stained shirt. It wasn't his own blood.
'Could these be the lasts words you uttered, Shizuka-dono?' he wondered silently, images of her broken body emerging in his mind again.
"Mirai-sama… Where are you?"
3.
(Three Days Later)
A single drop of water landed on the calm surface of the sapphire lake waters. The breeze strolled between the branches of the old trees and the sun took a final leap beneath the colorful mountaintops. The pale twilight bowed upon the land and the flowers yielded to its fixed gaze.
Mirai watched from afar as the wooden box that contained her mother's body sunk deeper in their Clan's Cemetery. Men and women stood around, mostly in silence and woe, although occasionally one or two sobs would be heard.
Hyuuga Mirai sat peacefully on the verge of the cliff that offered a great view of her homeland.
A raven landed crudely by her side and it appeared to have its onyx eyes focused on her expression. Hesitantly she averted her gaze from the graveyard and looked at the creature.
The bird proceeded to lightly bounce near her, finally resting on her lap. Then, she brought one hand above its slick plumage and caressed it gently.
"Are you becoming even more arrogant or suicidal, Itachi?" she mused gently as her figure was shadowed from a strange silhouette.
"My deepest condolences, Mirai." She heard him say, kneeling respectfully behind her.
She didn't turn around to face him but his mere presence felt both like summer and storm.
"Why did you do it?" she finally asked.
"Why did I do what?"
The crowd was now peacefully placing burial ornaments around Shizuka's grave.
"Your mother and father. Your entire clan. Why did you end them?"
The silence was deafening.
"Won't you tell me?" She insisted calmly.
"I will not." He replied softly.
Mirai chuckled to hide her sobbing.
"Thank you for coming." She said finally.
"The question is why are you not there among your clan, mourning your loss. Why are you here with me?" He asked softly.
She ran her fingers on the raven's feathers calmly.
"I was never there to begin with. I was always the ghost of Ichirou… My feelings, I like to shed them on the land or send them to the heavens or… or hide them in the wind. They don't need a mourning daughter down there, Itachi. They need a leader."
"I always knew that you were a cruel woman but I never guessed that you were so strict with yourself," he commented with a sigh and then continued, "will you show your face to me, dear Mirai?"
She smoothly turned her head to face him, careful not to disturb the bird.
He studied her expression.
She was calm and collected as always, her lips loosely attached to each other while her eyebrows lazily shadowed her gaze. However her pale eyes were sharp, dark circles had formed around them and they screamed of pain. Itachi spread his legs and opened his arms while the raven flew rapidly from her lap and landed on a nearby tree.
She winced at this motion, realizing that he wasn't a genjutsu but himself.
"Why did you come physically? Your image would suffice..." She whispered.
"You do not have to question my every decision. I am here to stand with you in your hour of need, it's the least that I can do-..."
She interrupted him by hugging him with such force that his breath was taken away. She hid her face in his coat and curled her small body inside his embrace, fitting there like the most precious pearl inside the crudest of oysters.
"...It's actually the only thing I can do." He admitted quietly as she started to cry in his arms.
Itachi kept his own eyes fixed in the distance, making sure she had her safe space to pour her heart out, thankful that such a place could still be found in him.
4.
Young Ryo was meditating serenely on the balcony of his uncle's house. He felt like he knew every single raindrop that crashed on the concrete buildings around him, even with his eyes closed. The soft breeze didn't feel real on his skin although it was. His body became stranger with every breath and yet, more familiar. The sensation was so heavenly that Ryo felt like a dancing spirit.
That's when he noticed a small pressure on his right calf. He opened his eyes without disrupting his meditation only to see the most peculiar thing: a small creature that could only be described as a dragon stood there.
The child and the dragon locked eyes for a moment and then the small serpent left a beautiful origami crane on the boy's open palm. Then, the creature bowed and disappeared as Ryo stayed there perfectly still.
He took a deep breath and examined the paper crane in his palm, raising it in front of his onyx eyes.
He could smell his mother's flowers and herbs on it.
"Hmmm..." the child mused curiously. He then proceeded to gently unwrap the crane and inside he found a message.
"Son, tomorrow night you must sneak out from your room and your uncle's house and follow the map that you see bellow. Be very careful and silent. When you reach the location, remain there for ten minutes without being spotted and then return. Destroy this note and never speak of it. This is your first mission!
Forever yours,
Mom."
The minimal drawing of a map was beneath her words. Ryo folded the crane to what it looked like and placed it inside his pocket as he heard his aunt's footsteps approaching.
"Ryo! Dinner's ready!" She yelled above his head.
"I am not deaf, auntie." He grunted.
"Oops, sorry, I thought that you were in trance." She laughed apologetically.
"Then apparently you were trying to kill me with your brutal screaming..." he mumbled as he stood up.
"No, however, I might try now if you keep this attitude, Ryo-kun!" She replied, still laughing.
"Yes ma'am!" Ryo bowed and ran into the house.
Lihua smiled at his small figure and followed him inside.
5.
Mirai entered her home after a long day of meeting with the Clan, the Kusakage and her father. She felt exhausted and enraged since she found out that both Sasuke and Orochimaru had not be captured. Her blood was boiling for revenge but she knew better than diving into Orochimaru's trap. She had already made mental notes to meet with Kakashi in order to discuss everything about Orochimaru but first, she would enjoy a hot bath and the comfort of her own bed.
"Mirai-sama, you returned." A grim voice was heard from inside.
"Neji" She greeted him, almost surprised that she didn't sense him. She was dangerously tired.
"My condolences for Hyuuga-dono." He said softly.
"Thank you. She died an honorable death for the Village and the Clan." She replied mechanically, something she had been doing all day.
Neji stared at her, obviously irritated and expecting her to explain her absence. Mirai walked passed him silently and when she reached their shared bedchambers she hesitated.
"Neji?"
"Yes madam?"
"Thank you. Really." She repeated, peering into his lunar gaze.
Neji's frown softened as he nodded gently.
Mirai entered the room without another word.