In which promises are made.
Warning for discussions of death and grief.
O-O-O-O-O
Sasuke stared up at the ceiling, not remembering how he had gotten back into bed. He felt frozen and exhausted, unable to sense anything. The only thing he could hear was the rapid beat of his own heart. Part of him wanted to cry again, but even crying felt like too much effort.
"Sasuke?"
Sasuke flinched. He turned his head to look at the boy lying down next to him.
"What?" Sasuke asked, his throat struggling to say the simple word. He watched as Naruto's expression shifted, thinking about how to word his question, whatever it was. His eyebrows creased in impatience. Spit it out already.
After a few more seconds of contemplation, Naruto's eyes turned to meet Sasuke's.
"You said someone killed them," Naruto began. In an instant, a heaviness settled onto Sasuke's chest. He tensed, already aware of what Naruto wanted to know.
"Who-" Naruto looked away and swallowed, unable to finish the question.
Sasuke clenched his jaw before swallowing and turning his gaze back to the ceiling. He bit his lip, feeling tears building at the corners of his eyes again. He forced himself not to start sobbing through sheer force of will.
"Y-You don't have to say it," Naruto interrupted after a few seconds had passed. "It's just... just..." His voice cracked and he quieted.
They fell into silence once more, both lying side by side and staring at the ceiling, unsure of what to say to each other.
Sasuke tried to think of nothing, but images from the night before kept running through his mind. A sword streaked with crimson. His parents dead on the ground. Pools of blood in the street. Running in fear. Itachi's mocking words and a dare. Did he ever think of us as his family?
Sasuke balled his hands into fists, gathering the courage to reveal the truth. He grimaced, newly determined. He couldn't afford to be scared. He had to be stronger. Naruto would find out eventually anyway.
"Itachi," he muttered, voice so low it was little more than a whisper.
"Huh?" Sasuke felt Naruto's attention focused back on him, but he refused to meet the other boy's eyes.
"Itachi did it," Sasuke repeated, his voice stronger than the last time.
"I-Itachi?" Naruto bolted up, staring down at Sasuke on the bed. Even through his tears, Sasuke could see how Naruto's eyes had widened in shock. Hesitantly, Sasuke nodded and wiped his eyes with his forearm. "He... he killed them. Mom and Dad and... everyone. He told me he-" Sasuke froze, his vision clouding over once more. He quieted, holding his breath to swallow a sob.
"He... he said that..." Sasuke continued determinedly, suppressing the next wave of tears. "That he wanted to test himself."
"Test himself?" Naruto sounded as confused as Sasuke felt.
He grunted his assent with a nod. "He... that man... he said he would let me live. That I was gonna be the last Uchiha."
"What? Why?" Naruto moved closer, almost hovering above Sasuke.
"He told me to hate him," he muttered, avoiding Naruto's eyes by turning his head away. "He said he needed someone who could challenge him. He told me to-" Kill my best friend and obtain the Mangekyo Sharingan.
He shook his head. If he confessed that to Naruto, the other boy would abandon him forever. With his family and his clan dead, there was no one else left. He swallowed, remembering the promise he had made to his mother what felt like years ago.
They fell back into silence. To his relief, Naruto didn't press him for more information, lying down at Sasuke's side once more instead. They turned their attention back to the ceiling as the seconds crawled by.
It wasn't until the sun had begun to set that Naruto spoke up once again.
"Hey, Sasuke?"
"Hn?" Sasuke grunted to show he was listening.
"Do you want to kill Itachi?" he blurted out, the question flying past his lips.
Sasuke spun his head to look at Naruto, eyes open wide in shock. Naruto's expression was uncharacteristically serious, meeting Sasuke's eyes with a frown. It wasn't judgemental and Sasuke already knew how Naruto would respond.
Sasuke nodded, his eyes still focused on Naruto. "I have to," he said, resigned to the inevitable.
At that, Naruto's face twitched into something that was half-grimace and half-smile. "I'll help you, ya know," he vowed, sky-blue eyes full of determination and sincerity. He really means it...
Sasuke looked away, not wanting his face to betray his gratitude. For the first time that day, Sasuke smiled, although it was bitter and despairing. Itachi was wrong. Sasuke would get stronger than him no matter what. And I won't need the Mangekyo Sharingan for it.
"Thank you, Naruto," he mumbled. Naruto only grunted to show he had heard.
O-O-O-O-O
After making his promise, Naruto wasn't sure how long he stayed lying down next to Sasuke. He could only think about what had happened, wondering if he should have seen it coming earlier. He remembered Itachi had been acting weird for a long time. Did we just not see it?
At some point, night arrived, leaving the hospital room in darkness, but neither of them cared to turn on the lights. They said nothing, each lost in their own thoughts.
It wasn't until someone barged in, not bothering to knock, that Naruto and Sasuke were broken out of their stupor. The two boys bolted up, turning their attention to the door as a nurse walked in.
"Uchiha-san, I'm so sorry," she began while pushing a cart into the room. "All of our staff are currently-" The woman's mouth fell open when she saw Naruto sitting next to Sasuke. She froze, eyes wide open in shock.
Naruto fidgeted, remembering how he had snuck in earlier. "Um... hi?" he mumbled, waving his hand side to side with a fake grin on his face.
She unfroze and stomped toward the bed, glowering in familiar anger and disgust. "What are you doing here?" she screeched. "Uchiha-san needs to be resting! I don't know how you managed to get in, but you have to go now! I'll take you to Hokage-sama if I have to!"
At that, she grabbed onto Naruto's arm and pulled him out of bed. Naruto struggled instinctively although he already knew it was useless. He couldn't let the Hokage know he had skipped the exam and snuck into the hospital. Defeated, he allowed the nurse to begin pulling him away.
"Wait!" Sasuke shouted, jumping out of bed and grabbing onto Naruto's free wrist. "You can't take him!"
Naruto gaped at the other boy, his mouth falling open from shock. What is he doing?
At his protest, the nurse froze, her grip loosening slightly. "B-but, Uchiha-san," she began. "You need to recover! After what happened don't you want some-"
"No!" Sasuke shook his head furiously, tightening his hold on Naruto. With the nurse's hold loosened, he managed to pull Naruto to stand behind him. "I want him here!"
"Uchiha-san!" the nurse exclaimed, one of her hands over her mouth. "You-"
Sasuke shook his head again. "He's not leaving!" he insisted, standing like a shield in front of Naruto.
"B-but-! Uchiha-san!" The nurse turned to the two boys again. "He's-"
Sasuke growled. "I said no!" he shouted. "You can't take him away! He's staying!"
Silence fell in the hospital room. Naruto shuffled his feet, the tension almost overwhelming. Sasuke stood in front of him, shaking, angrier than Naruto could remember. The nurse only stared at them, her gaze shifting from Sasuke to Naruto, and back again. Finally, after what felt like hours, she swallowed, walking back to her cart.
"Fine," she said, staring at them with a confused frown. "Whatever you say, Uchiha-san."
At once, Naruto saw the tension in Sasuke's shoulders disappear. Both of them breathed out twin sighs of relief. I just hope she doesn't tell Gramps I'm here.
"I have your dinner, Uchiha-san," she continued as she pushed the cart over next to the bed, a confused frown on her face. "I'm sorry it took so long. Our staff is all occupied with-" She paused to swallow.
Naruto shuddered and he could see Sasuke tense once more at her words. She didn't have to complete her sentence for them to know what she was talking about.
"With a lot of things," she continued determinedly. "I'm sorry this dinner is so late. You must be starving."
With that, Naruto felt his stomach growl in hunger, but the desire to eat was non-existent. He wondered if Sasuke felt the same way. Uncertainly, they headed back to bed, Sasuke still holding onto Naruto's wrist. They sat side by side as the nurse set dinner on the food tray next to the bed.
"I hope it's enough," she said. "If you're still hungry, I can bring you more. I'll come back in around an hour, Uchiha-san." With that said, she left, pushing her cart and sliding the door closed behind her.
Alone together, they glanced at each other awkwardly as Sasuke let go of Naruto's wrist. They looked away before inspecting the food in front of them. With nothing to say, they started on their meal, tasting nothing. Once the dishes were empty, they pushed the table back and laid back down, staring up at the ceiling once again.
O-O-O-O-O
Considering all the emotional turmoil emanating from the Room, Gaara was very glad he didn't have a mission.
Sometime after midnight the night before, he had felt a disturbance in the Room. It had felt a lot like anger and annoyance, mixed with spikes of fear. But after an hour or so, the feeling had dissipated and Gaara had been able to relax once more.
The morning after that, however, was not as nice. Soon after breakfast, Gaara kept absorbing anxiety emanating from the Room. He was sure the feeling originated from one of the jinchuuriki, but he had no idea what it could be. Trying to get his mind off of the borrowed emotions, he had paced around his room and inspected all of his potted plants.
To distract himself, he tried to come up with a reason for why one of the jinchuuriki was so anxious. I think Naruto has a test. Maybe he's really nervous about it. And Fuu nee-chan was working with the Four-Tails transformation. Maybe Utakata nii-san has a mission with his team again. I think Mama and Papa are on a mission, too.
Gaara forced himself to ignore the temptation to enter the Room. He could tell no one was there. Plus, it would only take away from the precious time he could spend there later with everyone. He assumed someone was nervous and left it at that.
Unable to push the anxiety out of his mind, Gaara tried and failed to distract himself. He began to read a book about succulents but the words washed over him. Then, he tried to copy the detailed drawings from a gardening book into his sketchbook. However, the lines were scratchy and the proportions wrong. Unnerved, he sat down at his window and stared at the distant desert dunes instead.
He was not prepared to be hit by true despair sometime in the afternoon.
In an instant, his eyes welled with tears and he left his perch on the window to sit at the edge of his bed. He sobbed, feeling almost as miserable as when Yashamaru had died. Filled with sorrow, he cried into the palms of his hands, glad that he was safe and hidden in his bedroom.
I'm just glad we don't have a mission, he thought as he wiped the tears away from his eyes. He didn't know what would happen if Temari or Kankuro found him crying like that and he didn't want to ever find out.
It took him a few minutes to stop sobbing. When he did, he breathed out, slowly and methodically, same as Roshi had taught him long ago. Calm once more, he allowed the familiar mask of indifference to take over his face.
What happened? Why am I so sad? Did someone... die? Worried, he exhaled one last time, slow and steady. He wiped his face before shifting into a cross-legged position, leaning his back on the wall.
In almost an instant, his mind took him to the Room. When he reappeared, he saw Fuu looking through the window of Naruto's Door. He walked closer, the feeling of grief intensifying. When he reached Fuu's side, he froze when he saw her face. Her eyes were shining and she appeared to be holding back tears.
"Fuu nee-chan?" Gaara said, trying to get her attention. "You-"
Fuu nodded, sparing him only a glance before turning her attention back to the window. "It's Naruto-kun," she said. "He's-" she swallowed. "He's trying to comfort his friend."
"Comfort? Why?" Curious, Gaara walked closer to Naruto's Door, standing on his tiptoes to try and see through the window. Instinctively, Fuu lifted him up to help him see, pushing her body against him in a protective hug. Together, they looked through but Naruto had closed his eyes and they could see nothing.
'Naruto?' Gaara began tentatively as he placed his hand on the Door. The other boy refused to answer. Gaara grimaced. Naruto had never ignored him for longer than five seconds before.
'Naruto?' he asked again, more insistent.
"I don't think he can talk right now," Fuu said, pressing her cheek next to his. "You know his friend, right?"
"Which friend?" Naruto always insisted that he only had one friend and one rival. However, based on what he had told them about the boy, Sasuke, they were friends in everything but name.
"Sasuke," Fuu answered. "Naruto hasn't told me what happened but I think..." she paused to gulp, looking down at the tiled floor. "I think his family is dead."
"D-dead!? But why? How?" Gaara took a step back from Naruto's Door. He pulled Fuu's hand so they stood apart, their conversation slightly more private.
Fuu squeezed Gaara's hand and stepped closer, wrapping her arms around him once more. "I don't know," she admitted. "But you know what Sasuke's mother was like."
"I know."
Gaara wrapped his arms around Fuu's midsection. He had never seen the woman himself, but Gaara had heard everything about her from Naruto. She had planned Naruto a birthday party, invited him to stay over for New Year's, and taught him new recipes. Naruto had more nice words to say about her than anyone else in his life, at least.
They held each other for a few seconds, feeling Naruto's sadness as their own. Fuu began to comb her fingers through Gaara's hair, trying to offer as much comfort as she could. Gaara bit his lip, tightening his grip on Fuu. He wanted to stay longer but it was impossible. He couldn't let Shukaku take control again.
"I have to go," Gaara interrupted, speaking softly into Fuu's shoulder. "If I stay here any longer, I won't be able to spend a lot of time with the others tonight. I think we're gonna have a big talk later."
Fuu nodded. "I understand. Stay safe, Gaara-kun. I'll talk to you later." She pressed a kiss on his forehead.
"See you later, nee-chan." With that, Gaara left the Room.
Gaara opened his eyes to the familiar sight of his bedroom. He bit his lip and clutched his hand over his chest, balling the fabric of his shirt with a fist. He gulped before breathing out slowly.
Gaara walked to the windowsill, the sight of his plants soaking the light of the sun calming him down. He looked out at the empty desert as he waited impatiently for any news from Naruto.
O-O-O-O-O
Fuu looked at the jinchuuriki assembled in the Room and fidgeted.
At her side, Naruto leaned his head on her shoulder, staring off into space, tear tracks on his face. On Naruto's other side, Gaara leaned against him, his cheek on Naruto's shoulder. She bit her lip as she wrapped her arms loosely around the youngest boy.
Fuu looked around the Room, waiting for someone to talk, but everyone was too afraid to break the silence. Finally, after a few tense minutes, Yagura cleared his throat. With that, the tension broke and everyone shifted in their place.
"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun," the former Mizukage said. "We know how much that family meant to you."
Naruto nodded at his words, refusing to look up. "Sasuke's brother," he muttered, voice croaky and strained. "Itachi... he killed them. Sasuke's the last one, ya know."
The adults grimaced. They moved closer, forming a close-knit ring of jinchuuriki. Roshi knelt down and began combing his fingers through Naruto's hair.
"I know how important they were to you," Roshi began. "And I'm sorry. But they are never coming back."
Naruto sniffled, looking up to meet Roshi's face, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "Mama, why do people have to die?" he asked.
Roshi grimaced, but he refused to look away. "I'm not sure, Naruto," the older man said with a sigh. "People die and people are born. It's a circle of life and death."
"But why?" Naruto asked again, more insistent, sounding almost angry.
Roshi sighed, wearier than Fuu had ever seen him before. "I really don't know, Naruto," he confessed. "That's just how the world works. We don't even know for sure what happens after we die. We simply have to keep living."
"Then..." Naruto swallowed, managing not to break down into tears once more. "What's the point of living if we all just... die at the end?"
"I don't know, Naruto-kun," Roshi continued. "I just don't. And there is no way for people to find out for sure. We can only keep living the lives we have."
Naruto looked away, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. He bit his lip, unsatisfied with the answer. Roshi grimaced at the reaction, unsure of what to say. The Room fell into awkward silence once more.
"Do you know what I think, Naruto-kun?" Utakata interrupted, speaking for the first time.
Naruto, Fuu, and Gaara turned their gaze to the older boy in surprise. Utakata had stood silently at Yugito's side since they arrived in the Room. Hearing him speak up was unusual.
With all the attention focused on him, Utakata stepped closer, kneeling down next to Roshi.
"W-what is it, nii-san?" Naruto asked, eyes glistening with hesitant hope.
"What matters in the world is our connections with each other," Utakata continued. "When we remember our bonds with the people that we have and that came before, those that die will never be truly gone. With those memories, you won't see them, but they will still always be with you. In that way, people can live forever."
"R-really?" Naruto asked. He looked up at Utakata, one tear falling silently down his cheek. Utakata only nodded in assent. Naruto wiped the teardrop away with his knuckles, sniffling.
"I didn't know you were such a philosopher, Utakata-kun," Yagura commented, sounding pleased yet surprised.
"I have many talents," Utakata retorted as he stood up. "I can reach the food on the top shelf for one."
Yagura said nothing at that and instead glared at Utakata. To Fuu's relief, Naruto let out a sad chuckle at the exchange. She tightened her grip around his shoulders.
"Naruto, I know what you're feeling right now," Fuu said, voice soft. "When I learned my mother had died and when Kushina-san died, too... I wasn't sure if I could keep going." She paused to swallow, feeling tears building at the corners of her eyes. "But I realized that... I can be happy because I had a chance to be with them... to know them and love them a lot when they were still here. And when I remember them... it hurts. But like nii-san said, it also means they will never be really gone."
Unable to hold herself back anymore, she let the tears fall. She wiped them away, loosening her hug on Naruto. When he saw her crying, Gaara moved closer, wrapping his arms around her. She sniffled and watched as Naruto turned his attention back to Roshi.
"Mama," Naruto said, voice little more than a whisper. "Does it ever get easier? Do you ever... stop caring?"
Roshi's face hardened. He pulled Naruto into his arms in a hug. "No," he admitted as he tightened his hold on the boy. "When you love someone, losing them is the worst pain you can experience. But that pain makes you remember that despite what everyone says, you're still a human. Nothing more, nothing less."
At that, Naruto began to sob again, burying his face into Roshi's shoulders.
The Room fell into silence once more except for Naruto's wailing. Roshi wrapped Naruto in his arms, holding onto him like he used to do when he was much younger. Fuu pulled Gaara toward her. They leaned upon each other, linking their hands together. The rest of the jinchuuriki looked at the display before them, eyes full of pity and compassion. Together, they waited for Naruto to stop crying.
After a few minutes, Naruto stopped and wiped his face with his forearm. He sighed, his arms wrapping around Roshi once more. He pressed his chin onto the man's shoulder and stared forlornly down at the floor.
Fuu breathed out a sigh of relief and she saw tension release from Gaara's shoulders as well. He still has us, she thought to herself as she tightened her grip on Gaara. They sat side by side, feeling Naruto's grief as their own.
Yugito interrupted with a sigh.
Everyone, even Naruto, turned their attention toward her. For some reason, Han and Roshi tensed, looking away from her in fear. Fuu frowned. What's wrong? Did something happen between them?
Yugito sighed again when she noticed all the attention had focused on her. "I had hoped to say this under better circumstances," she began. "But I think there's something a few of us need to confess."
She glared at Roshi and Han, crossing her arms in front of her chest. With Naruto still on his lap, Roshi blushed and looked away. Nearby, Han shuffled his feet and tucked his hand into his armor in a nervous gesture. From the corner of her eye, Fuu saw Yagura with a smirk on his face.
Fuu blinked and tilted her head to the side in confusion. Okay, seriously, what happened?
"Wait, what?" Utakata asked as he turned his gaze among Han, Roshi, Yagura, and Yugito. "Did you four do something?"
"Hmm, you could say someone did something," Yugito answered evasively. She turned her attention back to Han and Roshi, who avoided meeting her eyes.
"Oh, what's been happening here? Is it something you fear?" B began. "When Yugito says confess, you better not stress! Just say it out loud, you have been allowed, you dumbass phonies!" Killer B finished his rap by pointing at the two men in accusation.
Han and Roshi sighed, exhausted and annoyed. They shared glances before looking back at the rest of the group.
"Do you want to tell them or should I?" Han asked, voice full of weariness.
"Oh, by all means, go ahead," Roshi grumbled.
Seeing something was coming, Naruto unwrapped his arms from Roshi's neck. He crawled back to sit down between Fuu and Gaara. The three of them leaned on each other for comfort as they waited to hear what the two men had to confess. As one, the jinchuuriki turned their attention to Han, who was clearing his throat in anticipation.
"We're missing-nin," Han confessed, a nervous grimace on his face.
"What!?" Gaara, Utakata, Fuu, Killer B, and Naruto shouted together. "Missing-nin!?"
"Wait... since when are you missing-nin?" Utakata asked. "And why? What happened? Where are you two now? How did you two escape Iwagakure?"
"It's... kind of a long story," Roshi said, overwhelmed by the number of questions.
"It's really not," Yagura retorted with a snort.
"No. It isn't," Han agreed with a sigh. "The Tsuchikage asked us to do a mission together that we thought was deplorable. We decided to escape the village instead. As for where we are... Well, we are currently camping with Yagura and Yugito near a small village in the Land of Lightning."
"Huh?" Utakata, if anything, looked more lost than before. "Since when have you been with Yugito and Yagura?"
"Well, we met up last night while making camp," Roshi said, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "But Han and I have been missing-nin for around a year now."
"A year!?" Utakata shouted. "Why didn't you tell us earlier? This is the kind of information we need to know at once! I can't believe you would keep this hidden!"
"Also, we haven't been alone," Roshi continued. "Yagura has been traveling with us. We've been learning how to control the power of the bijuu with his help."
At that, Yagura straightened his back, smirking as he looked around the Room. "They wouldn't be able to figure out what to do without my help, after all," he boasted.
"And how come you didn't tell us earlier?" Utakata asked, still looking furious.
"We didn't want to worry everyone," Roshi admitted. "We thought it would be easier for us to work in secrecy, at least for a while. I doubt Iwagakure has admitted we've deserted the village, either."
"No." Yugito shook her head. "I don't think the Raikage knows you two are jinchuuriki. However, you two made names for yourselves during the Third Shinobi War. If two well-known shinobi were put on a wanted list, we would have heard about it before. A listing for your heads would have made the rounds."
"Sorry," Roshi apologized. Still kneeling on the ground, he tilted his head down.
From his standing position, Han bent his head forward, equally remorseful. "We should have revealed the truth earlier," he said. "Please forgive us."
Yugito glared at them with a frown. "I can't stay angry at you two if you apologize," she complained.
"When you say sorry, my eyes get starry," Killer B sang. "What matters is sincerity, with that there is prosperity, oh yeah!"
"There's just one more question I have," Utakata continued, ignoring B effortlessly.
"What is it?" Roshi asked wearily.
"What mission was so loathsome that you decided to declare yourselves missing-nin instead?"
The two men exchanged glances, having a silent conversation between themselves. Making a decision, they nodded to each other and turned, focusing on Fuu for some reason. She tilted her head to the side, confused about why they were looking at her.
"Fuu-chan," Roshi began. "We left Iwagakure because of you."
Fuu blinked before pointing at herself. "M-me? What do I have to do with anything?" Naruto looked up at her, a confused frown on his face. On Naruto's side, Gaara seemed equally bewildered.
Roshi hummed to himself before answering. "It has to do with the mission we got from the Tsuchikage," he answered. "You see, we-" he swallowed, looking around at the assembled jinchuuriki once more. "We were ordered to find the jinchuuriki of Takigakure and kill it."
"What!?" all the other jinchuuriki except for Han and Yaguara shouted in surprise and horror.
"K-kill?" Utakata stuttered, a disgusted grimace on his face.
"Oh that's truly evil, to kill a little girl is primeval, you dumbass phony!" Killer B shouted, dancing angrily.
"Kill me!?" Fuu shouted, voice shaking. She turned her gaze desperately between Han and Roshi, grabbing the hem of her skirt with her fists. "Why did they wanna kill me?"
The other jinchuuriki turned their attention toward her, seemingly wondering the same thing. Han and Roshi stared at her, their eyes sad. Fuu waited for someone to explain, trembling in shock and fear.
Roshi was the first to break the silence. "After that attack in your village, Iwagakure learned about a jinchuuriki in Takigakure" he began. "Onoki thus learned about you, though he didn't know exactly who the Nanabi Jinchuuriki was."
"We couldn't go and complete the mission," Han said, continuing Roshi's explanation. "We talked to Yagura and we decided it would be best to abandon the village."
"Why didn't you talk to the rest of us?" Yugito asked, placing her hands on her hips in annoyance. "You said it's been around a year, right?"
"We didn't want to worry you," Roshi explained with a shrug of his shoulders. "Han agreed with me, so we decided to keep our decision secret."
"Were you ever going to tell us?" Utakata asked, joining Yugito's side.
"When we became infamous bounty hunters," Han answered. "We should have told you earlier, though. I'm sorry." He bowed his head down in apology once more.
"Well, if it was to keep Fuu-chan safe, I can kind of understand why," Yugito admitted grudgingly.
"We must protect our butterfly, I never wanna say goodbye," Killer B rapped. "Protect her we must, she can't bite the dust, yeah!"
Fuu stared at the conversation happening in front of her, her jaw falling open in awe and surprise. Without being aware of it, her sight blurred and she realized she had started crying, harder than before.
"Fuu..." Gaara noticed her state first, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She squeezed his hands in gratitude.
"Nee-chan..." Naruto said, hugging her midsection.
"Thank you," she said, bowing her head down almost to the floor as the tears fell, staining her skirt. "You... I..." she started bawling, not sure how to put her feelings into words. Do they care about me that much? To leave their own villages?
The two boys clung to her in support more tightly than before. Despite the situation, she smiled, swallowing a sob to allow her to speak.
"Thank you," she said once again, bowing her head in gratitude. "Thank you for caring about me so much. I- I don't think I can ever repay you."
"Fuu-chan..." Roshi leaned forward and pulled her head up by her chin, wiping her tears away from her face. He met her eyes, a gentle smile on his lips. "You don't have to repay us. We did it because we wanted to keep you safe."
Overwhelmed, Fuu leaped forward, wrapping her arms around Roshi's neck. He grunted before returning the gesture, rubbing the palms of his hands in gentle circles on her back. She bawled onto his shoulder, staining his shirt with tears.
"You're more important than our village, Fuu," Han said, moving to stand behind Roshi. He placed his hand on her head and ruffled her hair. "Though, to be honest, Onoki was a fucking asshole and we're happy to be rid of him."
"Language!" Roshi scolded.
Fuu giggled, Roshi's familiar annoyance more comforting than expected.
"I know it doesn't mean much, Fuu," Gaara said, squeezing her shoulder. "But I think you're more important than Sunagakure,"
"When I'm Hokage, I'll make sure to protect you too, Fuu," Naruto added as he squeezed her other shoulder. "I'll help, ya know!"
She sniffled and looked around the Room. While the other jinchuuriki were silent, she could tell they felt the same way as the two boys. Utakata, Yagura, and Yugito smiled at her, eyes gentle. Killer B struck a pose, grinning with his thumbs up. Han and Roshi looked down at her, protective and kind.
Still squeezing her hands, Gaara and Naruto met her gaze. Reassured, Fuu wiped the tears and snot away from her face with her forearm. She looked up and grinned at everyone.
"Thank you," she said for the last time. She couldn't remember ever feeling so loved before in her life. I knew they cared about me, but not so much they'd become missing-nin.
"Sometimes there are more important things than what the village wants us to do," Utakata concluded with a nod, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
Fuu smiled, looking down at the floor while biting her lip. She nodded, glad to have so many people that cared.
O-O-O-O-O
A/N: This was the hardest chapter to write that I can remember. I think it breaks the record for the most crying in one chapter, too.
These last two chapters (and the next one) are taking A LOT out of me. There almost definitely won't be a chapter next Saturday.
If you still use Tumblr, my account is waffledogwrites. I'm also on Discord at WaffleDogOfficial#0023.
Next chapter: the dust settles.