Thirty Kisses Theme 04 - Our Distance And That Person
Yuugao didn't know how it had happened. She had vowed to the Hokage to keep silent through the meeting with Sand to discuss the peace treaty. She had promised her squad she would not say a word while the casualty reports were being read. And most importantly, she had sworn on Hayate's name that she would not disrespect his memory. But watching his murderer speak of peace, speak of the casualty reports, speak of a treaty? It was too much, even for her.
"You bastard…" She whispered loudly, drawing the attention of the two ANBU squads nearest her own. Her lieutenant, the ANBU in the bird mask, put a hand on her shoulder in warning and placed his face near her ear.
"Uzuki-san, please don't make a scene." The man muttered, his grip on her shoulder tightening a little in warning. She angrily brushed the man's touch from her, her gloved hands unconsciously balling into fists as she fought to hold them straight by her side. Her mask covered her face thankfully, and her glare was hidden behind the sturdy white material.
"Sand would like to extend its apologies to the family and friends to those who lost their lives in the Sand-Sound attack, due to our carelessness in allowing our Kazekage to be killed and replaced by Orochimaru, many shinobi lost their lives. Sand feels it is our duty to offer our condolences and respect to the sixty three Leaf ninja killed in battle." Yuugao bit her lip, her teeth clipping the soft skin of her mouth hard enough to draw blood. Sand killed sixty four Leaf ninja! He isn't even acknowledging Hayate! Her mind was full of rage and anger, and it took all of the self control she possessed to keep from attacking the other jounin on the spot.
She turned her head slightly away from the front of the room where the sand delegates sat across from the Leaf Hokage and counsel, a podium between the two groups. Now it was time to sign the treaty. All of the jounin present would have to sign the peace treaty, whatever good that would do, and each of them would leave a drop of blood. To start the entire process Tsunade stood and approached the scroll, signing her name at the top and then neatly drawing blood from her thumb and pressing it down beside her name. The Sand jounin rose to do the same as the Leaf jounin filed into a line. There were no cheers, no cries of peace. That was for the common folk, who actually believed that this paper would hold the two villages together. Oh, it would bind them, for a time. But how long that time was could only be speculated. Yuugao chose not to dwell on that.
Her ANBU squad was behind her in the line, all of them tense and anxious. They were unsure now of their leader's actions, what she would do, seeing that the Sand delegates were standing behind the scroll with the Hokage now, shaking hands, offering greetings and words of trust and peace. All of it fake, but they did not relish the idea of Yuugao needing to be dragged off of Baki.
Her face was set as she removed her mask and wiped the blood from her chin in the same motion as she approached the scroll. Her mouth was a firm line of self control as she took up the pen and signed her name underneath the Hokage's and directly across from Baki's. She fought from shooting a glare at Baki as she whipped out a kunai as all the others had done to draw blood. However, instead of slicing a clean cut across her finger, Yuugao neatly widened the bite on her bottom lip, pursing her mouth together as she did so. Her ANBU squad, the Hokage, and the Sand delegates shot each other strange looks as she bent to kiss the paper beside her name, leaving the ruby red imprint of her lips beside the other signatures.
"Uzuki-san…" Her lieutenant held out an arm as if to stop her as she turned and began to leave the room. She brushed past him, replacing her mask upon her face and striding out of the hall with her head held high. Her self control only went so far, even if the temporary treaty did benefit the Leaf. She could never forgive Sand for the death of her lover. But perhaps, Yuugao thought as she strode out of the building, she had made Hayate proud after all.
