Chapter 6: Tested Nights
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Not one of them was sure what happened. But it did happen and that's all that mattered. Naruto at first wasn't thinking. Panic and fear had taken over him. Slowly a small regret formed in Ishida's heart. The bonds he had with Kakashi weren't fully severed. Kakashi ignored the pain. It wasn't important right now. He had saved Naruto. That's all that he wanted to do.
Ishida stood there with blood streaming down his hand that held the kunai. Naruto's kunai had struck him in the back. But not who he wanted to strike. Kakashi stood there with his eyes looking into Ishida's. He had removed the foreheade protector at last to reveal sharingan.
Naruto's hands began to shake. He couldn't believe what he had just done. There stood Kakashi. His sensei, his friend. Naruto's kunai impaled into his back, Ishida's piercing his chest.
Blood mixed with rain. A pool of it formed at the feet of the jounin. Ishida let go of the kunai. Kakashi's fingers wrapped around it and pulled it out. More blood spilled. It was enough for Kakashi to start to get dizzy. Naruto's kunai was still stuck in him.
'My hands!' Ishida stared at his hands. He wiped them together, then on his clothes. But it made the blood only get more over him. His eyes looked up at Kakashi who was still standing. His hand gripped the spot in his chest, while the other held the kunai that Ishida had thrusted at him. "I didn't mean... I was-" words couldnt' come to mind. Afterall how do you tell someone that you weren't aiming for them, but their student.
He felt his knees trembling. Then a splash of water as his legs buckled under him. "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto watched as Kakashi fell to the ground, his kunai still in his back. He looked up and saw that Ishida had run off. 'Good' he thought. Now he had to take of his sensei.
Naruto wrapped his arms around under Kakashi's armpits. He pulled gentley, Kakashi pushed him away at first. He straightened his legs. But it was hard to stand. Naruto immediately rushed to his side as he began to sway. With one arm around Naruto's shoulder, another clasping the chest wound, Kakashi began to walk a little. Naruto led him in the way of Konoha.
It was only about 10 minutes before Naruto found a hollow in a tree. Gentley he lowered Kakashi against the hollow's inner wall. Naruto ducked under as the rain came pouring down as well. When they were both in there, silence fell over them.
Kakashi reached back and pulled out Naruto's kunai. Pain struct his face as he winced. Naruto took a look at his sensei and then looked away. It was too much. He hadn't seen Kakashi so weak, and yet so strong. A zipping sound came from Kakashi's direction. He was ripping the sleeves of his shirt. Underneath were well formed muscles. Naruto could see it hurt to do so much moving around.
Naruto leaned over and grabbed the bloody kunai. It was hard for him to do. But he began to cut the sleeves into strips. Kakashi smiled under the mask. Thunder and lighting continued to dominate the world outside. The rain poured down hard onto the ground. Puddles were begining to form. It continued to rain, on into the night.
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Slam!-the door to his house shut as hard as he could slam it. His finger reached and flipped on the light. Ishida was soaking with water. Small puddles scattered around him. His sandals sloshed against the wodden floors. Here, this is where he had built a new life. Deep in the woods he made a house. Away from any wanderers or searchers.
It wasn't a large house. Only one story. Made of wood. All of it. He had four main rooms. A kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and a personal space room. There he made his desirable powder. The large cylinder slipped off his back and hit the floor. He looked down upon it. The cap was still on. Ishida almost wished that it had come off and the powder spill.
Footsteps came from in one of the other rooms. Around the corner came a black haired male. His hair was short and spikey. He was built to fight. All the clothes he had on were a white T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. His face seemed puzzled. "Ishida, what happened to you?"
Ishida's face grew cold and angry, "I met up with an old friend," then it softened into saddness, "and maybe killed him." That's when he looked at his blood stained hands. His eyes went from them to his clothes. Blood, Kakashi's blood, was all over him. "Ready a bath for me, Kuzu. I'll be busy the rest of the night."
Kuzu nodded and walked off. That's when the tears came. They strolled down his cheeks and fell into his palms.
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Morning came. The ground was wet, but it made it all the more beautiful. The golden sun reflected off of the water on leaves. The whole forest was shinning bright.
Naruto sat against the wall of the hallow he had taken shelter in last night. Once the sun touched his face, his blue eyes were opened. "Kakashi-sensei!" he whispered to himself. Up and down. Kakashi's chest moved. "Your still alive," a wave of relief covered the boy. The bandages they had made from Kakashi's sleeves had held. Today they would be able to move back to Konoha.
Kakashi slept soundly. He was breathing good, healthy, heavy breaths. Naruto smiled and stood up. "If our packs are any good, there should be some medical supplies in them," he said to himself. Just after they landed on the branches last night, they dropped their packs. Most the stuff in it would probably be spoiled and unusable.
But before he left he turned back once more. When his eyes met Kakashi's sleeping face, his eyes bolted open. Naruto smiled again at his sensei. "See, you lived."
The jounin let a smile appear under the mask, "I see you did too. The packs will be useless." Naruto gave him a puzzled look. "I'm a light sleeper." It was true. He had trained himself to sleep very light. Now he heard almost everything that went on when he was asleep. Naruto sighed in disappointment. He had wanted to see if any of the ramen was good as well. But he thought it best to listen to his teacher. Maybe then he could find out just why Kakashi was picked for this mission.
As Naruto sat down, Kakashi's face saddened. Naruto needn't ask, for Kakashi was ready to tell him. "Now would be a good time to tell why Ishida is an outcast. He wasn't always that way. People just didn't notice him before. I was the only close friend he had. We met when I was 9. Ishida and I use to spend all our free time together. I don't supose I ever told you this, but I had a sister." His eyes shadowed over with memories. Naruto was patient. He could tell that remebering was hurting Kakashi. "Her name was Kishi. She was only 16.-
"Kakashi? Just what is the matter?"
"Kishi, why did you scare him! Why? You have to leave. Run! Now!" the young boy's voice was filled with worry and panic. Kishi was worried for her brother. She climbed up ontop of the tree house. Kakashi tried to pull back, but she came closer and closer. Before he knew it, her arms had wrapped around him. "
In a calm whisper she said to him, "Now settle down. Tell me what's wrong."
Kakashi's whole body was shaking. One last try he pushed away. But he had pushed to hard and fell back. Right into the hole in the roof. He lay there on his back. It hurt and he had a headache. His eyes stared up through the hole into the trees above. A worried face popped over the side of the hole. Kishi's long hair fell to the side of her face.
Instictively she jumped down to see how Kakashi was doing. "Are you alright?" the boy's head nodded. He sat up. That's when he saw him. His thin body was only a dark figure amongst the shadows. A face of fear and rage looked at the young woman in front of him.
He held in his hand a knife. Slowly he approached her. Ishida's arm raised in the air about to strike. This was going to happen. Kakashi grabbed Kishi's shoulder's and threw her. She landed on the mattress that was Ishida's bed. This was just in time. Ishida's knife came crashing down next to Kakashi's head. Some silver hair stuck on the other side of the knife.
Ishida's breath quickened. Both boys felt a fear like never before. It was true fear. Not what they felt when the dog chased them out of the library, but fear one feels when death is staring them in the eyes. When they know it's coming and they can't stop it. When one's life is taken away for no reason at all.
"Kakashi!" Kishi shouted. She stood up and ran over to him. But Ishida was more frightened than before. This was the first time Kakashi would see Ishida's reason for being alone.
As Kishi approached the fallen boy, Ishida's eyes filled with anger. His fear had turned him defenseless. He felt cornered and trapped. Kishi was a threat to him. It was for his life he thought, that he had to attack.
Before either boy knew it, Ishida had thrown himself at Kishi. She fell back onto the mattress. Stunned at the sudden attack. Ishida tore at her with his own hands. Blood soaked the floor. Kishi didn't even scream. She couldn't fight back. Even though he was young, he had an immense power raging inside of him.
Kakashi came over his paralysis and got up as quickly as he could. His feet scrambled across the wooden floor. Then he took hold of Ishida. It was hard for the red head was fiercely determined to attack. Kakashi held on tight. Soon Ishida began to calm down. His breathing was still heavy. Both of the boys relaxed and fell to the ground.
Kakashi's arms were still holding on to Ishida. Then Ishida's eyes looked up to the girl on the bed. Tears of sorrow and fear overcame him. "What have I done!" he choked between words on cries. Kakashi was silent. He couldn't think of anything to say. He just held Ishida and let him cry.
Blood splattered the walls around the bed. The sight was too much for a boy at his age.
'This is all my fault. I didn't try and stop him sooner. I pushed her away instead of bringing her home. If only I had told her to stop coming at me. If only I had grabbed Ishida and held him till she escaped. It's not his fault. He was just a frightened... it was like watching a frightened animal.' Kakashi kept these thoughts to himself. That's when he noticed that Ishida had stopped crying and was now passed out.
"They'll be looking for us soon." Kakashi grappled Ishida's arms and swung him onto his back. "I'll get you away. From here, from this death," In a whisper he spoke to himself, "Kishi, forgive me." He tried to cry, but nothing would come.
"I did exactly what I promised. I got Ishida away from there. Unfortunately shinobi were already looking for her. They caught on to me very quickly. When Ishida finally awoke, I could see them over my shoulder. Immediately he jumped off and began to pull me behind. We got away and landed next to a river." Naruto was still silent, "I passed out from being over exhausted, the last I saw of Ishida was him running towards me."
Naruto didn't think it was complicated. He thought maybe Kakashi had been on the case of Ishida's murder and that's why he was assigned to it now. That's why the two had known each other. But nothing like this had remotely come to mind.
They sat in silence. Nothing more was to be said. Even the birds were silent. A slight wind rustled the leaves on trees.
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I know this one is short, but I wanted to leave it with the emotional impact.
Next chapter of The Day I wouldn't Forget You: A Plot Is Revealed
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