A/N: The people mourn the newest loss.
Slight content warning: talks of depression and suicide.
The next day, while the police were still trying to deal with errant protestors in the city square, Shien had heard of the death and had burst into angry tears, walking until she found herself in the back garden staring at her own headstone.
Her hands were clenched into fists, her vision blurred with tears as she stared at the stone, the words warping.
She let out a shaky breath and reached, grabbing the edges and kneeling before it, bowing her head so that her tears dribbled off her chin and down onto the grass.
"Why?" She whispered with a sniffle, her fingers clenching tighter onto the rough. "Why?"
She knew as soon as the person's name was announced that it would foster horrible memories, but she hadn't thought it would be someone so close to home, either.
Flashes of her cousin's pretty face went through her mind's eye, flickering in and out with what she still recalled of her voice.
She gripped tighter. More liquid fell onto the grass beneath.
"I never wanted this to happen," she sobbed. "Please, why? Why did they do this?"
Slowly, her grip slackened on the stone and her arms dropped to her sides, falling onto the grass
She blinked rapidly before prostrating herself before the memorial, crying quietly into the earth.
"Ei… Kami, why?" Shien whispered brokenly. "First you, and now them? They… they did nothing to deserve this! Just like you!"
She didn't notice when stems began to peek from the earth, lightly tickling her fingers.
"They loved this city, just like you," she continued to speak, hiccupping and gritting her teeth as the pain in her chest grew.
Her heavy breathing was interrupted by a wet cough, and her hand shot to her mouth as she hunched over, coughing into it.
As her fit subsided, she weakly pulled her hand away and her breathing hitched as she recognized it as a sprouted flower bulb.
Then her surroundings caught her attention. She glanced around and her eyes widened as she saw a bed of Moondrops at the base of the headstone, obscuring the birth-and-death dates at the bottom of it.
For a moment, she was silent, staring dumbfoundedly at the flowers.
"Oh no," she whispered in a panic, glancing about to see if anyone saw.
Luckily, her shoulders relaxed as she saw nobody near, not in the windows or otherwise.
Shakily, she wiped her tears away, set the sprouted, slightly-blood-speckled bulb on the grass, and braced herself on the tombstone to get up from the ground.
She brushed the dirt and grass off her dress and looked to the bulb mournfully before crushing it underfoot, grinding it into her heel.
She sighed, giving the tombstone another glance before turning and leaving.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, clenching her eyes shut for a moment. "I'm so sorry."
Meanwhile, back at the rebel camp, Tsunade was hearing of the death and everyone shared in outrage over it.
Ino, especially, was angry. She paced about, exclaiming about "this stupid shit happening again" and "history repeating itself due to nobody learning their damn lesson".
Curious and worried, Aoi pulled her aside to ask about it.
Still blowing smoke out her nose, she replied heatedly, "You remember my friend, Sakura? This exact thing happened to her family many years ago, right before she went missing. Her cousin was killed by the Uchiha soldiers and it was totally a wrongful murder, just like what happened to Tanaka-san. Sakura loved her cousin more than anyone, even Sa…" she cut herself off, instead pacing once more and heaving a sigh. "Anyway, it really hit her hard. It was one of the biggest reasons she detailed to me in her decision to kill herself. We're all worried this is gonna have horrible effects on... the community they were a part of. They had a lot of family in Morino."
Aoi's eye widened, and they breathed a disbelieving, quiet "Oh."
The entire village of Morino was in a new, deep state of mourning.
Hideki watched with Daitan as the adults gathered together in the square, burning candles at the broken fountain and praying together.
Two people in particular, a father and son, seemed to be the deceased's family members. The son, a young man, was standing next to his father staring at the flames lighting up the twilight, and the father was weeping quietly.
"Tanaka-san was a beloved member of the community," she'd whispered to him when he inquired of it. "Everyone loved them dearly, especially my father. Those two were the only family they had left."
Hideki glanced around, noting the solemn silence among the members of Mimei.
Aika glanced towards him and gave him a sad smile before looking away.
Daitan quietly excused herself to go to the two family members, and like that, he was left alone.
Boruda came up to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey kid, how you doing?"
"I'm… so confused," he replied just as quietly. "Why are we just mourning? Why aren't we planning to do anything about it?"
The man winced. "There's not much we can do at this point that wouldn't jeopardize the main mission. I'm sorry, kid, but all we can do is hope for better things to come."
"But that's… that's stupid," he replied, his voice rising a fraction in anger. "That's so spineless! This was an active hate crime, why are the people remaining silent?"
"If we act now, it's game over for those at the capital," he replied tiredly. "We can't go. If anything, the burden is on the group there."
"There is a lot of bias, and fear, and inequality in the world right now, Sato," Karin spoke up next from his other side. "We've done all we can do."
He shook his head, his eyes darker with anger. "No. No, I refuse. There has to be something we can do."
Karin reached for his other side, but he shrugged off their hands and turned.
"I'm leaving for a while. I need to calm down." He announced to them before stalking off.
The redhead looked to Boruda helplessly, but the older man just shook his head.
"Let the boy be, he needs this time alone." He sighed, turning back to the candlelight.
She gave the treeline another worried look before her shoulders slumped and she sagged against his side, his arm coming up to steady her as her eyes closed.
The first thing Kakashi said when he met with Rin that evening was, "You had a son."
She blinked at his words before raising an eyebrow in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"In the square, yesterday, I saw a little boy," he continued, pointing towards the city. "A little boy looking to be not that much older than six or seven. A little boy who had black eyes in the same exact hue and shape as Obito's, and dark-brown hair that looked just like yours."
Rin's breath hitched, and her body turned to face him fully. Her shoulders tensed as he stared her in the eye.
"You had a son," he repeated, his voice shaky and heavy with emotion.
"I…" she hesitated. How could she word this? "I…"
Finally, she bowed her head and heaved a sigh. "... yes. I did."
"Why did you… why on earth would you attempt suicide if you were pregnant? Did you not care that you would be throwing your legacy away? Did you not want a link to Obito?"
"I didn't even know I was pregnant when I ran away! I wasn't even pregnant yet!" She yelled at him, her head shooting up and her eyes wet with tears. She glared at him, leaning forward. "You have no idea how much I regret ever trying to off myself ever since I found out about the baby. When I realized I was pregnant, I fell into a deep depression that lasted weeks! If it wasn't for Tsunade, I would be holed up in a village somewhere, trying to raise a baby by myself! You have no idea how much it affected me! How it still affects me!"
Kakashi raised his hands in defense, shrinking back with every shout.
"I gave that baby away because I didn't want to give this up," she seethed, shoulders tense and heaving with each breath. "I gave him up because I didn't want him to be forced to live a life like this. I gave him up because I saw a broken family who needed him more than I did, and because I did it, they're happy! They already lost one child, Kakashi - who am I to rob them of another chance?"
"I… I'm sorry," he quietly replied, lowering his hands. "Anything… anything having to do with Obito just…"
"I know," she huffed, her voice cracking. "I know."
He found himself faltering as she sniffled and wiped her watery eyes. Guilt rose in his heart at the same time that his covered eye began to itch.
"I'm sorry," he repeated, softer in tone as he reached for her face. He cupped her cheek, his chest aching at the wrecked look in her face. "I didn't… I shouldn't…"
"I know," she whispered, resting her hand over his. "I'm sorry too."
"Is there… anything I can do?"
Rin sniffled again, pulling a small wrapped parcel out of an inner pocket of her coat. "I was going into town tonight to give this to the Harunos."
Kakashi's eyes softened and he nodded. "May I walk with you?"
"I suppose." She gave him a watery smile and pocketed it again.
As soon as he was alone by the pond, Hideki sank down and cried.
Bowing his head, he beseeched, "Mom… Dad… why?"
Sniffling and hiccupping, he repeated, "Why? Please tell me why!"
"Why is the world so horrible?" He begged, trying in vain to wipe the tears from his eyes as he began to sob. "Why did you leave me here alone? Why are people so heartless?"
He let out an audible sob. "Gods, please… please… please let this end. Please let this bloodshed end. Please help the family of the deceased find peace."
Sniffling, he continued, "Please give us all peace. Please…"
A soft voice calling out to him made him startle. "Hideki?"
Raising his head and turning, he made eye-contact with Daitan, her face twisted in surprise and sympathy.
"Dai-chan, uh, sorry," he sniffled, trying to dry his eyes. "Were you planning on being alone here? Sorry I took your spot."
"No, no, it's, um, fine," she shook her head, taking a few steps toward him. "Can I sit with you?"
"If you want, sorry." He shook his head, trying to smile.
The silver-haired girl approached him, daintily sitting down on the grass at his side. She hesitated for a moment, but then lay her hand across his back.
He looked up at the touch, but smiled when she began rubbing across his shoulders.
"I asked the same questions when my father died," she said quietly. "I begged the gods for answers for months. I asked why the world was so cruel to leave me alive."
Hideki only sniffled.
"My brothers, my mother, my father, my cousins… everyone died but me. Even now the older villagers don't accept me as the leader because I'm still so young. For a while I was in your place."
"It must have been difficult," he observed quietly.
"It was." She agreed. But then she smiled and nudged his side. "But do you know what helped? I met you."
His eyes widened a fraction and his face heated up.
"Mimei's presence in the village has helped me get out of my funk. All of you have helped me regain what little confidence I lost, and I've been able to build even more. I will forever be grateful for that."
She hesitated for a second, but then reached for his hand and squeezed.
"On the night we first met, you didn't hesitate to climb into the tree with me and try to cheer me up. You helped me, more than you'll ever know." She looked into his eyes and smiled softly. "You helped me that night. Now let me help you."
Hideki sniffled and wiped his eye, chuckling shakily. "I… I… don't want to be a burden…"
"You never have been," she insisted, squeezing his hand again. "You proved to me that I wasn't either. Please, Hide-kun, please. Let me help you. Let me raise you up again."
His smile trembled, and he sagged against her, resting his forehead on her shoulder.
Daitan wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug as he began to cry again, tears forming in her own eyes as he clutched her with desperation in his shaking hands.
A/N: Definitely a heavier chapter. I apologize if these topics are too triggering for you. Things will begin to lighten up soon.
Please tell me what you thought!
