Part Five

It felt like he had been walking for weeks. He had no idea where he was going, or why he was leaving. All he saw was darkness, everything was empty, there was nothing around him that let him feel truly alive.

So, he walked. Further and further, in hopes of finding what he desired.

A reason to live.

He finally stopped at the edge of a cliff. A sigh left his lips. Is this all that was left for him. This emptiness. He never knew he would ever reach this point, living a life with no purpose, no focus. But here he was, standing at this edge with nothing stopping him from stepping over. One step…That's all it would take. One-step and he would end this hellish existence, one single step.

"You'll just get dirty if you take another step," a soft voice called out.

He paused, he could tell it was a females' voice, he had not even registered her presence though there it was, right beside him, "What are you talking about?" He tensed his jaw.

"Well, if you wanted to jump into a sludge river then go ahead, but you'll get really dirty if I was you I'd find a much cleaner way to end things," she said it so nonchalantly it was hard to tell that she was talking about life and death.

"You are not going to dissuade me from ending my life?" He asked her, curious now.

She shrugged, unbeknownst to him, "Hey, I'm not here to judge, you can do whatever you want. You want to suffocate in that sludge-y mess go right ahead, you want to quit this world, be my guest."

"You care so little about life?" He narrowed his eyes.

Again she shrugged, "It's not life, I care so little about, I just respect everyone's wish to live or die the way they want. We live in a world of hate and pain, there is war and death everywhere, if even just one person gets to make their own decision then I'm all for it."

"Who are you?" He asked, not knowing how to respond to her words, she had a point, there was war everywhere, there was hate everywhere, it was a terrible world to live in.

"I'm Rei," she answered sweetly.

"Like the bell?" He frowned, trying to think of the many meanings of that name.

She laughed, "No, like in zero, nothing. I have no one, I am nothing, my name means nothing."

"You have no clan?"

She shook her head, "No one. In this world, there are many like me, with no one. I've been lucky, I suppose. I've managed to last this long in life."

"How have you survived?" He knew it was a tough world, especially for the young, especially for females.

Rei laughed, her laughter was like a tinkle, it sounded just as a bell would, it was unfortunate her name meant zero for at that moment she reflected a completely different meaning, the sound hit him deep, echoing through his body, it was a unique sensation, he had never felt that before, "I learned to survive. It's what I do, I survive, I find a way and I live, I don't know what else to tell you…I try to avoid sludge-y ends…" she giggled again and stood up, "Well, it was great talking to you, but I've got to go earn, food doesn't appear out of thin air."

Before he could question her further, she had left. It was as if his body had decided for him, he wasn't going to take that step towards his muddy demise, he would go towards her, he would choose to survive. He wanted to hear that sound again, that laughter.

It was worth living for.

Every day he sat there listening to her sing. Her voice like her laughter was precious to him. In all his life he had never experienced a lightness like this. It was as if in the darkness of his existence she was a warm glow, the longer he was around her, the more that glow grew. It made him feel safe. It made him feel happy. Happiness was such a rare emotion in these times, he never realized he lacked it until he met her.

"Okay, Stalker," Rei sat down beside him and put a piece of bread in his hand, "Eat."

"I can't eat your food," he tried to give it back to her.

She laughed pushing him, "You think I gave you my food, hell no. I got my own."

"You paid for this," he tried to give it back but she avoided him, "This is your hard work, not mine."

"Well when you can earn a living then you can buy me dinner, but right now you are pretty useless," she was forever teasing him despite keeping an eye out for his wellbeing. He carried on arguing with her so she took the bread and stuffed it in his mouth, "Just shut up and eat! Seriously, you complain so much."

"You are a woman…" he began.

She scowled, "You know, for a useless Stalker, you are incredibly sexist."

"I…"

"Look, being a man, it doesn't mean you have to have all the responsibility, it doesn't mean only you can make the decisions or only you can fight or protect or earn. I'm not useless, I've protected, fought and earned for myself my whole life, and I can do it for you, my gender doesn't stop me from doing that. You need to learn to dial down your ego," she poked his head, annoyed, "It's irritating."

"I don't have an ego," he snapped.

She burst into giggles making him blush, "Oh, Stalker…" She put her hands on his cheeks looking at him directly, "You have the biggest head I have ever seen! It's so big, I have no idea how you can carry it on your shoulders."

"You are bossy and mean," he made a face moving his head out of her hold, she grinned nodding as she leaned against his shoulder,

"That's definitely true."

It made him tingle to feel her lean against him, it was as if he could, for a moment, provide her some support, even if it was just a physical one, he felt continuously useless around her. She had given him a place to stay, provided him with food and medicine. She was looking after him and he could do nothing for her. He wasn't used to this, having someone else, especially a woman, care for him. If it wasn't for the fact that he didn't want to part from her, he would have left long ago. He could never get used to this dependency, it just wasn't his nature.

"There you go," Rei wrapped up his eyes after putting the ointment on, she was incredibly gentle with him despite her usually brash words and actions, when it came to his medical care, she never played about.

"Why does it not freak you out?" He asked.

She sighed putting her arms around his neck, she was sitting behind him having tied the bandages on, she rested her chin on his shoulder, "You ask me this every day and my answer never changes."

"But I have no eyes, there is nothing there…"

It was true, his sockets were empty, as such the medicine that she applied was used to keep them moisturized. Dryness would cause infection and irritation, it was one of the first things she provided him with. He hadn't noticed the pain he was in but it seemed to be her priority, she didn't want him to get sick or be in pain.

"And," she sighed, "It doesn't bother me if you didn't have your arms or legs, your nose or your ears, or any of your teeth…I don't care, I care about the person you are, I care about how you feel, what you think, not what you look like. It doesn't bother me to look after you, it gives me purpose, I like looking after you."

"You like this?" He frowned, "I'm useless…"

"You are not useless to me," she interrupted him, "Stop placing your value on petty things."

"I am a man who can't do anything," he argued, he pulled away from her hold to stand up as he let it out, "I can't protect you, I can't provide for you, I can't do anything for you, I'm not a man…"

She jumped up grabbing hold of his arms as she faced him, "For the love of God, why does it matter if I do those things for you? It doesn't matter to me if you can or cannot do those things. I've told you so many times. Why does it matter so much? Why can't I be the one that provides or protects?"

"I can't even see you," his voice broke, "I want to see you."

This was new, they had, had this fight many times, but she had never heard him say this, she had never had him admit this before, she stared at him, silent for once.

"I just want to see you, even if it's for a moment…just one single moment."

She took his hand and put it on her cheek, "Feel me."

"What?" He stuttered.

"You are more than just your eyes, you are more than that…so feel me instead," she put his other hand on her other cheek keeping both his hands in place, "Feel me," she moved in closer.

"Rei…" it made his heart race having her so close, his hands on her skin, usually it was her touching him, not the other way around.

"Feel me, Stalker," she lowered her voice, "Feel me."

"Rei…" before he could finish, he himself moved down and kissed her. The second his lips touched hers that glow that grew inside him around her, completely burst. He couldn't stop, the more he felt her, the more the lights danced across his mind, it was a magical and brilliant affair. He had never felt anything like it before, it was her. She made him this way.

This girl made him feel alive.

Rei ran, she ran as fast as she could, she ran as far as she could. Her mind and heart were ripped to pieces but all she could see was the blood and the bodies. All that death and carnage. He had killed them all. The man she loved had killed all those people. Hearing that name, hearing who he was…it was too much. She couldn't handle it. She forced herself to keep going. She had to keep going, less for her own sake, but rather the child inside of her.

Their child.

She couldn't let her child grow in that home, not with him, not when there was that darkness inside of him. She couldn't let her child be surrounded in that world of hate and death. She had felt his bloodlust. It chilled her to the core. The way he had killed them all, it was clear he wouldn't stop. Not for anyone.

She paused against a tree. Her breathing wracked, that pain coursed through her, the tears falling from her eyes. He wasn't the same man. He wasn't the man she loved. That man would never have…she fell down to the floor hugging her stomach as she cried. It was hard to stop now that the tears had begun to flow freely. This wasn't what she wanted. For a short time they had been happy, they had everything, she had been so content with her life with him. Becoming pregnant, it made her happy, she had been so excited to tell him but wasn't able too. Her child could never know, could never know what their father was. Fear consumed Rei, what if her child was like him?

What if they were also a monster?

What if they had that same bloodlust? That same hate?

No.

She tensed her jaw. She would never accept that, that was hereditary, that hate was something a person was inflicted with by nature. Hate is learned. It isn't innate. She wouldn't curse her child like that. She would protect them. She had failed to protect him, she had failed to be enough to deter him from his actions, she would do everything to ensure her child's future, they were all she had left. She would protect. Together, they would survive. That was the core of Rei's being, she was a survivalist. She wasn't hate, or anger, she wasn't pain or darkness. Her child was also hers. She would pour all her love and care in protecting her child. Slowly she stood up, the first thing she had to do was go to where she knew her child would be safe, the village that her child belonged to…Konoha.