Sorry for the delay in this chapter! Christmas and New Year were... shall we say stressful this year! But I hope you all had happy holidays (if you celebrate such things! If you don't then I hope you have had, at least a good few weeks ^_ ^) and I wish you all a Happy New Year! (I, for one, was happy to say goodbye to 2018!)
Hakujitsumu XV
Step followed step in increasing succession as Kakashi increased his pace, feeling his feet pound through the leaf litter, his legs ached with the familiar strain of exercise; his breath heaved as he felt the burn of cold winter air in his lungs. As tired as he felt, his mood had been lifted a long time ago just with the movement of his body; he'd always liked to run, he'd always felt his mood pick up at the exertion and after his prolonged state of inactivity at his coma, he had a lot of running to make up for. He'd been rather shocked to wake up and realise the changes that Konoha had undergone and it had taken him several days to consider all of the different ways that it would impact the world. Unfortunately, it seemed far too likely that it would be for the worse. Kakashi had, in the spare couple of hours he got to himself during the day whilst Sakura was busy at the hospital, dedicated himself to recall everything that he was able about the initial conflict with Otsutsuki and two major things occurred to him.
First: seven of the nine bijuu were without their jinchuuriki, potentially freely roaming the countryside once again, and thus uncontrolled by a nation or village.
Second: the civilian populations had been isolated in their villages for the entirety of the war. Although they had undoubtedly heard that all of the nations were uniting together during the war, they did not have the benefit of seeing the unity and closeness of the forces on the battlefield, which means that the old suspicions of other villages, ingrained by several wars and generations of fighting, would not be so easily forgotten. Which makes the threat of further conflict in the unstable times they all faced just a little bit more distinct.
Tsunade had called him for a meeting once he was back on his feet and had eaten a few good meals and he'd relayed these thoughts to her. She had agreed that both of his conclusions were accurate and carried with them the innate threat of violence. But, as Tsunade was quick to point out that both of the points were largely out of Konoha's hands: the attitudes held by the wider populations towards he other nations were their respective internal affairs and any interference on Konoha's part would likely only incite further resentment — at best.
The same applied to the bijuu, even if they were no longer contained within a shinobi, the nations' claims to what had once been their jinchuuriki still stood. And there their conversation had ended with Tsunade receiving a call from the daimyo, so Kakashi had decided to take himself training, carefully skirting around the various lessons being conducted (and various other shinobi trying not to look too interested even as they were getting entirely distracted from their own training regimes). For all intents and purposes, Konoha seemed largely the same — people milling here and there, diligent in what they were doing and shinobi training; the only real difference is that the civilians were now training their own chakra too. Sakura would no doubt be a lot busier in the coming weeks with chakra related injuries.
"Kakashi!" The excited voice of Naruto drew his attention as he matched Kakashi's pace at his side, "I heard you'd woken up but guess I missed you at the hospital, how are you?"
"Not bad, Naruto, just trying to get myself back in shape."
"Hai, hai." Naruto grinned excitedly, "You and Sakura are good now, right?"
"Ah, yeah, we are I guess."
"Good, good, I was sad to see you at odds with each other, you seemed like a match."
"Eh?" It hadn't really occurred to Kakashi before, but Naruto's approval felt distinctly encouraging; he might not have been particularly worried about the boy's opinions, but Sakura likely would be; they were close friends after all. "Thanks. How are things with you and Hinata?"
"Ah," The smile evaporated from Naruto's face, "We're um, I'm giving Hinata a bit of space. I don't think she wants to try again and she's been having a hard time recently."
"Oh?"
"She got kicked out of the clan."
"Eh?" That was news to Kakashi,
"Yeah, she's been really upset, I think she wanted to take over as head of the clan." Naruto explained and Kakashi found his interest truly piqued, Hinata ascending as clan leader? That certainly sounded like quite an about-turn for the chronically shy Hyuuga.
…
"So?" The daimyo demanded, "What are your recommendations? I cannot wait any longer, Tsunade."
"My recommendations, daimyo-sama, are that we entirely reform the academy, tuning it into a general school which will teach chakra control, basic jutsu and self-defence up to Genin level, along with the basic maths, language, science and a handful of other subjects. The academy will be non-diversified and teach all children the same skills, up to the age of fifteen where they can then choose which path they wish to follow. Separate apprenticeships will be set up to allow them to follow which career path they choose: being a shinobi, non-combat related chakra user or other non-chakra related jobs."
"That sounds ambitious." Tsunade wasn't sure if the daimyo was being cagey because he didn't like it or because he couldn't see through the difficulties.
"We have to be ambitious, daimyo-sama if we wish to see the village of Konohagakure survive; for too long already, the village had been far too bias towards shinobi and we have left the civilian population neglected. We've needed reform for a long time and now is the perfect opportunity to implement these changes and make Konoha a better village for everyone."
"Hmm," The daimyo steepled his fingers as he thought, "How much will this cost?"
"Not significant up front, give the current children we have in Konoha, time and experience will be our bigger problems, especially for the non-combat chakra related careers whilst they are still being created. We will also have to account for future children born without chakra, the civilians now have chakra but we cannot say for certain that their progeny will. Not all children born to shinobi necessarily have an aptitude for chakra, even now. I have sent my costing projections to you with Momoka."
"Agreed. I foresee this becoming a problem further down the line — what if supply exceeds demand?"
"That's why I suggest the apprenticeships, they will far more adaptable to changes in supply and demand than a standard school framework."
"And will the people running the apprenticeships be solely teaching?"
"No, they will have normal job to fulfil the demands of the village but take on an apprentice or two simultaneously."
"Number projections?"
"As of yet I cannot say, but I will be able to make a prediction one the classes Mifune-sama and his colleagues are running have concluded."
The daimyo nodded, "When will I have the reports you sent?" Tsunade resisted the urge to roll her eyes, it was starting to sound like he was looking for reasons too find fault.
"I sent them out with Momoka first thing this morning, so they should be with you within the hour."
"Fine. I suppose there aren't many other options to choose from, so make your academy reforms and keep me updated. I have also received word that the costal towns and supply chains are largely back up and running, you should have your normal shipments back before the end of the week. Though there has been a lot of movement to and fro and a lot of people are intending to travel to Konoha. I have authorised their movements and their eligibility to stay in Konoha."
"H-Hai, daimyo-sama, thank you." The screen died before she'd finished her sentence. NOW he tells me about these changes?! …The point is I have permission, the daimyo wouldn't be happy with anything that took longer than a finger snap anyway!
The last thing was to bring some cohesion to the village and Shizune's idea of an Obon festival sounded like a great idea.
Suzuru's week had been one of intense paranoia; although she hadn't left the apartment once, she'd felt eyes on her all week and she knew it wasn't entirely a figment of her imagination. But why they had left her alone was beyond her. The first day she'd awoken late and hungover, paralysed by the gripping fear that a Hunter Nin was about to burst through the window and thrust a kunai through her chest where she lay. The paralysing fear lasted for two days (and Tamanegi had pulled double shifts sleeping on her chest or by her feet or on her face in his own primitive attempt at comfort) until Etsuko left a book out — about the history of Kirigakure and the ideals that it had been founded upon; those same ideals that had stirred fears of kekkei genkai and clan dominance over Mist. Suzuru had spent most of the night thinking about what she'd read rather than sleeping and trying to figure out just how she might best make use of the information.
She felt her chakra surge and gather behind her eyes and she saw everything: she found that she could see through the walls to her room, she could see the lines running electricity through them, she could see the energy being generated by the birds, snails, bugs and worms outside of their apartment, she could see the bright coursing chakra of the people in the next apartments over and in the street. She could see everything for perhaps fifty meters or more, though it was such an intense volume of information, she didn't feel as overwhelmed as she'd anticipated… more like she had just opened her eyes for the first time.
She turned her eyes back to the chakra source of whoever it was living next door, (their last known neighbours had moved out just before the fourth war had broken out and in the confusion, they hadn't formerly met the young man who'd moved in); his chakra glowed brightly and flowed chaotically, twisting this way and that even though she could see that he was sat still in his living room. She watched him for a good long while as she shifted and shuffled, as he got up to get himself something to eat and drink and how, over the next hour, his chakra grew a little brighter. Though it continued to swirl chaotically. Ensei, as she'd learned what she could about chakra and had told Suzuru in hurried whispers, that untrained chakra was chaotic and the better trained — the more skilled — a shinobi was, the more smoothly their chakra flowed.
She looked down at her hands and body, she could see her own chakra ebbing and whirling as if she were some wild-eyed bratty child of a gifted clan. And given her current predicament, that's exactly what she was. Helpless, trapped and the container of some feared power. What was so special about her power? What could she do but spy on people? What help was that? What had that document said? That she was capable of creating forcefields as well? Suzuru had her Subete Miru activated, but she didn't see anything else; she climbed off her bed, staggering as her numb legs suddenly adjusted to being asked to bare weight again. She reached out toward her wall, which should be just out of reach from where she stood, but she felt no impact upon the wood panel, ever closer she inched until her fingertips touched it. She sighed disappointed but unsure what she had been expected, she pressed her hand flat to the wall and leaning her weight onto it, as if to test she really was touching it. She slid her hand down the wall and turned her back to it, slapping her hands onto it, her mind listless and befuddled over what it was that she was supposed to be doing with herself or how, now that the paralysing fear had abated.
She breathed deeply and relaxed her chakra, switching off her Subete Miru; no one had come to see her in two days, not Shin, not Satou and no Hunter Nins, what was the game being played here? To let her think she was off the hook? But what purpose did it serve? If they wanted her to become ninja why the wait? If they were going to kill her, why wait? Etsuko had clearly been worried about her, but she hadn't pushed her on details and she did not want her friend to get dragged into whatever mess was waiting for Suzuru when Kiri decided what to do with her. Etsuko had said that she'd been tested, in a different way to Suzuru and had been decided that she was little threat and little use. If only it could have been that easy for her. Some part of her urged her to run away but to where she had no idea or that she'd get more than ten steps before being caught and killed… was it better to be killed lazy and ignorant at home or lost and cold on the run?
Suzuru needed a plan; she had no idea what the likelihood was that they'd kill her or force her to work as a shinobi but there was no way she'd let them do to her what they'd done to Ensei. She had to move first, get away, get a head start… she grabbed her pack and started to shove clothes into it, she hurried to the kitchen to grab a few knives from the drawer, but she hesitated at the fridge, could she take food from Etsuko? Leave her and Onion with nothing? It was Etsuko who did most of the shopping and catching—
"Hey Suzu—oh you're up!" Etsuko appeared through the door in the same instant, "What are you doing?" Her eyes took the scene in quickly but thoroughly, "Are you running away?"
"Uh, Etsuko, I…"
"It won't work if you just grab some random things and run out, especially not in the middle of the day… are you ever going to tell me what this is all about? Clearly the jounins found something out about you that they didn't like."
"E-Etsuko?" She never spoke like this, "What?"
"If you want to survive, you need to plan properly… I know you've always had designs of leaving, leaving something, leaving this village, this the system. Suzu, if you want to go, you can but you've gotta get your head together first."
"I… I know, but—"
"Giving in to your worries won't help anything, the important thing is that you plan, you have something to fall back on when things go wrong. You've always been a planner, it one of the things you're best at: playing a long game."
"I know." She was beginning to feel frustrated, only able to parrot back the same words.
Etsuko looked at her for a long moment, until finally she whispered it. "You have a kekkei genkai, don't you?" Suzuru was sure the look on her face said everything, "It's the only thing that could shake you up so badly, you knew everyone had chakra and even if you'd had an exceptional level, I think you would have been able to take that in your stride, but a blood-line limit? Something so hated and feared in Kiri, that might do it. I bumped into Yuyouu the other day, he said that you were taken away at the end of the test and he hadn't seen you since… I'll bet the shinobi are still trying to figure out what to do with you, it would be short sighted to kill you straight off but they're probably also scared of employing you."
"Why—how?"
"I'm not stupid, I know what's what and that's the only thing that fits; you've barely moved or spoken in days. I'm not bothered by it, I'm not scared of you, you have an amazing gift but I can't help you if you don't tell me." Etsuko's voice was genuine, her expression gentle, "Talk to me Suzu, I'll help you through this… you're still my friend, Suzu, let me help you."
"I… thought they were gonna kill me, they took me into Intel, to an interrogation cell and started talking about a clan… the, uh… Futusatome clan, they think my mother is missing, presumed dead, and then they just let me go home and told me to get some rest, and the haven't come back." Suzuru said all at one, the words had been waiting for the opportunity and now would not stop, "And I don't know why or what the fuck they want—"
"Hold on, the Futusatome clan? The doujutsu users? The demon-eyed clan? Holy fuck… I though your parents were just civilians?" Etsuko replied, but Suzuru could only offer an over-exaggerated shrug, "Shit the bed… they were one of the most powerful clans in Mist, I remember reading about them years ago, I was fascinated by them, it was said they were on a par with the Uchiha, almost. The Sandaime was so scared of them overthrowing him, he began sowing the seeds of distrust until eventually the village turned against them and did his dirty work for him… it's… it's amazing that the bloodline exists still… did Ensei have them, the eyes?"
"I don't know, maybe… but I get why she wouldn't have told me." Suzuru breathed, her nerves slowly shattering,
"Suzu, I really mean it when I say I'm on your side, you like my family… this isn't going to scare me off, okay?"
"Y-yeah…"
"I mean it, Suzu. But we have got start making some plans… I've got several stashes, enough we could probably leave right now, but we should time it right; the village hasn't been too noisy recently and we've got to stay hidden. Give me a day, Suzu, we'll leave tomorrow night, late, I can get some prep done tomorrow. Tsuko won't care if I want a few days off and the shop has been slow over the past week." Etsuko said, rolling her eyes at the boring day-job minding a small store.
"Yeah, okay." Suzuru haltingly agreed,
"Don't worry Suzu, we'll get through this."
…
A sharp rap on the door shocked her out of her thoughts, she crouched down on instinct, though what good it was supposed to do she had no idea; they rapped again, almost knocking down the door with their intensity.
"Open up, Suzuru! It's time." It was Satou's voice, Fuck! Now? Where the hell is Etsuko? She glanced at the window, finding that same haunting mask she'd been seeing echoes of all week staring back at her; she rose to her feet with as much dignity as she could muster and walked out of her room and towards her front door. She wallowed in her thoughts and pity and mindlessly awaited her fate, too cowardly to do anything else about it. It was only a shame Spring Onion had demanded to be let out earlier in the morning and hadn't returned, as grouchy as he could be, he was still a sweet cat and she was sorry not to have the opportunity to say a goodbye that would fall on deaf ears.
She opened the door to find Satou stood with another jounin at his side, "Mizukage wants to speak with you, let's move." His voice was even but his face told clearly of the derision he felt, she slipped her shoes on and was grateful, at least, that she'd gotten dressed today. She pulled the door closed behind her and allowed Satou to lead her down into the street; it was just about dusk and things were quiet. "If you try anything, the Hunter Nin had plenty of senbon." She didn't answer him and focused on keeping herself calm; the Mizukage had made a lot of changes to Mist and was respected for being even tempered and fair but old biases were not easy to let go of. Just as Suzuru was weighing the options between running and staying several things happened simultaneously; the jounin escort gurgled and crumpled into a heap on the floor with several needles sticking out of his neck and a white, hissing ball flew out of nowhere and latched itself onto Satou's face, spiting and biting and scratching him and then Suzu felt the stomach lurching panic of sudden movement and found self in a dark alley face to face with the pale mask of a Hunter Nin.
"Stay calm and don't struggle." They said before she was scooped over the nin's shoulder,
"But—no—"
"C'mon Suzu, we've got to move fast."
"Etsuko?"
"Yup! Now stick close." She answered and hurried away, keeping one arm clamped over Suzuru's legs as she dashed away beyond the last houses and out of Kirigakure.
The days had turned slowly into weeks and quickly into months, and it had surprised Hinata when she suddenly realised that it had been almost three months since she'd been thrown out by her father and lost her confidence all over again. But things were slowly improving, her biweekly sessions with Shizune were helping to clear her head as well as the chakra doses to help re-stabilise her brain chemistry had certainly helped. But it had been the impromptu visits from Ryutsa that reminded her of her purpose and that she was being counted on to try again; she still had her doubts and the nagging voice of self-derision who'd been her constant companion through her childhood and teens sounded just as loud now. Though thankfully for Hinata, her lessons with Tsunoko and his gentle, patient manner gave her a clarity of thought she'd been sorely missing. Even on her bad days, Tsunoko seemed to have more compassion for her mood swings and low energy than she been expecting. Even without her explaining to him the minutiae of what had been bothering her, his instincts told him when to give her a break and share some kind words and when not to let her depression rule her and pushed her to work beyond her immediate desire to give up.
There were days when Hinata hated him for this, it felt like he was just another embodiment of the dark, foul voice that judged every decision and action; he seemed to know this too and as soon as she'd at least made an attempt to do as he'd asked, he'd let her rest. He had been doing her a favour — as long as it had taken her to realise — and it had kicked her out of her quickly acquired instinct to give up at the first hurdle. And finally, after a shamefully long time, she had the desire to start training again; it had taken her by surprise to find that she hadn't completely lost her fitness and by the time she'd finished with her run she felt her spirits rise. And those spirits had carried her through the practice of her katas and to wield her chakra until she was exhausted. The good kind of exhausted that came from productive hard work. Just as she flopped into a seat in the shade of the large camphor tree and let out a long slow breath, a figure called to her from the treeline,
"N-Natsuki-san?"
"Hinata-sama! I am so pleased to see you training again!" She could hear the smile in Natsuki's voice easily,
"H-hai…"
"You're going to try again, aren't you?"
"Hai, Natsuki-san, I will. But I don't know when yet, I need much more preparation."
"Well, I have heard that Hanabi-sama might be getting sent on a mission to Suna soon, but Hiashi-sama's trying to fight it." Natsuki whispered, "I think he's worried you will try again and win if Hanabi isn't there to help… this mission is still a little way off." She dipped her head in a long bow of genuine respect before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Through before Hinata had time to truly digest the information, she was besieged again by another someone keen to talk to her.
"Heeeeeyyyyyyy! Hinata!" The boorish voice of Naruto scared a few birds from the not-so-nearby trees as he ran towards her across the open training ground, "You're outside! And training! How are you? I'm sorry it's been so long since I've been over to visit but… I thought… maybe you needed some time."
"It's okay, Naruto." Hinata rose to her feet, feeling her clothes pull at the sweat sticking them to her skin,
"How, um, have you been? Are things… okay?"
"Yes, I think I've been feeling a bit better, enough to try some training at least, it was about time that I got back into it."
"Yeah that's really great! We can train together if you want? I still can't get Sakura or Kakashi to train with me." He sighed, "But I guess they're busy… um, I've seen you with that old guy, from Iron Country, um… ah…."
"Tsunoko-sama? Yes, he's an excellent teacher, very patient."
"Nothing like your dad then, huh?" He snickered before catching himself, "oh, um…"
"Its fine, really, and you're right… the things the fates hand us, huh?"
"…Yeah." He agreed and they began walking back towards the village, "So have you heard about the festival? Tsunade-baa-chan said she wants us all to have an Oban festival, even though it's the wrong time of year, for us all to say goodbye to people we lost in the war and… in the dream."
"Yes, I heard."
"A-are you going?"
"I suppose so, I don't think Ino will let me stay in, to be honest."
"Um, do you… want to go with me?"
"I'm sure I'll see you there, Naruto, but—"
"I know, I know, sorry."
They lapsed into silence as they walked, "Ah, Hinata-san, I'd been hoping to catch you." Tsunoko hobbled over to them,
"Tsunoko-sama? Can I help you?"
"No, no I just wanted to chat."
"I'll, um, see you later, Hinata." Naruto took his cue to leave, offered a sombre smile and a small wave,
"Bye, Naruto."
"Who was he?"
"Uzumaki Naruto, we were, ah, married under the Tsukikomi."
"Ahh." Tsunoko sighed knowingly, "And I assume that you will not be resuming your relationship?"
"No. After I had been awoken, I had some time to think about myself and my dream-life and I decided that I didn't want to follow down the same path."
"Weren't you happy?"
"Yes, it seemed that I had achieved the sense of confidence I'd been searching for my entire life but I realised that… the confidence hadn't been genuine, I hadn't earned it for myself, but rather took what confidence Naruto had given me. I wanted the chance to live for myself." She wasn't sure why she was telling all of this to him, but something about Tsunoko seemed to effortlessly elicit the truth.
"That sounds like a very wise decision to me." He answered gently, "And that is a realisation that many never achieve, to live for yourself, truly yourself — not to say selfishly or without regard for others — but putting the work in to living the truest version of yourself is a vital component of happiness. When you understand yourself and your motivations and you've proven to yourself that you are not afraid to pick yourself up and put in hard work where its needed, only then can you truly share happiness with others and love others for who they are and not what they give you. It is a hard lesson and the climb to achieving confidence in oneself is an unrelenting, unforgiving slog but it is more worth it than almost anything else in life." Tsunoko spoke carefully, his words clearly tempered by experience and Hinata allowed the silence to hang whilst she thought about them, until at last she responded,
"You're right… I thought I loved Naruto, but what I loved was the confidence I thought he gave me. l thought that relationship I'd been unconsciously living up to what he thought I should be, what I thought I should be… what others thought I should be. There are some days where I think would be easier to just say 'yes' to him… if I had've done maybe I wouldn't be in this mess now."
"There will always be messes, troubles and things which looked like insurmountable mountains but if you never push yourself through and believe that you can succeed, you will learn to fall over even a small step. Even after all my years, I still come across things I think I cannot do — like when Mifune-sama asked me to come with him on this trip to the five great nations — I thought for a long while that I would say no. It must sound silly to you, but such a long journey with these old bones, I felt certain I would die long before we'd even reached the borders to the Land of Iron!" He chuckled to himself, "But I thought back to all of the other things I have done through myself I thought impossible until I had done them… and I thought about how I wanted to teach others what I know, I wanted to see the villages rebuild themselves and those feelings seemed much more important than my assumption of discomfort. I knew it was the right thing to do and so I pushed myself to do it." He stopped walked and spread his arms out, "And here I am! Even this old work-horse had life yet and I have seen many wonderful things and visited villages and met people I would otherwise never have been able to. Whatever mess you think you're in Hinata-san, whatever problem that had you thinking you're beaten, it is not so! Not as long as you have breath to draw and the desire to succeed… and, I think, the love of many friends, you will."
"Hai, Tsunoko-sama that's what I'd told myself too and then I had such a knock… and it seems that I'd forgotten it. For all the confidence I thought I'd earned for myself seemed to just crumble beneath me, like sodden paper."
Tsunoko smiled kindly, "Confidence is a taciturn and cruel attribute, it's hard to come by and oh so easy to lose, and can be paradoxically wall-flower like; when you aren't looking for it and thinking about it, it will come to you. When you pay it least amount of attention, it will do it's best work for you. Don't think about how much confidence you do or do not have, you only need focus on what it is that you want to do."
"Hai, Tsunoko-sama, I think I understand."
"If I might also say, it can help to fully put to bed old, lingering problems, to fully close the door on them lets you — and others — move on with their lives." He said and Hinata instinctively knew just what he was talking about.
"Thank you, Tsunoko-sama, I don't think you are aware of the many ways you've help me." Hinata bowed low to him, he smiled kindly and returned the bow.
"Hey, Ino."
"Huh?—Oh, Sakura, I didn't even see you!" Ino had been staring blankly at the shelf in front of her for what must have been an embarrassingly long number of minutes,
"Are you okay? You look a bit lost." Sakura asked, her eyes darting over the dried goods shelf, wondering just what it was Ino was searching for,
"Oh, just thinking about Hinata, she's been doing better the past few weeks, I think Tsunoko-sama has really been helping her regain some confidence."
"Good! That's really good to hear." Sakura smiled,
"I haven't seen her all that much, though, Ibiki had been keeping me quite busy and Hinata's been out so much we've barely eaten one meal together this week." Ino sighed before walking down the aisle with Sakura, her gaze casting over the produce on offer, though none of it seemed to tempt her; her basket had pitifully little rolling around inside it.
"Its good that she's out, though, right? Better than her being stuck inside and sleeping all day."
"Yeah it is, guess I was just hoping that when she got better, we'd have a bit ore time to talk."
"Well, it's not like you guys were best friends or anything," Sakura said gently, "Maybe you're just in that awkward part of getting to know someone better where you're not sure how much to share with them?"
"I guess, I mean, we've been living together for the past three months — and a couple of weeks before that — can she really see me as just some stranger?"
Sakura took in the pained expression on her old friend's face, was Ino really upset by this? "I'm sure she doesn't, Ino, she has had a really rough few months, she might just be trying really hard to pick herself up by throwing herself into these training sessions with Tsunoko-sama, I'll bet when she feels more stable and steady you guys will talk a lot more."
"Maybe, I guess."
"I'm sure you'll have some time to talk at the Obon festival, right? You could always try and talk about it with her then? Even if you just tell her that you'll like to at least eat dinner together? I really don't think Hinata's doing it to hurt you or be ungrateful."
"Nah, I don't really think so either, but…"
"Just talk to her at the Obon festival, okay? Things will be okay, Ino."
"Kota, I am certain that you're leading me on a wild goose chase!" Ashima grumbled, she'd been following the child for what felt like hours through the still crumbled and burnt quarter in Konoha. A good deal of the village had been rebuilt, but not all of it.
"No, Ashima-obaa-san, I know its around here somewhere, they just haven't gotten around to rebuilding this part of the village yet."
"Your parents' home was around here?"
"Yeah,"
"They don't want to rebuild?"
"That would be a bit difficult, given that they're dead." Kota replied flippantly as she kicked aside a slat of wood,
"You lost them in the war?" Ashima's voice was a good deal softer,
"No, during the invasion, a few months before the war." Kota crouched down to lift the edge of a board, Ashima clapped her hands together as the long, sturdy stems of bamboo began to grow, lifting the board and scattered debris on top high and out of the way. "The basement's down here, Ashima-obaa-san, though I can't tell yet if it's been caved in or not."
"We'll still take a look, why don't you try growing some bamboo where abouts the basement is and use the plant heigh to tell you how much headroom there is in there. You remember how to feel the chakra through the entirety of the plant stem?"
"Y-yeah, I think so."
"Only grow one plant every few meters — we still need space to walk down there." They both formed the hand seals and felt the plants sprout and grow, Kota could feel the tiny shoots grow taller and taller for what seemed like forever, "Is your shoot still growing?"
"I think so."
"Stop adding chakra then return it to the bottom of the stem and follow it up. When the stem starts to bend, you've reached the ceiling." Ashima spoke patiently as Kota closed her eyes again and tried to redirect her chakra, it took a few minutes,
"I think I feel it bending."
"Well, it should be enough for us to squeeze through, let's try, you can take the lead and carry this." Ashima handed her a torch; she climbed down the awkward slope though quickly finding sure footing on the stone path, the torch light was bright and brought a welcome pool of light in the greedy darkness. "Ah, this isn't so bad, looks like we have plenty of room… and that your growing skills still need some practice, Kota-chan!" She chuckled as she pointed between the sturdy, high fronds to Kota's attempt: a scrawny, twisted and desperately leaning little bamboo, barely a foot high but perhaps three long.
"Collect it from the soil, on our way out, and take it home to nurture. You still have a thing or two to learn about bamboo, as simple a plant as many might think it." Kota nodded at Ashima's words, taking a last glance at her "plant", the poor thing looking so scrawny and sickly, yet had seemed so strong and fully formed in her mind's eye. "Don't worry, plant growing takes a very long time to get the hang of, and you've been doing very well so far. The key thing is remembering to have patience for yourself." Ashima said as they continued walking, weaving between the bamboo until they came upon the door, "This is quite an extensive basement."
"Yeah, Mum was kinda possessive about her brewing, she didn't want anyone to find out that it was even her who made it. I didn't even realise until you mentioned it and I started thinking back on the times I saw Dad drinking it. He always used to say to her that the beer was 'really good'; I think I thought back then he was just trying to get her to try some. She never even let me down in through this door though she told me basics of what she was doing, guess she thought I might blab to anyone and she didn't want to risk anyone trying to steal it from her." Kota said, the memories flooding back in as she spoke, replaying clearly inside her head though leaving her feeling cold at the realisation how little she knew her parents and now never would.
"Smart mother."
The door opened easily (after a little chakra manipulation on the lock); it's structural integrity had been reinforced and as such, the room had survived the fire and collapse no worse for wear. "Now this is a bootlegger's basement if ever I saw one," Ashima grinned, "And given how well this room has been protected and preserved I'll bet some of those stills still work! Not that I'm in any shape to take on this kind of work. Did you parents get the chance to teach you any of this stuff?"
"No… I mean, I didn't even really know about it but I think she thought I was too young to learn anything, anyway." Kota's voice held an edge,
"Well, she might well have left you some notes to help you out… do you think you'd be interested in taking up this kind of work?"
"Hmm." Kota made a noise, but whether it was one of disapproval or uncertainty Ashma wasn't sure,
"You don't have to, there's nothing wrong with choosing your own path no matter how different it might be from your parents'. You can honour their memories and still do as you wish with your life."
"I know." Kota replied shortly and Ashima dropped the subject.
"Now, surely there's still some beer in here." She began rooting through the cupboards, finding plenty of empty, ready labeled bottles but no beer. "Are there any hidden cupboards or stashes in here?" Ashima asked as she rummaged around, though Kota merely stood in the centre of the room, looking at the tall shoots of bamboo giving the otherwise pristine basement the look of having been lost for decades. Kota tried to imagine what her mother might have looked like, tending to the stills or bottling the home brewed beer, but she couldn't. She'd not found anything interesting in the illicit creations of her mother's; too young to drink and thought herself too cool to be vested in her parent's interests, it had never occurred to her that they would be gone long before she's be grown up.
"Kota? Are you all right?" Ashima's voice was gentle, though it still startled her out of her revere,
"Huh? Oh, yeah, do you need the light?"
Ashima merely stared down at her for a few minutes, "It's all right if you don't want to be in here any longer."
"No, no it's fine."
"Where are you living now?"
"On the other side of town, my parents had a lot of money saved and it allowed me to buy a small place since this one got destroyed."
"Aah, that's fortuitous, I'm pleased to hear you at least have somewhere to live. Shall we keep looking?"
"Yeah, I think I would like to find her notes, if nothing else." Kota said, her eyes slowly meeting Ashima's,
"Then we will, I think the best we can do for someone's memory is at least do our best to understand their passions in life." She smiled, "And through the half-light I think I saw a note on that table over there with your name on it." Ashima pointed to the far corner. Kota walked over to it, the light revealing a table full of books and papers, atop the stack in the centre as a small envelope addressed to Kota. She picked it and unfolded the paper within, reading it there and then before she thought twice.
Kota-chan,
If you're reading this, then it means I'm not around to keep this letter away from you (i.e. dead) sorry about that.
I've written this because it means I died too fast and haven't had the chance to tell you all the things I was supposed to, so here they all are:
1. I am a bootlegger. I make moonshine, very illegally, and people LOVE IT.
2. I've made a shit-ton of money (see No. 1)
3. All that money now belongs to you.
4. Did I mention that making moonshine is as lucrative as it is illegal? (Funny that, huh?) So if you have some sort of moral quandary over whether you should take the money, do it AFTER you've brought all the shit you need to set you up in life. Seriously! No "giving it away because you don't think it's right" bollocks, I worked hard to make it and I want to see it spent on someone I love. You.
5. I love you so, so much my daughter and I want to see you have a good and happy life.
6. Well, metaphorically see… or maybe really see if I can turn into a ghost or something that would be kinda cool, huh?
7. I want you to enjoy yourself and live your life! Be who you are without shame or fear! (But please try not to make me watch you do too many stupid things or I WILL come and haunt the shit out of you. Just think how much nagging I could do without the need to eat, sleep, or pause for breath?)
8. If you want the "family business" is yours to take over, I've left you all my notes and how-to's and such, you should find it all in the basement. If you don't and want to report me or whatever then go ahead (what are they gonna do to me? I'm dead). If you can make something for people involving alcohol, they will THROW their money at you.
9. Maybe ignore No. 8. Makes me sound like a bad mother :( I only want you to do what makes you happy! A job will give you good structure in your life, a way to make friends and give you the money you'll need to survive, though that third bit's not so important (see No. 2). I've had an unconventional life, a dangerous one, but I made it work (thanks, in part to your father) and I want you to know that there are a multitude of different paths to take in life. Everyone will die at some point and it's up to you to lead a life that you're happy with, that you're proud of.
10. I am sorry that I won't be there to help you celebrate your victories and pick you up when you get knocked down, but this is the course of things and I cannot change what's happened. So take this as your new starting point and go with all the love your father and I have for you and show the world who's boss! You go, girl!
Please take care of yourself,
Love,
Mum
PS Dad says he loves you beyond anything else in the world! He's written you his own letter, though, it's in this basement somewhere!
..
.