If you want to feel the vibes with this scene, try "Lovely - billie eilish ft. khalid (Slowed n Reverb)" on youtube.
Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to Naruto or its world. I don't own any media or pop culture references made or mentioned in the story.
Please enjoy!
Prologue
Off the coast of the Land of Hot Water, close to Land of Fire
Miho knew they shouldn't have come here.
The sound of waves crashing and the gentle breeze did little to ease her heart.
Her daughter had been so insistent on seeing their ancestral home.
"Stay close!" Miho called out sharply.
A small girl, newly 3, looked up. "Hai obaa-mama." She wore a brown, hooded cloak with long sleeves. The hood was large, flopping on her head as she bounced over to her grandmother.
Miho closed her eyes in pain. "It's Obaa, Mimi." Not mama, she said in her heart. Your mama is braver than I am…
Who found them? Her daughter, Nichiha, and son in law weren't shinobi anymore, but they were trained enough to defend themselves.
Unaware of the grief her grandmother was going through, the small girl hummed in the ascent. "Hai Obaa." The toddler happily drew pictures in the sand. The little one always combined the names of the 2 women in her life.
Almost Two Years Ago
Nichiha laughed at Shou's disappointed face. "S-she's just like you! She said obaa," she pointed at Miho. "Mama." She pointed triumphantly at herself.
Nami's first word was Obaa-mama. The little one combined words like Shou, her father. Though it was completely unexpected for the three adults, it was a delightful surprise nonetheless.
Miho chuckled at the young couple. Her daughter, Nichiha's eyes danced happily, looking so much like her younger self before they fled their home. Nichiha leaned on her husband and caressed her daughter's curly hair as the infant played in Shou's arms.
"Looks like we're both her favorite," Nichiha's happy, chocolate eyes met Miho's amused, grey ones. "Huh, Amma?"
Present
Now Miho was the only one…
Miho took a shaky breath. Her hand trembled as she held her daughter's charred hair clip. Nichiha's husband, Shou, had given this to her when he decided to leave his village and follow them.
("It's bright, like your flower Chichi!" He'd grinned, proud of himself for finding the white hair clip. It was a Nichinichi sou, which Nichiha was named after.)
Shou-kun…
"Obaa-mama? Whas w'ong?"
Hearing the toddler, Miho turned to address her. "Nothing, my heart." It'll take time for the child to unlearn the moniker. She confused things like Shou-kun did.
Miho felt another wave of intense grief. Her only child and son in law were gone. All she had was this little girl.
She felt so alone.
But they couldn't wait here any longer. They were weeks past their leave time. They had to keep moving.
Miho wanted to curse the waves as she looked across the sea to her birthplace one last time. The whirlpools that once protected her ancestral home only seemed to take from her these days.
Her past, her future, her child—oh Kami, why? Her only child, her lovely Nichiha is gone. How much more will the whirlpools TAKE from her?
"I'm hung'y obaa."
But Miho still had her hope. Her heart. Tsunami.
"Ara we can't have that." She wiped a tear quickly. "Let's go find something, shall we Mimi?" She turned and gave her granddaughter a fragile smile. (You can't break Miho. Not while she's watching.)
Tsunami smiled brightly at her grandmother.
Rounding up the three year old, they quickly left the rocky shoreline behind.
On the nearby cliffs, in a small alcove, a bunch of Nichinichi sou flowers rustled in the wind. The next gust tugged one free. It floated on the breeze and landed on the sea. The scarlet petals sank beneath the choppy waves.
Take care!