D E V O T I O N ;

“We’re going to finish up here, hide the bodies and then go find Hitotsu and Futatsu. We’re only a day’s away from the border of the Land of Fire, less than that if we only have a short rest. We head home, regroup…” Frowning as her hands found a scroll, clearly armed with a booby trap. She’d be unable to open it, but it was worth taking all the same. Tucking it away she moved onto the next body, seeming unphased by the pallid corpse.

With a feigned calm she glanced back at Izumi, projecting an air of ease. This could be business as usual if they tried. As her hands found something hard she was forced to look back at the body. In the folds of the vest, she found the plate from a hitai-ate. The symbol had been crossed out and even Rin had to fight back a chill.

Her team had no business messing with missing-nin, but the fact that they had been targeted by them was even worse. They’d dressed to do the most amount of damage, and had cornered them specifically. Quickly pocketing it without revealing her find to Izumi she stood. “Izumi, stay close, alright?”

“Right...”

That much should have been common sense. They had to regroup with the rest of their team as soon as possible, or else they’d likely meet more trouble. She just had to be thankful that she was with Rin, because Izumi wasn’t sure how she would have handled the situation alone. Could she have handled it? As a genin, probably not. This mission was never supposed to come to this.

“You just have to make it back to camp…it’ll be okay.” It was risky to promise such things, but at the moment Izumi’s mental state was more important than practicality. With a soft, somber smile Rin jumped back into the clearing, her eyes quickly scanning the tree line before waving for Izumi to follow. 

Reaching for a kunai from her pouch she handed it to the young girl, doing her best to stand between her and the man she’d just killed while the Uchiha got her bearings. “I need you to stand lookout. If you see or hear anything, just say so. Okay?”

After a quick moment, Rin forced herself to remember the mission, quickly kneeling beside one of her own victims. With practiced ease, she undid his vest and began searching pockets. Something about the whole situation didn’t seem right.

She was quiet as she took the kunai, fingers clutched tightly around the weapon. Her heart was still pounding, and Izumi wouldn’t be surprised if Rin could hear the loud beating as well. If only she could will it to stop, then maybe she would feel more in control over her own body.

“I can do that.” Even though she was still a little jumpy, a little off, Izumi could still keep her eyes on their surroundings. She had always been rather perceptive, and even in her current state she could do so for her sensei.

“I know, I know-” Shinobi couldn’t break down on missions, they couldn’t freeze, but Rin couldn’t bring herself to chastise Izumi for it. Regulation did nothing to quell the horror rising in her student. Gently rubbing her hands over Izumi’s arms a constant but non-threatening contact to try and tether her student to the moment “-you did your duty, Izumi.”

If she had to guess, she’d say that it wasn’t the sudden combat that had so thoroughly shaken her, but how they appeared. “They’re not from Konoha Izumi. Their uniforms lie. Look, if you can. None of them are wearing the same kind of uniform. Even if they were, why would they attack us? It’s a trick.”

A devastatingly cruel one at that. She’d need to look the bodies before they left, and while she wished for Izumi to be strong enough to help her she doubted her student would rise to the challenge. They’d lived, there would be another chance. “We’re not safe, do you think you can walk?”

Her duty.  Her sensei’s words were meant to soothe, and while they did help a little there was still that slight fear that Izumi had done something terribly wrong. First she had assumed that maybe the supposed leaf shinobi that attacked them had betrayed the village, that perhaps something had enticed them to join someone else. For a moment she was relieved that the man had not been one of them, but at the same time...

He was still a person.

@izvmisms·

“Breathe.”

“Just keep your head down, breathe. I’ll be right back.” Before Izumi could either protest or agree Rin jumped back into the fray, trusting her student to stay hidden for the moment. Without a Genin to attend to Rin was free to take out the remaining two shinobi, noting how mismatched their uniforms seemed to be. Stolen, no doubt, leaving her in the dark as to where they came from despite the hitai-ate they bore proudly displaying a leaf. 

Even if they were clearly imposters her eyes were drawn to the corpse across the clearing, one still sporting the kunai Izumi used to take him down. It protruded from his neck and was already starting to congeal in place. In the heat of the moment they looked like one of their own, a psychological tactic she was sure. Quickly she reappeared on the tree branch beside her ward, a gentle hand coming to rest on the Uchiha’s shoulders. 

Poor thing-

“I need you to say something Izumi…”

Being a shinobi meant that she would be in dangerous situations, but perhaps she hadn’t been mentally prepared for the situation at hand. Then again, how could she when this mission hadn’t called for such combat?

Izumi remained frozen in place, eyes glued to the corpse that had her very own kunai lodge deep into his throat. There had been no thinking when she had acted, as everything had happened too quickly for her. It was only after the man’s body had fallen to the ground that she realized he was wearing a uniform and hitai-ate that affiliated him with Konohagakure.

She had killed someone from her own village. She had taken the life of someone.

       ‘   i ‘ve been busy. ’  her voice comes as a reminder of that night ,  a survivorship that long shut him off from any forming any connections. not that he held any dear. he’d  peer  through long lashes,  black eyes softening subtly when he’d take witness to that all  knowing inquiry.  Sasuke supposed pain was just pain when in the comfort of those who could be considered friends. they’ve been close. real close, she was like a sister.  indiscriminately so . ‘  training is more important than such trivial things ’  a defense of sorts, excuses spurring forth. . 

     “I suppose so.”

It was a very Sasuke-like answer, and one that Izumi should have expected from the other. Ever since that night it had been like a wall had appeared between them. Though she had tried to remain close to him, it wasn’t exactly easy to penetrate Sasuke’s iron defenses. However, she was determined to change the  rift that had continuously grown over the years.

     “Hey....! Why don’t we spend time together like we used to?”

Izumi questions, but there’s really no need to answer. Both of them have grown up, so how could she compare them to their childhood selves? Additionally, it’s not like she’s really ever been an integral part of Sasuke’s life. Despite this, however, it doesn’t stop her from making the suggestion.

     “Sakura-san...!”

Izumi quickly waved down the other girl the moment she spotted her familiar pink hair amid the busy streets. She had been meaning to visit the medic when time finally allowed, but life always appeared to be throwing obstacles in their way.

“A surprise party for Itachi-kun…?” 

     Tenzo took a moment to mull over Izumi’s proposition. It was Itachi’s first birthday in the ANBU, and it was a cute sentiment. ANBU members usually never celebrated such holidays, Tenzo specifically didn’t even really have a real birthday, just one assigned to them.

“I think that’s a good idea! What did you want me to help with? My wood style could make some outdoor areas if we want, but, you’re the boss here.” They smiled at the young girl, tilting their head. | @izvmisms

     “You’ll help? What a relief...!”