The Way Of The Shinobi

Chapter Thirty-Five: One Thousand Birds

(Yumiko's POV)

   The world around me seemed to continue to spin as I came too. My violet eyes scanned the chaos around me, looking for any sign of Kakashi I could find. My ears felt like they were going to fall off, the throbbing pain slowly distorting my vision. I slowly pulled myself to my knees, finally seeing the bottom of a foot.

   "K-Kakashi?" I muttered as I stumbled over to his unconscious body. Thankfully we were surrounded by a cover of smoke and dust. Multiple fires were ablaze around us, the once peaceful, beautiful estate now a smoky battlefield. I reached down and pressed two of my fingers against the clammy skin of his neck, praying I would find a pulse. After a few seconds a faint sign of life made tears stream down my bloody face.

   "P-Please, don't give up Kakashi. We will make it back I promise..." I mumbled through the tears as I carefully grabbed Kakashi and hoisted him onto my back. I reached in his thigh pouch and pulled out a kunai, holding it for dear life in front of me with my left hand as I held Kakashi up with my right. Every muscle and bone in my body ached, but I knew if I didn't push through the pain that Kakashi and I would not make it back alive.

   Mayumi's frustratingly beautiful face flashed in my mind. I knew if Kakashi died because of me, Mayumi would never forgive me. I slowly began forcing my legs to move. I needed to get Kakashi and I somewhere where I could take a look at his wounds and assess the situation better. I wasn't trained for situations like this, besides the little bit of training I did when I was a child. I couldn't remember how far away we were from the forest line. Suddenly I felt a sharp stabbing pain in my thigh. I looked down to see blood pouring down my leg, turning my once expensive silk a dark shade of maroon.

   I dropped the kunai onto the ground and continued to push myself to get to the forest line. I could hear the sound of yelling slowly getting closer to me as I tried to run with Kakashi unconscious on my back.

   "CHECK THE PERIMETER! THEY COULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN FAR!" The guard's voice only added to the anxiety and fear that was consuming every inch of me. After what felt like an eternity I could finally see the forest line. I gripped Kakashi's thighs as tight as I could as I continued to carry him through the cloud of smoke and ash.

   "We're gonna make it Kakashi.." I muttered again, my vision slowly becoming hazy as I was thrown back in an instant. My eyes widened as I saw Kakashi's body fall onto the ground as I flew back a few feet. Yui stood in front of me as I landed harshly onto the ash covered ground. Yui held her twin blades up as she looked over at Kakashi. I took that moment with everything I had to lunge at her, unexpectedly knocking her off balance and onto the ground. The sound of Yui's blades clashing to the ground filled the air as I struggled to hold Yui down. I pulled my arm back and went to punch her in the face, Yui's hand stopping my fist just before it hit her face.

   'Keep struggling Lady Sato, and I'm afraid you may bleed out." Yui stated cockily. I pushed against her with all my might as I gritted my teeth.

   "T-That's fine...As long as I take you out with me.." I stated as I quickly reached for my thigh. Normally for meetings I had with my fathers client's I never had a weapon on me. But, today was different. I quickly drew the rather large kodachi out of the thigh holster Mayumi had suggested that I wear before we left for the meeting. Yui's eyes widened as she used her other hand to grab my wrist holding my sword.

   "Hmpf, I'm surprised. Even the weakest one of the group can come up with a plan." Yui continued to taunt me as I continued to push as hard as I could against her, my fist and the tip of my kodachi inching closer to her delicate pale face. My violet eyes met the deep red gaze of hers as I could feel my entire body screaming for it to be over. Yui smirked as she took a deep breath.

   "I m-may not be a ninja like Mayumi and the others but...I-I won't lose.." I did the best I could to finish my sentence as my chest felt like it was on fire. Tears streamed down my face as I continued to struggle against her. Yui's gaze drifted down to my thigh again as she spoke.

   "L-Looks like you nicked your femoral artery. I'm surprised you're still going but, I'm growing very bored of playing with you." Yui stated as she pulled her knee up in between our chests and kicked me off with what seemed like little to no effort. An overwhelming numbness began engulfing my limbs as I landed against a tree a few feet away. I coughed as I could barely keep my eyes open. Yui stood up and began walking towards me.

  "Any last words, Lady Sato?" Yui questioned me with a wicked grin on her face as she approached me with my own kodachi in her grasp. I took a deep breath and smiled as I whispered, knowing that this was probably my last moment here. My life flashed before my eyes as I smiled to myself, knowing that my job was done.

   "Goodbye...Yui.." I muttered as suddenly the sound of one thousand birds chirping filled the still smoky air around us. A flash of lightning ripped through Yui's chest as I drifted off peacefully.