𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔, 𝐧𝐞𝐣𝐢 𝐡.

𝟳 ❤︎

chapter seven ;; fractured and forgetful

❝ Jeez, is there any time you don't need protection? ❞

Although saving civilians was a seemingly simple task, it was quite frustrating. Many were either stuck in places or lost, and you still had to fight. Your injuries had gotten worse for every person you came across. Scratches, bruises, cuts—, they were left all over your body. However, you had no time to focus on the damage being inflicted on you.

You were still able to fight and move as best as you could, and everything was going quite smoothly until you reached a certain child. It was a little girl who'd desperately been crying out for help. Her leg was stuck under a pile of debris and if you weren't mistaken, you could see a ring of blood around her leg.

As you reached her, you moved the rubble away with ease, gently pulling her away to not injure her leg any more than it already was.

"Are you alright?" You asked in between your breaths, pulling out objects to help tend to her wounds.

She stayed silent, eyes landing on your headband. "Hey, y-you're one of those people...!"

You narrowed your eyebrows, but changed the subject. "Where are your parents?"

"Parents?" She attempted to move away, but you kept her in place as you began to clean her wound. "Ouch—!"

"Where were you before this happened?"

"I don't remember."

"Do you remember who hurt you?" You wrapped her leg up, checking for any other wounds while awaiting her response.

"No."

"Do you think you're able to walk?"

"Um... no."

You sighed. You picked her up, allowing her to hold onto
your shoulders while you advanced. You stared into the distance as you moved, but you'd noticed the sight ahead had begun to distort and all feeling in your body go numb.

You didn't want to believe it, but you'd fallen under a genjutsu.

The weight of the child had been gone, and your surroundings warped into a sight that'd made you dizzy. The best option was to look away, and as you looked down, you could notice the ground had a slimy texture instead of the normal concrete. Your feet were slowly sinking, and it was a steadily growing sensation of burning with every inch of skin that sunk into the ground.

You weren't exactly sure what to do. You'd tried to recall what Haruka had taught you, ways to get yourself out of a genjutsu. However, the only thing that came to mind was how she said in the worst case scenario, self-inflicted pain or death would be the only ways out. You didn't want to hurt yourself any more than you already have.

There was no other choice but to hurt yourself to get out of it. You grabbed your arm, bending it and holding it as tight as you could until you felt a sharp pain run through your entire arm, along with the sound of your bone snapping. That wasn't exactly what you planned, but you had to get out of the genjutsu, and fast, because with the way the little girl was screaming for your attention—, something had to be wrong.

You understood exactly why she was screaming so much when you'd regained your senses and noticed the growing explosion coming your way.

You didn't want to turn around and risk her getting hurt, so you attempted to use your flash step to get you and her away. You managed to get away with a first degree burn on that assumably broken arm, and the child left unharmed.