Rain To Wash The Blood Away (Nagato x reader)

34. Leaving Konoha

"Why are you going so soon? You only just got here," Moegi whined, her arms wrapped around your waist. Udon wiped his nose as he nodded in agreement, his lip quivering as he watched you on the brink of tears.

"Yeah, what's up with that? Can't you stay and help fix the village at least? I mean, it was the Akatsuki who destroyed it and you were with them," Konohamaru accused, pointing a finger at you. Naruto gently hit the boy on the head, glaring down at him.

"You shouldn't say things like that, especially not to (Y/n)," he scolded. The brunette huffed, crossing his arms as he turned his face away from you. Turning your attention away from the former Hokage's grandson, you opened your arms to offer Udon a hug. After wiping his nose, he happily came over and joined Moegi, hugging you tightly. There were many others there to bid you goodbye, a lot of them being children of Konoha you had met during your stay. The parents were usually wary of you since you were part of the Akatsuki but eventually came to like you too. Other kids came over to give you hugs, expressing how much they were going to miss you.

And what hurt most was when they would tell you to come back safe because you knew that you weren't going to come back. You hated to make those empty promises, especially since you knew how heartbroken they would all be when they found out that you had died. They were so innocent, reminding you of Konan, Yahiko and Nagato at the beginning of the war. 

Saying goodbye to one of the little girls you knew, you pet her head affectionately.

"You'd make a good mother," a familiar voice commented. Turning your head, you were met with the sight of Kakashi. Meeting your gaze, he lifted his hand to greet you, accompanying his gesture with a closed-eyed smile. Hearing that made you feel worse, you did want to have kids, that not being able to happen now that Nagato was gone and the fact that you didn't have much time left.

"Maybe one day I will be," you lied, knowing that would never be a possibility. Kakashi nodded, slipping his hands into his pockets.

"Well, I thought I'd stop by and say goodbye before you guys head off," he said, glancing around at the group who was going with you. You smiled as you followed his gaze, liking the group that had been chosen to go with you and Naruto.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it and I'm sure the others do too. Anyway, good luck on the battlefield." Kakashi sighed, running his fingers through his hair to relieve his stress.

"It really shouldn't have escalated to this but it'll be okay. People here are ready to lay their lives down to protect everyone and I feel a lot better knowing that you'll be with Naruto," he expressed, placing his hand on your shoulder. His hand touched Machi's mark, making it ache. You managed to hide your pain, taking a few subtle deep breaths.

"Kakashi, thank you for being so kind to me while I've been here," you smiled, the pain immediately disappearing after his hand returned to his pocket.

"It's nothing," he assured.

"Come on guys, we really should get going. Where's Killer Bee?" Yamato asked, looking around at the group of people who had gathered to see you guys off. You had met the jinchuriki of the eight tails a few times so far and thought he was a very interesting guy, always rapping as opposed to talking normally. Speaking of interesting people, you could hear one calling your name all of a sudden.

"(Y/n)!" Might Gai announced, getting on one knee before you. There he pulled a flower out from behind him, offering to you.

"My youthful beauty, I will protect you throughout our journey!" he declared, sending you one of his signature winks. You raised an eyebrow, glancing to Kakashi for some insight. The silver-haired man shrugged his shoulders, enjoying the scene that was unfolding.

"I won't need protecting," you warned, glaring at him. It pissed you off that he assumed you would need protecting. Usually, you were the one doing the protecting, gender not mattering at all. Seeing your harsh answer he jumped back, running over to Kakashi to hide behind him. Peeking out from behind his rival, he eyed you carefully.

"I can tell that she's strong just from her fierce eyes," he observed, annoying you some more. Hearing his rival say that made the masked man laugh. Stepping to the side, he forced the dark-haired male out into the open.

"Don't worry about her, Gai. (Y/n) is capable of looking after herself," Kakashi assured him, giving him a firm pat on the back. Gai opened his mouth to say something was cut off when Naruto jumped in, the blonde blocking his view of you.

"I don't think I've ever seen you fight, but you were part of the Akatsuki and Pervy-sage's student so you must be strong," he said, looking at you to talk about it. Not knowing what to say about it, you shrugged your shoulders.

"I'm strong but it's been a while since I've fought so I might be a little rusty," you admitted. It was hard not to think back to being apart of the new Akatsuki, being treated different from all the other members. Pein refused to send you out on missions so you'd spend all say at the hideout, mainly cleaning up and looking after the other members.

"And I don't really like fighting but I do what I have to survive," you added, knowing that Naruto wanted to hear more. The blonde opened his mouth to speak, being silenced when another voice cut in.

"Are you ready to leave?" Tsunade asked, Killer Bee approaching from behind her. You guessed that the two had come over together, the Hokage being the reason that the Jinchuriki was late. He was a tall guy, being distinguishable by his blonde hair, beard, tinted glasses and the blue markings on his cheek.

"Yo, everybody ready to go?" he rapped, repeating the Hokage's words. Looking around, it looked like everyone was prepared to leave. Naruto and Killer Bee as well as all the support was there, meaning that you'd all be leaving very soon.

"I think you guys should head off now, you don't want to be stuck travelling too long in the dark," she said, approaching you. You were surprised when she enveloped you in a hug, her arms wrapping around you protectively.

"I hope that I get  the chance to see you again before you go," she whispered. Hearing her say that, you couldn't help but hold her tighter as well.

"I'd like that," you smiled, looking up at her as she pulled back. There she gave you a loving look, her hands still holding onto you by your upper arms. Her hold was gentle yet firm, feeling as if she didn't want to let you go.

"Jiraiya would be so proud of you," she expressed, finally releasing you. Hearing that, your face heated up in embarrassment. You hadn't expected her to say something meaningful like that, it meaning so much more to you coming from someone who was so close to your sensei.

"Thank you," you whispered. She reached forward, brushing a piece of your hair out of your face before pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Hold on as long as you can, not just for me but for Naruto." You nodded, watched as she left to bid goodbye to a few others. You watched her do so, only being snapped out of it when you felt someone tap your shoulder gently. Turning your head, you saw Naruto smiling at you.

"Come on, (Y/n). It's time to go."

I hate when my stories get close to ending. I love wrapping them up but it means that I'll have to stop writing this one, one which I love so much. It's not one of my popular ones, but I do really love it. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.