Hello, Heartache ~Uchiha Sasuke Love story~

Chapter 44: Getting Ready For War

I looked at the mass of shinobi in front of me. They were all from different nations -  the Lands of Lightning, Water, Fire, Earth and Wind, and even the lone samurai nation of the Land of Iron. They were all working towards the same objective : To defend Naruto and Killer B - the nine-tails and the eight-tails jinchuurikis from the Akatsuki. In other words, they were getting ready for war. And I was involved. Together with my friends and family.

Even Otousan and Okaasan were involved in the war. Nii-san told me they refused to stay at home and do nothing and wanted to fight in the war. On the outside, I pretended as if I couldn't care less. But deep inside, I was worried. I was scared they'd lose their lives. War meant that there would be a huge number of deaths - and that included people I cared about. It included me and I was not ready for war.

My brothers and I had come to this place (where all shinobis were supposed to assemble) later than our parents because until now, I was not ready to face them. So, my brothers decided they'd come to this place together with me. 

My hand absentmindedly touched the new headband on my head, keeping my hair away from covering my eyes. It felt foreign to me - the headband, I mean. Not my eye being uncovered. I was earning quite a number of strange looks from people and I could tell it was because of my different colored eyes. But the looks I was receiving didn't bother me much. I had better things to worry about.

My throat felt swollen. I swallowed.

'Scared, Makoto?' Masoto asked from beside me. 

I wanted to lie that I wasn't scared at all. I didn't want to be seen as a coward. But I couldn't bring myself to say so.

'I am,' I said quietly, my hands and feet feeling cold. Nii-san grabbed my hand and gave it a small squeeze.

'Are you feeling all right, Makoto?' he asked, eyebrows furrowed. 'Your hands are freezing.'

'I'm fine,' I said, still holding onto his hand. It calmed me down somehow. Like nothing could ever hurt me. I felt like child again, holding Nii-san's hand and having him bring me to the playground. 

'Don't worry, Makoto.' Masoto said, grinning. He grabbed my other hand tightly. 'We're going to win this war, I'm sure of it!'

As usual, my heart felt lighter from his words. But I was still worried. Even if we did win the war, there were still going to be deaths.

'Well, we'd better join our units.' Nii-san said, smiling slightly.

I threw my arms around both my brothers' shoulders, having to stand on my toes to do so. I pulled them close to me.

'You two better not die.' I said shakily.

When we finally pulled away, I noticed my brothers giving me a worried look before Masoto broke into one of his trademark grins.

'Don't worry, I won't die!' he assured. 'I'll survive, I promise!'

So, with that, the three of us parted ways to join our respective units.

I walked over to my unit and managed to spot Ten Ten among the crowd of people. 

'Hey,' I said, standing next to her.

'Makoto!' she said, smiling. 'I was looking for you.'

'I was with my brothers.'

She nodded before her eyes began scanning the people in our unit. 'When I hear that we'd be split into five units, I thought we'd be grouped by village.'

'Guess not.' I said, lifting a shoulder. 'I mean, this is a war.'

The main regiment is made up of five units, each specializing in warfare. The First Company: Mid-Range Battle Unit - which Ten Ten and myself are in. Mostly made up of weapon users. It's comprised of shinobi who excel in mid-distance combat. The Second Company : Close-Range Battle Unit specializes in close combat. The shinobi of this unit will be fighting on the front lines. Hinata and Neji are in this unit.  The Third Company: Intermediate-Range Battle Unit (which Lee and Sakura are in)  will be stationed to provide support up close and at mid-range. To be part of this unit, one must have speed and physical strength. The Fourth Company: Long-Range Battle Unit - which Shikamaru, Choji and Temari are in. They provide the link with the Intel Unit to support the front lines. In addition, they act as the shield for the support unit behind the lines. And finally, the Fifth Company: Special-Range Battle Unit. With their specialized ninjutsu and attack tactics. Shino, Ino, Kiba ad Nii-san are in this company.

Masoto was in the Sensory Division. They act as the "eyes" of the Allied Shinobi Force. From what I heard, the unit's performance can greatly change the tide of the battle.

'I saw your parents just now.' 

'What?' I said a little too fast so it sounded as if I was annoyed. 

'Your parents.' Ten Ten said cautiously. I could tell my response scared her slightly.

'I see.' I said, stiffly.

'They're both in the Second Company.'

I nodded curtly, staring straight ahead. I pretended as though the piece of information meant little to me.

'Tsukino Makoto?' 

Ten Ten and I turned around and my eyes widened at the familiar looking man who stared at me, his eyebrows furrowed. Those blue eyes, that sandy hair and the long sword that was strapped to his back. No doubt, it was him - Raiden Rokuro. The guy I went against during the Chunin exams. The first time I went for the Chunin exams.

'You are Tsukino Makoto, right?' he said, his eyes glinting.

I blinked at him before shifting closer to Ten Ten who was looking rather lost. 'Yes ... I am.'

'Man, you've changed!' he said, letting out a small chuckle. 'I almost didn't recognize you. Remember me? I'm -'

'I know who you are.' I said stiffly, about to turn around but he caught my arm.

'Look, I'm really sorry about my behavior back then.' he said sheepishly. 'I didn't mean to sound so ...'

'Creepy?' I suggested, raising an eyebrow.

'Well, yeah.' he said, nodding. He moved his hand away from my arm and rubbed the back of his neck. I couldn't help but notice how muscular his exposed biceps were. In the last couple of years, he had grown quite a bit. Back then, the top of my head reached his chin. Now, I was only up to his chest. His hair had grown slightly longer as well.

'Am I missing something?' Ten Ten piped up, looking slightly awkward. I couldn't help but laugh before introducing them to each other. Of course, I mentioned about how much of a creep he was back then as well. He didn't really seem to mind though.

'So, you're in the First Company too?' he said, grinning. 'Awesome! So, which division is your boyfriend in?'

I choked on my own spit. 'Boyfriend?'

He blinked at me, looking genuinely confused. 'Yeah ... don't you have one?'

'No.' I tell him, my chest aching slightly as Sasuke's face entered my brain. 'What makes you think that?'

'Well,' he said, his cheeks turning slightly pink. 'You're beautiful.'

From beside me, Ten Ten let out the softest gasp. I scowled, folding my arms.

'I thought I made it clear I didn't like you saying weird things to me.' 

'It's not like that.' he said, taking a step towards me and looking deeply serious. 'You are beautiful.'

I felt the heat rise up to my cheeks and I turned away from him. I was blushing because I felt embarrassed. No feeling of butterflies. No heart thumping ferociously against my rib cage. His words didn't matter to me right now. 

I was scared. Scared of war. Scared for myself. Scared that I'd lose my friends. That I'd lose my friends.

Scared that I would forever only want Sasuke and no one else.

AUTHOR'S NOTE
Hey guys
So sorry for the late update
Super busy with school as usual
I have an entire week of tests next week 
so that's great

anyway
hope you guys enjoyed this chapter
thank you all for reading