destiny calls | *. naruto fanfic

40.

    Days passed, and finally, Akari was discharged from the hospital. Her wounds still stung, a bitter reminder of her failure. After multiple questionings, the village had determined to put the girl under watch. They all claimed it was for her own safety. But she knew better. They didn't trust her. Not after what happened. And frankly, she couldn't blame them. 

    Pulling a hood over her face, Akari stepped out onto the streets, annoyance spiking as her 'bodyguard' didn't even try to hide their presence. It'd been like this for the past couple days. They didn't trust her, but obviously they didn't see her as much of a immediate threat. 

    That wasn't the only thing though. Rumors had spread like wildfire after the battle. Now, everyone knew her secret. Whispers filled her ears as Akari walked down the road. The stares filled with hatred burned holes in her skull as she lowered her head. 

    It was almost laughable. At one point in time this was Naruto. Hated by everyone for something he couldn't control. And now, it was her turn. Karma really was a bitch.

    The girl had closed herself off after the incident. She rarely spoke, rarely interacted with anyone, she even pushed her only remaining friends away. She didn't want them to be ridiculed alongside her. She couldn't even bring herself to see Eriko. It was all her fault. If it wasn't for her... that family wouldn't be so broken. Now, Eriko was alone. Her husband? Dead. Her daughter? Dead. Because of me. My fault...

"Hey! You!" A rough hand grabbed the girl's shoulder, it's grip tightening with rage as the girl did not respond. "You're the one who led them here, aren't you? You think you can just walk around like nothing happened?! Because of you, my mother and brother are dead!" The unknown voice dug their nails into Akari's shoulder, not letting up even at the sight of the girl's obvious flinch. "Don't you see? You're not welcome here," It spat. "A good 60% of the villagers are either dead or injured, all of our shinobi might as well of been wiped out completely. And you still think you can prance around like it wasn't your doing?" 

    A crowd had gathered by this point, the murmers and whispers turning to cries of outrage. It wasn't long before they began throwing things. A small rock struck the girl, more following soon after. There was plenty of rubble for them to throw around, and she made no move to stop the attacks from hitting. She deserved it, after she'd torn apart so many families, she deserved every last piece of rubble thrown her way and more. 

"How many lives were lost because of you?"

"You think all would just be forgiven?!" 

"We've suffered this much damage because of you!" 

"My family's dead because of your selfishness!" 

    Roars of rage filled the young shinobis ears, her body trembling as she absorbed each and every insult, all of the blame. As the mob closed in, Akari shrunk in on herself. Her body stung, not just from her old wounds, but from the newly formed bruises as well. "Please... I know... leave me alone..." Her pleas reached nowhere, the villagers were blind with anger, and rightfully so. "Please... just shut up!" Akari's eyes met the people's for the first time in months. Their eyes, riddled with surpluses of rage, stared into her own. 

    Her own, once filled with joy, now seemed dead. Deep purple bags under her eyes betrayed the lack of sleep, the nights spent twisting and turning as she recalled the screams of her own sister being mauled in front of her. The screams of the helpless people below dying. She lived with all of it. Every day, every hour, every second. That blood was on her hands. Hands she would never be able to wipe clean. 

"You think I don't know what I did? You think I can't see all the destruction?! You aren't the only ones who lost someone! I did to! I watched my own fucking sister get killed right before my eyes! I relive that day every night! Wishing I could of done something to save everyone... I know I'm not welcome here." Tears rolled down Akari's cheeks, a small sob escaping past her lips. She shoved her way through the crowd, returning her hood to her head as she ran for the only place she felt safe; the forest. 
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    Weeks passed, buildings returned to their original state. Loss was mourned and forgiven. Life was returning to normal for the Leaf. And yet, after that day, Akari was never seen in town again. Her friends went looking. Of course they would, they were worried about the girl. After all, if they didn't worry, who would? 

    But little did they know, they wouldn't find her. Nor would they ever see her again. All that remained was a note, a note that now lay in the hands of Eriko. The women woke not long after the girl's disappearance. The amount of grief and shock she was going through... it almost felt surreal. But she knew it wasn't. Both her babies were gone. Looking down at the paper, she read the words once more.

Eriko, 

  I hope you'll be able to read this... And I hope this gets delivered as planned. I... I couldn't bring myself to visit you after what happened. I'm sorry. I got all of you dragged up in my mess. And now, even the village was destroyed. I don't know if my clan will come back for me. That's why I left. I made sure they would follow. I don't want any of you getting hurt again. 

  I know the village will be able to move on and grow, I hope you can do the same. I left Riku to keep you company, I know she'll take care of you well. Please, don't worry over me. I'll be alright. The forest is my second home after all.

  Tell Shikamaru congrats on Chunin for me, and tell Naruto that he's stronger than he knows. Tell Sakura that I believe in her. I think she'll do great things one day. Tell Heidan I'm sorry I couldn't have my rematch with him, and thank you for saving me. Make sure all my friends know I'm alright. I don't want them to search for me. 

  It was fun, I enjoyed every moment of my life here. Thank you for giving me something to wake up to in the morning. Thank you for taking me in with such kindness, for treating me like your own daughter. I didn't deserve any of it... You knew nothing of me and yet still took me in. That's a kindness I will never forget. Never. Please, don't blame yourself for any of this. You were the best mother any child could ever ask for. I'll always hold steadfast to that statement. 

  Recover soon, yours sincerely,

Akari
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*coughs in it totally hasn't been five months since the last update*

This chapter's short, I know, I'm sorry. It's been so long I've completely forgotten what I had planned except for the major points, so uh, we'll see how this goes. 

Anyways, the fact that people actually still read this is insane. I see you out there silent readers. But whats even more insane... is the fact that there's only a few more chapters left in this book. Like what? Its been over a year but it certainly hasnt felt like it. All thats left now is to tie everything up with a nice pretty bow. Or well, tie everything up best I can, this book was not planned well