it rained a lot for the next five days.
the rain washed most blood away as they collected the corpses from the streets, mounting them on the outskirts of the city like a statue for the damned. the intense scent of burning, ashes and decomposing organs was soon dissolved underneath the curtain of slicing raindrops. one by one, there were only stones left.
there came the time to crane their necks up and wonder where to start rebuilding it all. inazuma had fallen, leaving nothing but scars behind.
on the first day after, they discovered people in the palace prison. those were all the ones that gave up the fight and willingly let themselves be hauled away. among them all were both familiar and unfamiliar faces, some of them badly bruised, others smiling cheerfully even though their house had been burnt down. the war was over.
on the second they after they managed to establish their new semi-government. among those who survived was kujou sara, whose knowledge and overall skill helped them create a plan, backed up by sangonomiya kokomi and her resistance. together, the once opposing parties united over the shared goal of reviving inazuma. the power of the leader laid in yae miko's hands, as the only place on narukami island wasn't scorched to the ground was the shrine and sacred sakura. apparently, even born with evil in his heart, the balladeer felt enough sentiment to spare the holy grounds.
on the third day after, kazuha stood alone. the umbrella he was holding trembled in his hands, both to the cold and feelings he couldn't swallow down. he was standing near the shrine of the outskirts of inazuma city. the shrine was wiped off; only stone laid untouched. apparently, the only contract promising eternity was written in geo. he took one lonely sigh before letting the umbrella fall to the ground, and he knelt on the rainkissed soil and began digging into it with his bare hands.
(slowly wrapping up within frozen palms are scars i receive up until yesterday; they become such a coward because they can't forget; humans will surely keep on searching.)
it was easy to dig through the mud, lower and deeper below. rain began soaking up his clothes and hair, dripping down onto his hands as he kept looking.
(place nothing but the power to hope)
his fingernails eventually scratched onto something solid. he blinked and flipped his hair away as he leaned further down, and slowly yanked a small black box from the mud. his bottom lip trembled as he pried at the lid.
(but still now, i'll keep going to the north.)
inside, there was a small pendant. tiny, no bigger than the width of his thumb. gently silver to the touch, shaped to resemble the steering wheel of a ship. kazuha swallowed down, his eyes landing on a piece of paper laying at the bottom of the box. his fingers shook as he lifted it up.
(even so, humans will surely continue their journey.)
"kazuha, you little ass. i'm sorry we fought. this might be where we separate our ways, but i feel bitter leaving you with nothing. so, here's something for you. pretty, isn't it? a steering wheel for a ship to always hold you on the right track. so that no matter where you go, you'll always find your way. cliché, isn't it... well, let it be. let it be the way it is. take it on your journey to remember me no matter how far away you'll be...
(sailing miles away.)"
kazuha burst out crying, both the pendant and the letter falling on his lap. rain and tears became one again, and kaedehara kazuha was drowning.
with his vision bluried and the world above collapsed, he let the vicious thunders roar above as the merciful cold waves slowly consumed the pathetically exhaled last particles of oxygen keeping his consciousness afloat.
YOU ARE READING
sailing miles away // tomokazu
Fanfiction-and he ran, never turning back. and he ran, with the dying vision burning out scars on his palm. and he ran, because if he didn't, all would die that day. tomokazu.
