namikaze girl ! k. hatake

fourteen.

biting down on my lip, it was a relief to hear that naruto was safe for the time being. still, i didn't expect him to stand idly by as konoha was being ravaged entirely. i released the breath i didn't realize i had been holding as my gaze tunneled in on the lifeless shinobi closest to me. iruka had arrived, coming to the aid of the ninja immediately. his expression was littered with fear, shaking me to my core.

"katsuyu," i stated sternly, finally recalling the bug's name after years of zero interaction. still, she perked immediately at my tone. lifting my hand, i took hold of the handle of my samurai, exposing the blade quicker than i ever had before. compared to years ago, the blade itself seemed lighter. "latch onto my back tightly."

"yes, ma'am," she breathed, sounding terrified while attempting to facade confidence. i didn't mind it however, as the same mixture of feelings colliding with what i should be masking was the same as hers. i was terrified, but i had no other choice.

taking off, the slug stuck to my back, sitting close to my neck in order to speak to me even while i fought. gaining closer towards iruka, i was nearly pulled to a halt as pain, himself, appeared before the two shinobi. his mouth moved as he stared down at iruka, looking frozen entirely as his entire face fell. i continued on, feeling the burst of adrenaline run through my veins just as pain pulled his arm back, revealing the same metallic rod he attempted to kill me with before.

"i'm not gonna make it," i whispered to myself, though i was certain katsuyu heard me. reaching in my pocket for the kunai passed on directly from minato, my teeth clattered together as even that wouldn't save iruka, now. just as i was about to scream out for him, snap him out of his fear and get him to move, a flash of a white-haired shinobi came to view, grabbing onto the metal rod just before it became one with iruka's head. kaksahi. i released a breath of relief, knowing he was still alive.

still, throwing one of the kuani's closer, the knives from minato's collection always seemed to be quicker than my own. i was behind pain in an instant, holding a samurai to the back of his neck with an outstretched arm.

"iruka, go, now," i directed, once more afraid he had yet to snap out of it. he looked at me, but my wide eyes remained on the back of pain's head, unable to remove my sight from him.

"the copy ninja, kakashi hatake, and rei namikaze -"

"shut up. no more talking from you," i quickly growled, swinging the samurai just as kakashi's grip on the metal rod made it snap. pain ducked beneath my blade, pulling his foot upwards to kick kakashi in the head, who, thankfully, dodged it with the help of his sharingan. blowing wind onto the blade of the sword, i continued to swing as kakashi quickly gathered a chidori - my blade quickly being broken by the metal rod pain carried. holding an open palm, i attempted to brace myself whilst preparing kakashi with what was to come.

there was no time, as pain quickly pushed the both of us into a pile of rubble, oddly reminding me that it had been years since i had fought alongside kakashi. before i could build the strength to pull myself from the blocks of concrete and wood from a destroyed building, pain's voice filled my ears, violating my brain in ways i couldn't comprehend; hearing him speak only reminded me of jiraiya.

"do you hate me, rei?" he asked, staring at me with rinnegan eyes as kakashi, too, emerged from the rubble. i couldn't find the words for him, knowing my hatred was much stronger than that. it was a deep loathing, down to the cellular level. i despised him entirely. "sometimes the only thing to shut people up is by showing them an angry power."

i knew he was trying to get into my head, much like tobi had. still, it was enough to make my skin grow hot and burn against my own better judgment. almost entirely consumed by anger, i stood up straight, quickly pulling another minato kunai from my side in a white-knuckle grip.