on the path, in the desolate field. [ kazuha x reader. ]

CHAPTER I: Willing

“How willing are you to save your clan?” 

Willing enough.

It was the dead of the night when Kazuha came into the Natsutei clan’s abode drenched in sweat. He looked incredibly pale, his lips chapped due to lack of hydration. Overall, he seemed exhausted and was on the verge of collapsing by the doorway.

If it weren’t for the servants that recognized him, he would’ve spent the night sprawled all over the entrance, bitten by the chill of the night’s cold air. Fortunate for him, the Natsutei clan was known for their warm hospitality. But who was to say that it was because of that.

Was it really because they were kind, or was it because he was a Kaedehara?  

Either way, Kazuha had no time to doubt them or to think about them using him for his status or name. Desperate times called for desperate measures, he was willing to do about anything in order to revive his clan. 

Anything. 

And so after a night of sleeping soundly in the guest chambers, he sat here, face to face with the Natsutei clan’s head, accosted with a question he thought he could answer in a heartbeat. 

“How willing are you to save your clan?” He immediately felt his throat go dry. 

“I,” Willing enough. He wanted to reply. But it was as if he swallowed a stone, he couldn’t speak. “I’m quite willing.” –Was all he managed to say.

And, and, he hated how the clan head’s expression shifted into something of pity for a split second. The change in her face was small.

In fact, one wouldn’t even be able to notice unless they looked closely. And Kazuha was observant, he hated it so much.

“Then, would marriage suffice?” 

Taken aback, Kazuha stilled, lips slightly parting in reluctance, seemingly unsure of how to answer. “Sorry?” 

“Marriage, Kaedehara.” The clan head sipped on the yunomi filled with warm tea, taking this as some sort of pause to let her words sink in Kazuha’s mind.

“Surely you’ve expected this? It is the easiest way for you to continue the Kaedehara bloodline.” 

“I’ve asked for assistance to revive my clan,” Kazuha felt the need to clarify. 

“I don’t have the ability to revive the dead, are you telling me that you plan to die along with your family’s legacy without a kin to continue it on?” 

“Planning for a kin is just too advanced,” 

“What’s too advanced? You’re a clan head, aren’t you?” 

He is a clan head, and he is the sole member of it too. 

“Yes.” 

“Then it goes without saying that you’re willing to resort to such great extents.” 

Oh. That was true. 

Maybe, that was why his father deemed him unworthy of offering even the slightest bit of help. He wasn’t willing enough, wasn’t ready to do any form of sacrifice.