amethyst solitary (naruto u.)

the truth

Time flew by quick, and it felt like an eternity staying in this cave these past three days.

After waking up from her traumatic dream, Manaka had no choice but to stay close to who he goes by as Madara. It took her some time to grasp what the hell was going on around her. But once the unfathomable processed through her head, she was rendered speechless.

The man kept her hostage and stated if she ever evaluates fleeing, he wouldn't hesitate dragging her back into another gengutsu, this time, submitting further damage into her already disturbed consciousness.

Therefore, the prospect of being tortured before reaching the afterlife frightened her. His willingness of abuse was severe and heartless, and she didn't want to go through it again. So, she stayed dead in her tracks and did nothing about the matter.

Presently, Manaka sat atop her futon inside the cave, munching on some food Madara had provided her. He left for an unknown reason, but planned to return soon. Aside from the fact that she was left alone and had a decent chance of escaping the void, she resisted the opportunity.

Once done with her meal, she drew her legs close to her chest and leaned against her kneecaps, sighing.

Hana sat helplessly in front of her with her thin eyebrows pinched together and hands folded on top of her thighs. Oh, if only she could wipe her pain as if it was a smudge latched against her cheek!

"You doing okay there?" stated the Yōkai.

Manaka shook her head.

"You know, that Naruto in your previous dream was a complete fraud. The concept of hurting you would never cross his mind, so don't let Madara play mind games with your brain."

The adolescent girl raised her head and glared.

"Of course he wouldn't! Naruto would never initiate harm!"

The whiskered shinobi was pure like an angel, as been proven by his good deeds to both her and his village. Whatever others thought of him for having a jinchuruki sealed inside of him didn't change her perspective of him. Neither did Madara's trick. She still loved him for who he was.

"You know, everything I've done so far was for the sake of him. I wanted to protect him, to protect his feelings." Manaka's shoulders tensed as she spoke. "I mean just look at him! His teammate Sasuke left the village years ago and he's still trying to get him back to the village. I don't want to stack up another burden on his shoulders once he learns the truth about my return to my world. I just know he'd try to find another way to let me stay!"

Hana sighed. "I understand, sweetie."

"It was never my intention to treat him wrongly, but I had no choice, believe me." Her voice croaked.

The past warrior shuffled closer. "There isn't much you can do about it. The longer you stay in this world, the harsher the consequences will be dictated by fate, it's out of your hands."

Manaka's eyes welled up with tears, and she couldn't help but sniffle. "If only I mustered the courage to see him one last time."

"Oh, dear." Hana immediately embraced her and began caressing her hair. "Trust me, it's all worth it in the end."

"How?" her response came out muffled.

She quickly shifted her weight and craned her neck, resting her chin on Hana's shoulder. "I'm still held captive in this stupid cave and Madara hasn't returned from wherever he went in the first place. My plan of finding a solution turned out to be a complete failure and Kami knows what's going to happen to me once he comes back!"