Book 2: The Three of Us

Chapter 9: The Aftermath

I flinch is surprise when a loud bange shakes my wall, coming from the direction of Tsunade's office. My first response was assuming it was in fact Tsunade throwing something but there's no shift in her chakra like there usually is. Moving my own chakra out to observe what's going on, I freeze at the surprise of the unstable chakra of Kisame. My mothers chakra neared quickly and before I knew it both her and Kisame's chakra were gone without a trace. 

Whatever this was, it wasn't good. I stand up from my chair and open the door to the hallway. Looking around, I'm met with the view of a hole from Tsunade's office to the hallway. Bewildered shinobi stand around in the rubble. 

Tsunade stands in her office, arms crossed and shaking her head at the mess. I step through the broken wall to get to her, "Care to explain what just happened?"

"Ibiki decided to piss Kisame off and got thrown through a wall for it," she says, motioning towards the broken wall. 

"Where did he go?" I ask, needing to know where he is right now. 

Tsunade shakes her head, "No idea. Your mom shushined away with him." 

It was a relief to know that Kisame was with my mother and calmed some of the urgency to make sure he was okay. She probably took him to the compound. Chewing on the inside of my cheek in thought, I try to understand what could set Kisame off like this. 

"You were there, what did Ibiki say that made Kisame react this way?" I ask, crossing my arms in thought. 

Tsunade opens her mouth before closing it again, clearly struggling with what she's going to say. The hesitance makes me sick to my stomach. Tsunade looks away from me when she finally speaks, "It was about his clan and probably the reason he defected from the Mist Village. I think you should hear it from Kisame himself." 

Without another word I head in the direction of the hospital where Sakura is working, knowing it would be best for us to do this together. Locating her chakra in the hospital isn't a challenge and I follow it until I'm at the operating room. She was mid way through a surgery and I stand outside the door, waiting for her. I bite down on the inside of my cheek, worried about Kisame and hoping I wouldn't have to wait much longer. 

It feels like forever as I stare at nothing in the bleak hospital hallways. The surgery finally comes to an end and the team of medic nins exit the operating room. Sakura looks over at me in surprise, a smile on her face. I must have a terrible expression on my face when her smile drops from her face and is replaced with a worried frown. 

Sakura makes her way over to me, "Hey, what's wrong?" 

"Something happened to Kisame," Sakura's eyes widen with shock and worry," I don't know what happened, all I know is that Ibiki said something about his clan that really pissed him off. He threw Ibiki through a wall in the hokage tower. And before I could find out what happened, my mother shushined away with him," I explain. 

"Do you know where they went?" Sakura asks, already walking in the direction of the nearest hospital exit. 

"Most likely my house," I reply, following a step behind her. 

A nurse walking the opposite direction of us stops Sakura, "Dr. Haruno, I thought you were on shift for another few hours." 

Sakura gives her a polite smile, "Really sorry. A family emergency has come up." 

The nurse gives her an understanding nod, "I'll make sure to get someone to cover the rest of your shift." 

"Thank you," Sakura gives a shallow bow before we continue our way out. 

Sakura and I take off our shoes before making our way through the house in search for Kisame and my mother. We find my mother in the kitchen pouring a cup of tea with a look of deep thought, her mind wandering. She looks up at us when we enter and she lets out a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness you're here. Kisame is in the living room." 

"Mom, what exactly happened?" I ask. 

Pursing her lips, my mother only shakes her head, "After we got here, he broke down crying. He's calmed down but has yet to speak," she slides the tea across the counter to us, "Here, bring him some tea." 

Sakura picks it up and gives her a grateful smile, "Thank you, Mikoto." 

"He's a part of the family. It was the least I could do," Mikoto responds while she pours another cup of tea for herself. 

Joining Kisame in the living room, the three of us sit in silence. Kisame goes to grab the cup of tea but a tremor in his hand causes it to splash over. He flinches when the hot liquid splashes onto his hand. Giving up on the tea, he sets it back down, his frustration causing him to set it down harder then intended. Seeing him like this was painful to watch. I'd always noticed a light tremor that his hands always seemed to have. But I had never seen it as bad as it is right now. 

It's a while before Kisame speaks but once he does, I can see the relief flood through him. The hours pass and he explains what happened to his clan and everything that led up to him defecting from the Mist Village. He shares the part he played in his clans death, even if it was by accident. My mother listens in from the kitchen and I briefly wonder how she's reacting to this all. 

It's terrifying to see how much the death of his clan weighs on his shoulder, blaming himself for it all. My stomach sinks as he explains it all, finally being able to get an idea of who I could've become if I has listened to Danzo. This was the result of accidently helping the massacre of your clan. What would it look like to be someone who did it on purpose? What would that turn a person into? What did I almost turn into?