Still Worth Fighting For(Someday)

Nightmare! The mission begins!

Chapter Twenty: Nightmare! The Mission begins!

"This is my cocoon dream. The nightmare that has been tormenting my existence in this world. I was walking along this path. I remember cold winds stinging my cheeks that were wet from tears. I heard a sound from far away. But I was too tired to think. I remember wanting to become a stone. A stone that doesn't feel pain. Or sorrow."- Reki

All Izami could hear was shouting, and yelling, and cries of the both the wounded, and the fighting. Izami felt alone, stranded in a split land. Her feet precariously balancing each side, her legs quivering from how long she had been frozen there. She was frozen with fear.

Fear of what? She could not answer.

Perhaps she feared that if she moved either of her feet to either side, the ground beneath her would crack, and she fall into the black, deep, unknown abbess.

Hot, stinging tears ran down her bruised face as her knees finally gave out on her, sending her legs colliding with the hard ground. It was exactly what she needed to bring her back to reality.

"Izami-chan! Snap out of it! We need your help on the Western Front now!" Izami looked up at her former teammate, now superior, as he jumped down beside her, and helped her up. His grey-black eyes looked at her worriedly as he gripped her bruised, and cut arm, and brought her to her feet. Izami still trembled, and he had to hold her close to him.

"Wabisuke-kun, I-"

"C'mon, I'm taking you to the Western Front. We could use your help in the fight. We never expected him to be so strong." Izami could not argue with him further as she put what weight she could on her fractured left ankle, and ran as fast as she could.

As they reached the designated spot, Wabisuke's eyes widened, his grip tightening on her arm in an almost bruising way. Izami moved closer to Wabisuke's body, her free hand tightening on his green over jacket in fear.

"Wabisuke-kun...I...I'm-"

"Don't you dare say you're afraid, Izami-chan! We've been through so much, and I know you as many things. But a coward? A coward is not among those things." He smiled at her softly, and gently tucked a piece of wild hair behind her ear, making her blush." And it's because of that, I know you will do fine. Just use your analyzing skills the best you can, and I know we can figure out a way to beat this fire chick." Izami smiled, her morale boosted slightly as she nods.

"Right, let's get to this." With that, they both charged straight into battle, even through the circumstances where uncertain...

Izami awoke with a fright, a sheen of a thin layer of sweat formed on her skin. She looked around wildly at the camp. It was near dawn, the dark sky was beginning to lighten. She laid back down, and tried to even out her breathing.

Izami had not dreamed about the Fourth War since a month and a half before the Chunin thought she was over her dreams, always different faces. Always the bad memories that seemed to replay over and over again in her mind.

Why was it she could only dream about the bad things, the bad memories? Why couldn't she focus on the good parts? But no, it was always the bad memories, and this latest dream... This particular dream she had brought a particular pang to her chest.

Izami closed her eyes, and tried to focus on something, anything so she would not fall back asleep, and continue to have those nightmares. She didn't want to be in a bad mood. She wanted to be happy. She needed to be in a good mood. She needed to be, for the sake of her sanity.