R E S I S T A N C E

the S C R O L L

As the three of us trudged barefoot through the grass and dirt, the sky opened up on top of us and slowly turned everything to mud. We had been walking for hours, and were completely at a loss for how to go about finding the others.

Where are you, Sasuke?

I'd only recently come to terms with the fact that I did want to find Sasuke again. No matter how many times my mind told me that he wasn't worth my time, or that he didn't care about me or the rest of the team, I still couldn't shake the want to see his face again (as much as I would have liked to.)

The three of us began taking turns scouting out the immediate area in our own ways, but that plan soon proved too difficult for me. There seemed to be too many chakra signatures, too many vibrations in every direction for me to even begin getting an accurate reading.

I sighed and looked up at the sky, watching as the droplets fell from the gray clouds overhead. The image alone was an accurate representation for how I felt on the inside, but the feeling it gifted me with was able to lift my spirits just slightly.

The rain had always been a friend of mine for as long as I could remember. It always greeted me in the same way, rumbling an affectionate hello as it washed away all of my worries. I considered it nature's way of comforting me in the only way it knew how: through energy.

It had been too long since I allowed myself to bathe in the warmth of natural chakra this way, and I allowed my eyes to flutter shut as it began to consume me.

Soon though, as I stood there between Suigetsu and Jugo, the rain began to feel slightly off. A foreboding feeling settled in my chest as it continued to fall and I realized that there were far too many different kinds of chakra intertwined with the natural energies around us.

I quickly opened my eyes, trying to pinpoint what direction the clouds were coming from.

Then, a new set of birds came over the tree line above us, flying down and perching on Jugo's arms and shoulders.

"I see..." Jugo said aloud, capturing my attention as he talked with them. "Lots and lots of shinobi?"

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"According to these birds--"

"It's a war right?" Suigetsu interrupted him and groaned loudly. "Man, I wish I still had my sword."

A war did make sense, why else would there be so much chakra in the air?

"There must be thousands and thousands of shinobi out there..."

Jugo nodded solemnly at my words as the birds took flight in unison again, flying over the trees and back into the storm.

"We should find Sasuke soon," Suigetsu said, glancing at me as if to gauge my reaction to his name. "I mean, before we get caught up in this war. I for one don't want any part of it."

I nodded and pushed my wet hair from my face as a cold breeze mixed with the rainy conditions. I hugged myself with my arms in an attempt to shield them from the cold as goose bumps rose on my flesh. Suigetsu noticed my shiver and, being the only one of us still with his cloak, came over and put his arm around me.

"This war," I started, shaking my head. "Something about it just doesn't feel right at all."

~~~~~

As the rain continued to fall, there seemed to be no end to it in sight. We walked for a while longer until Jugo was able to figure out our location from the animals. He then began leading us to the nearest shelter for the time being, but I could tell that none of us were all too thrilled about it.