Here For You - Kakashi Hatake x OC

Chapter 28: The Storm

"Katsi," I breathed as her screams pierced the air. It took all my willpower to not start running down the stairs. Surely, her kidnappers were expecting us. My lungs felt like lead as I listened to her shrieking in pain, they were hurting my Katsi. I saw another door with a guard standing in front of it. Jiraya used a silencing jutsu on him and I took him out before he could do anything, tossing his body to the side. We crouched and approached the door quietly. I peered inside, my heart breaking with the sight.

My beautiful girlfriend was bloody and bruised, albeit still beautiful. There were cuts and gashes all over her arms, legs and stomach, a fresh bruise on her cheek. "I'm not telling you ANYTHING!" She screamed at the man who stood over her. His back was turned to me, but judging by the expensive-looking velvety cloak, I guessed that this was the infamous lord. "I guess we'll just have to turn to the hard way once more," He said in a rough voice. "Don't touch me!" Katsumi shrieked as the man grabbed her arm and pierced her skin again. Her screamed echoed through the dungeon-like room as he carved something into her arm, "I know your biggest fears, your insecurities. You can't hide anything from me." He hissed at her. And then I saw why I couldn't sense her chakra, even now, looking at her - the chains on her were restraining her chakra, and yet she had sent a signal to my chakra stone. She truly was one of the strongest and smartest kunoichi I had ever met. "I don't care. I won't ever betray my comrades or my village. I won't tell you shit," She spat at the man, who carved away at her arm. "Then I guess you'll just die," He said evilly. "I'd rather die than tell you anything!" She was so loyal to Konoha. The man chuckled darkly, "So brave, even in the state you're in. Is it really worth it? You are such a failure." He cut her arm one last time, yet Katsumi still stayed strong. "You can do whatever you want to me, but you'll be dead even if I must be sacrificed. You're not getting away with any of this!" I saw the man turn to a wall and I took the chance to attack. In a split second, I was behind him, my kunai pressed to his throat, "Lord Hachigoro. Such a pleasure to finally meet you." Tsunade and Jiraya rushed to help Katsumi and busted the chains off her wrists and ankles. "Kashi. Stand back." I heard her choke out. I looked back at her, not releasing my grip on the Lord. Her eyes were black as I'd never seen them before, her hair whipped around her in the wind she was emitting. I knew she wanted her revenge on him. I decided to chain the Lord with the same chakra-restricting cuffs and I let her proceed. I knew she would never forgive me if I didn't give her the satisfaction of eliminating the man who had tortured her like this. I wanted to hug her and comfort her, but I left that for later.

"I am not a failure," She said angrily at the man beneath her, making a few hand signs and releasing her razor wind, the Lord howling in pain at all the miniature cuts that appeared on his skin. "I AM NOT A FAILURE!" Katsumi screamed. I felt her rage and pain as her lightning surged through the room, piercing through the Lord. Katsumi fell onto her knees and we rushed over to her. I saw that her eyes had returned to their normal blueness. The lightning had hit the Lord hard, leaving him with a hole in his chest where his heart would have been, but I assumed his insides had all burned up and shriveled from the electrocution. Tsunade proceeded to heal her. I watched her cuts close up, but I knew the scars would last and she would hate that. I gasped as I saw the word Hachigoro had carved into her arm. Failure. How did he know so much about her? I was the only one she had talked to about her panic attacks and her constant thoughts of being a failure, which hurt her more than anything else. His spies must have known way too much. Too bad they were all dead now.

Katsumi's eyes were full of sadness and pain. I held her hand as Tsunade healed her, the blood and bruises subsiding. "I see you got my message," She said, lighthearted. "Yeah, you almost burned through my skin." She smiled weakly at me, although I still saw the anger in her eyes. I knew she would never admit how much it hurt, she would always stay strong. Tsunade and I helped her up after Tsunade had tended to her wounds, though I knew that the scars that wrote 'failure' would never fully go away. I winced as I thought about how this would affect her, constantly being reminded of her worst fear. "Let's go home," Jiraya chirped and we made our way up the long, winding stairs and out of the castle.

The wind outside was extreme, the rain pouring down severely like needles, and a monstrous, black cloud hung above the village, just like the time Katsumi was testing out her powers and got mad at me. I knew this was her anger, her sadness, her pain. Even though her eyes were blue, her deep hurt surged through the air, creating an unnatural storm. The villagers were hiding in their homes and we were the only ones outside. "Lovely weather," Jiraya joked. I rolled my eyes and turned to Katsumi, "Katsi, you have to stop this." She shook her head weakly, "I... I can't..." This confused me. "What do you mean, you can't?" She looked down at her hands, the countless scars, the letters marked on her pale skin, "I can't control it... I'm a failure..." I gestured for Jiraya and Tsunade to leave us. They obliged and rushed to the hotel, but I knew Katsumi would be in no condition to walk anywhere in a few moments. I weaved a few hand signs and teleported us to our hotel room.

"Katsi, listen to me," I sat her down on the bed, grabbing her hands, "None of this is your fault. Everything is fine now. You got your revenge on that baka who hurt you. Our mission is a success. Not a failure. You never were a failure." She replied hoarsely, "He was right, I am a failure... I can't even control my own jutsu." I caressed her cheek and she looked at me, "You are NOT a failure. You never were and you never will be. Please, calm down, everything is okay now, you've been so strong and brave, you even found a way to contact me through my chakra stone when your own chakra was being restrained. You defended your village and comrades until the very end. You are the most splendid ninja I have ever known. You could never be a failure with your determination, strength and intelligence. You are the amazing Katsumi! And nothing will ever change that." She looked at me blankly, but she seemed to have calmed down. She leaned closer and kissed me. I felt relieved that she was finally back with me. "Thanks, Kashi," She said quietly, pulling away from the kiss. "Do you want to go home?" I asked her. She nodded. I took both of our backpacks even though she protested. I didn't want her to have to carry any heavy weight after what had just happened to her. I took her hand and knocked on Tsunade and Jiraya's door, greeting them and leaving the hotel, dropping off our keys at the reception desk. "Hope you enjoyed your stay," The girl behind the desk smiled at me, hopelessly flirting with me as she had the night before. I curtly nodded, leaving her sad, but I didn't care all too much.

Walking outside, I saw that the storm had subsides. I pulled Katsumi into a side hug as we left the village and kissed her on the top of her head, "I'm proud of you." She smiled up at me and snuggled up closer to me, wrapping her hand around my waist and resting her head on my shoulder. We exited the village, bowing our heads to the guards at the gates, and heading back towards the forest. We didn't go too fast so Katsumi wouldn't get too tired. I had tried to carry her several times but she refused and assured me that she was fine. So strong, even when she was on the verge of breaking.

It was nighttime and we had finally reached the Leaf. Tsunade and Jiraya said that they would report to Lord Third so I could take Katsumi home. I thanked them and bid them goodbye, leading Katsumi home. I decided to take her to my own apartment, so I could cook her something and sleep next to her so she wouldn't be alone with her thoughts. She had been quiet for almost the whole trip here, and that was quite a while. I unlocked my door and we entered. I put our backpacks near the door and led her to the couch. We sat down, relaxing our worn muscles. "You've been quiet," I told her. "I'm sorry," She answered. I frowned, "Please tell me you're not thinking about what I think you're thinking about." She let out a small laugh, "I can't really promise that." I hugged her, "I love you, Katsi. Please don't give into those stupid thoughts." She sniffled and I knew that she had started to cry. "It's... It's hard for you to understand, Kashi. It's not as easy as it seems. Especially when they're now embedded into my own skin." I sighed, cupping her face and wiping away her tears with my thumbs. I had a sudden idea and I reached into my pouch, revealing a roll of bandages. I wrapped the bandage around her arm where the scars of the word that pained her so much were. I finished with her arm and took her hand. "Thank you, Kashi," She said, almost inaudibly. "Sometimes I think that I don't deserve you at all." I hugged her tightly, "I'm the one who doesn't deserve you. Don't you ever think like that. You know exactly how strongly I feel about you. Now, would you help me make my special homemade ramen?" She smiled at me and I knew that was a 'yes'. I stood up, pulling her along with me, as we got the ingredients and started to make the ramen. "Did you ever wonder why you love my ramen so much? It's because I have a secret ingredient. That ingredient is love," I whispered cheekily, planting a kiss on the side of her mouth. "You're so romantic," She said and I chuckled.

"Only thanks to you."