Inner Explosions [A Naruto Fanfic]

Chapter Nineteen

Immense, burning hatred made my eyes glower at the tall man before me. Kisame. “Get out of my way, Jaws.” I snarled. “I have a job to do.” Kisame’s beady eyes flashed with hidden fury before he stepped aside and allowed me to pass him. Those were the first words I’d spoken since we’d gotten ‘home’. The Village was still rebuilding itself, and at night my duty was to protect the people inside the weakened walls. I could flash about the walls in a matter of seconds, but I chose to watch with clones. 

The night welcomed me home with open arms. Six days had passed since my first day of night watch and I attempted to ease the tension in my shoulders. Those six days had been the worst in my life so far. I grimly thought of how things couldn’t possibly get much worse. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. Stupid Hokage. Dumb bitch. 

My teeth ground together as I clenched my fists. How would I ease my anger today? I took several deep breaths and slowed my pounding heart. I couldn’t afford to mess any of this up. Black Ops wasn’t high on my list of things to revert back to. If anything, I wanted to stay in the time just before our attack of Konoha, when I’d felt free. I’d felt... at home. But now, everything was coming undone. I couldn’t stand the pitying glances of Akatsuki, and my temper flared out of control at the smallest things. I snarled. I was turning into a bitchy diva. 

I shook my head to clear it and leaped up onto the wall. I did a flip and landed softly, my feet meeting the thick wood and stone soundlessly. The night’s arms wrapped around me softly. Welcome home, Okami no Yoru. It whispered, Welcome to the land of everlasting vigilance. My arms ached to hug back my invisible, beloved guardian, my protector, but the arms of night were not something I could grasp. I whispered back. 

Hello, Night, keeper of Wolf. I’ve missed you so. My eyes burned through the darkness, surveying and assessing. Nothing could get past me. I had too much to protect. A noise sounded to my left, just inside the walls. My eyes widened as I glanced down and nearly gasped. My Rinnegans narrowed in fury as the ANBU agent leaped from the rooftops and landed gracefully beside me. “Are you here of your own accord, or to monitor me?” My voice rang out softly in the night air. 

“We both know the answer to that.” He replied. The shinobi’s mask reminded me of a cat. I nodded and continued to walk the wall, ears finely tuned, eyes sharp. 

“Nayami... We never meant for this to happen.” So this wasn’t ANBU. ANBU never spoke so liberally, nor did they give away their presences. 

“That doesn’t matter, Kakashi.” I said softly, my fingers tracing ancient lines of dust that had accumulated on the wall’s edges. “What is done, is done. We cannot change it.” Kakashi’s gravity-defying hair swished softly in the breeze. 

“You’re being disgraced.” He said emotionlessly. 

“Just as many before me have been.” I said cautiously. “I am not the first, and I won’t be the last.  I deserve what I’ve gotten.” My pace increased slightly as my fury threatened to rise. 

“It wasn’t fair to you.” Kakashi said softly. I laughed, a humorless sound. 

“Life isn’t fair, Kakashi.” I replied. “Life’s a bitch, and then? Well, then you die. I’m just one of the people life doesn’t like, Kakashi.” His humorless laugh sounded behind me. “Shouldn’t you be asleep? Black Ops won’t want you near me.” 

Kakashi’s footsteps were loud to my sensitive hearing. “Don’t worry about that, Yo- Nayami.” Kakashi said quietly. 

“It’s okay if you call me Yoru, Kakashi, but no one else can.” I whispered. I knew from the breeze that Kakashi had heard me. It carried my voice like leaves, or dandelion fluff. Kakashi’s breaths were quiet and gentle.