I'll ride this storm with you

Chapter 14

Kakashi almost went after Shizune the moment the door shut behind her. He knew that she'll not be gone for long; their mission may not even take 48-hours to finish but that didn't stop the anxiety rising within him. He's fully tempted to leave a clone in his stead and accompany her but he knows that it will only upset her if he does that and it will be considered as desertion.

He strengthened his resolve, took a deep breath, sighed and sat back down behind his desk. He will not be twiddling his thumbs until she comes back.

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Kakashi opened his eyes and looked around him, seeing nothing but barren landscape. He called out to somebody, anybody, to come to him or answer him but nobody answered. He began to walk aimlessly, hoping to see somebody else. He began to feel helpless, it felt like he was walking for miles and miles but he saw nobody else.

Out of nowhere, he heard his name called out behind him. He turned and saw Shizune standing before him and his blood ran cold. She was held by a masked fiend wearing a white cloak. He had an arm wrapped around her neck and a kunai pointed at the exposed side of her neck.

She called out for him again and he wants to run to her, to save her but his feet were like made with heavy metal that he can't lift them no matter how hard he tried. He yelled her name and then the kunai sunk into her neck, and he watched in shocked helplessness as her blood began to drip down her yukata and stain the ground below.

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Kakashi's eyes snapped open, sitting up, his chest heaving as he wildly scanned his bare quarters. He was panting heavily, his hands gripping the sheets tightly and his clothes clung to him with sweat. He kicked the sheets away in an agitated manner and pulled his shirt off, letting the air-condition cool his overheated skin. A quick glance at the window let him know that it was already morning.

He ran his hands through his hair and ran them down his face harshly. Last night, his anxiety over Shizune's safety had not let him sleep easy; he was tossing and turning on his bed for hours. When he managed to finally sleep, he was then infested by that nightmare.

He groaned. They didn't receive an update from her team yesterday and he almost pulled his hair in worry, if not for Shikamaru's reassurances that they're probably en route and couldn't send any messages yet.

He shivered and clenched his teeth when the image of her blood spilling on the ground flashed in his mind. If anyone ever dares to hurt her, he will kill them.

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