Reconsidering Bachelorhood

Survival

Mizuki opened her eyes and blinked rapidly at the change in lighting. The early morning sunlight filtered through the cave's opening and peeked around the corner of the area they were huddled in. Mizuki glanced down at her arms and noticed Hikari was still fast asleep. Mizuki had been so restless all of last night. She slept in short intervals so she could be sure that there were no threats nearby. Mizuki sighed when her stomach growled in hunger. It had been a long night and they both needed to eat.

Mizuki gently shook Hikari. "Hikari, wake up."

Mizuki watched Hikari's eyes flutter open. "Good morning." Mizuki smiled. Hikari gave a shy smile in return.

"How are you feeling?" Hikari frowned a little. "I'm okay."

Mizuki ran her hand over Hikari's hair. "It's been a while since we ate. I'm going to get us some food. You stay here and don't move, okay?" Hikari's frown deepened. Mizuki quickly assured her that she would be back quickly.

She reached into her weapon's holster and took out a kunai. "Keep this with you." Although it felt very inappropriate to give such a young child a weapon, this was much safer than leaving her completely defenseless. She was also pretty sure even if Hikari injured one of them, they would not retaliate violently. Their goal was to keep her alive and use her as leverage, her being injured or dead would do them no good.

Mizuki gave Hikari a crash course in the basics of using a kunai before leaving the cave. She scanned the area around her and quickly ran into the trees. In no time at all she had a fish in her hand and a few berries she found along the river bank. Luckily, through the long journey from last night, she hadn't lost her scroll where she stored the team's cookware. Not only would it make cooking the food easier but she was also able to bring some clean drinking water back with her.

When she rounded the corner she was relieved to see that Hikari was still where she left her. Hikari was also relieved that Mizuki had come back and she showed it by grinning widely at her new friend and protector.

"Are you okay, Hikari? I'm sorry I was gone for so long."

Hikari waved her tiny hands to assure the older woman that it was okay. "I'm okay, and you weren't gone for long Mizuki-san."

Mizuki patted the young girl on her head. She set to work building a small fire to cook the food. Hikari kept her company while Mizuki butchered and cooked the nice smelling food. After they ate, they rested for a bit before packing everything up. It was time they headed out and got somewhere safe to plan their next steps. Mizuki was hesitant to go back to the temple so she decided it would be best for them to circle around the long way and head to Konoha instead.

"Are you ready?" Mizuki asked, glancing over her shoulder. Hikari tightened her arms around Mizuki's neck and nodded before pressing her face into her back. Mizuki smiled to herself and lightly jumped into the trees, making sure she didn't jostle Hikari too much. Mizuki kept up a steady pace for the next hour. The duo were quiet, they kept mostly to themselves with Hikari watching the passing surroundings and Mizuki being on guard of possible danger.

Hikari lifted her head when she felt Mizuki come to a stop, she looked over Mizuki's shoulder. Her little mouth dropped open in awe.

"Are we going up there, Mizuki-san?" Hikari asked.

Mizuki sighed, looking up at the giant mountain. She vaguely considered going around but the mountain was far too wide. Going around would significantly delay them. "We are."

Mizuki felt Hikari's arms tighten in anticipation of the arduous climb that was to come. The higher they got the windier it became. Mizuki was terrified that Hikari would get blown away so she reached one arm around her back to hold on to her. But that meant she would have to climb with one arm which made it all the more challenging. She took her time and made steady progress up the mountain.

Mizuki was almost at the top when she heard the familiar whiz of a kunai sailing through the air. She looked in the direction of the sound and a sense of fear washed over her body. She swung her body away from the mountain and dropped down to a small ledge just before the kunai exploded.

"Fuck." She gasped. She hung from the ledge by one arm while the other still cradled Hikari. The little girl had screamed during the fall and started to cry in fear at the sound of the explosion. Just below them, scaling their way up the side of the mountain, were two figures that she recognized from last night.

Mizuki's eyes frantically darted around the area looking for a way out of this dangerous situation. In her panicked state, she noticed a path of rocks that stuck out from the mountain. If she did it right, she could jump all the way to the top.

"Hold on Hikari!" Mizuki yelled over the fierce wind that was beginning to pick up. Her hand that she hung from glowed bright with chakra. In one strong fluid motion, Mizuki launched herself up towards the first rock, then the second, third, fourth, and finally the edge of the mountain top.

Mizuki looked down at their pursuers who were close on their trail, noticing several more had joined them at the base of the mountain.

"Hikari." Mizuki breathed out desperately. "You have to run." Mizuki grabbed the child from her back and gingerly threw her over the edge and onto the top of the mountain.

"W-what do you mean, Mizuki-san?" Hikari asked, frightened. "You're leaving me?"

Mizuki looked up at Hikari who had tears in her eyes now. "Not for long, I promise. Just please go run and find somewhere safe to hide. The bad people are getting close to us, I have to go stop them first. Please Hikari, go hide." Mizuki pleaded.

Hikari's lips trembled and her tears blinded her vision but she nodded her head and ran. Mizuki turned her attention back to the nins below. All she had to do was not let them get past her. Mizuki flipped herself so that she perpendicular to the slope of the mountain, her chakra infused feet keeping her well attached.

She weaved some signs and sent a torrent of water barreling down at the enemy. She hit several of them and watched them fall to the ground but a few were nimble enough to dodge her attack. Their attacks slowly chipped away at the outer surface of the mountain. Mizuki became anxious as she saw the terrain around her weaken. One false move and the ground beneath her could crumble.

She created a couple clones to help her take down the enemies. Mizuki locked kunai to kunai with an enemy. It confused her when they pushed back and disengaged from her. She scanned the area and noticed that all the enemies were retreating but she didn't understand why. That is until she heard a loud rumbling sound. She turned her head in trepidation but cried out when a large boulder blind sided her.

Stray attacks from the battle had damaged the top of the mountain and created an avalanche of boulders and debris. Mizuki's body collided with the harsh jagged mountain. The force of the boulder and the downward momentum of the mountain made it impossible for her to regain any footing. Mizuki frantically tried to get a hold of anything sturdy but kept slipping or the rocks would break from her weight.

Her body was increasingly littered with cuts and bruises as she tumbled down the mountain. Mizuki noticed a tree that sat on an oncoming ledge and made a final desperate grab at it. Just as she made a reach for the branches, a wayward rock connected with the side of her head. Unbeknownst to her, a voice cried out her name as her limp body plummeted towards the ground.