Forgotten Uchiha

二十二

O L D   T I E S,   N E W   H O P E

      I didn't know what to believe. Kuma betrayed me. For a brief moment, I thought we understood each other. I felt naive to have listened to his sweet nothings. I felt constantly on edge, even though Madara's presence provided a comforting warmth. 

      I slammed my fist against the stone. A crack split the ceiling. I was frustrated. I'd spent my entire life chasing the shadows of the Uchiha brothers. I trained my Eternal Mangekyou until my eyes bled, but I allowed Kuma's Tsuchigan to unravel everything. 

      It was like taking two steps forward and three step back.

      As I turned to strike the wall, Madara was there to catch my fist. The smack sounded like the thunder clap that reverberated from outside. I narrowed my eyes.

      "I can feel the angst swirl within the recesses of your mind," the corner of his lips twitched up slightly, "Even though the Tsuchigan broke all Genjutsu on your mind, I know you too well." 

      I ground my teeth together and tried to hit him with my other fist but he simply caught that one too.

      "Hika–Chan," Shinigami forced me into the subconscious plain. I stood in the chamber and started shouting at him; I was fed up with his plight to get along with Madara. Shinigami simply just slapped his purple hand over my mouth to muffle my complaints. "Hika–Chan, for one moment in your life, let go. Madara has tried to make peace with you, you can't keep reliving the past now―you have to move on."

      "And what if he hurts me too?" I bit harshly against his hand. "You have no idea what it's like. I've never known peace!" 

      "Hika–Chan," Shinigami tapped the knife against his teeth. "I've lived through you, when Choju made you the vessel; I became a part of you. Neither of us can properly function without each other. Our chakra's are fused, our emotions are combined―but for you to overcome your demons and win this war, then you must let go."

      "But. . .I. . ." 

      "Hika–Chan," Shinigami tipped my chin up. "You will find no peace lamenting the dead. Izuna's essence already came to you and tried to make peace, he cared for you, but he knew that Madara loved you more than anything else in the world, even Hashirama knew that. Be grateful for that, love is the strongest gift anybody could give."

   Shinigami cast his hand wide and the people from my past appeared. Their translucent images appeared before his shimmering silhouette. His body hovered slightly above the water as he extended his arm towards the crowd.

      My mother stepped forward and embraced me, for a ghost, her body was solid. I was just taller than her but we looked nothing a like except for our eye colour and skin tone. My eyes watered as she released me.

      She smiled widely and poked my chest, "Hika–Chan, you've grown into such a beautiful woman. I'm sure many men are asking for your hand in marriage," she tapped a finger against her chin and laughed. "I hope he is worthy."

       My lips parted but my voice doesn't work. 

      Mother placed her palm on my stomach and smiled again, her eyelids closed as she inhaled. "No grandchildren for me yet," she laughed again. "I know you think loving someone is a weakness, but I want you to love, it makes the world far less lonely."   

     My lip quivered.

       "I want you to eat healthy, my grandchildren must be strong," Choju rubbed my stomach. "And I want you to make sure that you'll only give yourself to a man who loves you truly and deeply."