Chapter 37: The Flame of Resolve
The academy had just let out for the day, and the group of aspiring shinobi were all gathered together. Miki and Shiran were sitting underneath the tree outside of the academy's courtyard, while the rest of their friends were sitting around them.
Both of the close friends, bordering on family, had their own thoughts about what had happened over a week ago. Gone was each of their usual demeanors, replaced by thoughts that were foreign to both of them.
Miki, lost in the thought of revenge on the Mist village, was ignoring the rest of her close friends who were huddled around the two, trying to cheer them up. Meanwhile, Shiran was sitting absentmindedly lost in the thought of his first kill, staring at the dark clouds that loomed overhead.
'Was I wrong for not feeling any compassion for killing the ninja? Should he be given the courtesy of compassion? Why was he about to kill Miki; did he really invade the village to only kill a random child? Maybe there were other plans, there had to have been.' The thoughts kept running rampant through Shiran's head until he was literally jolted out of his reverie by a somewhat foreign feeling.
Whap!
'Did he really just-' Shiran put his hand to his cheek as he felt the burn of a slap that had just crossed his face.
"Stop looking like that, damnit!" Benimaru had slapped Shiran and was now expressing his thoughts loud and clear.
Yuta looked on in horror about what had just happened and spoke up. "Benimaru, I'm not sure that was the right thing-" He was cut off by Benimaru growling.
"Now that I have your attention, you need to get your head out of the clouds, Shiran. If you keep looking this uncertain, you're never going to become the strongest person in the shinobi world like you told us during your class introduction. Besides, what is there to be uncertain about? You protected one of our close friends and managed to unlock one of your clan's special abilities; overall, I'd say that was a pretty productive day." Benimaru frowned at the fact that Shiran still hadn't turned his head to look at him, even after receiving a harsh slap.
I thought about Benimaru's words; I had to admit that he had a point, but it didn't completely matter for two reasons.
Looking toward the stormy sky, I replied to him, "Benimaru, it's not that I'm upset because I killed him; it's about the fact that I felt no empathy towards him even after I had already sent him to the pure lands." The second reason was clear enough to everyone else, including Benimaru. "Miki's mom also passed away, and that is not something I wanted to happen. Sure, I awakened my clan's Sealing Chains, but at what cost? A family member? I'd rather give that power back in exchange for her life."
As I uttered this, I saw movement in the corner of my eye. Turning to face Miki, I saw that the cold look in her eyes seemed to have diminished quite a lot as she was looking at all of our friends with a completely resolute look on her face. It was apparent that whatever she had determined had set her mind on a path that wouldn't be so easily swayed.
Shin must have also seen this look as he put a hand on Miki's shoulder in a show of silent support towards her.
"My mom's gone, and we can't change that. But what we can change is our own strength. We've got to push ourselves harder, move quicker, grow tougher, and learn anything and everything we can to make ourselves stronger. I swear, I'll freeze Kirigakure solid if I have to, but I WILL avenge my mother."
Her determined words and icy gaze swept through the group. Kiyoko, who was as straightforward as ever, flashed a sideways grin.
"Well, if you're aiming that high, you better be prepared for competition. Because what kind of friends would we be if we let you face it alone? We've all got to level up, protect our village, and defend those closest to us." She uttered the collective sentiment of the group after this ordeal happened.
I smiled at the people before me, the tight-knit bond warming my heart and dispersing any lingering doubt I had towards my feelings and actions that day. 'This is a world of strength; I knew that fact even before I chose this world. I knew that it has its upsides but also its downsides, and perhaps that's why I didn't feel bad about the 'what' I did, but rather about the 'why' I felt the way I did after it. Sitting down with these guys just happened to clear a few things up for me.'
Yuta, feeling somewhat brave today, also expressed his optimism in growing stronger. "I'll try everything in my power to awaken my dojutsu; that way, I'll be useful when you guys need me."
Miki looked towards Yuta as she flicked him on the forehead. "Even if you don't end up with your clan's dojutsu, you'll still be super helpful in any fight in the future. I mean, you're second place in our shurikenjutsu class, fourth in our taijutsu, and third in theoretical knowledge, Yuta. Even if you don't want to admit it in front of everyone, you're still super amazing even without your dojutsu." She finished with a reassuring smile that Yuta seemed grateful for.
'There really wasn't anything that could break Miki's spirit. I mean, if losing the person who has cared for you since the day you arrived on this planet can't squash your determination and pursuit of things that you want to do, then what will? She definitely embodies the attitude of everyone within Uzushiogakure, that's for sure.'
I looked at everyone sitting in the circle, and an idea popped into my head.
"While we're all talking about improving and training together, why don't we designate a time and place where we can all train together and improve as one unit? I suggest after the academy, and we could train in the Uzumaki compound if you guys wanted to." Everyone looked at each other while nodding.
"Sounds good," Kiyoko was the first to express her opinion.
"I don't have a problem with it," Miki agreed with Kiyoko.
Shin nodded along, stating that he's trained a lot over there with me, so he doesn't particularly care.
Yuta nodded while not saying anything.
Benimaru also, very surprisingly, I might add, didn't object to the spot or time. In all honesty, it's probably because the compound wasn't too far off from where Benimaru and I regularly spar after the academy lets out anyway.
"Alright, so it's all set then." I sent a smile towards everyone, letting them know there was no backing out now. "Let's get training; we have an entire nation to take out."
(A/N: We're about three chapters away from graduation and getting a somewhat cool (I think it's neat) seal that will be Shiran's first-ever created seal. Also, may or may not become somewhat crucial a little later down the line in the story.)
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