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Hiro groans as he leans against a tree. His mission had not turned out as planned; his teammates were dead and he's pretty sure he's dying.
The information had been wrong. There were way more enemies than expected.
"Fuck," he whispers to himself. He realizes the mission had been compromised.
He slides down to sit at the base of the tree with a hiss. He presses down on the bleeding wound in his stomach, it definitely punctured something.
He chuckles, "At least I finished the mission, and killed all those assholes." He groans as a burst of pain washes over him.
He closes his eyes for what he thinks is the last time but opens them when he senses something. In front of him stands a girl. She seems to glow in the moonlight. Her silver hair wild and untamed. Even with her bloodied figure, bare feet, and torn clothes she is undoubtedly beautiful in his eyes.
"Beautiful," he mumbles, almost delirious, "an angel are you?"
"You can see me?" He hears her whisper, her voice sounding like the wind rustling the branches.
"Why wouldn't I see a young lady as beautiful as you?" Hiro flirts even as he struggles to breathe. The girl seems flustered, her form seeming to flicker in embarrassment.
Oh, he realizes.
"A spirit," he whispers.
"Yes. I'm sorry I can't do anything to help you, and I cannot touch you. Even if I could you're too far gone since you can see me. Not many can, only those with the sight or those close to death," she says, a look of sorrow on her face.
"At least I have you here in my last moments," he smiles through another burst of pain.
The girl kneels down at his side, her hands hovering over him as if wanting to help.
"I'm sorry!" She cries, phantom tears rolling down her face.
Hiro hushes her with a soft smile.
"What's your name? I just can't keep calling you Angel in my head," he coughs, blood spilling past his lips.
The girl flickers once more in embarrassment before whispering, "Hatake Kasumi."
"Hatake?" He wonders, "My teacher is Hatake Sakumo. He would have been ecstatic to meet you."
Kasumi stays silent clutching at her torn kimono.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Kasumi-chan. My name's Uchiha Hiro," he says.
"What's a nice spirit like you doing here in the middle of nowhere?" Hiro asks after a peaceful silence.
Kasumi looks away, her voice watery as she says,"I couldn't protect my village. It was here where I failed everyone. We were a peaceful nomadic village. Most of the younger capable people had gone to larger villages so we were mostly composed of the old. I was the youngest and the only one with any real fighting capabilities. They called me a genius," she laughs bitterly,"fat good that did me when we were massacred and our village burned to the ground."
He doesn't know what to say. It is silent once more the only sounds are the rustling of the trees and Kasumi's soft sobs.
"My little brother's three," Hiro says. Kasumi looks at him.
"His name's Obito. He's the cutest little Uchiha you'll ever see. He's loud and as bright as the sun-" Hiro stops just as the reality sets in.
He lets out a soft sob,"he won't remember me. He's only three and I'm leaving him alone with only granny to take care of him. I won't be there to protect him. I can't even see him one last time."
He sobs for sometime before stopping, tired and in pain.
Kasumi is silent as she stands up. She glides across the clearing before kneeling on the ground and struggles to dig up dirt. Looking a little bit more transparent she drags a long piece of fur towards Hiro.
She drapes it over him before sitting down, looking faded and tired.
"To keep you warm," she whispers, her voice faint.
"Thanks," Hiro sniffles, burrowing into the fur.
"There's a mirror in the fur. I got from a wandering priest, he said that I was to give it to the one I meet after death. I think it's you," Kasumi says, her voice slightly stronger.
Hiro rummages around with his hand before pulling out a small hand mirror. Once in his hand, it gives a soft glow before the glass flickers now showing an empty room.
He gasps recognizing the room as his own. He watches as a toddler walks in, a strange hand-made tree plushy gripped in his pudgy hands. He starts crying once more as the child scrambles up into the bed before burrowing under the covers.
"G'ni' Hiro-nii," he hears the toddler whisper.
"Goodnight, Obito. I'm sorry I can't see you grow up. Remember that brother loves you," he whispers as he watches his brother sleep, even if he knows his brother can't hear him.
Hiro cries, putting down the mirror. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." He repeats, sobbing.
"I just passed the mirror to you," Kasumi says, looking embarrassed.
"But you've done so much to make me comfortable during the little time I have left. Even though you didn't have to," Hiro smiles at her.
"Let me do something for you at least," he says.
At Kasumi's shy nod, he smiles. A bright cheery smile that makes the spirit blush, her ghostly cheeks becoming a little bit more solid looking.
He places a hand on the ground, next to hers and in the gaps of her transparent fingers bud many little plants that grow taller and bloom into white spider lilies that seem to glow silver in the moonlight.
She gasps looking up to notice the same flowers blooming around them.
"They're beautiful, Hiro-san!" She smiles, stunning Hiro with her beauty.
"Not as beautiful as you. They pale in comparison when I see you," Hiro smiles at her. She flickers.
Hiro leans back before saying in a tired voice,"I think I'm going to sleep. I wish we could have met under different circumstances."
Kasumi smiles sadly.
"I hope that in the next life we do meet, Hiro-san," she says softly.
He hums with a soft smile. His eyes slowly close.
She waits. The sun rises and Hiro does not move.
She waits. It is midday and he doesn't move.
She waits. It is evening and she hears movement outside her clearing.
"Oh," she hears. She does not move, she cannot look away from his smile.
"Hiro?" She hears. She looks up. A man is picking his way across the flowers. His gaze heavy and tired.
She watches as he kneels at Hiro's side. She watches as he shakes Hiro's shoulder lightly before he places his hand at his neck.
She watches as the man's shoulders shake. His hands cradling Hiro's face.
"Not my last one, please. He's the only one I had left." The man begs, "I can't have failed three times, please wake up."
She waits as the man cries. She watches as the man wipes his face and stands, taking Hiro with him. He leaves her fur.
She watches Hiro leave.
She waits. She realizes. She stands in the middle of her flowers, for that's what they are. Hiro had given them to her.
"PLEASE. DON'T LEAVE ME. I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE," she screams and sobs.
She crumbles among her flowers. "Hiro." She whimpers.
She hears footsteps once more, but she does not care. She's alone.
"I thought I heard something," she hears. She watches as he looks around stopping his gaze on her. He squints but she knows he cannot see her.
Even then she shoots up. "The fur! Please take me with him! I don't want to be here!"
She watches the man pick up her fur.
"This was around Hiro. I should let his last companion stay with him," he says mournfully.
She follows him. She watches as he wraps her fur around Hiro. She watches as he carries Hiro to the nearby village.
She watches as an old woman cries and throws accusations at the man. She watches as he silently takes it. She watches as little three year old Obito looks on in confusion.
She waits at Hiro's bedside.
"Pretty," she hears. She turns, little Obito is staring at her, his little hands wrapped around his plush.
She smiles. "Your Onii-san said the same thing."
"Hiro-nii sleep?" Obito says, looking at his brother.
"Yes." She smiles sadly.
"When wake?" He babbles.
Her face crumbles. "Not for a long time."
"Oh," Obito says sadly.
She kneels down, "Obito?"
When Obito looks up at her she says, " He wanted me to tell you goodnight for him. He says he's sorry he can't be with you. And remember that your big brother loves you."
Obito smiles, bright and cheerful. He toddles to the bedside and he says, "G'ni' Hiro-nii. Obito luv you too!" He pats Hiro's hand.
"Obito? I heard you talking. Who are you talking to, you little rascal," the old woman asks as she enters.
Obito giggles. "Pretty lady an' Hiro-nii."
Kasumi watches as the old woman scoops up the toddler and carries him off.
She goes back to watching Hiro. "Obito knows now, Hiro."
She follows as people take Hiro, fur and all, to a funeral pyre. She watches as they lay him on it. She follows him and curls into him.
She waits. She hears the crackling of fire.
She watches as her fur catches flames.
She hears the whispering. "What is that?" "Is that another person?" "There wasn't anyone else!" "It's a girl!" "Who is she?"
"I really want to see you again, Hiro-san." Kasumi whispers as she fades.
Kasumi wakes up from her dream. There is no fire. She is in her garden. Her students are rolling around in the dirt.
She looks down at her hands. A crushed spider lily lies in them.
"Was that what happened the first time?" She wonders to herself.
"Did you say something?" She hears from behind her. She turns and Hiro is standing at the entrance of her garden, a smile on his face. He was dirty and scraped up but alive and much older than in her dream.
"Nothing. I fell asleep. I had a strange dream. Did you just come back from your mission?" Kasumi asks.
"Yeah. Just came from my briefing." Hiro says, crouching next to her. "Was it a good dream?" He asks looking at the flower in her hands.
Kasumi is silent before answering, "It was sad."
"Oh. Well it didn't happen in real life did it?" He says with a smile.
"No. It didn't happen."
"That's good." He is silent as he studies Kasumi.
"You know, the spider lily has always been my favorite flower, especially the white ones," he says as he plops down next to her.
Kasumi raises a brow, "Really? You know it's a sign of a tragic relationship."
Hiro laughs, "Yeah but it's also a sign of rebirth. So that tragic relationship can try again, hopefully with a happier ending."
With that he places his hands over hers and she can feel his warm chakra, so painfully similar to his, against her palms.
When the warmth leaves her hands she looks down. In her hands instead of a crushed spider lily lays a whole and thriving flower.
"See. Just how the flower came back, the tragic relationship can have another shot." Hiro says, smiling.
"You used your chakra so it doesn't count," Kasumi deadpans.
Hiro cackles but Kasumi smiles under her mask.
Hiro stands up and speeds towards her students and Team 7. She can hear the squeals and shrieks of delight.
Chuckling under her breath she plants the spider lily that Hiro had revived and made the stem somehow grow a bulb.
The Kasumi in her dream had gotten her wish. Although the current Kasumi only held feelings of friendship towards Hiro.
Kasumi was still waiting for him to come to her. She knows he's here, she's heard rumors of a teleporting, slightly unhinged shinobi wandering the elemental nations.
She was willing to wait as long as she had to for her husband to find her. Although she was sure it wouldn't take long. After all he had almost decimated the world for a childhood crush. And she had been married to him for years before he had died.
She can't wait to see him again.