章 6: The Milky Way
Pale moonlight shimmered across the water, the reflection of divinity cascading along the gentle strip.
The river looked beautiful; it was transparent and clear, and looking into it could comfort a person.
Life may not be complicated.
A thought like that was a devil's whisper in Tsunade's soft ears.
Her face was flushed and a little red; however, her grip on the bottle of alcohol remained tight.
She stared into the moon's reflection, the stars, and the beautiful clouds that usually muddled the loveless universe's together.
"There are none today. The sky looks very empty except for those two stars…"
Vega and Altair. The weaving princess and the cowherd. Orihime and Hikoboshi.
Tsunade stifled a chuckle, her expression easing a little as she stared at the pit above her head filled with countless stars and mysteries.
She murmured softly, thinking and talking to herself to alleviate the loneliness that crushed her heart like the depthless sky.
"Don't they say…? That on the night of Tanabata, if the skies are clear, those two lovers can cross the Milky Way on a bridge formed by magpies, who create a path with their wings…?"
Tsunade stared at the two stars in the distance for a small second, her thoughts almost drifting into the past, reliving her memories with Dan.
However, at that moment, a soft voice spoke in the silent night.
"…and if it rains, the river becomes too swollen… the lovers must wait another year to meet."
The tipsy woman glanced at the new individual. His black hair ruffled against the winter wind; his skin was fair and nice, his eyebrows long, and the eyelashes below standing out from all his other features.
"Shisui… Uchiha…?" she murmured in contemplation.
Shisui walked toward the tree Tsunade was sitting atop a branch of and leaned against its trunk.
"I didn't take you to be a romantic, Lady Tsunade."
Tsunade paused for a moment and quickly took a swig from her bottle, staring at the moon.
"I am not."
Shisui did not say anything. He relaxed a bit and smiled. "I can't sleep."
Tsunade looked at him below the branch, her gaze lingering on his nape and then to his face—his eyes closed, his red lips pursed.
"I forgot what that is long ago, blind boy."
Shisui giggled a little, speaking gently. "You were sleeping like a pig today in the morning, my lady."
Tsunade rolled her eyes, too lazy to go down and punch the living light out of the kid leaning against the tree.
She spoke, her tone a bit philosophical and inquiring.
"Tell me, Uchiha Shisui. What do you see without eyes…?"
It took a few seconds for the words to register in his mind. It was a good question. Shisui did not know if the answer she wanted to hear was literal or meant in a deeper sense.
However, Shisui smiled slyly. He rested his head even more comfortably and looked up at the sky as if he could actually see the moon peering through.
"Lady Tsunade, I can see the light… I can see the stars, the Milky Way, and the moon… and I can also see you."
Hearing his answer, surprise crept onto her face as she burst out laughing, wiping away the small tear that was forming in her eye.
"Wow, I must say you have a very eloquent tongue, Uchiha brat. How many hearts of young kunoichi have you broken…?"
Shisui smiled again, blindly looking into the distance. "There's only one that I hope to."
Tsunade ignored his words. Secretly, she felt a little bit relieved in her heart, a bit of her nervousness and hatred toward the world forgotten in the moment, laughing as if she were briefly back in the old times when life was bliss.
Her mood turned somber as she remembered who she was—Tsunade Senju. All her memories came rushing into her head.
"You know what I see, brat…? Darkness."
A few seconds passed, the silence like a monster grasping the air, sucking it into its belly, leaving only suffocation.
Only to be broken in that moment.
"Darkness, huh…? If you asked me yesterday, I would've answered the same… but do you know why my answer is different today?"
Tsunade did not speak nor did she look in Shisui's direction, but her ears were perked up as if eagerly waiting for him to continue.
"It's because of you, Princess Tsunade. You and Miss Shizune. The both of you did not let me die… and it has always secretly been my dream not to live in this accursed world. Ever since the first time I killed someone and the first time I lost someone… Tomorrow, if I return to Konoha, the Uchiha Clan's fate may still be sealed as the world wishes, but I will still go. I cannot give up… because… I owe it to you… I owe it to Miss Shizune, and above all… I owe it to everyone who has ever loved me and everyone who loves me. So… I will never give up. I will always hope. I must really thank you, Lady Tsunade…."
Shisui stood up from against the tree and did a traditional Japanese bow in the direction of Tsunade's chakra, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR SAVING ME!"
Tsunade, meanwhile, stared at the young Uchiha kid in absolute shock, speechless and at a complete loss for words. Everything happened too fast.
She stared at the bottle of alcohol in her hand, feeling a subconscious aversion to drinking it.
…but it was almost empty, so she drank it anyway.
Hopping down from the bark of the dichromatic tree, she lightly touched Shisui's head, raising it up slowly as she sighed.
Then, in the next moment, she slapped Shisui so hard that he rolled over, groaning in pain as he clutched his cheek, which was swelling with the imprint of her hand.
Tsunade smiled a little brighter than her previous smiles. She looked at the Uchiha kid, not only surprised at his gentle personality but quietly contemplating his words.
For some reason, she spoke words she never thought she would actually utter, definitely not in her apathetic state of nonchalance.
"Oi, brat…"
Although Shisui could not see, that didn't mean he couldn't hear; he tilted his head in the direction of the princess's voice.
Tsunade continued, almost as if declaring a suggestion and not accepting no for an answer.
"Wanna be my disciple?"
クリエイターの想い 
_oinkchan
_oinkchan Could I have power stones?
週次パワーステータス
-- 推薦
ランキング 
-- 推薦
チケット