Fear

50 Shinobi Prompt 04 — Inner Demons

Sometimes she’s afraid she’s just a big scaredy-cat.

When she’s actually doing her thing, in the midst of a heavy battle, the thought doesn’t even occur to her. It never crosses her mind to runaway or even to scream. That is only due to the fact that her limbs and twirling, her body twisting, chest heaving, and eyes soaking up every detail that she can’t spare running a second thought. Sometimes she’s glad she’s never been a good multi-tasker.

But when she fails, when her body is overcome with such terrible weakness and frailty that she can’t fight back she she feels the fear overwhelm her. There is no physical reaction that can be seen, but the fear is drowning her and if she could run, she would.

She’s a fearful creature by nature.

Most people think she’s brave. They see her push and shove and fight until there’s no breath in her. Neji and Lee have seen her at such weakness that she can’t move. They think she’s stupid and incredibly brave for fighthing so long and so hard.

What they don’t realize – what the world can’t quite see – is that she’s just too scared to run away.