They felt the stomping boots moving up the mountain as they sprinted as fast as they could down rocky terrain.Little Mei stumbled as she tripped on rocks, grazing her knees on the gravel.
Hinata scooped her up and carried her to his front as he ran, pushing past the burning pain to his limbs. The fear of vicious men hot on their heels motivated his sprints.
They entered the cover of high growing fronds and wise old trees towering towards the sky.
"Not far." Rocko promised.
He halted in his tracks when he spied the tops of hats in the far distance.
"s.h.i.t." He cursed under his breath and glanced to the skies to see the circling ravens. Their direction was moving towards their south-east. "We go West."
He led the party through the thick of bush and ferns, where their damp fronds soaked their clothes and skin.
The kids were doing their best to keep up, but they were tiring fast. They couldn"t keep going at their current rate.
Hinata made a decision.
He stopped and turned to Akira who was carrying Miwa and Miki on his back and front.
"Hinata, don"t you dare!" Akira hissed, keenly aware of the determined expression on Hinata"s face.
"Rocko-san. Please take Little Mei-chan."
"Hinata!" Akira"s hiss was louder, making Miwa cry out with fright.
The sound of the boy"s voice carried through the air, stirring antic.i.p.ating silence from everyone.
Hinata"s heart raced with panic at the stomping boots and voices of men headed their way.
"No time!" Hinata handed over Mei-chan.
He hastily removed the rucksack and placed it over Rocko"s back, waking up Tamchan in the process.
"Protect my family, please." He bowed before the priest.
"Save yah bows. Do want yah must." Rocko soberly acknowledge Hinata"s bravery with sad eyes.
"I"m coming too." Akira.
"No. You are the only one who can carry the kids." Hinata pleaded.
He tenderly stroked Akira"s cheeks. "Live for me, please."
Hinata watched his family and friends sprint reluctantly away from him as they followed Rocko"s plight deeper into the forest"s thick cover.
Eventually he stood alone to brace the stillness of the moment, making his heart beats louder and mind throbbing with fear.
He turned his thoughts to his time with Eiji and their treasured life together; their happiness at acknowledging each other"s love on their school rooftop and living a married life at their cottage.
Eiji"s memories mingled in with his time with Akira, their little spats about having the kids in his home, their love making in the shop"s backroom and just recently.
All the faces of the people his eyes had touched upon during his time at Mimaki Village flashed through his mind. He had been blessed with a second chance to a normal life.
Tears fell from his eyes with thoughts of injustice. First Eiji was taken by war and now his own life was to play into the hands of it.
"But, to protect my family is my greatest honour." Hinata declared openly. "Eiji, I"m sorry, I can"t fulfill your promise. I"m sorry."
He heaved a determined sigh and raced for the approaching disturbance.
His sprints stopped at a clearing of tall trees where the daylight filtered over the tops of dark fedora hats covering the heads of men wearing black trench coats and uniforms with armbands bearing that an unmistakable trademark of a Kenpei.
A senior man coolly approached him with a handgun in one black gloved hand.
Hinata bravely stood his ground, facing the man"s cold smile and glaring eyes beneath the shadowy viser of his fedora.
The man"s cruel smile widen when he raised the gun before Hinata and pressed the muzzle to his forehead.
"Round up the others," his grating voice ordered the other men.
They filed out of the clearing to make good on their orders, leaving Hinata to stand alone with the senior Kenpei.
Hinata"s thoughts cleared to Eiji"s image back at their middle school entrance ceremony.
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"I"ll see you soon." He lovingly thought, as the gun"s steel burned his skin.
He didn"t close his eyes, keeping them fixed on the Kenpei"s emotionless gaze and the gun barrel.
---
Rocko sighed with relief when they reached a giant crop of mossy gray boulders that provided camouflage to a hidden gully and path through the mountains to the other side.
Akira and Aiyamsan halted at the abnormal sounds of gunfire rupturing the atmosphere in the distance. The noise had disturbed flocks of birds into the skies.
"Hinata." Akira gasped, his body twitching with an urge to run back.
"Honour Chikafuji-san"s wishes." Aiyamsan reminded Akira.
"I promised to protect him."
"You made a new promise that overrides all others."
Akira felt the kids to his front and back. He nodded at her words.
They continued their plight through the boulder"s hidden path.
✿✿✿ END OF HINATA"S POV - A SUNFLOWER"S LAMENT ✿✿✿