Drip drop, gurgle gurgle.
Pressed close to the ground, the sound of rain outside the tent seemed to leap vividly in her ears. Mai huddled tighter, the cold air seeping through the sleeping bag's barrier, sending a chill through her.
The cold of December waited for no one, it was already the season of winter.
She had listened to the rain many times, but this was the bone-chilling rain of winter. Everything was bitterly cold. Konoha, shrouded in ruins, felt like an uncertain future ahead.
'No, no, the village will develop for the better.' Mai quickly patted her cheeks to cheer herself up, pulling the sleeping bag tighter to gather more warmth before closing her eyes.
Then, she heard clearer, more distant rain sounds: the drumming on the tent, the tapping on the ground. After listening for a while, she could even picture the scene under the night sky: the temporary camp with its bonfires extinguished, the earth drenched.
Some rain slid down the waterproof outer layer of the tent, winding countless times around the depressions, some gathered between mud and grass into tiny streams, flowing through dug-out drainage channels to unknown destinations; but most were just individual raindrops, monotonously and calmly hitting the ground, blooming and vanishing.
Counting these, Mai found that much time had passed.
Another sleepless night.
The girl, her childishness fading, opened her eyes, revealing a quiet depth within them. The constant training and battles had gradually shifted her thinking towards an adult's approach.
So much had happened in the village recently. Mai occasionally felt that it had been a long time since their return from the mission to capture Itachi.
Back then, in the bleak late autumn, though reluctant, she had been sent back by Logan. Her teammates were all deeply concerned for her safety, only relaxing once they saw she was unharmed.
During her subsequent debriefing to the Hokage, she truthfully reported the events that occurred after their breakthrough and the people they encountered.
This was the result of Mai's consideration. The intelligence about the black-bodied figure and the masked man was crucial.
Moreover, Logan's actions at the time had indirectly aided Konoha, which didn't conflict with their mission objectives and might even improve his standing with the village.
Konoha's higher-ups treated this intelligence with high-level seriousness. An Akatsuki's member possessing Space-Time Ninjutsu, internal strife within their ranks, the reasons for their infighting... there were undoubtedly huge hidden details here, potentially key to cracking the mystery of the Akatsuki organization.
However, unfortunately, Pain's assault on the village immediately afterwards disrupted all the thoughts.
Thanks to Naruto's power protecting the villagers, amidst the chaos, Konoha had to focus its efforts on recovery and rebuilding.
The fact that the strongest Ninja Village of the Five Great Nations had suffered a near-fatal blow caused widespread panic. The sound of the night rain continued to knock on Mai's heart.
With her keen and mystical sensory abilities, the rain from all directions was just a small part of it. Regarding the future, she felt an inexplicable, faint unease.
There was a huge amount of work to do tomorrow. Mai shook her head, urging herself to sleep. She turned over. The drip-drop, gurgling flow of the rain gradually faded into a quiet background noise until she finally fell into a deep sleep.
...
A strange sound inside the tent alerted Mai, causing her to open her eyes warily.
The familiar sight that met her eyes was a figure with pink short hair, wearing a flak jacket.
"Ah, sorry, did I wake you?" Standing there, Sakura turned her head and whispered apologetically. She was picking up a heavy box from the ground before adjusting the red cross medical aid emblem tied to her arm.
"It's okay... What time is it, Sakura-nee?" Mai rubbed her eyes and said after adjusting to the light. Her head felt somewhat groggy, as she hadn't slept well at all last night.
"Not late. Sleep a bit more if you want. You've looked very tired these past few days." The tent space wasn't large, but it stored quite a few medical supplies. Or perhaps, to save space, the designated areas for Medical-nin were all like this. Sakura placed the box on a table and opened it to check the contents.
The light filtering through the thick tent material and the noise of bustling voices outside indicated that it was already quite late. Resting further was impossible under the current circumstances.
Mai efficiently crawled out of her sleeping bag, dressed, washed up, and prepared for the day's work.
"I'll join you, Sakura-nee."
Sakura saw this and smiled wryly, as if used to it.
Carrying a medical box together, the two stepped out of the tent, and the busy temporary camp instantly unfolded before their eyes.
It was around six or seven. The sun offered no warmth yet. White frost remained on the broken roads, but as far as the eye could see, people were already busy with various tasks.
The destruction during the attack had razed the entire Konoha to the ground. Most people had initially relocated to the nearby wilderness. Every day at the crack of dawn, they would organizedly or spontaneously throw themselves into the village's reconstruction.
Thus, many people already looked like they had been working for a while.
Despite the early winter morning, they wore simple sweat-soaked shirts on their backs. The chilly temperature couldn't suppress people's fervent enthusiasm.
Mai followed Sakura on the road. Villagers they encountered would greet them friendly, not just because of the Medical-nin insignia they symbolized, but also because these days, the villagers had become familiar with the two skilled Medical-nin, Tsunade's prized students.
Arriving at the set-up station, they skillfully prepared and cleaned, handed over with colleagues. Mai let out a light sigh, straightened her white coat, and sat calmly behind the desk.
Patients arrived quickly.
In the distance, the towering mountains retained a deep green hue. Pulling the lens down slightly, one could see villagers like ants, black dots shuttling over the ruins.
Ninja and ordinary people worked together in unison, directing, moving things, trying to restore the houses to their original state.
Closer, right before them, was another scene of busy, tangible activity.
Mai's mood gradually became calm as she immersed herself in her work. Fortunately, the people had survived. Where there are people, there is hope. Everyone was striving to rebuild their home. Even amidst the gray life after destruction and defeat, they filled the cold winter with aspiration.
And there were those heroes who stood up and fought. Living in a Konoha like this, in a world like this, no matter what the future holds, perhaps she didn't need to worry?