[The words almost hurt more than the hand tearing through his stomach--but they both happen so quickly together that Minato cannot separate the two and so it's merely pain.
Pain pain pain.
Minato isn't fast enough. He isn't fast enough and perhaps he's merely not inclined enough to do anything about it and so he can't--doesn't--dodge.
He merely collapses on himself, barely retaining his feet, bent nearly double as his hands automatically close in on his wound, blood staining his fingers.
It takes him a moment--and then he looks up, eyes narrowed in pain...and expression saddened by understand.]
Ah...
I--
[Another cough, and he flinches again at the pain.]
...I'm sorry.
[That it ended like this. And he looks up, one eye clenched shut in pain, and adds faintly--]
no subject
Pain pain pain.
Minato isn't fast enough. He isn't fast enough and perhaps he's merely not inclined enough to do anything about it and so he can't--doesn't--dodge.
He merely collapses on himself, barely retaining his feet, bent nearly double as his hands automatically close in on his wound, blood staining his fingers.
It takes him a moment--and then he looks up, eyes narrowed in pain...and expression saddened by understand.]
Ah...
I--
[Another cough, and he flinches again at the pain.]
...I'm sorry.
[That it ended like this. And he looks up, one eye clenched shut in pain, and adds faintly--]
No regrets.