Chapter 23: Blood bags
"Then, who exactly are we looking for?" Pakura asked, looking around Kusagakure as she used the transformation technique and ate a skewer she bought from a street vendor. News of her death had spread at an unusually fast pace in the ninja world, undoubtedly the work of Rasa, and she considered it a good idea to lay low for a while until things settled down.
As for why she was accompanying me in my search for the Uzumaki duo, it was quite simple: she had been in Seimeigakure for a while and wanted a change of scenery, while Haku also took the opportunity to take a break and play with the cloud foxes. So, after learning that we were going to rescue/recruit more people for the village, she asked to come along.
"We're looking for a mother and daughter, both Uzumaki, so they have the characteristic hair color of their clan. I know they must be treated quite poorly, so let's look for a run-down house where they might go when injured, even though it's not a hospital. We'll probably find what we're looking for there," I explained.
"The village isn't too big; it should be easy to locate," Pakura replied. The red hair of the Uzumaki clan is quite distinctive and eye-catching. "How old should the girl be?"
"A little older than Haku and Kimimaro, between six and seven. She also wears glasses. Why the interest?" I asked.
"I think I just saw one of our targets," Pakura said, pointing with her skewer stick to a side alley near a restaurant. There, a young girl in patched clothes with red hair was rummaging through the restaurant's garbage container to retrieve some leftovers in good condition. She carefully packed them in a cracked lunchbox while making sure to pay attention to the kitchen door, ready to run as soon as the doorknob started turning.
"Yes, that's her."
"What's the situation? The remaining members of the Uzumaki clan should be treated like walking treasures by any village. How is it possible for the girl to be pushed to this state?" Pakura asked.
I explained the situation as I remembered it to Pakura, and she filled with righteous indignation. "I knew the administration of this place was bad, but I really didn't think they could be so stupid," she shook her head, impressed by the local population's abysmally low intelligence quotient. "Do they have medical ninjutsu but are resorting to such 'convenient' methods to deal with a member of the Uzumaki clan?"
"Don't worry; once we get the duo out of here, there's a weapon I want to try, and Kusagakure is the perfect place for it," I said.
Pakura frowned but, considering all she knew about this village, didn't care about what might happen to its occupants. After all, she grew up in Sunagakure, and looting and collecting anything minimally useful were almost second nature to her from a young age, thanks to the scarcity of resources in her home village.
"Listen," I said.
"Mmm?"
"You mentioned earlier that you regret the lack of basic technique scrolls and such in the village's library, right?"
"Well, you know we're a new village, and I'm not a ninja, so we don't have any heritage or anything useful in that regard in the library. You and Ameyuri are the only sources of information and techniques we have, while we have to 'acquire' or buy the tools you need."
"Since we're going to take something from them, why not do it big?" Pakura suggested with her eyes gleaming excitedly at her sudden idea. "I grew up in Sunagakure; looting and collecting anything useful is almost second nature to me from a young age. Plus, I don't think they have the ability to catch me," she said confidently.
Even if they did, I told her to just kill them and get more stuff. I didn't care much about this rotten place to the core. Almost half of the darkness in Konoha wouldn't even matter here.
"Even if they do, just kill them and get more stuff," I told her, not caring too much about this place.
Pakura raised the transformation jutsu and, unlike Ameyuri, chose to move silently, taking advantage of the chaos while smiling as she understood what I meant.
Rasa really doesn't have the talent to be a father or lead people, but he has an immoderate ambition within him. It's just a bad combination.
Karin was startled once the explosions began and ran out, probably heading home by instinct.
"Now is when the wolf follows the lamb... no, that sounds weird. Good thing there's no one around to hear me," Pakura thought as she blinked while following Karin in her elemental form.
...Ten minutes later...
In a small house with barely three rooms, Mariko Uzumaki heard the chaos outside and sighed tiredly as she rubbed her arms full of human bite marks.
(Unable to find Karin's mother's name, I used the name of the Japanese voice actress instead.)
If the village was under attack, then she would have too many ninjas to heal, and she didn't know how much longer she could withstand the constant chakra drain on her body.
She feared that they would start using her daughter after her death, breaking the promise she clung to desperately. She deeply regretted not realizing the trap they set until it was too late to escape.
"Mom!" Karin entered the house, panting and out of breath. "Someone suddenly jumped in and started cutting down the village's ninjas with lightning!" she explained, miming to try to reflect what she saw.
"Karin, did you go back to the restaurant today?" Mariko asked, feeling a pang of heartache at the sight of what her daughter was holding. She couldn't even feed her little one enough to make her feel full. Instead of reacting as someone her age would, she was forced to mature and take it upon herself to acquire more food in the only ways she could think of. All to save up for medicine and try to heal the "cold" she told her daughter she had.
It was the only way to explain her physical condition to her without exposing her to the brutal truth that she was being used as a blood bag to forcefully revive the village's ninja. They didn't even have any money to save; the village made sure they received only the most essential resources for survival, and often, those delivering it pocketed a portion without bothering to hide it.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone