Chapter 4! :)

I do not own Naruto or its characters. The rest, though, is mine. :)

Luck had been on their side. The snow hadn't stopped falling, but there hadn't been any snowstorms. They managed to arrive at the edge of the mountain by nightfall the next day, and that is where they stood now.

The sight from Senkyou village from up there was, all in all, impressive. The village was actually pretty small, a little less than half of Konoha. Most of the houses were wooden, with the occasional cement one, these probably belonging to the richer people. They easily found the center of the village. It had taller buildings, one of them probably being the hospital. Also, since Senkyou was located in the countryside, it had miles and miles of crops. Everything, absolutely everything, was covered in snow. They could make out the roads because the snow had been wiped out.

"It looks like a little wonderland." Sakura mentioned.

"Yeah. I still have no idea how those nomads considered this hostile."

"We should hurry. I think I've lost too much blood." Sakura said. She was starting to feel light headed and from time to time dark spots clouded her vision.

Ino nodded and they began their descent on the rocky mountain.

It took them a few hours to finally reach the base of the mountain. The entrance to the village wasn't far, but the exhaustion from the fight and the blood loss from their wounds were starting to take a toll on them. They stumbled to the village gates slowly.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" Ino asked loudly.

There was a small wooden window on the door. They watched as it slowly slid open. A man, the gate keeper, appeared on the other side. When he took in their appearance, he frowned.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

Sakura managed to pull her hitai ate from her hair and showed it to him. The moonlight was reflected on its metal surface, making the Leaf Village symbol clear for the gatekeeper to see.

"My name is Sakura Haruno. This is Ino Yamanaka and we traveled from Konohagakure to answer your call for help."

The man's eyes widened for a moment before he shut the window close. Sakura was ready to bring the gates down with her fists when they opened abruptly. They examined the small crowd that waited for them at the other side. There were children, teenagers, adults, and elders, all looking at them. Sakura could tell they were afraid. Seeing so many of their own die at the hands of the nomads, it was normal they distrusted outsiders, even if they were there to help.

The crowd suddenly parted to let someone through. It was a small girl. She had naturally tanned skin and short brunette hair. Her big, expressive light brown eyes stared at them. She wore a pink dress and a dark colored coat over it to keep her warm. She approached the two kunoichi cautiously and stopped in front of them.

"Will you help us?" she asked.

Ino crouched with difficulty in front of the girl. "Of course." Those were her last words before she passed out. The panic instantly settled in. There were murmurs, gasps and screams from the crowd. An old woman stepped forward and leaned down next to Ino. She reached for the woman's pulse.

"She just passed out. Help me take her to the hospital."

One of the men closer to them helped carry Ino over to the hospital. Everybody followed; Sakura, the old woman and the small girl taking the lead. Sakura was sure she passed out a few times before they reached the building. Ino was quickly taken to one of the rooms while Sakura was guided to another. She fell asleep as soon as she lay down on the small bed.

"Is she alive?"

"Of course she is alive. I was the one in charge of treating her, remember?"

"That is precisely why I'm worrying."

"Knock it off you too."

"Look! She's waking up!"

"Thank goodness!"

Sakura opened her eyes. She was still in the hospital bed. Her body felt completely sore and she knew it would take a few days for her to be in good shape again. She could feel the different needles piercing her skin as well as the bandages wrapped on her head and torso. In the background she could hear the faint beeping of the machines she was connected to. As she looked up, she saw she wasn't alone.

There were four people surrounding her, their faces shoved into her line of vision. There were two young men, a young woman, and the little girl from earlier.

"Ohayou!" said one of the boys, his voice not hiding his excitement. He had short brown hair and blue eyes. "How are you feeling? OWW!"

"That is my line, shorty pants. She's my patient."

It was the girl who had spoken. She had fiery auburn hair and golden eyes. Sakura watched amused as the young boy from earlier held his head in pain from the punch he had received from the female. The small girl quickly went to his side to check if he was okay and pointed an accusatory finger at the young girl calling her a "meanie". The other guy, who had white hair and golden eyes, just stood there shaking his head.

Maybe it was just her, or the drug induced state she was currently in, but she felt a pang of nostalgia at the scene. If it wasn't for the presence of the small girl, they looked just like…

"Ahem!" the young girl cleared her throat, snapping Sakura from her momentary daze. "Ohayou!" she said with an overenthusiastic tone, like one of those annoying nurses you found in the pediatric section. "How are you feeling?"

"Ah… Better than yesterday, I guess." The pink haired girl answered, noticing how hoarse her voice sounded.

"Hah!" said the girl and pointed a finger at the white haired boy. "That means I did a good job. Suck on that, Yuki!"

"Whatever."

The brown haired boy slowly approached Sakura and smiled. "I'm Hiroshi, but everyone calls me Hiro. That's Chi and Yuki, they're siblings. Oh, and this is Haruka." He motioned to the small girl. "She's the granddaughter of our village's leader, the one that called for your help."

Haruka nodded happily and placed her small hand over Sakura's bigger one. "Are you really going to help us?"

"Yes, we are." Sakura knitted her eyebrows, as if suddenly remembering something. "Speaking of 'we', where is that Pig?"

"Pig?" Hiroshi, Chi and Yuki asked confused.

"Don't get your grandma panties in a knot, Forehead. I'm coming." said a voice from outside the door.

In came Ino a few minutes later. She was in a wheelchair, her IV at her side. She was wearing a hospital robe, just like Sakura, and she could faintly see the bandages underneath. The blond was accompanied by a male nurse, who was pushing the wheelchair, the old woman from last night, and two others, a man and a woman, just a little younger that the old woman. The male nurse left once he had placed Ino inside the room.

"I see you're awake. That's good." said the man.

The moment they crossed the door, Haruka ran over to the old man and hugged his legs, the only thing she could reach because she was so tiny.

"Grandpa!" Sakura smiled as she watched the man bend down to pick her up and hug her back.

"How's my little princess today?"

"I made a new friend, Grandpa! She's really pretty!" the girl said as she looked back at Sakura.

Sakura blushed as she felt all eyes on her. She sat up slowly. "I'm Sakura Haruno. Nice to meet you, sir." She said to the man and gave him a small bow.

"Nice to meet you too, Sakura. I'm Jihiro Nazawa and this is my wife, Hana Nazawa. We are glad to see you two are alive. Most of the people who travel through the mountains lose their lives. You girls are a miracle."

Sakura and Ino exchanged a look. They were alive because the nomads have spared them. Apparently, they were only killing people from the village or that had been in the village. They knew this had to be discussed; maybe later, when they had more privacy with the two Nazawa.

"I… guess we are." Said Ino, still looking at her friend.

"I hope those bastards burn in hell."

All heads turned to the old woman, who had just spoken. Sakura noticed that she had a white, lab coat on. 'So she's a doctor here.' She thought. Sparing a glance at the teenagers that were still in the room, she noticed that both Chi and Yuki were wearing nurse uniforms.

"That plague wiped out many of our people, and then they appear and start killing the rest." She said as she checked the machines Sakura was attached to. "I wished at least they sent them whole. Do you have any idea of the things that we witness here every day?" she had turned around and was now looking from Ino to Sakura. "Burned, decapitated, shot; sometimes they only bring back a torso or a limb. I would understand if the victims were people who actually did something wrong. It usually is the father who went to hunt a wild rabbit for dinner or the mother and daughter who went to pick up flowers, or the young kid that wandered too far."

An uncomfortable silence followed. The two kunoichi had had an idea of what they would find here, but it seemed the situation was much, much worse. The nomads had seemed dangerous, but not to the extent that they would literally tear the villagers to pieces. It was gruesome, primitive.

"I am aware the Godaime Hokage was leading some investigations on the nomads." said Mrs. Nazawa.

Ino nodded. "She was going to send a team right after we left."

"The faster they get here, the better. We can only stand so much." said Mr. Nazawa. "Well, I'm afraid I have to leave you. I have other business to attend to. Again, we are glad you are here. Senkyou is eternally grateful. Excuse me." With that he left, Mrs. Nazawa close behind holding Haruka's hand as the girl waved with the other at the two ninjas.

"I have an operation to attend to. Be sure to rest; you start working as soon as you can walk." said the old doctor. "You two." She signaled to Chi and Yuki. "Go check on the other patients. These two can manage by themselves. Now, out of my sight." The siblings nodded and rushed out, not even sparing a glance at the others. The doctor gave the women one last look before storming out the door. Ino, Sakura and Hiroshi we're left alone.

"Such a charming old hag. I can tell I'm going to love her." Ino said sarcastically as she slumped on the wheelchair. Sakura snorted and shook her head.

"It's not fair." Hiroshi suddenly said, catching their attention.

He ran a hand through his hair as he walked over to the nearest chair and plopped down, his eyes glaring at the tiled floor.

"It's not fair. Why is this happening? Why?" he gripped his hair harshly as he sobbed quietly. "We haven't done anything to them! It's like they want to exterminate us… as if we were insects."

Suddenly, he felt a hand grip his arm softly. He looked up to meet Ino's blue eyes. She had managed to stroll up to him and gave him an apologetic smile.

"Did you lose someone precious to you?" she asked.

Hiroshi's face saddened as he looked to the floor again, his arms resting over his knees.

"My father had gone to fish at a pond in one of the caves. He used to take me there when I was little. It had the biggest goldfish you could imagine. He wanted to bring back one for my mother on her birthday because she loved them so much." He stopped and took a deep breathe, a silent tear rolling down his cheek. Ino gave a light squeeze to his arm, giving him support. "He came back in five pieces. They had cut off his limbs and burned his head. It was only ashes when we found him."

Sakura felt her chest tighten at the sight. He was so young. She could only imagine how she would feel if it had been her father. The difference was that her father was a shinobi. Both her parents were. Since before she had started at the Academy, she had been forced to face the fact that one day they might not come back from a mission, or would come back dead. She was, mostly, prepared to face the pain. Ino was too.

"The house feels so… empty… without him."

"I had a sensei once." Ino began. Sakura bowed her head and felt a knot forming on her throat. She knew where Ino was going.

Hiroshi raised his head to look at the blond.

"I always thought he was a little loose around the edges. He smoked like a chimney, too." She smiled softly as if imagining her words. "He was a great shinobi, though, and the best sensei you could have." She looked at him. "He was like a second father to me… and he was killed right before my eyes."

Hiroshi seemed shocked for a moment. It was as if he had just realized who he was talking to. They were both ninjas, two of the best ninjas of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Not many news from other villages came to Senkyou because it was so apart from the rest of the world. They knew, though, some things about the recent war that had shaken the shinobi world to its core, like the big role Konoha had played. 'They must've seen so many loved ones die.'

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Ino asked.

"I'm sure… hah… that you've suffered more than me. I got worked up over something so insignificant, when you've probably had it much worse. Gomen." He said as he wiped his tears away, feeling foolish.

"Don't say that." Sakura said; her voice icy all of a sudden. They both turned to her as she looked directly at Hiroshi, her eyes focused on the young man.

"But I thought…"

"We have lost many loved ones, more than you can imagine. Our lives as shinobi are like that. Survive or die; kill or be killed. With time, those wounds of the ones we have lost heal, but it's a slow process. We never forget them or think of their deaths as 'insignificant'. They're always present, in our hearts. We block the grief, but never the memory."

"That's right." Ino said. "Every single person we've lost is just as important as the other."

"So don't ever consider your father's death as insignificant ever again. He's just as important as the rest." Sakura finished and smiled.

Hiroshi looked at her for a moment before he smiled. "Thank you." Sakura smiled back. Ino looked from one to the other, and smirked to herself. 'I'm pretty sure now that douche bag Ryou is out of the picture. Thank God."

"Oh well." The blond said as she grabbed the sides of the wheelchair and stood up. This was received by an outraged Hiroshi, telling her she should rest. "Nonesense. I actually feel a lot better. It's just a few scratches. Besides, the sooner we're up and walking, the faster we'll patch up this place."

Sakura snickered. They had been beaten and shot, but yeah, they've had it much worse so it was just natural Ino considered it like a few scratches. She watched amused as Ino walked out the door with her IV, the wheelchair left forgotten on the room, while Hiroshi tried desperately to get her to sit down again, whispering something about Doctor Chung having their hides, and Ino cussing back and swatting his hands away.

Sakura decided to lay down for a bit, before her blond friend came storming in to drag her out. So much had happened, and it had only been a few days since they left Konoha. Her mind was still trying to process what happened yesterday with the nomads. She wondered what would've happened if they had stayed a little longer, if the nomads hadn't left to dispatch of the civilians that had appeared. If the kunoichi had pushed the right buttons, would they have told them what was wrong in Senkyou? What had then so afraid that they we're massacring the villagers?

Suddenly, feeling more awake than before, she threw the white cotton covers aside and stood up slowly. At first she wobbled a little, but after she recovered she was standing straight, already making her way out the door. A pain suddenly shot through her arm and she noticed she still had the IV on, as well as all the other cables attached to her skin. She cursed as she saw the small droplet of blood seep from her hand. She pulled off the cables, grabbed the plastic bag and walked out.

She couldn't wait for her chakra reserves to fill up again so she could heal herself. It was uncomfortable to walk around all wrapped up.

As she passed a window, she stopped to look outside. It was a sunny day and it had stopped snowing. The village was buzzing with life now. People walked around going on with their daily lives. She smiled inwardly at the resemblance it held with Konohagakure. She was determined to make this mission as productive as possible. She would make sure to help as much as she could and train the civilians to their full capacity. She wasn't going to let the nomads get away with what they were doing.

With her mind finally set she began walking again through the white halls and began searching for Ino.

Another sort of introductory chapter. Next one will be way longer. Please R&R! :)