Chapter 13

Old Wounds

Life went on. The ability to spy on Naruto from a distance made her mission easier to handle. She was able to focus on other projects, dig into research, and fulfill her role as a medic without fear of losing track of her charge.

She had not seen Kakashi since the Sukea antics, but she assumed he would rather have the space. The Jounin was a private person and she wondered if she had unintentionally crossed boundaries she should have avoided. The last thing she wanted to do was push him away. The thought made her uncomfortable. She struggled to connect with people and was hesitant to pursue friendships unless they were formed from necessity. This meant a lot to her. The importance of it made her stomach twist in an uncomfortable knot.

It was with that in mind that Arashi danced around the question of Rin and what had happened to her. If she checked public, non-medical related records, she was listed as KIA. Uchiha Obito had the same status – but her mother had not mentioned him as a cause for her father's distrust. There was something about the way that Rin had died or the events that led up to her death that had unsettled Ookami. The kunoichi was both fascinated and intimidated by that prospect. He had seen much and was not easily shaken by anything.

Ultimately, Arashi was always too curious and that curiosity overcame her apprehension when she and her father were tucked away in his office for a break from seeing patients.

"Dad, I have a question."

"I have answers. They might not be right, but I have them."

She rolled her eyes, but continued, "Who was Rin?"

It was a vague question. She did not want to be specific – she wanted it to come across as a casual question that did not mean much to her. Knowing that her father did not like Kakashi, she wanted to avoid letting him know she was acutely interested in him. The name was not uncommon and Ookami saw enough patients that he should not have known who she was referencing.

But he did.

Recognition settled on his features and the playfulness he exhibited with her disappeared. When he responded, he was careful as he picked his words. "I guess you've been spending more time with Hatake-san since he became Naruto's sensei."

"Not much. Mom just mentioned that something unfortunate happened to her."

"You could call it that, I guess. Their team started with Uchiha Obito, Hatake Kakashi, and Nohara Rin. They were under Namikaze Minato." Ookami explained. "First Obito died in a conflict during the last war. Never recovered the body. Not long after that, Rin died."

"A lot of people died during the war." Arashi commented.

It was odd to talk about the war. She knew that she should be bothered by it. Her parents had died and left her orphaned, but she was young enough that she had few memories of them. The ones that she did have were fractured and vague. Now that she was an adult, she was able to piece together that they were refugees that were in the wrong place at the wrong time. If not for Ookami finding her, she would have died, as well.

"Well, yeah, but most weren't killed by their teammate." He shrugged. "Kakashi's known for his Chidori and Rin got to know it pretty well, too, when he ran her through with it."

Arashi's mouth dropped open.

"There were reasons. Excuses were filed in reports and the issue was swept away. It ultimately got him shuffled over to being in ANBU and away from the standard forces." He continued. "At the end of the day, it's not against the rules to kill your comrades if it means keeping your village safe or completing a mission, but I had concerns that Hatake-san could end up being an issue for our shinobi, so I kept up with his career somewhat and kept an eye out for any suspicious deaths close to him. Did a lot of autopsies."

Her throat was dry. "I see."

Ookami walked past his desk and shuffled through a filing cabinet. She watched with trepidation as she held his opinion in contrast with the little she knew of Hatake Kakashi. He hummed when he found what he was looking for and turned to hand it to her with an air of detachment.

"This has some of the photos taken during the autopsy before the poor girl was laid to rest. Broke my heart. She was a good one and would have made a fantastic addition to our team if she was given a chance to reach adulthood."

Arashi flipped through some reports and paused when she found the pictures. Rin had been a lovely girl, but the hole through her chest held the kunoichi's attention. It was a gruesome way to die. With a frown, she placed it on the desk and regarded her father.

"Were there any other suspicious deaths?"

He shook his head. "Thankfully, no. That is, if you don't count the ordered assassinations. He was always reclusive but became even more so with age."

"I appreciate the information." She commented. "It brings a few things into perspective, I guess."

The man shrugged. "I can admit part of my concern came from you being near him when Kushina-san was watching after you for me. It was cute to see you so enamored with someone, but I was worried."

Arashi gave him a flat look.

"What? You're my daughter and I love you."

"Dad, keeping pictures of a girl's mangled body in your office, along with an entire case study of someone's missions and habits isn't really appropriate."

"I'm a little overprotective?"

She rubbed her temples. "Sometimes I wonder why I turned out so weird and then I have conversations like this with you or I listen to mom gush about Hatake Sakumo and then it all makes sense."

Ookami paused and his lips quirked into a poorly disguised frown.

That's a funny expression. Arashi pushed the subject, "I had no idea she was such a huge fan of him. Most people don't even remember his name, these days."

Ookami slid the file off the desk and placed it back into its designated spot. "Everyone her age was a fan back then. It was the norm."

"It was almost embarrassing, the way she went on. Even fawned over Kakashi and about how much he looks like Sakumo when we ran into him the other day."

For as long as she had known her father, his signature was constant, just as he was steadfast in her life. As she spoke of the deceased Jounin, his signature spiked and rumbled in what she assumed was disdain. He paced to the of the other side of the room and hovered over a stack of medical records for a moment before he replied.

"Well, she had a crush on him. He was as famous as the Sannin back then, but who did she end up marrying?" He pointed a finger at himself. "The doctor! Not the guy that killed himself."

"Kami, did I hit a nerve?"

In response, her father lifted the records and dropped them on the desk in front of her. "Check these for patients we need to reschedule."

It was not often that Arashi ventured out to visit patients.

In most cases, it was when her father asked her to accompany him on a house call for people that were elderly and unable to make it into the office for their appointments. It was easy to forget about these citizens in the rush of day to day operation. There was always an emergency waiting to steal their focus – whether it was shinobi returning with moderate to severe injuries, an influx of contagious patients, or a variety of other scenarios that came slamming through their doors and sweeping their manpower into a room with them. As well-meaning as she was when she began her career, she recognized that there were times when she was simply busy and tired. That exhaustion could leech the passion out of the most zealous person.

If not for her father punishing her by making her go through his records and noting that a familiar name had missed numerous appointments, she would have overlooked this woman, as well.

Chiharo.

The kunoichi stared up at the retired ninja's house with a sense of embarrassment and dread. She could sense that she was alive and nothing implied that she was unwell. Thoughts of abandoning her venture and returning to the hospital nipped at her mind as she peeked around the building to spy on the woman as she worked in her garden. Part of her hesitance came from paranoia that she would come after her with a broom, despite knowing that it was a facetious fear. As lively as Chiharo had been when she met her, she doubted she would come after her for showing concern.

Maybe if I messed with her garden, sure, but that's not what I'm doing.

After she swallowed over the lump in her throat, she stepped onto the grass and made her way toward her target.

Chiharo brushed a lock of her hair out of her face. The motion left a trail of sweat across her forehead. "Do I have a visitor? What are you doing here, girl?"

"I just thought I'd come check on you. You were supposed to see my father this morning for an appointment, but you didn't show up."

"What's one appointment?"

"You've missed every appointment for the past three months."

A short cackle bubbled up from the woman's throat. "Ookami's determined. Did he send you?"

"I came on my own." She replied.

"Hm." She stood to her full but bowed height. "I recognize you. Not sure from where, though. Probably that damn hospital."

"Maybe." Arashi shrugged. "I also did a mission for you as a new Genin. My first mission, actually."

Chiharo's eyebrows knit together as she hummed loudly to herself in thought.

"Anyway," Arashi cleared her throat. "I wanted to check on you. You have medication that we have to see you regularly in order to continue prescribing, you know. If we don't run tests, we could be over or under dosing you."

"Bah! I'm old and have no one. I served my Land and survived until I wasn't useful anymore. If I want to skip out of some medicine and live my life the way I want, I don't see why I shouldn't." While her words were stern, there was an amused curl to her lips. "Your father is a worrywart. Enough of one to turn you into one, too, I see."

"There's nothing wrong with caring. We don't have a lot of shinobi that even make it to retirement. You're like a diamond in the rough."

"Girl, I'm the rough. I've never had anyone mistake me for a diamond." She thrusted a hoe toward her. "Now take this and help me finish up."

"But,"

"It's the only way you'll get me to that appointment."

Arashi sighed.

It did not take long to finish the task for Chiharo.

The heat was harsh that day – harsh enough that she had abandoned her purple outer clothing and still resented her shirt and shorts for not being cooler attire. She wondered if she was out of shape or if Chiharo was senile enough to not care about the sun baring down on them.

Probably both.

They retired to the kitchen inside the woman's house. The gruff persona that she carried around with her like a cloud dispersed as she grabbed cups and filled them with tea. The sight made Arashi realize how dry her throat was.

"I guess worried people make okay guests." She commented. "Are you hungry?"

"I'm fine."

"You look hungry." She shook her head. "I have a few things."

Before long, she had an assortment of fresh, sliced vegetables that were from the garden arranged on a plate in front of the young kunoichi.

"I cut them this morning." She explained without prompt.

"Thank you." Arashi might not have been hungry, but she did not see a way out of this without being rude.

"Ever since my son died in the war, I haven't had a lot of people come around." Chiharo commented. "I guess it makes me lose track of time. I get stuck thinking about taking care of things around here and it's almost like there isn't a world outside these walls and that fence out back."

The garden, fencing, and everything she had seen of the house was immaculate. Everything had a place, every surface was clean, and nothing appeared to be neglected. Even without her confession, it was still obvious that she spent her life there and she was not idle in her bubble. It reminded her of the bubble she lived in when she obsessed over a project or a new jutsu.

"That sounds lonely."

"It can be. I tell myself it's peace that was hard fought for."

The visit with Chiharo went well and it ended with her walking the elderly woman to her rescheduled appointment that evening. Arashi hoped that her father would be glad to see her – she was one of his more stubborn patients, after all. She had never known him to hold a grudge, but she had also never found and then picked at one of his insecurities before.

They finished seeing all the people that he was scheduled to see and then helped with the excess that other physicians had accumulated. Overall, it was not a busy day for them and Arashi was able to slip out at a decent time.

The last person she expected to find waiting for her outside was Kakashi's pink haired Genin. When Sakura saw Arashi see her, a look crossed her face that implied that she wanted to bolt, but she stood her ground and even managed to wave. Her green eyes were wide and bright with worry as the Chuunin approached.

"Sakura?" Arashi blinked in surprise. "How are you?"

"Oh, um," She smiled. "I'm good!"

Arashi pursed her lips.

"Actually, I'm really worried right now."

"What's wrong?"

"Well, Sensei nominated us for the Chuunin Exams." She replied. "And I know that I'm in no way ready for this, but I'm also scared that they'll all look down on me if I don't go through with it."

"Oh."

"I just don't know what to do and I don't have anyone to really confide in about this that isn't already involved."

Arashi glanced around. "Would you like to talk this over with me on a walk?"

Sakura nodded.

They walked in silence for a while until they were no longer surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the city. Arashi had a feeling that the younger kunoichi wanted a measure of privacy and time to collect her thoughts. With that in mind, she set a casual pace to a quiet area with some benches where they could sit.

Once there, she settled on one end and motioned for Sakura to join her. "Is this a good spot for you?"

"Yes, Arashi-san."

"Well, take a seat and start when you're ready."

Sakura did as she was told. After a few moments of staring at her lap, she asked, "What was the exam like for you?"

"I'll not sugar coat it. I nearly died. We did well in the first portion and then made it to the second, which was in the Forest of Death. Jounin often use it as a training ground. We were pitted against other teams as a challenge, which I won't go into much detail about concerning what the objective actually was. We eliminated most of our competition by placing traps and executing ambushes. It went flawlessly until we learned that one of the teams also had a sensor type and that was how they managed to avoid us and then catch up to us. You have to be ready to gather intel, be involved in combat, and do whatever is necessary to make it through with your life. This can be career defining."

"Who were your teammates?" She asked. "What were your dynamics like?"

"Kurama Daisuke and Aburame Akio. Our dynamics? Well, we, uh, didn't exactly get along." She laughed. "We developed past that, though. Our sensei worked hard to make sure we worked well together as a team, even if we didn't get along." She did not mention her theory that Ibiki found it amusing when they fought. "It was to our benefit, I guess. I regret a lot of my younger antics, but, that's a whole different story and issue."

"Do you think I'm ready?" She asked, her voice quiet. "I'm not like Naruto or Sasuke-kun."

Arashi shook her head. "Just because you're not like them doesn't mean you can't hold your own. You might not excel with physical strength or ninjutsu, but I think you're a smart girl and you have the potential to be dangerous in your own way. Both of those boys are hotheaded and too distracted by each other. You could focus on trying to keep them in line and more focused on working together on a main goal. You might need them, but I think they need you, too."

The girl's cheeks brightened with a blush and she glanced away. "Maybe. What made you decide you wanted to be a medical shinobi?"

"My dad. He groomed me as a small kid and I was happy to follow his example." She replied.

"I guess having shinobi parents makes having a clear goal easier."

"My mom's a civilian. Runs a salon. Has a completely different world view and set of priorities than a shinobi, but she does her best to understand." Arashi pointed out. "But, yeah, my dad helped me keep a clear goal and head through some of my more confused or uncertain periods. It's good to be reasonable – look at your aptitudes and what you feel you do best and then see which specializations you can go into from there."

"Those scrolls that you have, they're fuinjutsu, right?" Sakura asked.

"They are. I learned from a young age that I also have a knack for sealing jutsu and I've repurposed a lot that I've learned into different jutsu."

They lapsed into silence for a while until Sakura huffed, "What do you think I should do?"

"Well," Arashi eyed her for a while. "That's really not up to me to decide, but you're in a dangerous field. This was never going to be safe or easy. If you decide to go through with this, you will either grow or it won't matter."

"You mean I'll either get better at being a shinobi or I'll die."

The older kunoichi chuckled. "Isn't that our profession, though? Look, the main thing I've seen you struggle with is confidence in yourself and your abilities now that you're out of the Academy. If you need help training, I can try to help you with that when I'm not busy. If you need advice, I can try to offer you some. Ultimately, though, your career is what you make of it. Just don't let being afraid of the unknown drive you away from something you really want."

The uncertainty in her green eyes faded and was replaced with gratitude. "Thank you, Arashi-san."

"It's no problem."

Arashi remained on the bench long after Sakura excused herself and left. As memories played out in her mind, she slipped her fingers under her scarf and traced the scar across her throat. She hoped that the girl's caution would serve her well and she had not inadvertently encouraged her into an early grave.

Well, here's another chapter. Next chapter will be the beginning of Team 7's Chuunin Exam arc. I'm already working on it, so hopefully it won't take too long for me to finish. I hope you all enjoy this.