"I'm going to kill you," says Jugo, unable to control himself any longer. He transforms his arm and takes a swing at Kinoko.
"Jugo! Stop!" Kimimaro yells.
Kinoko crosses her arms in front of her face defensively. Jugo's attack stops when he hits her arms, and blood falls to the ground. Jugo looks into Kinoko's eyes, wanting to see the fear.
All he sees is a spinning red and black pinwheel.
Jugo is entranced. His power fades away and he drops his arm, staring into Kinoko's spinning eyes.
"It's alright," says Kinoko soothingly. "You can't hurt me."
"But you're bleeding!" says Jugo, realizing what he tried to do. "I hurt you!"
"Don't be silly," says Kinoko and pulls out a medkit. She rolls up her sleeves and starts cleaning and bandaging the deep gashes Jugo gave her. "My arms will heal. But I think we had better do something about your situation. We can't have you locking yourself up in fear of yourself. That will just make you worse."
"What other choice do I have?" demands Jugo. "I can't control myself! Only Kimimaro can stop me!"
"I just stopped you, didn't I?"
"But we are your enemies," says Kimimaro. "He cannot follow you around for the rest of his life."
Kinoko grins. "That's an excellent idea! I'll just keep Jugo with me until he can control himself."
"But we're your enemies!" protests Jugo.
"Really?" asks Kinoko. "All I can see is a couple of lost orphans."
"Would you really look after Jugo?" asks Kimimaro earnestly. "I do not like the thought of him being locked away in the dark forever."
"Good, then that's settled!" says Kinoko. "Now, how about both of you come with me to the Hidden Leaf? I'm sure Kimimaro would like to make sure Jugo's new living arrangements are up to his standard."
"But I must go back…"
"Don't be silly." Kinoko grabs Kimimaro's hand and pulls him to his feet. Then she takes one of Jugo's hands and pulls to two teenagers along behind her. "I'm sure you'll like it in the Hidden Leaf. Did you know Lord Third Hokage trained Orochimaru? I'm sure he'll let you stay if we explain the situation. But then again, the Chief is head of security and my clan head, so the decision on whether or not to let you stay is actually up to him…"
Fugaku is busy waging war on his stash of paperwork when Kinoko bursts into the room. Her forearms are bandaged quite heavily and she has a huge grin on her face. "I trust your mission was successful?" says Fugaku, eyeing the bandages.
"Oh yes, that was a breeze," says Kinoko, brushing off the question. "I'll tell you about it later - once I've given my report to the Hokage. I have to go to the hospital first, though."
"So what are you doing here?"
"I found two orphans in the forest, can I keep them?"
"And by keep you mean…?"
"Adopt as my very own children."
"I'll have to meet these orphans," says Fugaku, getting up from his desk and glaring at the stack of paperwork that wobbles as he does so. Fugaku hasn't seen Kinoko this cheerful since her family was killed.
Kinoko leads the way downstairs to the station foyer, where two teenage boys are sitting nervously and trying not to make eye contact with anyone. They both look around 15 years old, but one is larger than the other. The bigger boy has orange hair and the smaller boy has white hair and two red dots on his forehead. "These are the boys, Chief," says Kinoko cheerfully.
Fugaku looks from one boy to the other, wondering what he should do. On the one hand, these two are obviously members of powerful, long-dead clans. On the other hand, Kinoko has her heart set on keeping them. He could always pull an Old Warmonger and keep allow her to keep them so long as they are of use to the village. But no, Kinoko would never stand for that. Besides, her dead son would've been the same age as these boys, had he lived.
"Hmm," muses Fugaku. "Do you know what a quandary this is? I mean, what if they turn out to be a threat to the village?"
"See this is why I didn't want to go!" says the orange haired boy. "I AM a threat to everyone!"
Fugaku regards the boy seriously. "Oh really? You think you are threat to everyone? Kid, two hidden Villages just joined forces to destroy the Hidden Leaf and we beat the crap out of those suckers. What makes you think you would pose a threat to us?"
The other boy looks from Fugaku to Kinoko and then to the boy sitting beside him. "I hope Jugo can stay here. I do not want him to lock himself away forever after I die."
"You say that like you're going to drop dead any second," remarks Fugaku.
"I am dying," says the boy, matter-of-factly. "I am simply here to make sure Jugo is safe before I die."
"I thought you said you were keeping both of them, Deputy?" says Fugaku.
"I am," says Kinoko cheerfully. "I had to convince Kimimaro to come somehow. He's so set on dying a cold and lonely death from his terminal illness."
"Hn," says Fugaku, making up his mind. "Well you can fill out the damn paperwork yourself. I've got enough on my desk." Fugaku turns and heads back to his office.
Jugo and Kimimaro sit quietly while Kinoko fills out the immigration and adoption paperwork. They don't know about the adoption paperwork, though. Once she is done, Kinoko swings by Fugaku's office so he can sign the section about clan head approval for adoption, and the section in the immigration papers that must be signed by the Head of Security. Kinoko is very glad the Hokage doesn't need to see these papers, or these kids, to approve their move to the Hidden Leaf.
Once that is done, Kinoko shows Kimimaro and Jugo the paperwork.
"But this is…" Kimimaro says, astonished.
"You never said anything about adopting us!" says Jugo.
"Well I have now," says Kinoko grinning. "So now you have to call me 'Mum'."
"But…" Kimimaro stammers, taking a step backwards. "Why would you adopt an enemy nin who is about to die?"
"Maybe it's so they don't ask too many question when I take you to the Leaf hospital where you can live the rest of your days in comfort," shrugs Kinoko, who isn't sure herself why she decided to keep both boys. "Or maybe it's so the two of you are brothers through more than just a bond. Blood, inc, bond...You are connected through two of those things now."
Okami Uzumaki is taking a well-earned break from keeping the Uchiha girl alive. Kabuto swung by and is monitoring Sasuke. In the meantime, Okami is eating all the food she can get her hands on. One of the greatest secrets of the Uzumaki clan is its third kekkei genkai: being able to instantly convert food into chakra. It's why you never meet a fat Uzumaki. Any excess food goes straight to chakra. Most Uzumaki don't know about it, but the royal line does. However, it is a more formidable kekkei genkai than both the other two, simply because both men and women can inherit it.
They all have it, so no one realized it wasn't normal. And her duty as queen is to keep this knowledge under lock and key. Kage would kill for a bloodline like this.
Karin doesn't know about it yet, though. She will not learn until she shows signs of having developed it.
Okami is low on chakra from treating Sasuke, so Okami is eating.
Then Deputy Kinoko strides into the hospital pulling two teenaged boys along behind her. Kinoko's arms are bandaged so Okami waves her over. Good excuse to ask about the teens. "What happened to you?" asks Okami once Kinoko is close enough to hold a private conversation.
"I found two orphans in the forest and adopted them," says Kinoko.
"I ment 'what happened to your arms'," says Okami.
"Oh, that happened after we swapped tragic life stories," says Kinoko, who has obviously been drinking something that's messing with her brain.
"I dunno what you're high on, but if it makes you take in random kids who try to kill you after swapping life stories with them, I don't want any."
"Oh, you mean the cactus juice? Kankuro didn't say it was addictive…" Kinoko droops then perks up straight away. "So do you know who I should talk to about mystery diseases?"
"Mystery diseases?" asks Okami. "Who has a mystery disease?"
"Kimimaro does," says Kinoko, pushing forward one of her orphans.
"Let's have a look at you, then," says Okami, and does an examination right there in the hospital lobby, where she set up her lunch station. What she finds is treatable - if you have an ancient, powerful healing kekkei genkai. If not, this kid is as good as dead. Now: where to find an ancient, powerful healing kekkei genkai? "Bite me," Okami tells the boy.
"What?" says Kinoko's new orphan, a shocked expression all over his face.
Okami pulls up her sleeve, revealing the patchwork of bite marks on her arm and says, "Just do it. You'll feel better afterwards, I promise."
Obviously feeling a bit silly for doing so, the white haired orphan bites Okami's arm. His whole body glows with healing chakra, and Okami grits her teeth as all the chakra she just built up drains away.
Then the orphan takes his mouth away from Okami's arm and steps back, a look of shock on his face. "What kind of freaky power is that?" he asks. "I am completely healed…"
"That's the pot calling the kettle black!" laughs Kinoko.
"But that power is weird!" repeats the boy, the shock on his face no less than before.
"Says the kid who literally pulls out his spine and uses it as a weapon," grins Kinoko, patting the kid on top of his head.
"Now that is a cool power," says Okami before yelling: "I need another five rounds of whatever the kitchen is cooking!"