Survive

Time skip 5 years later

A young girl was running down the streets of Konoha Gakure no Sato. Her blond her with red highlights was flowing through the air. She was running away from a mob of angry villagers. They were yelling at her and throwing anything and everything they could get their hands on. The poor girl had been living on the streets for one and a half years now. Ever since she could walk, she was kicked out of the orphanage. She ran the alleyways trying to lose the mob. She turned around a corner and jumped through some gardens and over fences and soon she was on the main street. She kept running, but the way in front of her was cut off. She jumped into another alley and ran straight into a wall. She was cornered. The villagers turned the corner and glared at the girl. The girl just curled up into a ball. The villagers started to kick and beat her.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Please stop." The girl begged.

"A demon like you doesn't deserve mercy. No today we will finish what the Fourth started you demon bitch." A villager roared.

They continued to beat her. Then the picked her up and dragged her away…

Meanwhile on the other side of the village

"And that will be the outcome of the treatment this village gives Naruko-chan." Said Uchiha Itachi.

Next to him stood his friend and companion Tanin. Over the years they had grown closer. Itachi knew that Tanin was a mystery no one could solve without his help so he accepted the facts Tanin gave him. Tanin disliked the Uchiha for something he does not want to talk about. He was powerful and was probably holding back. But be that as it be he showed also compassion and concern. All in all Itachi was content with the progress he was making. The Hokage had asked him to keep an eye on the man who called himself 'Stranger'.

"I see…" the Hokage said after a minute of silence.

"And what is your opinion on this matter, Tanin-san?"

"My opinion is of little importance, Hokage-sama."

He may not like the man but he was still the leader of this village and had offered him a place to stay, so he was obliged to show respect.

"But I have to agree with Itachi-san. The way the villagers handle Uzumaki-hime she will sooner or later snap."

""I thank you for your input, Tanin-san. Now Itachi-kun, how is the situation within your clan?"

At this Tanin perked up. The Uchiha may be spineless, ignorant and backstabbing vermin, but they did have fighting prowess. This could be beneficial for the tribe.

"Father is getting very out of hand. He is talking more and more about leaving the village or even taking the seat of Hokage by force. But I have not been able to find any solid information."

"Very well, Itachi-kun. Please observe them further and report back to me if anything solid comes up."

Itachi nodded. Tanin used the moment to state his solution for the problem.

"Itachi-san. This isn't really any of my business, but has your father been acting stranger or different as of late?"

"He has, Tanin-san."

"Do you think it were possible that he might be controlled? Konoha has many enemies especially after your war."

"Normally I would say no, as the Sharingan has the ability to see through most Genjutsu, but there are ways to overpower a Sharingan user. One would be a high class Genjutsu, the other would be another Sharingan user. But there hasn't been an unloyal Uchiha ever since Madara left… You don't think."

"As of now it is a possibility. There are many jutsu out there… Immortality is possible."

Tanin sighed. He really didn't want to do this but it was the only way.

"Hokage-sama, could you activate a privacy seal please. And send your ANBU out."

The Hokage did so and waved his ANBU away. Tanin growled.

"I meant all of them."

"But those were all I had stationed."

"Then allow me to rid us from these intruders."

Tanin transformed into a big cat with long canines in the upper jaw, and jumped into a corner. He slashed out with his right paw and moments later an ANBU fell to the ground. Tanin transformed back into his human form and threw a kunai at another wall, causing another ANBU to fall to the ground. Tanin stripped the corpses of everything they had. Then he summoned two cats with long canines.

"Nii-san." The two yelled and jumped at him. He growled and they backed off.

"Now, now, Hi-chan, Ha-chan, you know that we can't play outside of the tribe."

The two whined but nodded.

"There you go. I'll visit as soon as I can. I promise, but for now, I have your meal for this week."

He pointed at the corpses.

"You take those to Kaa-sama."

He walked over to the corpses and cut off the heads. The two young cats took the bodies and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Hiruzen and Itachi looked at Tanin and saw him licking the blood of his hands. Moments later he growled.

"They were ANBU trained solely on serving the council members, those fools want more power. They were tasked to shadow you. You didn't notice their presence because of a seal that suppressed everything. Even the excluded life force. It seems you are no longer shepherd of your sheep, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen was in shock. Sure he had been slacking off a bit, but he didn't realize he had let it come this far.

"I will have Inu look into this matter once we are finished here. Now to your proposal for our problem."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. If the Uchiha are planning a rebellion the tribe could be able to help. For a price, of course."

"And what would that price be?" Itachi asked.

Tanin smirked and licked his lips.

"You keep what you kill."

"So you want the power of the Sharingan?"

"Don't be ridicules. Our Kekkai Genkai is far more powerful than the imitation you call a bloodline. But if you insist, you can have their heads. But we will have to talk with the tribe's council first. I will talk with them at a later time. Now Hokage-sama, who have you put in charge of the protection of Uzumaki-hime?"

"I put Neko in charge of her."

"That can't be, Hokage-sama." Itachi said.

"I saw Neko this morning in ANBU HQ, she was preparing for a mission."

"What!?"

The door opened and revealed a concerned looking Shimura Danzo.

"Hiruzen, I have discovered that the civilian council has changed the plans for our ANBU, Uzumaki is being guarded by a civilian born ANBU."

Tanin raced out of the room, transforming into his blood bond on the way. He rushed through the streets. After he had covered the entire village he stopped and cursed. He tried to concentrate but he was already too far in his anger too control himself. He took off again and continued his search.

Meanwhile with Naruko

Naruko awoke with a lot of pain. She tried to see where she was but she was blindfolded. She tried to move but she was tied up. She tried to talk but she was gagged. She heard a door open and people stepped in. They were laughing at her. They ripped off her clothes. Then they started beating her. The spared no part of her body. After they got bored of that they started cutting the hysterically screaming girl open, but soon found out that her injuries were healing almost instantly. This enraged them even more and they started to stab her with thing and left them sticking. Naruko was silent, she had given up. She was praying for the Shinigami to allow her to pass. After what felt like days to the girl she was cut down and thrown to the floor.

"Just let me have some special fun with it guys. We can kill it afterwards." A male voice said.

Naruko didn't care anymore she didn't resist the man's approaches and just stayed there. He stopped and she heard him take off his trousers, but he did not touch her. She heard screams from the outside and loud, menacing growls. She was hoping for rescue, but she knew that no one would actually go through the trouble off searching for her. The door busted open and someone stepped in.

With Tanin

Tanin stepped through the door. He was still in his blood bond form and what he saw drove him further in his blood rage. There was Naruko on the floor, naked, battered and broken with rusted objects stuck everywhere in her body. She was lying there completely still but he could hear her faint breathing. Then there was a man with his trousers off and his cock in his hand. The man was frozen and stared at Tanin. Tanin jumped at him and severed his head clean off of his shoulders. He crushed the head in his jaws and summoned some of his blood kin.

"Dispose of this filth." He said with a low growl.

The cats went to work swiftly and disappeared with a cloud of smoke. Tanin moved to the girl and pulled out all of the objects. The wounds healed and the girl fell asleep. Tanin decided it would be best if he took the girl to her apartment. He made the way quickly and set her down into the battered bed. He got on as well and curled himself around her. He wouldn't sleep tonight. Her safety was more important than his life.

With Naruko

Dreamscape

It was cold. Naruko was running away from a terrible monster that called itself the village. She ran as fast as her legs would allow her to, but no matter how fast she was the village was faster and it would catch her eventually. As the beast came closer the air grew warmer. Naruko risked a look over her shoulder, but the monster wasn't chasing her anymore. She collapsed. She felt the warmth embrace her. It was a wonderful feeling and she liked it very much. It made her feel at ease, but she knew she could never show a sign of weakness ever again. She had stored many scrolls in a little cave on a fenced in training ground and she would learn them all. That was a promise to herself.

End of dream

The next day

Naruko felt warm. Not the being slowly roasted alive kind of warm, but a welcome warmth. She opened her eyes and found that she was wrapped inside her blanket and there was a big cat curled up around her. She looked at it and soon found the head. Her breath froze in her throat when she saw the large canines in the upper jaw. She was transfixed with them. She reached out and touched them very carefully. The cats eyes shot open and it eyed her, but did not move. Naruko giggled on the inside.

'Show no emotions. Show no emotions.' She chanted to herself.

The cat lifted its head and stared at her. It looked her straight in the eyes. It let out a long breath and put its head back down, almost as if it were sad.

'They finally did it.' Tanin thought.

'They caused Naruko to break in. The poor girl has no longer the eyes of an innocent little child. The eyes she has now have accepted death and even welcome it. I will take her with me today. The village had its chance, now the tribe will take care of her.'

The cat got up and transformed into a human form. Naruko was amazed. But she did not show it. The man in front of her turned around and looked at her. He was wearing black shinobi pants but nothing else. His body was covered with war paint. The man bowed to her.

"Good morning, Uzumaki-hime." He said.

She was baffled. Apparently she was royalty. She did not know what to say. But she didn't have to as the man continued.

"Please get dressed and take all of your valuables. I will be taking you to a safe place."

Naruko tensed, this man wanted to take her away from safety. She was about to run away when the man sighed.

He straightened up and looked at her.

"I mean you no harm, Uzumaki-hime. I understand that after yesterday, you won't trust people anymore, but I ask that you trust me."

Naruko studied him. He seemed honest and desperate.

'If he really means me no harm he has to prove it, but he was the one to save me… I guess I could ask him of his reasoning and if he shows signs of lying I can still bolt to my safe haven.'

She nodded to herself and looked at the man with a glare that said 'lie and I am gone'. The man smiled and nodded.

"Please ask away."

Naruko was shocked. Had he read her thoughts or was this one of those illusions ninja use to manipulate their enemy. She formed a ram seal and whispered.

"Genjutsu kai."

Contrary to what she let people believe Naruko was no fool. She knew that people hated her, she knew, most ninja hated her. And she learned some basic things about ninja from an academy instructor. So she knew how to dispel Genjutsu. She looked at the man again and saw him still smiling. So it wasn't a Genjutsu that was good.

"Who are you?"

"I do not have a name yet, hime. It was banned from the outside world. You are supposed to name me."

"Fine, I will call you, Nagai Ha."

The man nodded.

"Now what do you want with me.

"Do you know what happened five and a half years ago?"

"I was born then and the Kyuubi attacked."

"Yes but I also lost my entire family in the line of duty under your mother…"

"You knew my mother?"

"Yes, but I am not allowed to tell you anything about that subject, I will ask the tribe's council for permission."

"Okay, do you know why everyone hates me?"

"Yes, but again I am not allowed to say."

"Who or what is this tribe you mentioned."

"We are the silent protectors of the once great Uzumaki clan. A clan of shinobi who looked past mortal fears and accepted our ancestors into their society. We protected them and served them."

"I had a clan?"

"Yes, and as part of that clan, you have authority over me and my tribe. We are your protectors and we will serve as you wish."

"Okay but why are you here? Why now?"

"It was an agreement that was made. I was supposed to bring you to the tribe on day one, but your village council had been very persistent in keeping you inside of the walls of the village."

"And we see how that turned out."

"I am sorry hime. I will accept any punishment you give me."

"It is not your fault, Nagai Ha. But tell me, where were you."

"I was talking with the Hokage but then came Shimura Danzo and told us the Civilian Council had replaced the ANBU that was supposed to watch you with a civilian born ANBU. The result of that is what happened last night. I told that monkey that if you were ever hurt beyond the point off healable or if you were being used as something unspeakable I would kill everyone responsible. And then the tribe would take care of you."

Naruko pondered on what she had heard. Again she was no fool nor was she stupid. She was smart for her age. She knew that the civilians were especially hostile towards her. She knew she would not get any help from any of the clans. Most of the clans just ignored her, but one of the clans, the Uchiha clan, loathed her. They were the police force in the village. Which gave the civilians a practical free reign to do as they wished as the Uchiha would just look the other way until the ANBU showed up. And then they would only do a quick job and not do anything. Following rationality, she needed people who would help her gain power and strength and maybe she could have a real family. So she decided to go along with this strange man.

"Okay… I will come with you, but you have to promise me, that this isn't a trick, if I have doubts about your intentions I will run away."

The man nodded.

"So be it. Take your valuables and get dressed. I will wait in front of the apartment."

He left the room and Naruko got up. She got into the only thing she could afford her orange jumpsuit. She wondered where it had come from, the one she had worn had been destroyed. Then she realized she was in an apartment, something she was never in before. She got out of the apartment and saw the man had transformed back into his cat form.

"Get on."

She did and he ran along the rooftops, jumping whenever there was a gap. It didn't take him long to get to the Hokage Tower. They landed on the floor and Nagai Ha transformed back into his human form. He ushered Naruko forward and entered the building. Inside Naruko immediately tensed up from the glare the secretary was sending her.

"What do you want here demon? Get out before I make you get out." She sneered.

Instantly Nagai Ha was upon her. His left hand pinning her to the wall, her legs dangling in the air. Her futile attempts to get the man to let go of her were useless. His grip did not ease a bit.

"You should watch your mouth, foolish woman. I hope I misheard when you called the girl demon. Be glad that I don't want to scar her even more than you filthy vermin have already done, so when I let go of you, you will greet her with kindness like you do with everybody else, or I will eat you alive where you are. Do we have an understanding?"

The woman nodded weakly, she was about to pass out, but the man eased his grip and threw her to Naruko's feet. He walked over to them and bent down.

"I'm listening."

"Hello, how may I help you?" she said through gritted teeth.

"We want to see the Hokage immediately, is he free right now." Nagai Ha said.

The woman walked back to her desk and checked the day's schedule.

"He is. Go right on through. Have a nice day."

She waved and Naruko went passed her followed by Nagai Ha.

"Fucking demon lovers." She whispered to herself.

Unfortunately for her, Nagai Ha had a very acute sense of hearing. The moment the words left her lips, she was hit in the head by a powerful kick and flew through the room and stuck in the wall.

"Be glad I am in a good mood, otherwise I would have killed you." He growled and followed Naruko.

Naruko was just entering the Hokage's office. She saw the old man and walked into the center of the room. Moments later Nagai Ha appeared. He cleared his throat and the Hokage looked up from his papers.

"Ah Naruko-chan. I am so relieved to see that you are alright."

He eyed the small girl in front of him and instantly noticed something was off.

"What's wrong my dear?"

He knew it was bad, but he hoped it wasn't too bad. He looked at the man next to her. As always the man they called Tanin stood like a pillar. Standing six foot one with a much defined build and broad shoulders, along with his war paint, he stood expressionless, but if he looked closely, Hiruzen saw nothing but hate in his eyes. But it was not directed at the girl or him, it was directed at the village.

"What happened?" he asked.

The man walked over to him and did a single hand sign. He then reached out and touched his shoulder and Hiruzen was pulled into a room. It wasn't his office, as he looked around he could see a group of villagers getting slaughtered by a large cat with long canines. The cat threw itself at a wooden door and broke through it. Hiruzen followed and was disgusted by what he saw. Next to a severely injured Naruko lay the headless corpse of a man. The corpse had his pants down his ankles and one hand was holding his still erect penis. He watched the cat crush the man's skull and walk over to Naruko after he had summoned more of his kin. The cat pulled out the foreign objects and picked the poor girl up. Then he left the room. The Hokage felt a pull and he was back in his chair, in his office. He looked at Tanin and saw that the man was on the verge of a rampage. The Hokage couldn't blame him, he was having a hard time controlling himself as well. The man walked back to his surrogate granddaughter and looked him straight in the eyes.

"You know of our agreement. I have upheld my end of the bargain, now it is time for you to uphold yours."

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.

"You did and I shall too. But before you go, I wish to discuss this in front of the council."

Naruko froze. The council of the village was never a good place for her to be in. She looked at Nagai Ha and saw that he was studying her. He then knelt down and looked her in the face.

"I know you do not want to go in there, hime, but you must do this. They have to know what their actions have cost them. I promise you will not be hurt. If you do want to leave we will, but at least attend first, okay?"

She nodded. She had seen what the man had done with the secretary after she had passed her and she knew that he would protect her. She nodded. They entered the council chambers and sat she sat down in a chair in the corner close to the door. Nagai Ha was standing behind her and looked as emotionless as ever, but she knew, if push came to shove he would kill to keep her safe. A couple of minutes later the council members arrived and took their seats. The Hokage took his seat and started the meeting.

"Dear council members. I am sure you are curious as to why I have summoned you here."

"As a matter of fact Hokage-sama, we were going to summon you here anyway." Uchiha Fugaku said, interrupting the Hokage.

"It has come to my attention that there has been a murder in an old warehouse. I have already put most of the police force on the case and I have already some results. Firstly, there are seven victims in the front room of the building and another in an intimate situation in the main storage area. Analysis prove the victims to be civilians. The names are Yakora Mata, Idante Hensai, Donaa Ruubo, Kanzi Hewali, Onida Lin, Lokeru Lee and Gama Itekamu. The body in the main area is one Haruno Shiba."

"What!" a pink haired woman shrieked.

"My nephew is dead and you decide to tell me this now and not immediately?"

"Calm down Haruno. This is basic protocol, I am sorry for your loss."

"I want you to find whoever did this and kill him."

In the corner still unnoticed, Nagai Ha was amusing himself. Naruko had chosen a wonderful spot to sit. It was in a place where little light came to so they were hidden from all who didn't care to look. So as they watched the spectacle unfold he waited for the right moment.

"We will. Murder of multiple people is punishable by death. Anyway, all the names stated are of wealthy civilian families suggesting a get to gather to do some partnership dealings. The location is an abandoned warehouse recently bought up by the named individuals. I request a squad of ANBU specialized in tracking to hunt down the ones responsible."

Uchiha Fugaku looked at the Hokage. He knew the man would go with his request. Suddenly the silence was disturbed by a hollow laughter. Everyone looked at the source and saw in the shadows, the man they called Tanin. He was standing next to the Uzumaki girl.

"What is that thing doing in here?" Haruno Mebuki screeched.

"And that outsider shouldn't be here either."

Tanin stepped in front of Naruko. He had stopped laughing and stared at the councilwoman.

"I have an appointment with the council, Haruno. So I have a right to be here."

"You shall show respect towards this council." Homura Mitokado said.

"Respect is earned not handed out to a title, Homura."

Homura glared at the man but he was ignored. Tanin was getting impatient so he just cut right to the chase.

"That was an interesting report, Uchiha-san. But you failed to mention a few minor details."

"And what details, would that be?" Fugaku asked through clenched teeth.

"Namely two things. First the warehouse was property of the Uchiha Clan before the deceased bought it and second you failed to mention the situation the person in the main area was in."

"That may be. But whom the warehouse belonged to is not important to the case. And the nephew of Haruno, unlike with the others, we actually found something else than a pool of blood, we found skull fragments, leading us to believe his head got crushed by something."

"Very good. But you should have also found a recording of what happened prior to the deaths or are you telling me, that the great Uchiha, with their ultimate Dojutsu missed a tape lying on a table near the door."

"How do you know of that tape?"

"The better question would be why didn't you mention the tape in your report?"

"We have yet to analyze the tape." Fugaku shot back.

"Interesting, but still it should have been in the report as evidence, except you have already seen the footage contained on the tape and deemed it bad for your office, hmmm?"

"How do you know what is on that footage?"

"Again the better question would be, how did I know where to find the tape?"

"What do you mean?" Utatane Koharu asked.

"Think about it, Utatane. Who do you think killed them and placed the tape on that very table?"

Tanin grinned a feral grin and licked his lips.

"You monster, how could you have done that to villagers of this village and to my nephew?" Haruno screamed.

Tanin was holding has ears.

"Do you ever shut up you brainless harpy? I did it because of what they did to Uzumaki. What they did is unforgivable they will be forever hunted by my tribe."

"ANBU seize this man." Fugaku yelled, but nothing happened.

Tanin grinned even more and unleashed a wave of killing intent onto the civilians and Fugaku.

"You disgust me Uchiha. The things they did to a defenseless child are worse than death. I hope you realize that the inaction of you all is the cause of Uzumaki leaving this place. Hope that she is more forgiving than I am, or she might take revenge upon those who wronged her. The tribe will make sure of it."

He released the KI and left with Naruko. He headed straight to her very own safe Haven.

With the council

"ANBU after him!" Haruno cried.

Again no one moved.

"What is the matter with you? He is taking away our jinchuuriki." Fugaku yelled.

"Calm yourselves. They will not follow, because I have allowed them to leave. I have seen what was done to poor Naruko-chan and I have allowed her to live with Tanin-san."

Everyone in the chambers was shocked. No one spoke for a few minutes.

"So it has really come to that?" Hyuuga Hiashi said.

"It has. Now I hope you all know that we can do nothing against it. The tribe will take care of her, and I have made arrangements with Tanin-san so that Naruko will stay in the village. However, she is no longer under the council's authority."

The council was outraged. How could the Hokage allow such a thing? They didn't understand it.

"It seems that Uzumaki has found a family after all?" Nara Shikaku said.

"Will she still be enrolled into the academy with her generation?"

"That is for Tanin-san to decide. Are there any other questions?"

"Yes." Aburame Shibi said.

"Logically speaking, it is unwise to let the Uzumaki leave, however if the contents of the aforementioned tape really shows such acts it would be wise for her to be protected by someone who is not biased. My concern is, how will we know that the tribe will not turn her against us?"

"We can't." Hiashi spoke up.

"However, I have done some research on this tribe and found out that they are servants to the Uzumaki clan, meaning that the Uzumaki has full command over the entire tribe. Going by this all actions done by Uzumaki will be caused by her own opinion."

"That is correct, Hiashi. But we needn't worry about her. I have had her take a psychological evaluation last week and the results show she carries the Will of Fire."

"Yes, she has a deep bond to the village and to a few people within the village's walls. So unless she is being harassed she will not take revenge."

"Now are there any more questions? Good, this meeting is adjourned."

The councilmembers left and Hiruzen was alone with Danzo.

"I hope it was no mistake to do this Hiruzen. You and I both know that she has very much potential."

"It will be fine Danzo. Naruko loves this village and I have Tanin-san's word, that he will not point her to attack us. He knows that she should be a hero and in his tribe she will be seen as an equal."

"That is good. Now Hiruzen, I would like to monitor them, just in case."

"Do it, but I will also have Kakashi, Itachi and Yugao watch over her."

"Then we are at an agreement."

"We are."

With Naruko

Nagai Ha had taken her to her safe Haven. It was a little cave in the middle of a fenced in forest. He sat down and looked at her. She looked back and thought about how she could start a conversation.

"Nagai Ha, what did you do back there in the council chambers?"

She knew of course. She had been subjected to killing intent before, but his was on a whole different scale.

"I released something called Killing Intent. It is something a warrior can learn to use to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies, why do you ask?"

"Well, I felt this kind of intent before from the mobs that always chased me, but yours was much more powerful."

"Of course it was. That filth could never foster up an intent like mine, because they never had to fear for their lives. I how ever have."

"What will happen once we are at your tribe?"

"You will be welcomed with open arms. And tomorrow we will begin your training."

"What kind of training?"

"You need to learn how to fight. We will teach you and when you turn eight, we will be going to the ninja academy."

Naruko nodded. She looked forward to her training.

"When are we leaving?" she asked.

"Now. It's been a while since I have gone to the tribe, but I am glad that I am able to return."

He transformed into his blood bond and she climbed on top of him. Then he ran off. They entered the forest around the village and soon they were in front of a camp. Nagai Ha transformed back into his human form. The two walked through the tents and saw many animals sitting in two rows forming a walkway to the biggest tent. In front of the tent sat a group of people, most of them wore leather armor, those who didn't wore ninja pants. In the center stood an old woman with a coat made of wolf skin. Naruko looked around and saw all of them smile at her. The old woman sat down and everyone followed. She then spoke up.

"The princess has returned to her rightful place. Please tell me your name child."

"It's Naruko."

"Naruko-hime, the tribe of the Hanyou welcomes you back in its midst as our rightful leader. We will protect you and will help you in any way we can. Hogo-sha you have done this council proud. You can call yourself Kage once again. Now Hime, what do you wish to do, now that you are free from the chains of that village?"

Naruko looked at the people around her. She knew what she wanted. And now she was going to get it.

"I want strength. Strength to protect myself and not to rely on others."

"She has become quite cold, Hogo-sha. Has she been broken?"

"It would appear so. She has had a very hard time. Many people would have already have crumbled to a heap of rubble. She however has the drive of a huntress, she did not break completely. She accepted life's only truth. Death is not to be feared, it is to be welcomed. Tomorrow I will begin teaching her all there is to know. I ask this council to give me permission to reveal the past to our hime."

"Once she has mastered one of our six ranks, she can ask one question. You are to answer to the fullest without revealing any other things of the past. Once she reaches Shuryo no Senmonka she can ask without limit, but right now she still is a Shuryo Shoshinsha, a novice."

"Very well. Hime, follow me."

They walked to a small tent.

"This night you will sleep in my tent, tomorrow you will build your own. Welcome to the tribe."

With that Nagai Ha left. Naruko crept into the tent and fell asleep instantly.