Chapter 8: The Enemy
"You... you're in the St... Stone Village Miss." Green eyes widened as she stared at the innocent looking girl. Whipping the blankets off, she jumped from the bed. There was no way. The little girl made a small noise of protest, but went ignored. Bad idea.
With a cry of pain, she collapsed on the ground. Her shoulder throbbed, her vision blurred, her chest was on fire and her legs shook form having to support her weight. Great. She was still suffering from blood loss.
There was a worried squeak behind her and small hands hesitantly helped her into a sitting position. Wide pale blue eyes watched her nervously, glancing around for any sign of retaliation at the contact. "I'm... I'm so... sorry I couldn't do much. I was only... only able to stop the bleeding an... and close your wounds." The girl left her side to get something from the bedside table and handed her a glass of muddy looking liquid. "This sh... should stop the pain."
Kushina blinked. She couldn't expect her to just drink the weird concoction in her hand. If what the girl said was true, then she was in enemy territory and their greeting hadn't been the most friendly. Who in their right mind would drink something that the enemy had given them? Glancing up at the girl kneeling in front of her, she looked for any signs of hostility.
The girl couldn't be more than twelve years old. Her long, dirty-blond hair was in twin braids and fell over her shoulders beside a small face beginning to lose the chubbiness of childhood. Her pale blue eyes watched her with fear, but she could see the kindness hidden in their depths. Her skinny body was glad in a plain, white dress that stopped just above her ankles, but didn't hide the bruises on her arms and legs. Even at her age, she held the makings of a beautiful woman.
Innocent. That was the only word the wounded teen could come up with to describe the small girl. There was no hostility or anger, just fear and hope glittering in her eyes. Smiling encouragingly at the blond girl, Kushina looked at the drink one more time before moving the cup to her lips.
She finished off the drink, wincing at the medicinal taste left in her mouth. She stuck out her tongue in disgust. The girl bowed hr head and blushed. "I... I'm... I'm sorry Miss! I tried to make it taste better. I really did!" Her face held desperation as she closed her eyes and braced herself. "Pl... please don't be mad at me. I'll do better next time." All thoughts of the possible poison she had just inhaled vanished at the girl's outburst, her attention fully on the girl now.
"Mad? Why would I be mad?" The girl didn't answer but whimpered as the shinobi placed her hand on the kid's shoulder. Snatching her hand away, her mouth was pulled into a frown. Now the bruises made sense. What kind of pathetic bastard picks on a kid? Tears dripped from the girl's eyes. "Hey. Don't worry. I won't hurt you." Her words didn't seem to do anything, and the redhead sighed, running her fingers through her hair. "What's your name?"
The girl sniffed and discreetly brushed away her tears. "I'm... I'm Aiko. Aiko Kagawa." Kushina smiled at the girl and stuck out her hand. Aiko looked at it before hesitantly grabbing it with her small hands. She squeaked when the redhead energetically shook her hand.
"Nice to meet you Aiko. My name's Kushina Uzumaki." She grinned threatened to break her face as the girl gave her a little smile in return.
"Ni... nice to meet you too Miss Uzumaki."
"Call me Kushina. 'Miss Uzumaki' makes me sound like some high-class snob." She made a face that showed what she thought of that classification and was rewarded with a light giggle from the girl. "Okay?" Aiko bit her lip and nodded. "Alright! Now what's going on?" She scratched her cheek in embarrassment.
"Oh! Um..." The girl played with her bottom lip and glanced at the door as if expecting someone to be listening. "Um... I'm not sure exactly." She fiddled her fingers nervously, obviously still not completely trusting the teen's words about not hurting her. "You... you've been unconscious for two days. Master Jun told me to heal you and take... care... of..." The girl stopped as Kushina tensed.
Jun! There was no way this girl was associated with Jun. Even from their short meeting in the forest, she could tell he was an arrogant bastard who needed a good kick in the nuts. Aiko was a sweet, defenseless, little girl. There was no way the kid had willingly joined Jun. But then, why did her voice become admiring and loving when she had sad the son of a bitch's name?
"Jun?" The pale blue eyes met hers for a split second. The girl's confidence seemed to swell at the mention of the man, and Kushina briefly wondered if it had been a good idea to drink the concoction earlier. Blond hair sung as Aiko nodded enthusiastically.
"Uh-huh! Master Jun adopted me when I was little and let me live here with him. He's taught me to read and write and got me a tutor so I can become a medic and help people. He's the only one who was ever nice to me." The smile was replaced by a blush as the girl realized how much she had said. She whispered an apology and wrung her hands in embarrassment. The sudden change surprised the redhead. Were they talking about the same person?
A sudden revelation made her jump, Aiko tensing at the unexpected movement. "Aiko!" The girl looked on with fearful eyes as the teen's eyes widened. "Aiko. Did anyone else come in with me? Were there others?" The girl shook her head, hair whipping around.
"N... no. No... not that I know of at least. Master Jun only brought you and the trait...traitor Debiru's body back. I... I haven't heard anything else. I promise!" The girl watched in amazement as the once lively redhead stood as still as a statue.
"Nothing? Nothing at all?" The girl shook her head slowly, watching Kushina carefully. The teen didn't notice however. Nothing. But they had brought in Debiru' body. She had seen someone's headband in the monster's teeth. Maybe they had gotten away. The possibility seemed less likely now however. She didn't know what she would do if Minato, Ryou, heck, even Hideki died. There had been to many loses in her life already.
"Did you... are you looking for someone?" Kushina felt her head nod and the girl pushed herself to her feet. "Maybe Master Jun can help! He can send people out to look for your friend." She shook her head the girl's energy deflated again. The last thing she wanted to do was get Jun involved. If they were still alive, then it would be better if the man didn't find them. It was a miracle she was alive in the first place.
"The monster. What happened to it? It should have killed me." Aiko fiddled with her fingers again and glanced at the door.
"You should get in bed Miss Kushina. You haven't healed yet." The small girl pulled at her good arm and eventually helped the redhead back into the bed. Once she was situated, the blond raced around the room gathering bandages and other supplies. With nothing to do, the shinobi looked at her surroundings for the first time.
The room wasn't extravagant, but it was nicer than anything the redhead had ever dreamed of owning. The ceiling was high and lofty. Light spilled in through the white curtains over the large windows. There was a door that looked like it went into the bathroom and another leading into something like a closet. The bed she was in was plump and the most comfortable she had been in in a long time. She frowned.
It was strange. Don't get her wrong. She would much rather be in here than in a dark, stinking dungeon or dead, but... wasn't she supposed to be a prisoner? This room looked like something meant for royalty, not an enemy shinobi. She groaned. There was to much to think about, and she still had several questions that needed to be answered, like how she had survived and ended up here.
There were voices outside the door as Aiko changed the bandages on her forearm. The girl looked expectantly at the door and quickly finished tying off the dressings. A knocked reverberated throughout the large room and Aiko tried to straighten her dress. "C... coming," she called and raced over to the door, swinging it open a crack and smiling at the person there.
"Good morning Aiko. I'm sorry to disturb you so early, but I just came to check on your patient." The smooth voice floated into the room and Kushina tensed. Gnashing her teeth together, she could feel them threatening to crack.
"Good morning Master Jun! Please come in. She just woke up a while ago." The blond bowed respectfully and moved out of the way, holding the door open as the tall man entered the room. His grey eyes landed on her and he smiled amiably. She couldn't help but stare. Was this guy bipolar or something?
"Well I see our guest has finally awakened. Why don't you go get her some water from the kitchens Aiko dear. I'll stay here until you return." The girl's blue eyes lit up and she smiled.
"Of course! Thank you Master Jun. I'll be back soon." She smiled and raced out of the room, letting the door close behind her.
"Take your time dear." The door closed with a soft click and Kushina found herself building up her chakra as the man neared. His gaze never left hers as he came up beside the bed and moved the small wooden chair against the wall to the bed. He sat down with more grace than she would expect with his bulk, brown robes spilling around him. "Good Morning Miss Uzumaki. You're looking better."
"No thanks to you." She ignored the voice in her head that warned her not to start a fight when she could barely stand. A scowl pulled at her lips, but the man just continued to smile.
"I warned you to drop your weapons and surrender. The loss might not have been so great Love if you had complied. If it makes you feel any better, we are still looking for your comrades." She growled at the nickname, glaring at the calm captain beside her.
"So you can what? Kill them yourself? Put them in jail? Torture them? You won't be able to find them. I guess you're stuck with me as your prisoner." Amusement shone in Jun's eyes and leaned forward on elbows, lacing his long fingers together under his chin and watching her.
"Yes. I guess we are stuck with you." She clenched her fists together under the blankets to keep from doing anything rash, no mater how much she wanted to break that perfect nose of his. "I didn't save you because of those barbaric reasons however." She tried to hide her shock. He had saved her? Her skin suddenly itched but she refused to show a weakness in front of the enemy.
However, this information brought on a whole new round of questions. Why had he saved her? Why was he keeping her here instead of in a prison? Surely she was a prisoner of war. What had happened to the cruel and sadistic man in the forest? What was he planning?
"What was that thing?" He blinked, confused, before chuckling.
"Straight to business I see. You really are interesting Love." She felt heat rush to her head at the nickname, making her even more lightheaded than normal. She really wanted to pound in his face right now and she would if he continued to use the name. He watched her reaction with the interest you gave to a rare animal. "I believe you have heard the rumors about the 'monster' that has graced our woods recently?" He waited, expecting her to nod. Sighing in amusement when she didn't, he shook his head. "Of course you did. Not much is known about it. All we can guess is that it was created. We believe the ex-council experimented and made that thing to help them overthrow the Tsuchikage. But they lost control of it and it has been prowling the forest since."
"Nice story. Did you tell that to the kage when you got rid of the council? Or is it just a bedtime story you tell to scare your kids?"
"I see Debiru has lied to you about the true purpose of his visit to Konoha." His grey eyes flashed when she faltered, the predator going in for the kill. "What did he say? That it was to promote peace? That the government was corrupt and he needed help fixing it? That I was out of control and power hungry?" He chuckled and looked at her with sympathy. "It was he who was power hungry and corrupt. He didn't want peace. That group of old men just wanted all the power for themselves. They went to Konoha looking for something not sign a peace treaty.
"Everything you've been told about this war is false. We are merely trying to protect ourselves. It was Konoha that attacked. I do not enjoy bloodshed. The evil in this world has caused this blasted war and left thousands dead in its wake. I will not step down and let evil win. I will get rid of the evil and the corrupt in this world and the five nations will finally be united like it's supposed to be. It will be a world of peace Love." Yelling, she swung at him, putting as much behind it as she could.
"Don't call me that!" She hissed as her shoulder was jarred but followed through with her punch. All her fury and worry was fueling her strike, and the man calmly caught it an inch before it could hit him. She stared dumbly at her trapped hand and tried to pull it back as he latched onto it.
"You want all the fighting to stop don't you? You don't want what happened to your village to happen again. You don't want anyone to suffer like you have. And you have suffered Love." He turned her hand in his and held onto it with a vice-like grip in his lap. "Our cause is just. I can stop this war once and for all. However, I cannot do it alone. You have so much potential Miss Uzumaki. Don't let this war and petty differences stop you from reaching it! I'm willing to help to, if you only let me. Our goals are the same. It is foolish to fight against each other when we can put a stop to all this. Together we can change the world." His dashing politician smile was back on as he stood, still holding her hand. Leaning over, he met her green eyes and placed a light kiss on her hand.
"I wish to see you tonight. I will show you I am not the enemy like the lies you have been fed have told you. Think about my offer Love." He finally released her hand and bowed to her. "I'll have my servants send down appropriate clothes for you later. Until then Love."
She could only watch in a daze as the man left. Her head buzzing with what Jun had just said. She had known nothing about Iwagakure's politics until this whole mess and now she was getting a crash course that made her head spin. Who could she believe, if anyone? Who was telling the truth? Holding her head between her hands, Kushina groaned.
Jun had known exactly what to say to make her doubt herself and it scared her more than any monster.