This chapter was supposed to be combined with the next one, but it got too long. But that means there will be a fast update! Three days max. Hold me to it!

Disclaimer: As always, I do not own Naruto.

Another Uzumaki

Naruto stared at the empty tomb, willing it back to together. Willing her mother's soul at peace. Her mother. The snake bastard had Edo Tensei-ed her mother. Uzumaki Kushina had broken into the Hovel at Orochimaru's command. She was the accomplice.

Naruto was quivering with anger. Her hand tightened into a fist. She hadn't felt such overwhelming rage since Hinata was stabbed in front of her.

"How?"

Naruto turned. She had forgotten that Kakashi was there.

"How is that possible?" Kakashi's voice was aghast. "We put seals on all the graves. Orochimaru isn't skilled enough to have broken—ah." He figured it out before he finished.

Naruto nodded tightly. "He somehow revived my mom while she was still inside the tomb. She broke through the seal."

"We never did learn the method for Edo Tensei*. I wouldn't have thought that was possible."

From the seals of release, which they had learned from Sasuke after the war, they knew that Edo Tensei involved some sort of summoning, but beyond that, they were clueless. The Five Nations had believed it best to let the secrets of Edo Tensei die along with Orochimaru. Until this very moment, Naruto had agreed wholeheartedly with them.

"I will inform the Hokage," said Kakashi, leaving Naruto alone to mourn and rage.

She couldn't stop staring at the tomb. All that was wrong in the world seem to be focused exclusively on the tomb. One thing she knew: There would be hell to pay.

Naruto, said Kurama suddenly. I sense the lingering chakra of a shinobi. It's not Orochimaru's. I don't recognize it. But then, it does seem familiar.

Heart pounding, Naruto tapped into Kurama's senses.

"This is it," she whispered desperately. "This is the lead we need." Whomever this shinobi was, he must know something about her mother. Natural energy flowed into Naruto's body. If the shinobi was nearby, Naruto would find him.

Naruto moved closer to the tomb. The chakra impression was less faint there. But as soon as she approached the beginning of the chakra trail, it withered and faded into nothing.

"What? Where'd it go?!" Now desperate, Naruto scrambled for a whiff of the chakra. "It was here! Damn it!" She closed her eyes and expanded her senses outwards. "Nothing. Damn it! Damn it! I can't sense anything!"

Perhaps the shinobi is too weak to leave a chakra impression.

Naruto turned an angry gaze to the ground beneath her feet. She stopped. "That's—aha!"

There on the ground was a crushed area of grass where a body had clearly lain.

Looking closely, Naruto's eyes followed the line of crushed grass. Deeper grooves were pressed periodically into the ground. From a cursory inspection, Naruto would guess that a person had fallen next to the tomb, then dragged himself along the ground by his hands and elbows. The trail was still fresh, heading towards Konoha. Whomever the person was, he could not have gone far. Naruto darted into the bushes.

At one point, the trail curved down the mountain then disappeared and was replaced by punctuated indentations in the ground. Naruto winced. The person had lost his hold and rolled, slid, and bounced down the mountainside. If the person was already so weak that he couldn't stand, the fall couldn't have done him much good.

On a ledge at the base of the slope, Naruto found rocks anointed with dried blood. Her heartbeat quickened. The trail in the dirt was much more distinct, and it still pointed towards Konoha. Naruto bounded into the trees and stopped. There, on the other side of a tree, lay a person.

A person with red hair.

Naruto's breath caught in her throat.

But no. The red hair was too short. Spiky, rather than smooth. The body didn't belong to her mother. Naruto grabbed the fallen's girl's shoulder and turned her over gently but hurriedly. It wasn't her mother, but it was a face she recognized.

Karin.

Naruto gaped in surprise. She hadn't seen the redhead since the end of the war. Since she had run away after Orochimaru's fall. Her face was horribly pale. Naruto hurriedly bent down to check for Karin's pulse. It was faint, so weak. Her breathing was shallow. Naruto couldn't even see that her sides were moving. Why Sasuke's former teammate was lying half-dead near her mother's grave was a mystery. What was clear was that, in a matter of minutes, she might be fully dead.

Naruto scooped her up. "Hang on, Karin."

... ... ...

Naruto burst through the doors of Konoha's emergency wing. "I need a medic!" Within moments, Karin was on a gurney. A nurse took her vitals, running alongside the gurney as another nurse wheeled Karin through double doors.

Naruto watched Karin disappear with a terrible, helpless feeling.

"Uzumaki-san." The receptionist walked towards her with a clipboard. "Please. We need information on the patient. What is her name and rank?"

Naruto spoke without taking her eyes off the swinging double doors. "Her—her name's Karin. I don't think she has a rank."

"She is not a Konoha shinobi?"

"No. I guess she's a missing nin."

The receptionist frowned and lowered the clipboard. "Is she an enemy?"

"No! Well, maybe. I'm not sure. But that doesn't mean she shouldn't get treatment! Don't you dare say you won't treat her because—"

"Uzumaki-san." The receptionist held up a hand to halt Naruto's protest. "Of course, she will receive treatment. We would not deny an ailing patient."

"Er, right. Sorry."

"Besides, if she's a missing nin, the T&I department will want to question her."

"Guess I should also mention that she's one of Orochimaru's followers? Or she was anyways. I'm not so sure now, considering how she was left for dead and all."

The receptionist's eyes widened in alarm. "I will notify Hokage-sama."

An announcement rang out over the intercom. "Paging Medic Haruno Sakura. You are needed in room E108. Haruno Sakura-san, room E108."

Naruto paced. She didn't know what to make of it. If Karin was Orochimaru's henchman, then why would he leave her beside Kushina's tomb? Was Karin trying to make it to Konoha? Had she betrayed Orochimaru? The barrier team had only detected one shinobi entering, and they believed it to be Orochimaru. So how had Karin entered? Straight through the main gates?

Room E108 was close by, so close that Naruto with her Kyuubi-enhanced hearing could catch snippets of the flurry of commotion. The beeping of machines, the quick footsteps of orderlies running about, the clamor of four nurses rushing to save Karin's life—it all pointed towards the gravity of Karin's condition.

"Haruno-san!" Sakura had arrived. Naruto sighed in relief. If anyone could save Karin, it was Sakura.

"This—this is the girl with—"

Ah. Sakura had recognized Karin. For one heart-stopping moment, Naruto feared that Sakura's hesitation would hasten Karin's end. But Naruto underestimated her teammate. The professional in Sakura must have overcome her shock because she soon began to bark orders.

"No major physical wounds. It's chakra depletion. Something is draining her of chakra. Akira, figure out what it is. Natsume, prepare her for an emergency transfusion! We don't have time to check her chakra type."

Out in the lobby, Naruto stilled and allowed natural energy to enter her body. In Sage Mode, she sensed Sakura's chakra entering Karin. They weren't using the chakra to heal her; they were shoving it inside her body, attempting to replenish Karin's chakra before it completely drained.

"No good! She's rejecting it!"

"Damn! Once more."

"Haruno-san, it's a seal! A seal is draining her chakra!"

She will die if she doesn't get chakra, said Kurama. You will lose the one lead you have to Kushina.

Before Kurama's thought had ended, Naruto was shoving through the door of E108.

"Naruto!"

"Uzumaki-san! You can't—"

Naruto ignored them. Her eyes were locked on Karin. The red head was growing paler by the second. Nurses stood between Naruto and Karin.

"Move!" yelled Naruto. In a blinding flash, her body lit with bright, golden light. Sakura and the nurses flinched back. She would only have one shot at this. Copying Sakura's technique, Naruto gathered chakra into her palm. She wouldn't need much control for this.

"Naruto! What—"

Naruto reared back as chakra molded into an orb around her hand. She slammed the orb directly into Karin's chest. A sudden, terrible stillness pervaded the hospital room. Seconds became minutes, and minutes an eternity.

Karin coughed weakly.

Every person in the room breathed. Karin's body had accepted the chakra. Naruto turned to Sakura who was staring at Naruto in disbelief.

"There's still the seal," said a nurse. "It's sucking out her chakra. We must send for a specialist."

"No need," said Naruto. "Where's the seal?"

The nurse, eyes wide, pointed to Karin's stomach. Ironically, the seal was in the same location as Naruto's own. More ironically, the seal had the shape of a whirlpool. Naruto wondered if Kushina had placed it on Karin. But no. The seal was rudimentary. Even under pressure, Kushina could whip out a better seal than that. Orochimaru then? Why would he want to kill his most loyal shinobi?

Naruto placed her hand over the seal. She knew just what to do to remove it. Wouldn't be a challenge. She positioned her fingers at the focal points but stopped. It was strange. She could sense the energy in the seal. It was serving a purpose. If killing Karin were the purpose, there were much more efficient and effective ways of doing it. Naruto stepped back and reexamined the seal.

No, it wasn't meant to kill her, but it was sucking out her chakra in lethal amounts. Strange.

"I don't get it," Naruto finally said, "but this seal is actually saving her life."

"It's draining her of chakra! It's killing her."

"Yeah, it's draining her chakra, but it's like…I don't know, like it's tying her here."

"Uzumaki-san, I mean no disrespect, but we need a seal specialist to confirm that. Even as we speak, the chakra you just gave her is being filtered away by that seal."

Naruto turned from the nurse to meet Sakura's eyes. "It's fine to call for Hideki. Only you have to promise not to let anyone remove this seal before talking to me first."

Sakura nodded. She had learned long ago to trust Naruto's instincts.

"Just in case, though—" A second golden orb of chakra formed above Naruto's open palm. She made one hand seal and pushed the chakra into Karin's body. Unlike like last time, she didn't let the chakra fill Karin's own reserves. Naruto locked the chakra away in a seal just above the first one.

The nurses gaped.

"That's an extra supply of chakra for her, just in case what I gave her runs out. Believe me when I say that she will die if you take that seal off of her. Just give me some time. I'll figure out what going on."

"Her life is in no immediate danger. We will do as you say."

Sakura grabbed her by the arm and pulled her from the room. "Naruto, you saved her."

Naruto smiled weakly. "During the war, I was able to share the Kyuubi's chakra with everyone. I thought it might work for Karin, too. I'm glad it did."

Sakura nodded. "It's pure chakra, so her body didn't reject it. But, what I don't understand is…you added traces of your own chakra. Why?"

"Did Sasuke never mention it?"

Sakura flinched. "Mention what?"

"Ah, well, of course he wouldn't. Unsociable bastard. Actually, I guess it's my fault. I should have been the one to tell you. Sorry, Sakura."

"Tell me what?"

"Well," Naruto smiled a little, "Karin is an Uzumaki. My only surviving cousin. The only one I know of anyways. I've been looking for her for two years. Ever since Sasuke told me, I wanted to find her." She laughed weakly. "When I finally find her, it's at my mother's empty tomb."

Sakura's eyes widened in alarm. "Empty tomb?" she asked, wondering if she'd misheard.

In the panic of Karin's plight, Naruto's anger had deserted her. Now, it returned. Not quite as strong as before but tinged by sadness. Naruto told Sakura what had transpired that morning.

"Oh, Naruto, are you okay?"

It took effort, but Naruto managed to choke out a grin. "Eh, you know me. I'll the skin snake bastard's scaly ass, then everything'll get back to normal, dattebayo!"

Sakura smiled.

"Now I need to go check on Sasuke-teme."

"Sasuke-kun? Why?" Sure, she had decided to give up on him, but that didn't mean she could stop herself from caring.

"He's here in the hospital. You didn't know? I thought I sensed you close to him earlier. About an hour ago?" Damn. Was it only an hour ago that she was talking to Gaara? The Hovel, the tomb, Karin…this day really sucked.

Sakura shook her head. "I was tending to Inoichi-san then."

"Ino's dad? What happened?"

"An interrogation went wrong, as far as I understand. He's stable but unconscious."

Naruto's face darkened. "Geez. This is literally the worst day ever."

"What's wrong with Sasuke-kun?"

"Probably nothing. But when I had on the Kyuubi cloak just now, I sensed some anger coming from that same area." Naruto laughed. "He probably got ticked off by something dumb and put some poor shinobi in the hospital. Now he's having to babysit. That or—" Naruto reached behind her head and rustled her hair. "—I may have roughed him up a bit last night. Shouldn't have taken him so long to recover, but I should check. Wanna come?"

A week ago, Sakura would have started towards Sasuke's room the moment she learned he was in the hospital. A week ago, she would have beaten even Naruto there. One week changed everything. "I'll pass. Thanks. You go. Tell him I said hi."

"Uh, okay." Naruto's surprise was evident. She had never known Sakura to forgo a chance to see Sasuke. That was doubly true the few times he had been hospitalized in the past two years. The hospital was the one place she could order him around and force him to obey.

"Then, see you later." After walking five strides down the hall, Naruto turned back. "Sakura, maybe I shouldn't mention it, but…you look really tired. Like you haven't slept in days. Take care of yourself, okay?"

Sakura watched Naruto go. The blonde really had no idea. Naruto, so perceptive at times, couldn't begin to imagine that she herself was the cause of Sakura's sleepless nights. Ever since Naruto became a girl, Sakura had been plagued by discomfort. Last night had been a night of hot tears and tormenting feelings.

"Sakura." Flanked by two ANBU, Tsunade was striding briskly down the hospital hallway. "I was informed that a foreign shinobi was captured and brought here." It was the first real lead they had. Tsunade had just learned about Kushina from Kakashi, and her fury threatened to boil over. This captured shinobi would spill his darkest secrets.

"Hai, shishou. Though, not exactly captured. Naruto found her almost dead at her mother's tomb. You won't believe who it is. That redhead Karin. Sasuke-kun's old—"

Sakura trailed off because, at the mention of Naruto's name, her shishou's face turned a deathly shade of white.

"N-naruto's here? Here in the hospital?"

Sakura nodded slowly and motioned towards the west hospital wing. "She saved Karin's life. Then she sensed Sasuke-kun and—"

"Oh no." Tsunade's voice was a croak. She spun on her heel. "Frog, Hawk, stop her!"

The two ANBU disappeared to intercept Naruto.

They were too late.