Kakashi had been walking for hours. Suki was still holding on to his back. She had fallen asleep a while back. During the entire journey back, the man had been wondering what would happen to the six-year-old girl. It probably wasn't the best idea to take her away from her home and threaten the villagers about it at the same time. However, Suki's life would only have gotten worse if she went back. Surely, she would have received punishment for attempting to run away. And there was no way Kakashi was going to allow that to happen, at least not while he had the chance to keep her safe.
After a few more moments of walking, a large gate appeared beyond the forest line. Just above the gate, resting behind the village, the Hokage Monument could be seen. The four faces looked out over the village that they had strived to protect.
"Hey, Suki. It's time to wake up," Kakashi whispered.
The little girl moaned. She lifted her head from his shoulder and shook it to rid it of any remaining sleepiness. "Are we there yet?" Suki muttered.
"Yup. Welcome to the Fire Country's Village Hidden in the Leaves," Kakashi announced softly.
She peered past Kakashi's silver hair and looked at the village. Her eyes instantly widened.
Konoha was so…colorful. There were so many beautiful buildings that inhabited the village. Lit-up signs were everywhere, trying to attract tourists and locals alike to get them to buy their products. And it was huge. The entire village was probably twice the size of her village in the Land of Silver. There were so many trees around as well. The Silver Country only had forests near the border. Everything else was pretty much stone and mines in her home.
"Whoa…" was all Suki managed to say.
Kakashi smiled at her astonishment. "I'm going to take you to the hospital now. We need to get that ankle checked out." Suki chose that moment to sneeze. "I also think you have a cold."
"Yeah," the girl replied as she rubbed her nose.
Kakashi walked on through the village. There were so many people around. Crowds and crowds of people walked by to go on with their busy lives. Merchants, customers, even shinobi were all bustling about.
After walking down different roads, the jounin finally arrived at the hospital. Kakashi walked in and waited for a nurse to assist him.
A few seconds passed when a young nurse with red hair noticed the two hovering by the door. She ran up to them enthusiastically. "Hello, what can I help you with?"
"This little girl has a twisted ankle. She also may have a cold since she was out in the rain," the ninja explained.
"Oh, alright. Bring her this way," the nurse ordered.
She led Kakashi down a hallway. They passed a bunch of rooms until the nurse finally stopped and allowed them to walk inside. It was a relatively small room. There was one bed, a nightstand, and a few chairs for visitors. The whole room was white. It was a little blinding. Literally, everything in the room was pale.
The man placed Suki on the bed. She positioned herself so that she was leaning against the pillow. The bed was very comfortable. The nurse left for half a second and returned with a bunch of medical supplies.
"Alright sweetheart, I just need to check out all your vitals and such," the nurse said sweetly. The woman felt Suki's pulse, listened to her breathing, checked her eyes and ears, and ran her hand over her body to check for bruising or cuts.
Then she came to Suki's right wrist. She stared at the black cloth that was tied around it. Then the woman noticed that Suki's pants were torn. Tearing clothes to tie around flesh was normally used as a makeshift bandage. The nurse instinctively reached over to untie the rag.
Suki immediately slapped the nurse's hand away from her wrist. "That's fine!" she said hastily. The nurse furrowed her eyebrows at the dark-haired child. Realizing that she was acting a bit suspicious, Suki calmed down before continuing. "It's not a cut. There's nothing wrong with my wrist."
Still bewildered, the nurse turned to Kakashi, who was staring at Suki's small face. He knew her reasoning for lashing out. The girl didn't want anyone to see her tattoo.
The circular tattoo was the mark of fear for anyone who had witnessed the blood that had been spilled during the era of Gekido's reign of terror. Most adults had lived to see the violence and war that had ensued only seven years before. Kakashi had seen it. Konoha in particular was scarred because of Gekido's madness. The attack of the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon was a result of the previous Guardian's insanity.
The silver-haired ninja turned to the nurse. "I think we should listen to her wishes. If she does not want her wrist to be checked out, then do not touch it."
The nurse was surprised at both Suki's and Kakashi's stubbornness, but she proceeded nonetheless. "Well, I'll have to get a doctor to take care of that ankle. Will you be staying with…"
"Her name is Suki Kurohoshi. And I have to report to the Hokage to fill out my mission report," Kakashi informed.
Suki instantly went into panic mode. The one person she trusted in this village, and he was going to leave? "But…Kakashi…" she stammered in fear.
The ninja instantly sensed the terror in his voice. He gave her a reassuring smile. He placed his hand on her head in assurance. "Don't worry, Suki. I'll be back to check up on you when I'm done, alright?"
Suki hesitated at first, but then she nodded.
"Good. Then I'll see you." In a puff of smoke, he was gone.
"You sit tight, sweetie. I'll go get a doctor," the nurse informed. She walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. Suki was left alone in the white, blank room.
Inside the Land of Silver, the angry mob that was sent to find the Guardian stood before the leader of their village. And the Lord was not happy.
"You let her escape?" the wrinkled man yelled. Even though he was close to his sixties, he was in good shape and could easily clobber anyone who was unfortunate enough to get in his way.
Tetsu Yama was not a normally happy man. Nothing was ever good enough, even if it was the greatest thing to happen in the century. So when things actually went wrong, he would gladly destroy anything that happened to be in his path.
"Well, you see Lord Tetsu, it wasn't our faults," Chishio tried to explain.
"How dare you try to take the blame off of yourselves?" the leader of the village yelled. "I sent you to go after Suki, and you show up empty handed! You all will take full responsibility for this!"
The group of men all flinched in unison. Whenever the Lord used that line, it usually meant execution.
"Please, Sir, hear me out," Chishio begged. "We nearly had the girl in our grasps. But then, a ninja from the Leaf Village took her away. He even acknowledges the fact that he has committed a crime. He said to tell you that our village could not match up to Konoha's treatment for her."
"WHAT?" Tetsu yelled. "Who is this ninja who thinks he can disgrace our village like this?"
"He is Kakashi Hatake," Chishio informed.
Inside his mind, the man with the blood red eyes was smirking. He couldn't wait for Lord Tetsu to demolish the silver-haired punk. Even though Tetsu Yama was not a ninja, he has been know, in his previous days as a warrior, to take down any ninja who dared to stand up to him.
Tetsu growled loudly. "The Leaf Village will not get away with this. Chishio, you will accompany me to the Land of Fire. We leave tomorrow. We will show them that Kagayaku Village is not to be trifled with."
Chishio smiled. "Of course, Lord Tetsu."
Suki was sleeping soundly in her hospital bed. A doctor had already healed her ankle with medical ninjutsu. After that, she had been given medication to treat her cold. A side effect was drowsiness, and she instantly fell asleep as the drug began to do its work.
The door to her room slowly creaked open. The red-haired nurse silently walked into the room. She placed her hand on the girl's head. Suki's fever had gone down immensely. The nurse smiled down at the girl. Her small face was adorable, and her braided hair was so messed up from her journey, adding to the picture of cuteness.
The woman's eyes drifted over to Suki's covered wrist. The redhead's curiosity immediately peaked. It was strange for the six-year-old to be so stubborn about the nurse looking at her wrist. She had begun to think that maybe there was some sort of injury that the child might have been embarrassed about. And if it was an injury, it was the nurse's job to help her.
The woman gently untied the black cloth around Suki's wrist. It slipped away, revealing a black circle divided into twelve sections. It was the mark of the Guardian.
The nurse gasped loudly, her hand flying to her mouth. She stared at the tattoo for a whole thirty seconds before turning to look at Suki's face. The child was small and frail. An air of innocence emanated from her being. But…by just looking at the tattoo, the nurse could only feel fear and hatred toward the girl.
The redhead quickly retied the cloth around Suki's wrist and ran from the room. This secret was too important to be kept quiet. She had to tell someone…anyone…everyone. The Guardian was back, and she was in Konoha.
The Third Hokage sat in his office, staring at the silver-haired jounin standing before him. The old man sighed deeply, pulled out his pipe, and puffed out a huge cloud of smoke.
After a few moments of smoking, the Third put his pipe down and stared hard at the ninja. "Kakashi…you do realize that you set Konoha up for a lot of trouble, don't you?"
The man nodded his head. "I do. But I wasn't prepared to hand the girl back over to those men. They would have done terrible things to her if I let them."
"I understand that…" the Hokage said. "But it is still the principle of the matter. Suki Kurohoshi has no affiliation with Konoha. As far as we know, she was born in Kagayaku Village of the Silver Country. She claims to have no parents, but her villagers are more of a family to her then we are in this situation."
"Then that is some messed up family," Kakashi muttered.
"Kakashi, technically speaking, you are a kidnapper," the Third said.
"I'm aware," the jounin replied bluntly.
"When the leader of Kagayaku arrives, he will have a big fit. And I say when because I know for a fact that it will happen," the Hokage stated. "But what I want to know is…why bring this child back? You say that she needed help, but I know you, Kakashi. There is a deeper meaning to this situation than you're letting on."
Kakashi closed his eye before he spoke. He sighed. "I guess you should know… Suki Kurohoshi… is the new Guardian."
The Third Hokage's eyes widened until they reached the size of saucers. Then he closed them and sighed loudly. He brought his pipe back to his lips and had another smoking session, trying to clear his head.
When he was done, he stared back at the shinobi before him. "Kakashi, I send you to the Land of Silver to deliver a message to the feudal lord. And you come back with the six-year-old Guardian…"
"Lord Hokage, I realize that you are worried for Konoha's well-being. But should this situation become too much to handle, I am prepared to handle this myself. I will take full responsibility for my actions."
The Third sighed, releasing a puff of smoke. "Kakashi…do you know the reason to why the Land of Silver will want to keep Suki in their clutches?" he asked.
"I assume that it has something to do with wanting to protect themselves, should a shinobi nation attempt to take over. They would want to use her as a weapon," Kakashi said.
"You assume correctly," the Third replied. "She has no relationship to anyone other than her fellow villagers. And because of her citizenship in Kagayaku, Suki will most likely remain there."
Kakashi looked down at the floor in disappointment. "I see…"
"Kakashi…" the Third Hokage said. The man in question looked back up. "I promise… we will do everything we can to help her."
The next morning, sunlight streamed down upon the village. Just as the day before, and everyday before then, the people of Konoha were busily running errands and going on with their daily lives.
In the hospital, Suki could feel fluorescent lights burning her eyes. She slowly opened her silver orbs and glared at the incessant lights for disturbing her slumber. She sat up and rested her back against the pillow.
It was then that she noticed that Kakashi was sleeping soundly in one of the chairs against the wall. She smiled softly at him. The jounin had been nothing but nice to her ever since she stumbled upon his camp in the woods just a couple days ago. Suki couldn't help but feel a wave of gratitude toward him.
Suddenly, a mumbling sound could be heard from the other side of the door. Suki cocked her head. She slipped out of the bed and quietly walked over to the door, careful to be silent for Kakashi's nap. She made it to the door and pressed her ear to it to hear better. It was then that she realized that the mumbling was talking. Two people were talking outside her door.
Suki realized that one of the voices belonged to the redheaded nurse that had treated her just a few hours ago.
"That girl in there is a monster," the red-haired nurse said.
Suki immediately froze.
"She shouldn't be allowed in here," an unfamiliar female voice agreed.
This couldn't be happening.
"I wonder if the Hokage knows…" the redhead said.
This village was the same as her original village.
"If he doesn't, we had better make sure he does," the second voice said.
These people hated her too. Why was it that everyone who knew her hated her?
"The last thing Konoha needs is that brat here. She's a killer, and she'll destroy this village if given the chance," the redheaded woman said.
"Yes. Just like he tried to do," the second woman said.
Suki didn't know who he was, but obviously, he was somehow connected to the six-year-old. And that was why everyone hated her. Whoever he was, she was just as bad as he was.
Suddenly, Suki felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. She jumped in surprise, but she turned around to see Kakashi standing behind her.
"How are you feeling, Suki?" he asked.
"G-Good," she stuttered.
Kakashi stared down at her, not failing to hear her stutter. "How about you sit back in the bed? I'll go find a doctor."
She nodded and ran back to the bed. He turned back to the door, but before he turned the knob, he heard the red-haired nurse's voice.
"If she's anything like Gekido, this world will suffer just as it did seven years ago," she said.
Kakashi sighed before opening the door and stepping out into the hallway. The two nurses immediately jumped in shock at his sudden appearance. "Hello, ladies," he greeted, trying to stay friendly.
"Hello," both nurses cooed. They blinked their eyes at him, trying to seem seductive. But really, they only looked like they were trying to blink away dust that had collected in their artificial-looking eyes.
The ninja groaned inwardly at the superficiality of the women. "Can either of you get me a doctor? Suki is awake."
"Okay!" the nurses exclaimed in unison. Both ran off at the same time, trying to find the nearest doctor to please Kakashi.
The man with silver hair shook his head in annoyance before he went back inside the room.
After hours of traveling, Lord Tetsu and Chishio finally arrived at the gates of the Leaf Village. They had come on horseback, and two Leaf ninja who were stationed at the gates stared up at them in surprise.
"Um, excuse me? But do you have permission to be here?" one of the two ninja asked.
"I wish to speak to your leader," Tetsu growled.
"I'm sorry, Sir. But if you don't have an appointment, we can't allow you to proceed," the second ninja said.
Tetsu grabbed both ninja by the collars of their shirts. "You will take me to the Hokage… unless, of course, you both wished to be skinned alive," the man growled.
The two ninja stared in shock at the old man. Excluding the Kages, lords and leaders usually did not display this kind of brutality. But this man - this crazy old man - was ready to destroy them.
The first Leaf shinobi shakily raised his hand. "W-W-We'll t-t-take you t-t-to Lord Hokage," he stuttered.
Rather than smiling, Tetsu only deepened his scowl. He threw the ninja to the ground. "THEN GET A MOVE ON IT!" he yelled.
The shinobi quickly scrambled to their feet and ran into the village. Tetsu and Chishio followed on their horses, passed the staring villagers, toward the Hokage building.
Kakashi and Suki were now leaving the hospital. The doctor had deemed Suki fit to leave, and she was happy to be out of there. There was no point in staying in the same building with nurses who could poison her in her sleep. And Suki knew they would do it if given the chance.
"So Suki, do you want to go get something to eat? I know that hospital food can be pretty gross sometimes," Kakashi said.
Suki smiled. "Sure!"
Suddenly, a brown hawk swooped down toward Kakashi. He raised his left arm for the bird to land on. The bird landed swiftly on his arm, and the ninja took the note that was attached to its leg. Kakashi's eye quickly examined the note before sighing.
"So he's already here…" he thought to himself.
Suki stared at the man beside her in worry. "Kakashi, are you alright?"
Kakashi turned to look at the six-year-old child. "Sorry, Suki. Our lunch break is going to have to wait."
"What's wrong?"
"We have…a meeting to go to," Kakashi replied. "C'mon." He walked down the path, the raven-haired girl following closely behind.
Kakashi watched her as the walked. She was so intrigued with all of her surroundings. Kagayaku was nothing like this place. And she was thrilled with the idea that, since she had run away, she would possibly be able to live here now.
Kakashi, however, was sad on the inside. He didn't know why, but he felt very protective of Suki. They had only met a few days before, and that was an accident all on its own. But for some reason, he couldn't help but feel that she needed him. And because of his old friend, Obito Uchiha, he knew that he could never leave behind someone who needed him.
Yes, it was his old childhood friend who had taught him that. He knew it was against the rules to take her away from Kagayaku, and that he was now probably considered trash to anyone who knew of the situation. But by leaving this helpless girl behind, he would be going against his and Obito's morals. He would gladly be considered trash if that meant he could help Suki when she needed assistance the most.
They neared the building, and he stared at the Fire insignia before looking at Suki. "Well, shall we, Suki?"
"Okay," Suki replied, not knowing of the fact that inside that building, her whole life would be determined by the leaders of the Land of Silver and the Land of Fire.
It was the worst thing that could ever happen to her. It was her worst nightmare. It was the end of the world. It was a terrible tragedy. It was the signal of her impending doom.
It was…him.
Lord Tetsu Yama was standing in the Hokage's office, waiting for her. And Chishio, the man with the frightening red eyes, was there as well. Suki had met Lord Tetsu several times before. Whenever she was caught stealing food or clothes - which she already felt bad about doing in the first place - she was sent to his office, where she would receive a harsh punishment. These usually included whippings, beatings, or something else that was just as painful.
And now he had found her. He was standing in front of the Hokage's desk, and when his eyes found her, he growled loudly. Suki instinctively hid behind the closest thing she could, which ended up being Kakashi's legs.
Kakashi noticed her fear and glared at Tetsu, something that the Lord was not happy about. "I'm pretty sure that the fact that Suki is hiding right now does not help your case, Lord Tetsu," Kakashi spat.
"My case needs no helping," Tetsu scoffed. "Only the laws apply here. And kidnapping is a serious felony in any nation, Kakashi Hatake."
"So is inflicting pain on a helpless child," Kakashi snarled.
"You have no proof of this! How dare you make assumptions like that?" Tetsu yelled.
"Lord Tetsu, how about we take this meeting to a more suitable place, huh?" the Third Hokage interrupted. He slowly stood up and led the way to the four others in the room to the conference room.
The conference room held one large table with about twenty chairs around it. This room was normally used for meetings with the Third Hokage and captains of departments. The Hokage and Kakashi sat on one side while Lord Tetsu and Chishio sat across from them. Suki was seated at the end of the table, right between the representatives of the two very different villages.
"Now, let us continue," the Hokage said. "Kakashi, how do you know that Suki has been beaten? Do you have evidence of this?"
"When I was in the forest, preparing to leave with Suki, this man," Kakashi pointed at Chishio, "was leading a mob with men all yielding weapons."
"But not once did Chishio or the other men lay any of those weapons on the girl," Tetsu countered.
"That's because I made sure that they came nowhere near her," Kakashi replied.
"Ha! So you admit to kidnapping a member of Kagayaku Village!" Tetsu pointed his finger at Kakashi accusingly.
"That was actually a confession to keeping Suki safe. But if you want to hear it, I'll say it." Kakashi glared at Tetsu and Chishio before he spoke again. "I acknowledge the act of my kidnapping of Suki Kurohoshi."
"And that is all I needed to hear to take Suki back." Tetsu turned his gaze over to the child. Suki had been playing with braided hair during the adults' conversation. But when Tetsu's eyes met hers, she instantly sunk deeper and deeper into her chair.
"However," Kakashi interrupted, "I refuse to allow Suki to return to such a violent village such as your own."
"We are not violent. We only do what is best for our people," Chishio said. He crossed his arms over his chest as if to seem superior. "And if strict discipline is what Suki needs to be taught obedience, then so be it."
"So you beat all your citizens, then?" the Third Hokage asked.
Chishio faltered for a second, but he recovered before it was ever noticeable. Tetsu scowled. "That does not concern you, now does it?" the Lord remarked.
"Perhaps it does," Kakashi glared.
Angered, Tetsu pounded his giant fist on the table and stood up, increasing his intimidation. "What is it with you?" he yelled as he pointed at the masked jounin. "Why do you worry about that brat so much? I refuse to believe that some random ninja from a stranger village cares for Suki when her own parents abandoned her at birth!"
Everything seemed to freeze. Tetsu was a little upset at having released that fact since not even most of his own villagers knew about that fact. However, he kept his face hard and twisted into a snarl to show his coercion. Chishio knew of that fact from the beginning. And he, personally, could understand why the parents had left Suki behind. After seeing that tattoo…
The Third Hokage was very disappointed at this news. He did not approve of parents leaving a child behind. And he felt a pang of pity when he thought of Suki.
Kakashi was now angered more than ever. After he recovered over his initial shock at the news, he glared daggers at the Silver Country's representatives. Had his face not been covered by his mask, everyone would see that his expression showed a deep, threatening snarl.
"W-What?" a weak stammered voice piped up.
Everyone in the room turned their heads to look at Suki. After arguing back and forth, the adults had almost forgotten that the little girl was even in the room. She was staring at them all, her silver eyes wide, and her mouth open in astonishment.
Hearing that her parents abandoned her was like the final knife to her heart. She had suffered a lot during her six years of life. The villagers hated her, she was starving most of the time, and her home was an old run-down orphanage. However, there had always been that fleeting thought… that hope that everything could have been okay. She had always assumed, or at least hoped, that the reason her parents couldn't be with her was because they had died. She had always hoped that they loved her and cherished her, but their deaths had been the reason that she was alone.
How wrong she was. Suki had parents. They were alive somewhere. They could've been with her. They could've been sitting here at this moment, comforting her, telling her that everything would be okay.
But they weren't. They weren't there…because they chose not to be there. They left her behind, because they didn't want her. They abandoned Suki like a piece of trash.
"And maybe that's all I am," Suki thought sadly. "Maybe that's all I'll ever be…"
Tears solemnly fell down her cheeks. Realization was finally hitting. There had never been someone who loved her…nor would there ever be someone to love her.
"Suki…" The little girl looked up to the kind old man who had said her name. He handed her a handkerchief that he had literally pulled from his sleeve. "If you want, you can go wait outside."
"No!" Tetsu answered immediately. "The girl stays here. I don't trust her alone in the hallway where more of you filthy Leaf shinobi can kidnap her again."
"I guarantee you that no one would attempt to kidnap her at this moment," the Third Hokage said. Tetsu's face hardened even more. The leader of Konoha sighed. "But if you wish, she will remain here."
"Good!" Tetsu yelled.
The ninja with silver hair looked at the leader of Kagayaku with disdain. "Lord Tetsu, if I may ask, where does Suki live?" Kakashi asked.
"She lives in an orphanage," Tetsu said cautiously as he glared at Kakashi.
"So…her parents are not in the picture anymore, and she lives in an orphanage…" Kakashi mumbled.
"What are you getting at?" Chishio asked.
Kakashi looked up to stare coldly at the two men sitting in front of him. He glanced at Suki, and his eyes softened a little. He took a deep breath before he spoke. "I want to adopt Suki."