"We can't use any more healing jutsu or it will stunt her growth!" That was the first thing I heard as I returned to consciousness, a voice I didn't recognize but certainly sounded concerned and authoritative.
"Can't you heal her fully; the wounds only appear superficial?" The next voice I recognized, along with the sunny, but concerned, energy beneath it.
"Minato, I'm sure she wouldn't want this; just let the nurses do what they can and the rest will heal in time," the voice was calm, yet assertive and familiar from before. I could sense the bright energy which accompanied it and smiled gently; feeling myself return to full wakefulness. My eyes blinked blearily, ridding themselves of sleep and adjusting to the bright lights around me.
"Actually, I think she is waking so you can ask her what she wants if needed; however the wounds aren't only superficial. There was a lot of internal damage that we had to heal, so I don't think it would be safe to continue administering treatment to a child this young." This time the first voice returned and I moved my head, looking towards a young looking lady in a strange blue and white uniform. Her energy felt strange, on the surface there was concern and well-meaning but if you pushed through that outer crust there was a boredom beneath it. She wasn't genuinely concerned, only feigning it and that bothered me.
"I don't want this lady near me anymore, she can take her…what was it? Medical Jut stuff and go away!"
Scowling at the lady she sighed and turned, dropped a chart at the end of the bed before walking towards the door.
"Looks like she's made her decision, I'll send a nurse by in a bit to check on her." As she left I relaxed and sank into the bed, releasing tension that I hadn't realized being built up.
"Hello there little one," looking back to the other side of the bed I noticed the old man sat in a chair, his arms wresting down on his legs and his face smiling gently. As I looked over to his side I spotted the bright haired man and another next to him. The man next to him looked older, his white hair pointed and messy; but a gentle look in his eyes as they met mine told me he wouldn't hurt me. "It's okay, these are two of my trusted people. Jiraiya is one of my students and Minato is his student, these two helped bring you here for treatment. I trust them completely." The words from the man struck a cord and I settled once more, acknowledging that -if the Hokage could trust them- then so could I. Nodding gently I watched all three of them relax slightly, barely noticeable but still there. That's when I became fixated on the white-haired man, his energy was tiny but it didn't feel right.
"Almost hidden on purpose?"
Before thinking I reached out and towards the man, wincing as a spike of pain lanced down through my chest and along my shoulder. Pulling back, I cradled myself, remembering just what had happened. Eyes widening, I recalled the beating, the door, the chains and the terrified screams of the Matron.
"What did I do?"
I couldn't remember much, it was all so blurry…so quick and unintelligible. Those chains definitely felt like me, they looked like they came from me; but what were they? So wrapped up in my thoughts I didn't notice the Hokages' hand reach out to touch mine, flinching slightly when his large hand encompassed my small one.
"Would you be happy to answer a few questions we have?" Looking up I met his eyes and noticed the seriousness that had settled in them, he wanted to know more and I would help however I could.
"Maybe they can even tell me what they were? And why the mans' energy is so strange…"
Deciding I resolutely nodded my head and I heard the bright man-
"-Minato?"
Sigh in relief, the man next to him pulled up a couple more chairs and sat beside each other next to the Hokage. Eyes fixed onto my small form. Watching with interest I was handed a strange white square, its surface was smooth and glossy and it had a strange pen clipped to its side.
"That's a whiteboard, we know you can't speak and I don't believe signing would be enough for what we wish to ask, therefore we assumed you can write in some way and would be quicker providing this. You simply write on the board with the pen and then wipe it away when you need to write something else." Glancing at the board I pulled the pen out of its holder, pulling the lid and clicking it back on the end of the pen. Looking at the black nib I tentatively put it to the board, using large long strokes I began to form symbols. When I was done I pulled back from the board and lifted it up to show them, they all chuckled lightly before returning to being serious. "Well then let's begin, we will ask questions between us. Some may be related to the incident, others to general information from before and about yourself as a whole. This will give us a greater insight and also a chance to gauge what our reaction and actions will be to any and all incidents as a whole." I nodded, carefully wiping the board with the sleeve of the white hospital yukata. Taking care not to write on myself with the open pen. "Right, well. What is your full name?" This was an easy one, scribbling on the board I wrote the symbols that made up my two names. "Akane, Hotaru?" Nodding in affirmation I wiped the board again, glancing upwards to gauge what their reaction was. I got nothing out of it, their faces remaining impassive and unreadable.
"I suppose that's Ninja for you."
"Right, Akane-chan, how old are you?" The question was from the Hokage once again and I quickly scribbled down the number four, showing it to them and wiping it away. "Can you tell us in simple words what life was like as a whole at the Lost Lamb Orphanage?" That one didn't take long to decide on, three words appeared on the board and I hesitated.
"Is it okay to say these things? I won't get punished by the Matron when I get back for this…right?"
Concern filled me but I hesitantly turned the board to my audience, watching as their eyes narrowed and I saw a small fleeting hint at anger, but it was gone before I could confirm its presence.
"Lonely, Pain, Hunger and…" The bright haired man, Minato, was reading the words and I noticed him pause at the last one; contemplating its meaning. "Death? What do you mean by that?" His words caught me off guard so I quickly wiped it away and wrote my answer. "You…you wanted to die?" I could visibly see the shock on all their faces, it wasn't normal for a four-year-old to want to die; I knew that much. "Okay then, my question regards the most recent incident that leads us to be stood here currently. As simply as possible please state what happened before, during and after the incident leading to your current injuries." I contemplated that question wondering how much I could simplify it.
'No food for four days, hungry. Breakfast then haircut, stripped, changed.'
As I wrote my other hand absentmindedly rose to my now short hair, scowling at the actions of that self-righteous woman.
'Told stay out of sight. Go outside, hear you; fall asleep. Wake, amazing food and talk. Not lonely, arm hurt…Matron."
I paused in my writing to show them the full board, it was all broken and not in quite full sentences but I hoped they could fill in the gaps. I could only teach myself so much from the books I had access to, unfortunately Hiragana was my limit of vocabulary and only bits and piece of It at that. At the nod I wiped the board and began to use the pen on its surface once more.
'Taken office, thrown, hit. Pain, door…energy…chains?"
I was unsure with the last bit and added it as a question, lifting the board for them to read. I saw them glance at each other and I laid down the board, preparing to wipe it before the white-haired man stopped me. Looking up his eyes bored into my own, searching for something. Flinching back into the pillows I felt fear well up in me.
"Jiraiya." That single command from the Hokage stopped him. He let go of my arm and stepped back, not yet sitting in his chair.
"You wrote Energy? What do you mean by Energy?" The words were stern, cold and calculating; almost like he was trying to solve a puzzle. Wiping at the board I quickly went to write before pausing.
"I don't know how to write it, it wasn't something I focused on writing due to it being forbidden."
Seeing my hesitation, he sighed and spoke again.
"The only Energy I can think of would be Chakra, is it Chakra you are on about?" As he spoke I grinned and nodded my head, pointing towards myself then the Hokage and then Minato but not at him. "Hmm, so you all have it. But why did you not point to me?" Glancing at him I didn't write it on the board but brought up my bandaged hands to form a tight circle before crushing it down into a single fist.
"So you can tell when someone is suppressing their Chakra? That is an intriguing ability for someone your age." This time it was Minato that spoke, his eyes sparkled slightly with interest and he had the same puzzle solving look that Jiraiya had still currently adjourning his face. The Hokage looked up at me and smiled.
"Well I suppose that will do for now, there will be more time in the future to fill out the details but I have all that I need." He rose from his chair and I looked up at him, quickly putting the lid on the pen and clipping it to the board I held it out to him. "No, that's fine. You keep it, I reckon it can get quite tedious trying to explain things all the time." I blanched slightly before smiling sheepishly and bowing my head slightly in thanks, his hand came to rest on it and ruffled my hair. "Take care, I'll see you again soon." With that he exited and Jiraiya followed him out, leaving only Minato and I in the room. Looking up at him I smiled gently, he gazed back at me and seemed lost in though.
'What wrong?"
I hated having to write childishly but it was better than nothing. Holding up the board I watched him blink back into reality and read it, shaking his head he sighed and moved; settling into the seat that the Hokage had previously occupied.
"There is something I'd like to ask you. All the arrangements have been made, but I feel the decision is yours to make…not ours." His words were cryptic and I felt my heart sink, was it something bad? Had I done something wrong? I was proven utterly wrong and shocked by his next words, "Me and Kushina have talked it over, the Hokage and Jiraiya are in support and paperwork has been filled; all we need is your consent."
"Paperwork? What did I do so wrong that it would involve paperwork?!"
I let myself frown, expecting the worse when I saw Minato begin to open his mouth again.
"We would like to know if you would like to come and live with Me and Kushina, we had your bloods tested and it appears that you may be loosely related to her. As such we can and have applied to be your guardians on relation grounds. It's not adoption, just legal guardianship; however, it means you won't have to ever go back to that awful place." Tears welled up and spilled over from my eyes, streaking down my face as I began to silently sob. "Wait, what did I do wrong? Please don't cry!" It was funny seeing him so flustered, he had seemed so calm and serious before. "You don't have to, that's why I wanted to ask you first before anything was made final. I'm sorry to have upset you," he looked genuinely disheartened.
"He thinks I'm unhappy."
I pulled at the pen and unclipped it, removing the top and messily scribbling through tears. Replacing the cap on the pen and replacing it in the clip I lifted and turned it to face Minato. He sprang forward, knocking the board from my hand and gripping my hands in his, grinning from ear to ear.
"Kushina will be so happy!" That was all he said, and as the board fell to the floor it clattered and landed face up.
"Happy," was all it read.
So hope you enjoyed that and if people want a key as to speech and whatnot let me know.
I'll add it at the end of each chapter so as not to spoil anything.
Anywho,ENJOY!
Wolven x