Chapter 4

They first made their home visits and checked on everyone they had to. There wasn't much to say or do as everything had already been fixed during the last weeks and people were settling into their new realities nicely. But it still took them a large chunk of the afternoon and the sun was already setting when they made their way to old Touko's.

Old Touko was the healer who had helped her on her first night here. And she wasn't exactly old, just a widow in her late forties, with no children. The name stuck mainly because, as the clan's most senior medical practitioner, she was granted a seat at the elders council. It was a sign of respect really. Her infirmary was close to the compound's main doors, so as to facilitate access when the wounded were carried in after a skirmish. It was empty however when the mother-daughter pair came in, and the middle aged woman was stocking some pots on the shelves behind a counter at the back of the spacious room. Ah, yes, the infirmary also doubled in as a pharmacy. The only one in the compound.

Himiko and Touko exchanged greetings and after knowing the matter of their visit and getting a complete recount of this morning's happenings, Touko's eyes were glowing. She led them to sit in front of a table facing the big window of the room and disappeared in the backroom for a while. As she stared from the window, "Two" noticed a group of ten or so shinobi running towards the door and out of the compound. They must have been rushing on a mission. Not five minutes later, another group did the same. She paid them no mind as heavily armed shinobi running around were a norm here.

Touko came back with two fish that looked like they were just taken out of the water and put them on the table. Both had a gash on their surface and as she settled in she started explaining, "This is the test to see if you can become a healer. It's quite simple really. You have to coat your palm with a thin layer of chakra that is not really concentrated so that it appears green instead of the usual blue. Your goal is to infuse enough energy into the cells of the organism so as to stimulate their reproduction without destroying them. These fish just died, so the cells can still reproduce for a while. However not many master this exercise because it requires a perfect control over chakra both in shape and consistency. "

"Two" listened with fascination. So that's how it worked. She watched enraptured as Touko demonstrated on her fish, and then it was her turn to try.

It was clumsy at best. She kept trying to do the same as Touko, but it took her thirty minutes and a few burned pieces of fish to somehow make the gash look like it was closed, nothing like what the healer did in less than three minutes. Touko, however, was over the moon. She told her that, for a beginner, she did just fine, and that even she required a lot of training to be able to achieve such results.

It became clear that "Two" had the ability to become a healer if she wanted to. And so, after discussing the details with a proud Himiko, it was decided that "Two" will not attend the same training as the brothers but become Touko's apprentice. She was still expected to attend at least two training sessions per week, so as to hone her skills as a ninja, but Touko didn't mind as she was desperate to get new students to help in the infirmary.

"Two" stared at the window as the two older women kept discussing the problems of the clan, and Himiko kept promising that she would ask Tajima for more funding for the already stretched thin clinic. She had a feeling that her status as the clan head's daughter played a huge part in her new teacher's enthusiasm. But she didn't mind. After having met Touko on two other occasions other than then and their first meeting, she dismissed her earlier skepticism of the woman and understood that she was doing her best with the little she had.

She also noticed another group of men, this time more than fifteen, rushing out of the compound. This was strange. She knew that a lot of the shinobi were out on missions, and with so many large groups leaving, it was like the compound was emptying out. Why was Tajima doing this? Especially when the sun was setting, it was unwise to leave the compound under guarded. But maybe they were needed elsewhere. The next few weeks were the last time the Senju and them had to sneak in a couple of skirmishes before the cold set in and they had to stop the fighting

The three women left the infirmary together, as Touko was also heading towards the seamstress to get some new bandages she had ordered. The streets were oddly empty even if it was starting to get late, with only the occasional woman or child coming into view. The shops didn't close until a few hours and even then there should have been a patrol in view. As they arrived in front of the shop, "Two" noticed Hikaku, her first cousin, one year younger than Madara, running towards the compound's door fully equipped. She stopped him, now greatly intrigued by what was happening. "Hikaku nii-san, wait up! Where are you all heading? Are we under attack?"

Himiko and Touko stopped too, curious and worried. Hikaku, efficient as always, gave them a summary of what was happening. "An hour ago, Senju Butsuma, his sons and some of their top shinobi were spotted south of the compound. Tajima-sama left the dinner and took Madara-nii, Izuna-kun as well as some of our men to face them. But reinforcements keep coming, and so we have to send in more men. My squad's leader ordered us to join too. I have to rush to the front door. They are waiting for me."

Himiko gasped. "Izuna too? He has only been training for less than a month! He's not ready!".

"Two" however had other concerns. Blame her for being heartless later, but something else was on her mind. "Wait, are all the squad leaders giving orders to rush into the battle ? Who's staying at the compound to protect it? Aren't the men not on missions supposed to patrol? What if this was a diversion to attack the compound and you were all rushing in?"

"Two" knew that she was going to the worst case scenario but the Uchiha didn't exactly have a concrete plan in case the compound was attacked. Women and children were supposed to run to the nearest shelter, but that was it. Her reasoning seemed to be giving a slap to the three others. Himiko frowned a bit uneasy, but was quick to take action. "Hikaku-kun, go repeat what Haruka said to your squad leader. And have him try to reorganize our defense. Go and call back some men from the front if needed. We will take care of the rest." The boy gave a nod and ran to the meeting point. They all watched him until he disappeared and waited for Himiko to come with a plan. She decided, "Touko-san, Haruka, the three of us will go house to house and tell the children and women to go to the safe house as fast as we can. That's all we can do for right now."

Before the two could nod, three shadows landed next to them and Himiko quickly shielded her behind her, her posture defensive. She fixed the man in the middle, middle-aged, black hair, a scar on his right cheek still bloody, and said, "Homura-sama, you scared us. I wasn't expecting to see you now. I have to ask to go back to your inn, as we are going through something right now."

So this is Chinoki Homura, the new leader of the Chinoki, who had come in peace. "Two" knew the delegation was composed of six men. But only three were here. Where were the others? Her gut told her she didn't want to know.

The leader made no move to retreat and stayed silent, but the man to his right was more cooperative. "The wife and the daughter, we got lucky. Homura-sama, if we deliver them both to the Senju, they will be convinced of our worth and accept us as worthy allies, don't you think?" 

The leader was assessing their small group. They were at a clear disadvantage. Not as armed and not as armored as their enemies. But the three females were all clutching the kunai hidden in the sleeve of their kimonos. It was one of the Uchiha habits she was now thankful to have adopted. And the Chinoki leader was still tense facing Himiko. He finally said, "Do not underestimate them. Unlike us, the Uchiha train all their women. Even the child. And Himiko-sama is especially dangerous. She is not Tajima's wife and Madara, that small demon's mother, for nothing. I have seen her in battle and I never wanted to be on the side opposing her and her evil eyes."

"Two" peered at the woman shielding her. She knew Himiko was an outstanding kunoichi, but she had no idea she was so fearsome. Her Sharingan was activated, eyes now blood red and her smile was nothing like the warm one she always had. This one was feral and it twisted more when she said, "I'm honored you remember a retired shinobi like me. And if you knew what's good for you, you would get the hell out of my sight. And run far away from here."

The three men were now on their guard, weapons out, and so were the women. To her right Touko had also activated her Sharingan, although hers had only two coma patterns. Himiko looked at her from the corner of her eyes and said, "Haruka stands back. You can do nothing against them at your level. Stay vigilant and defend yourself if anyone can get past Touko and me. Otherwise don't do anything." 

"Two" was displeased at being unable to help, but she agreed with Himiko's assessment of the situation and so said, "Understood. Don't worry about me. I will not hinder you."

As soon as she finished talking, the fight started. Two against three was hardly fair, but the woman seemed to hold their ground. Sounds of weapons clashing filled the air. And at some point jutsus were done. The Chinoki seemed to be great at doton, and "Two" would have been amazed if they weren't the enemy. At one point, the talkative Chinoki was caught in one of Himiko's katons and fell to the ground screaming as the flames ate at him. He died in a matter of seconds, but the smell of burnt flesh filled the air for longer and made her want to puke.

Touko was struggling a bit, clearly fighting wasn't her strong suit and her opponent wasn't one to be messed with. She tried to do some jutsus, but he was faster and suddenly went underground. Touko and "Two" kept their eyes on the ground waiting for him to pop back up, and Himiko was clearly distracted in her fight against the Chinoki leader.

The rest all happened faster than "Two" could see or comprehend.

A hand surged from the ground, grabbed her ankles and tried to pull her in too. She was fully prepared for the eventuality of the man coming after her, and used the kunai in her hand to stab through his hand and expertly pin it to the ground after freeing herself. But Himiko clearly didn't trust she would be able to defend herself, and idiotically kicked her opponent sending him a couple of steps back, turned her back to him and rushed towards her to help her. She executed a fire technique and directed it to the ground exactly where the man was still stuck, no doubt cooking him to the bone. But as she finished a small sword pierced through her chest right where the heart was, making her cough a bit of blood. Touko was a step too late, as she severed the carotid of the Chinoki leader who had the sword in hand.

The two bodies slumped forward as "Two" could only watch with a wide unblinking eye, while Touko screamed in the background. She was frozen in place until she saw Himiko raise her head with difficulty looking towards her while trying to say something. Her feet finally worked and she rushed to Himiko, just as Touko did the same. Himiko was repeating over and over. "There's more… of… them in… here. Go and… hide… until the… others… come… back."

"Two" robotically gave a nod and started to frantically try and get Himiko out from underneath the heavy bastard. Touko, was less flustered and, understanding what the little girl was trying to do, helped her, while saying, "Let's go into the seamstresses shop ok? I can examine her there." Again all "Two" could do was nod. They dragged the body through the street and into the shop as carefully as they could.

The shop was dimly lit by an oil lamp but nobody seemed to be there. They set Himiko on the ground and after pulling the sword out, Touko proceeded to try and heal her with medical chakra. "Two" watched impotently from the back, hoping against hope that it worked. But she was one of the top surgeons of her country in her last life, and her mind was already telling her what her heart couldn't accept. That it was useless. The place and the angle of the wound were indicators that it was mortal. Her heart must already be in pieces that can't be stitched back together by now. It was the kind of expert blow she used to deal when she was an assassin. She knew there was no going back.

Himiko knew it too and so she struggled to say, "There's … no… need. I know it's over." Touko seemed unwilling to accept it, but her bloody hands dropped to her sides after a while and she turned her head to hide her tears. "Two" finally seemed to snap out of it and she lunged forward grabbing Himiko's hand as hard as she could, face bathed in tears. "Why? Just why? You were doing just fine and I told you I wasn't going to hinder you. Why would you turn your back on your opponent? That's like the number one no-no in a fight. Even rookies don't make that mistake." 

Himiko looked at her with a sad smile and croaked, "I'm a mother. What mother wouldn't rush to protect her child? Even if I know that you're not my Haruka, you smile just like her. I couldn't let another of my children die. I couldn't."

"Two's" hands shook and slightly let go of Himiko's, expression slightly flabbergasted. But Himiko gathered the last of her forces and used it to hold on tightly to her, eyes looking at her with determination. "It's ok, whoever you might be. I knew since the beginning. I spoiled my Haruka so much that she never stepped foot in the kitchen because she hated it. Even if the said forgotten memories were back, how could she remember something she never knew. But it's ok. It doesn't matter. I like to think that she left you here, so that I wouldn't be sad. And now I would like to ask a favor out of you. Please, promise me you will take care of my kids. Promise me that they will have someone when I'm gone. Tajima isn't a bad father but he will not take care of them like I would want him to. Please promise me you will care for my boys."

"Two's" mind wasn't working properly. Too much information. So for the first time in her two lives, she let her heart take the lead. She didn't think, because she didn't need to. She knew already. So she said, "I promise you. I will take care of them the best that I can." Himiko's face relaxed when she heard her words. Slowly her eyes closed, and her hands started to let go. The smile on her face as she went out of this world was serene and content.

"Two" kissed the hand she was holding gently and then folded both of Himiko's hands on her chest. She kneeled there for a while and then slowly turned her head towards Touko. The woman seemed at her wits end. She was staring unblinkingly at her, her face a mixture of incomprehension and puzzlement, but thankfully not fear. Finally Touko managed to croak, "Your, your, your eyes! That's the Sharingan! You've awakened the Sharingan!"

"Two" scanned herself. Indeed she could feel chakra abnormally pooling in her eyes. She closed her eyes and opened them once again. She was now realizing that her vision was sharper. Like looking through a microscope that automatically adjusted itself to what she wanted to see. So this is part of the power of the Sharingan. Interesting.

She went back to staring at Touko who had recovered some of her wit and was staring back at her, Sharingan activated too. Both could hear voices of footsteps outside the shop. The three other bastards had come. Good. She was in need of spilling blood. But she needed a plan. Sure her skills weren't back to their peak, but her mind was back in business. No more running away.

She put a finger in front of her mouth to signal Touko to shush and dragged the older woman to the back of the room, away from the door. They would comeback for Himiko's body later.

Looking around her. She registered that they were in a seamstresses shop. A shop full of needles, threads and yarns and highly flammable dyes. A plan started forming in her head. She looked at Touko who was still staring at her and said, "Look, we can talk later, when there is no one trying to kill us. I promise I will tell you everything you want to know. But now, I need you to do two things for me: First, keep what you heard a secret. No one can know. And second and most important: From now on, for all intents and purposes, I am Uchiha Haruka. That's my name and that's who I am. Nod if you understand and agree."

Touko looked hesitant for a while but then determination shone in her eyes and she gave a firm nod.

Good. Because this world was going to see Uchiha Haruka's wrath for the first time, and poor Touko didn't deserve to be eaten by it too.