Anko and I returned to the group, staring down at the two Uzumaki's.
"What's your names?"
Crouching down opposite them, I smiled gently at the young girl, before focusing my attention on her mother.
"Makoto. My name is Makoto, and this is my daughter, Karin."
"Nice to meet you, Makoto, Karin. I'm Kokoro. Behind me with the insufferable smirk is Anko. The woman with crimson eyes is Kurenai, and the one with golden eyes is Cameia."
Makoto nodded, her red eyes flickering around the group.
As for Karin...
"Are you Shinobi?"
Returning my gaze to the small red head, I nodded, chuckling as her eyes sparkled.
"So cool!"
Makoto had a small smile on her face, but she was staring at me with slight worry, likely hoping I didn't take offense to her daughter.
"Do you want to be a Shinobi, Karin?"
The young girl moved a little closer to me, a wide grin on her pale face as she nodded.
"Yes! I want to protect people like my mother and me, so that they can be happy!"
Kurenai let out a small 'Aw...' when she heard that, her eyes gentle as she stared at Karin.
Cameia just nodded, while Anko chuckled. As for Makoto, she looked at Karin with a mixture of pride and worry, like most parents of Shinobi aspirants do.
"Why don't you talk to Kurenai about that, hm? She used to teach the kids at Konoha about being a Shinobi."
"Really!? Okay!"
Karin walked over to Kurenai, staring up at our raven haired wife with a reverent gaze.
Chuckling at how Kurenai instantly dropped to her knee and started taking to the girl, I then went back to Makoto.
"How did two Uzumaki's end up in the Land of Grass? And what were all those bite marks on your skin?"
Makoto flinched at that, fear rising in her eyes as she stared at me warily.
Raising my hands slowly, I calmly said "I won't pry if you don't want to talk. Nor do I want to force you to do something you don't want to. Alright?"
She nodded, biting her lip.
"W-Well... After Uzushiogakure fell, all the Uzumaki hid everywhere, right? My mother fled here, to be somewhere out of the way of all the major villages. However..."
Lifting a strand of her crimson hair, Makoto sighed.
"Well, our lineage was obvious. Thankfully, we were so far in the middle of nowhere that for... thirty years now? we have remained hidden away. I grew up a normal woman, living in a farming village, falling in love with one of the villagers, then... Karin. After she was born, she had gotten a scrape one day, and when feeding she... well, she bit harder than normal, and that bite... healed her. When I saw that I instantly knew what a power like that would mean..."
Bringing her knees to her chest, Makoto buried her face in her knees, her shoulders shaking slightly.
"My then h-husband saw that, and... and he s-started selling my ability to the others... He w-went from a kind man to n-nothing more than scum..."
Gently laying my hand on her shoulder, I comforted the poor woman, letting her calm down for a few moments as I mulled over what she said.
So she has an ability that heals you when you bite her...
Is it some kind of chakra transfer? After all, Uzumaki's were rumored to have larger reserves of chakra than normal people, and they lived much, much longer as well.
That sounds plausible...
"Well, that secret stays between us, alright? No one needs to know about it..."
She stared at me in surprise, before her eyes teared up.
"R-Really?"
Smiling at her, I glanced at her daughter, saying "Really. Yes, it's a strong ability, but it's something that harms one person to help another; therefor, it should be classified as Kinjutsu, or a Forbidden Technique."
A smile tugged at her lips, and she fell forwards, relieved.
"T-Thank you... Thank you!"
Patting her shoulder, I got back up, saying "Rest up a little; once you and Karin feel better, we'll start the journey back to Konoha. Should only be a few hours away..."
~~~
"Alright~! Up you go!"
Lifting the young girl into my arms, we grinned at each other before I set out in a run.
"Whoa~! So fast!"
"Isn't it? Cool, right?"
Karin giggled, her crimson eyes wide as she stared at the passing fields of tall grass.
"So cool!"
We both laughed, and I could feel Cameia's gaze on me as she ran behind me, Makoto reluctantly in her arms.
Both Uzumaki's had been given a rudimentary hair dye, and now they sported black hair, however thin crimson strands could be seen.
Karin settled into my arms, and she giggled as she stared over the plains.
It had taken a lot of convincing, but...
Karin was light, and Anko and Kurenai would be enough to protect us as we ran.
Once we entered the Land of Fire we'd be significantly safer.
So, Cameia relented, allowing me to carry the young girl for the remainder of the journey.
If this had been a few days prior, I would have never done this; my arm would have been killing me only a few moments in, but after two healing sessions with Asa and Shiba, I was feeling much better.
The journey out of the Land of Grass was peaceful, and we eventually entered into the forested lands that we called home.
I chuckled as I saw Anko and Kurenai breath sighs of relief, their muscles relaxing slightly as we reached the familiar environment.
We were treehuggers, even if that was meant to be some kind of derogatory remark, it was true.
We thrived in forests, and our ability to hide inside these forests was almost unparalleled.
"So many trees! It smells good too!"
"You like this more than those grassy plains?"
Karin pursed her lips, glancing around before nodding.
"Much better! More to see, more to do!"
We grinned at one another again, before I narrowed my eyes, feeling a familiar chakra presence.
"Kakashi?"
Hearing that, Anko and Kurenai stopped, looking around.
"Yo. How was the Land of Demons?"
Appearing in front of us was the infamous Copy Ninja, his spiky white hair and lazy posture making me roll my eyes.
"Can't say; you know the rules."
"Fine... Hah... So you brought someone back huh?"
He stared over at Cameia with his dark grey eye, narrowing it slightly before frowning.
"I'll escort you back... Lord Hokage will want to speak with her as soon as possible."
Saying so he turned around, before freezing as Cameia asked "Why does he cover that powerful eye?"
I blinked in surprise, turning to look at the titled head of Cameia as she stared at Kakashi's masked face.
"Wait... you can sense that?"
She nodded, looking over at me and tilting her head to the other side.
"Yes... Is that bad?"
Anko chuckled, while Kurenai and I let out a sigh.
"No... just surprised is all. Did you sense the chakra?"
She nodded, before asking "Do many of your people cover their eyes?"
I shook my head, and Kakashi finally said "No. I should be the only one in Konoha. The people these eyes belong to are... long gone."
Cameia nodded, before approaching me.
"Let Kurenai carry her now."
I squeezed Karin, who squeezed me back, the two of us glaring at her.
""No.""
Staring at us, Cameia blinked once before turning away, shaking her head slightly.
Resuming our journey, Kakashi peered back at me, asking "So I'm guessing I shouldn't ask to many questions, yes?"
"Correct."
Shrugging, he returned his gaze forwards, saying "Alright."
Falling silent, we jumped from branch to branch, Karin staring around with wide eyes as she took in the forest as we made our way to Konoha.