Kaito Chapter 108
Finishing his own porridge, Kaito replied with a reassuring tone. "Well, like I said, we are from the same clan, so you will be coming with us to the Hidden Leaf. You'll stay with me. It's just me, my mom, and my little brother. He's the same age as you, you know, and Mom would be really happy to see another Uzumaki," he said, attempting to lift Karin's spirits.
Seeing the fear and hesitation in Karin's eyes at the mention of the Hidden Leaf Village, Kaito added with a warm smile, "Don't worry, Karin-chan. Big brother Kaito won't let anything bad happen to you." His words seemed to comfort Karin and she nodded in response, a small smile forming on her face in return for Kaito's genuine kindness.
….
The sun was high in the sky, casting warm late afternoon rays over the forest surrounding the Hidden Leaf Village. Three blurs could be seen rushing steadily towards Konoha's gates: Itachi and Hotaru, while Kaito carried Karin on his back as they made their way back to the village after completing their mission.
They landed in front of the village gates, and Kaito gently set Karin down. "Welcome to Konoha," he said with a reassuring smile. Just then, Itachi and Hotaru landed beside them.
Karin looked up in awe at the huge gates and walls of Konoha, whispering softly, "It's bigger than Kusagakure."
Kaito nodded. "Hai, Konoha is one of the Five Great Villages. Now that I think about it, it might be the biggest among them."
Itachi added, "Let's get checked in. We need to hand in the mission report to the Hokage."
"Yeah, the sooner we do that, the sooner I can sleep," Hotaru said, yawning.
"And I have to introduce Karin to my mom," Kaito said. They all nodded and followed Itachi to the guard booth. This time, it wasn't Kotetsu and Izumo on guard duty but two older chunin.
Team 11 checked back into the village and registered Karin as a visitor. Once the formalities were done, they headed straight to the Hokage Tower to report the details of their mission and Karin's situation.
When they arrived at the Hokage's office, the secretary asked Team 11 to wait as she informed the Hokage of their arrival.
Letting Karin down from his back, Kaito made a shadow clone and asked Karin, "Karin, can you stay with my shadow clone while we give the mission report, okay?" Karin nodded.
The secretary returned after a minute and said, "The Hokage is waiting for you." She ushered Team 11 into the office. Kaito knocked on the door, and a voice from within called them to enter. They stepped inside to see the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, seated at his desk.
Hiruzen puffed out a plume of smoke and said, "Ah, Team 11, you're back. I take it you didn't have much trouble tracking down the bandit group."
"Hokage-sama," Itachi and Hotaru greeted with a bow while Kaito greeted him with, "Lord Third," bowing. Itachi said, "Hai, Hokage-sama, we located them in the western part of the Land of Fire. They weren't just a group of bandits; they were led by a rogue jonin and two chunin from Takigakure." Stepping forward, Itachi handed the Third Hokage a scroll. "This scroll has the heirloom."
Receiving the scroll, the Third Hokage puffed out a cloud of smoke and said, "Well done, Team 11. Your mission pay will be deposited into your accounts. If that is all, you are free to go."
"Actually, Lord Third, there's something important I need to discuss with you," Kaito said. Receiving a nod from Hiruzen, Kaito continued, "During the raid on the bandit camp, we came across a 5-year-old girl and her mother who were kept prisoners. Unfortunately, the mother died a few hours before we arrived."
The Third Hokage puffed out some smoke and said, "I presume there is something special about the girl and her mother?"
Kaito nodded. "Hai, they are both Uzumaki. The mother had the same ability as me."
"That ability?" Hiruzen asked, his eyes widening as he rubbed his chin. He then nodded and asked, "I assume the mother died due to them abusing her ability, and I presume you brought the girl with you and she is currently waiting outside?"
Kaito nodded. "Hai, since she's one of the last living members of the Uzumaki clan, I'd like to ask your permission for her to stay in Konoha."
Hiruzen hummed and said, "I will allow her to live with you." He chuckled and said, "Kushina would be happy to see another Uzumaki alive." He then asked Kaito to bring her in.
Kaito opened the door and let Karin in. She hid behind him as he introduced her. "This is Karin Uzumaki."
The Hokage smiled. "Welcome to Konoha, Karin-chan. I'm sorry you had to go through what you did. Konoha has always been an ally to the Uzumaki clan, and it will always be a home for you. The First Hokage's wife and the Fourth Hokage's wife were both Uzumakis."
Karin bowed and stuttered out a "Thank you."
Kaito then asked the Third Hokage for permission to bury Karin's mother's body in the Konoha cemetery.
Hiruzen nodded. "That should be alright." He wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to Kaito. "Give this to the secretary, and she will arrange it."
Kaito accepted the paper and said, "Thank you." Karin echoed his thanks.
Hiruzen said, "If that's all, you may leave."
Coming out of the Hokage's building after giving the paper to the secretary, Itachi said, "Well, I'll see you guys later," and started to walk away.
Hotaru and Kaito waved to him and walked in the opposite direction with Karin.
Hotaru yawned and said, "Well, I'm heading home too, Kai-kun. I'll see you later."
Kaito asked if she wanted him to walk her home.
Hotaru shook her head. "its ok kai-kun, you should help Karin settle in."
Kaito nodded. "Yeah, I need to introduce Karin to my mother and explain her situation."
Hotaru hugged Kaito goodbye and then hugged Karin. "I'll bring my sister to meet you. She's about your age."
Kaito decided to walk home slowly so Karin could adjust to Konoha. As they walked, she saw many food stalls with foods she had never seen before.
Noticing her interest, Kaito decided to buy some takoyaki. He bought a few dozen for them and his family, handing Karin a tray. "Have you ever had these before?"
Karin shook her head. "No, what are they?"
Kaito smiled. "Try them. They're called takoyaki."
Karin took a tentative bite and hummed in delight at the taste.
Kaito chuckled. "They're great, aren't they? My mom makes them really well. Maybe she can teach you."
They happily munched on the takoyaki as they walked to the Uzumaki residence. Kaito slid open the door and called out, "Mom, I'm back," gesturing for the nervous Karin to follow him inside.
"In the kitchen, honey," Kushina called out, busy making dinner.
Kaito walked into the kitchen to see his mother cooking and his brother Naruto working on calligraphy at the dining table. Naruto seemed very focused.
Hearing Kaito enter the kitchen, Kushina turned and said, "Welcome back, Kai-kun." She then saw Karin hiding behind Kaito and paused, stirring the pot.
"Kai-kun, who is this?" Kushina asked, seeing a girl with red hair and tattered clothes.
Kaito gently pulled Karin from behind him and said, "Mom, I'd like you to meet Karin Uzumaki. Karin, this is my mother, the wife of the Fourth Hokage, Kushina Uzumaki."
Hearing the name, Kushina looked stunned. Karin bowed nervously and said, "Um, it's nice to meet you." Naruto looked over from his calligraphy.
Kaito continued, "Mom, I found Karin in a terrible situation during our mission. Her mother was killed, and she had nowhere to go, so I brought her back here since she's an Uzumaki."
Kushina's eyes softened as she walked over and knelt down to Karin's level. "Hello, Karin-chan. My name is Kushina. You can stay with us. Aunt Kushina promises no one will hurt you anymore." She gave the little girl a hug. Karin stiffened but, after a moment's hesitation, fell into her embrace, tears streaming down her face.
Naruto walked over, curious. "Hey, who's she?" he asked, his blue eyes wide with interest.
Kaito smiled and ruffled Naruto's hair. "This is Karin-chan. She's going to stay with us. Think of her as a friend or a sister since she's part of our Uzumaki clan. She just lost her mother, so you have to be nice to her, okay?"
Naruto's eyes widened even more. "Really? She lost her mother?" Kaito nodded solemnly.
Kushina released Karin from the hug and said, "Oh my, you look so thin. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes, but before that, we should get you cleaned up. I have some of my old clothes that might fit you. We can get you some new ones tomorrow, okay?" She pulled Karin along to the bathroom, excitedly.
Kaito's clone shook his head and smiled, seeing that his mother had forgotten about the food on the stove. He asked Naruto, "You wanna help me finish dinner?"
Naruto nodded eagerly. While Naruto helped Kaito's shadow clone cook, the real Kaito took a bath.
Kushina returned after a while later with Karin following behind her meekly, now clean and in fresh clothes.
She came back to see Naruto setting the table and said, "Karin-chan, why don't you help Naru-chan set the table while I serve dinner?" Karin nodded and walked over to Naruto.
Smiling, Naruto said, "My name is Naruto Uzumaki," and Karin introduced herself. They helped each other set the table.
Kushina and Kaito's clone served dinner just as the real Kaito walked in, toweling his hair. "Come sit down, Kai-kun, it's katsu curry." Kaito joined them and sat beside Naruto, while Karin sat beside Kushina. They ate dinner together.
After dinner, Kushina showed Karin to her new room and gave her a spare futon. She tucked both Karin and Naruto in for the night.
After tucking both Karin and Naruto in, Kushina walked back to the living room to see Kaito sitting there with a scroll, studying it. She walked over to him, sat down opposite him, and asked, "Kai-kun, what happened to her mother?"
Kaito put away the scroll and sighed. He told her everything—how he overheard a Kusa shinobi talking about a red-haired woman with the healing bite ability, how he infiltrated Kusa, and how he found Karin and her mother.
By the end of the story, Kushina looked angry at how her clansman had been treated. She also bonked Kaito on the head.
Rubbing his head, Kaito complained, "Hey, that hurt, ya know."
Kushina huffed. "That was for infiltrating a hidden village. What were you thinking, you baka?" Then she hugged him. "But I'm glad that you did."
Kaito sighed in relief and returned the hug. "I couldn't just leave her there."
Kushina smiled softly, her eyes filled with warmth. "You did the right thing, Kai-kun. We'll take care of her."
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