"How... how could this happen...?"
The sight of the ruined walls, the fires burning everywhere, and the familiar faces lying on the ground caused Kushina to cover her mouth, bringing her to the brink of collapse.
"Aunt Kikuko... Uncle Kyosuke... little sister Murasaki... This can't be real!"
Remembering something, she suddenly broke into a run.
Kaito followed closely behind her, his eyes scanning the surroundings as he sighed internally. The Village Hidden in the Whirlpools had been the enemy's most important target; it was nearly impossible for anyone to have luckily broken through the siege. The members of the Uzumaki clan who later scattered throughout the ninja world were mostly civilians from other villages in the Land of Whirlpools.
Important secret techniques, like their sealing jutsu, would have surely been plundered. Perhaps only the seemingly useless Reaper Death Seal mask was left behind. But the mask was of no use to him at the moment, so Kaito couldn't be bothered to carry it.
He followed Kushina to a house that was still engulfed in flames. Seeing her frantic expression, Kaito didn't say a word and directly spat out a large glob of water. After extinguishing the fire, he immediately blew out an Icy Wind to disperse the scorching heat.
Kushina rushed inside frantically and, at a glance, saw two charred bodies locked in an embrace.
Her last hope was shattered. She collapsed to her knees and began to wail.
"Dad! Mom!"
Kaito stood silently behind her, his eyes lowered, waiting patiently.
After a long time, her crying gradually subsided. Kaito took a step forward and stroked her soft, red hair. "Kushina, just like your mom said, they are definitely watching over you silently right now. If you keep crying, they won't feel good either."
Kushina sniffled, sniffed again, and nodded. "I know... but I can't control myself. Just let me cry a little longer. Sob, sob, sob..."
"Alright. But I want to look for any survivors who might be hiding. Can you help me?"
"Okay!"
Afterward, the two of them began to go from house to house, putting out fires, cooling down the rubble, and moving the bodies they found to the village's open square. After a period of exhausting work, Kushina stopped crying, but the light in her eyes was gone. Only her long hair remained as vibrant and red as blood.
A short while later, they arrived at a collapsed wall. Inside was a semicircle of relatively well-preserved, single-story buildings.
"This is the academy. The place where I studied," Kushina said numbly.
"Come on, let's go inside and take a look."
"Mm."
The Village Hidden in the Whirlpools had been attacked late at night, when most people were at home. Therefore, the academy was empty and had not suffered too much damage. After a brief search, they confirmed that no one was there.
Just as they were about to leave, Kaito suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Kushina, are you crying?"
"No. I can't cry anymore."
"But... why do I faintly hear the sound of crying...?" Kaito placed a finger to Kushina's lips, signaling for her to be quiet. He closed his eyes and concentrated hard.
"There really is crying! It's not my imagination!"
He followed the sound to the edge of the training ground, bent down, and pressed his ear to the ground.
"It's right below here."
Under Kushina's puzzled gaze, Kaito began to dig at the dirt with his hands, quickly breaking through the ground. This time, Kushina could also hear the sobbing coming from the hole. Her eyes lit up, and she leaned over the edge of the opening, shouting, "Is anyone there? Is anyone in there?"
The crying paused for a moment, then a weak voice replied, "Kushina? Is that you, Kushina? It's me, Kaori."
"Yes, it's me! I'll get you out right now!" A joyful smile blossomed on Kushina's face, and she looked at Kaito with hope in her eyes.
Before she could say anything, Kaito had already jumped down. A golden light shone from his hand, dispelling all the darkness inside. Kaito took a closer look and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
In the not-so-spacious secret room, four people were huddled in a corner. Besides three children who were about Kushina's age, there was also an adult woman lying on the ground, her status unknown.
Seeing the children's terrified gazes, Kaito spoke softly, "Don't be afraid. I'm a friend of Kushina's. I'm here to get you out."
"I believe you! Please, I beg you, save Ruri-sensei first!" one of the girls said, taking two steps forward and kneeling on the ground, bowing her head until it touched the floor.
The other two boys exchanged a look and also knelt down.
"There's no need for that. I will do my best to save her." Kaito walked slowly to the woman's side. Seeing her youthful face in the golden light, he paused for a moment, then reached out to feel her neck, his eyes scanning several bandages that were still seeping blood.
There's a pulse. She has three rather serious external wounds, but none of them have damaged her internal organs. Is it shock due to excessive blood loss? Whether she can live or not will depend on her fate.
He placed his hand on her wounds and used his only healing skill—Heal Bell.
Accompanied by the clear ringing of "ding-ling-ling," a soft white light gradually covered her entire body. The children watched in amazement as Ruri-sensei's exposed wounds disappeared at a rate visible to the naked eye, and they couldn't help but smile.
"Phew. She's alright for now. Let's get out of here first."
Kaito carefully moved the injured woman out of the hole and laid her flat on the ground. He instructed Kushina, whose face was a mixture of joy and worry, to watch over her. Then he went back and carried the remaining people out one by one.
"Kushina!"
"Sister Kaori! Ryunosuke! Jinta!"
The four survivors hugged each other tightly and wept.
"Your name is Kaori, right?" Kaito asked the girl who seemed the most composed. She appeared to be a few years older than Kushina, with the same waist-length hair, and a maturity beyond her years in her every move.
"Yes. My name is Uzumaki Kaori. Thank you so much for saving our lives, my lord!" Kaori bowed deeply to Kaito.
"You can thank me later. Your Ruri-sensei is not out of danger yet. Now, take me to the village hospital. I need to find some usable equipment."
"Yes!" Kaori didn't waste any words and immediately agreed.
After giving Kushina a few instructions, Kaito left the academy with Kaori leading the way. Judging from Kaori's pace, she had likely refined chakra before, but she was still too slow, so Kaito simply picked her up and carried her on his back.
In less than two minutes, they arrived at the mostly collapsed hospital.
"Good thing the fire only burned half of it." Kaito carefully squeezed into the ruins and quickly found what he was looking for—an intact syringe and an IV tube.
She had lost too much blood, so she needed a transfusion. Heal Bell had only removed the "bleeding" status; it couldn't create new blood for her. Therefore, he needed to use a normal blood transfusion method.
Using blood from the same clan... there shouldn't be any rejection, right? If there is, then you can only blame her bad luck.