Kushina stepped into a local inn, the faint jingle of the door chime breaking the quiet murmur of evening conversation. She'd been traveling for hours, days, really, without a real bed. The thought of sleeping on something that wasn't dirt, leaves, or rock was almost enough to make her smile.
The inn itself was decently large for such a rural location, with its ground floor split between a bar, a restaurant, and the reception desk. The air smelled faintly of stewed meat and sake, and the faint glow of lanterns bathed the walls in a warm amber hue. A few locals were hunched over their drinks, talking in low tones.
It had taken her a little over a day and a half to reach the Land of Rivers, pushing herself harder than she'd intended. And here, tucked into the folds of this small country, sat Tanigakure, the so-called "Village Hidden in the Valleys." It wasn't much to look at. In the grand game of nations, it was insignificant, a speck of a force that a handful of elite Konoha jōnin could crush in a single night.
But Tanigakure had something far more valuable than strategic territory. Someone. Someone with red hair and the same blood running through Kushina's veins.
The innkeeper was a kindly old woman with clouded eyes and hands gnarled from decades of work. She looked up from her ledger. She had the sort of face that made you think of warm blankets and home-cooked soup. "Looking for a room, dear?"
"Yeah," Kushina replied, stepping forward and resting an elbow casually on the counter. "One night. Just me."
The old woman nodded and reached for the keys. Kushina's gaze, however, slid past her to a group in the corner of the restaurant. Four men, each with the quiet, calculated body language of shinobi, sat hunched over a low table. They were talking too quietly for normal ears to catch, but Kushina's senses were anything but normal.
Even without a village's forehead protector to give them away, their movements screamed of training. Their posture was ready, their eyes sharp, and their hands stayed just a little too close to their weapons.
She narrowed her eyes. She couldn't place their exact allegiance yet, but if they were here for the same reason she was…
She accepted the room key with a faint smile, thanked the old woman, and made her way upstairs.
----
Hours later, under the cover of darkness, the four shinobi slipped out of the inn. They moved across rooftops like flowing shadows, every step deliberate, every turn purposeful.
"Are you sure an Uzumaki brat's really here?" one of them whispered.
"I saw her earlier," another replied confidently. "Hair that red? No one else but an Uzumaki would have that in the world."
A third scoffed. "Good. Let's just grab her quick and get out of this dump. I don't want to stay in this backwater village any longer."
"Yeah," the last added with a smirk. "Our village hasn't gotten one yet. Those stupid monkeys and rock-heads already snatched up all the others."
"We'll be rewarded for this," the second one said, his voice filled with greedy satisfaction.
What none of them realized was that they weren't the hunters tonight. They were prey being stalked.
Kushina followed from a distance, keeping to the edges of shadow and roofline. Her enhanced hearing caught every word, and her jaw tightened with each one. Anger simmered low and hot in her chest, but beneath it was something else, elation. Their conversation had told her exactly what she wanted to know.
Based on what they said, these Shinobi were likely of Sunagakure, which makes sense as the Land of Rivers is just to the east of the Land of Wind.
This means Suna didn't have any Uzumaki yet. But Iwa and Kumo did. That meant her next targets were already marked.
The four came to a stop in front of an unassuming wooden house tucked between two shops. The glow of lamplight filtered through the papered windows. Inside, a girl no older than twelve sat cross-legged on the floor, a book balanced in her lap. Her hair was a vivid shade of red, held back with a white band.
They didn't waste time; there was no need to in an insignificant village like this. The window shattered inward as two of the shinobi leapt inside.
The girl gasped, dropping her book. "Wh-?!"
One of them was on her before she could even stand, shoving a cloth into her mouth. Her muffled cry of "Help!" was swallowed in the fabric.
Kushina chose now to move. Timing was everything. Letting the girl think she was doomed and then miraculously saving her would give a much better impression than if she simply took some preventative measures.
Outside, the two lookouts barely had time to register the whisper of steel before their heads separated cleanly from their bodies. Kushina landed silently between them, her blade still gleaming with fresh blood.
Inside, the intruders were just beginning to secure the girl when they froze, sensing her chakra flare behind them. It was already too late. Kushina stepped forward and placed her hands on both their backs.
Her chakra surged- a flood of raw, corrosive Nine-Tails energy. The effect was instant and horrific. Their bodies convulsed as the potent chakra tore through their systems like acid, unraveling muscle, burning through their network, rotting them from the inside out. Their screams split the night, echoing through the quiet streets.
By the time they collapsed, Kushina had already scooped the girl into her arms, cloth and all, and was striding out the broken window. She paused only to kneel by the two decapitated shinobi outside, plucking a pair of headbands from their pouches.
'An hourglass symbol,' she thought. It was Sunagakure.
She smirked grimly and took off into the night, carrying the girl over her shoulder.
----
Once they were a sufficient distance away from the village, Kushina slowed down, her breathing steady despite the weight she'd been carrying. She gently set the girl down, crouching so they were at eye level, and pulled the gag from her mouth.
The girl's eyes were wide, her breath sharp and quick. She looked like a rabbit cornered by a wolf.
"W-who are you?" she managed, voice trembling.
Kushina softened her expression, forcing warmth into her tone. "I'm Kushina Uzumaki. Head of the new Uzumaki clan."
The girl's eyes widened, almost sparkling in the moonlight. "Uzumaki? You're really-?" She paused, as though scared to believe it. "I'm Honoka Uzumaki! Did… did the clan really rebuild?"
Kushina's expression softened. "Not yet." She looked off toward the horizon for a moment before turning her gaze back to Honoka. "I'm rebuilding it. One person at a time, if I have to. I've been traveling from nation to nation, tracking down anyone with our blood." She looked away briefly, almost sheepish. "You're the first one I've found, actually."
Honoka's brief joy dimmed, and her shoulders slumped a little. "The first? That means… there aren't many left, are there?"
Kushina's grin faded, replaced by something quieter, but her voice stayed steady. "We're still out there, scattered and hiding. And I'm going to find them all." She leaned in, her tone growing sharper, more determined. "No one gets to wipe us out and walk away from it."
Honoka's voice wavered. "Won't they just… come after us again? Destroy us again?" She hugged herself, as if bracing against the thought. "Every village wants to capture us. We're never safe."
Kushina straightened, her eyes glinting with a mix of pride and fury. "That's true. Every village out there wants something from us." She reached into her pocket and pulled out her scratched Konoha forehead protector, the crossed-out symbol glinting in the moonlight. "I was sent to Konoha before Uzushio fell. They thought they could chain me up, make me fight for them... I destroyed them instead!"
Honoka stared at the headband, her expression caught between disbelief and awe. "…You really destroyed a whole village?"
"They made the mistake of thinking I was their weapon," Kushina said, her voice almost playful now, though the edge of truth was unmistakable. "And I decided to show them what happens when you try to own an Uzumaki."
For a moment, silence hung between them, broken only by the wind. Honoka's eyes darted down to the dirt, then back up at Kushina. "You're… strong. Stronger than anyone I've ever met. But-" Her voice cracked. "If I follow you, won't that just make me a target too?"
Kushina chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Honoka, you were already a target. Those four earlier? They came for you because you were alone. Villages hunt us because we're scattered, easy prey. But together?" She reached out, resting a hand on Honoka's shoulder. "Together, the Uzumaki are invincible. It took the combined might of four hidden villages to take down our nation. That's the strength of our family."
Honoka swallowed hard, staring into Kushina's eyes. There was no hesitation there- just a blazing, unshakable resolve. Slowly, her fear gave way to something else. "Alright." Her voice was small but steady. "Please take care of me."
Kushina's smile widened, this time without any hint of pity. "Good. Then from now on, you're not alone. And anyone who tries to take you…" She glanced back toward the distant village, where the faintest scent of blood still lingered in the air. "…ends up like them."
Honoka nodded, and for the first time in years, she felt a flicker of safety- though she wasn't yet sure if it was safety from the world, or because the world would now fear the one she followed.