26: Outbursting Affliction

The Yuka convoy made haste under Fumio's directions, their departure hurried along nicely with everyone comparatively well-rested. Kana's responsibilities for the day were primarily to help carry Fuzō's stretcher, which she did so easily. Ryuu looked doubtful of her ability at first, but quickly came to accept that Kana could indeed keep pace without tiring.

That said, the whole convoy could only move at a wagon's pace at the fastest, which was considerably slower than the speeds Kana had previously traveled at. Nonetheless, traveling slowly with the convoy presented opportunities that traveling quickly by herself did not.

Just meeting someone like the ever-unconscious Fuzō was already a potential lead for her investigation that Kana could not have pursued if she had continued on traveling alone.

Another important one was witnessing the medics at work with various patients.

A few questions revealed that their medical ninjutsu was a very effective, albeit heavily stamina-taxing method to treat almost any injury. She built up quite an interest in this type of ninjutsu after a while, since being able to heal wounds would also be a major advantage in her favor.

If it was a type of ninjutsu, then Kana figured she would be able to learn it, but she wasn't sure just how much to reveal about her ability. So she refrained from asking too much about it or practicing, because how others would react if they saw the way she manipulated and controlled her chakra was a mystery, especially since she was constantly doing what she thought of as 'suppressing' her chakra so that it wouldn't radiate out.

Again, Kana spent a lot of time silently observing others from her position near the middle of the convoy, always noticing something new. The samurai were positioned in pairs at the very front and back of the procession to fulfill their roles as guards, so Kana could often catch a clear view of them.

Though even if she were confident enough in her conversational skills, it was clear that samurai were not ones to make idle chatter. They had a hard-to-approach aura... but they and Kana were alike in that sense though, for Kana herself exuded an aura that seemingly made the Yuka members reluctant to bother or interrupt her. Or something like that. Hopefully that was it, right?

Fortunately for her limited communication ability, Ryuu was also not much for chatter either and they spent most of their time as a stretcher team in comfortable silence. Ryuu seemed to have his own private thoughts just as Kana did.

As the days on the road passed, Kana gradually got more used to her role, falling into a routine of miscellaneous chores in addition to her primary responsibility of carrying a stretcher. Firewood collection, help with passing out rations, help with foraging, aiding the medics with applying bandages, and more. These were tasks that might come in handy to know later, so Kana performed them without a second thought. Just seeing how others went about their tasks was valuable enough experience for to improve her ability to hide and disguise herself.

Kana also got to spend a lot of time next to Fuzō, tending to her under Ryuu's supervision. While the woman's wounds were quite severe, it brought Kana a nebulous sense of relief to see them gradually healing. The saddening part was that Fuzō had yet to ever fully awaken, and she was mostly given fluids intravenously or supplied with medical chakra. Then again, consciousness would allow her to feel all the pain her wounds must be causing, so maybe it wasn't such a bad thing. Fuzō would also undoubtedly bear a plethora of scars, should she ever fully recover.

Every so often, Kana would carry the stretcher one-handed, slipping her other hand on the sly to circulate a bit of her own chakra and check the woman's condition. It was something she'd watched Ryuu do hundreds of times at routine intervals, so she at the very least wanted to try it. She had to do this very slowly and carefully, tiny amounts of chakra at a time, in order to keep Ryuu from noticing. Kana very much did not want Ryuu to see her doing so. That would entail a lot of questions she didn't want to answer.

At first, Kana only wanted to stealthily try it once, to see what exactly it revealed about the condition of the body.

With the amounts of chakra that Kana was using, the answer was not much, just a general sense of how good or bad the body was faring in areas. However, after she tried it the first time, Fuzō seemed visibly comforted by Kana's actions, her condition and breathing stabilizing. From her observations, Kana noticed no one else who could do that, not Ryuu nor any of the other medics. After she saw this, Kana figured it was the least she could do to help the woman recover.

It was tricky to manage, but on days when Fuzō's body temperature fluctuated or her muscles stiffened up too much, Kana did her best to find time to circulate some of her chakra to offset it. Often this took place during mealtimes, since Kana only ate infrequently and everyone else would be busy.

Fumio, true to his initial warnings, later admitted that he could only provide Kana with one meal most days, which put a hold on her current eating experiments. He said this with a rather regretful look, and most of the other Yuka members could only pity her. They were all in the same situation after all, but telling that to the thin young girl accompanying them still roused their sympathies.

Seeing Kana work so earnestly and untiringly at her tasks only further exacerbated this sympathy, though Kana herself remained largely oblivious of this fact. She caught their worried glances, yes, but only considered it as far as being satisfied that she was successfully concealing the true extent of her abilities.

After all, if they knew what she was capable of, they wouldn't have such doubts. In the end, most of the members merely made their own resolves and redoubled their efforts. Kana's unfaltering and uncomplaining work ethic had unintentionally revitalized the Yuka Group. They followed her example, the unwitting leadership of a young girl. No one uttered words of unnecessary pity, none tried to deprive themselves of food for her sake. They all just went on, hoping to reach the end of their journey soon.

With renewed vigor, the convoy covered a substantial distance along the northeast roads and before she knew it, the weather started to get colder and colder. The environment also shifted back into a heavily forested one, this time with more coniferous trees interspersed. The temperature still did not really bother her, for it and the wind were both harsher at the summit of Mt. Shumisen.

In truth, everything was all fine for her. Kana didn't need to eat at all as far as she knew. 'Cold' and 'hungry' were not words suitable to describe her, though they would be accurate for virtually anyone else in her situation. Be that as it may, Kana did not want anyone to find out this fact, so maintained a suitably meek and demure countenance to match the misery of those around her. This was her own way of 'going on'.

Though, it was still a bit of a shame to put her eating-nutrients-experiment on hold, for Kana sensed that her body had grown a bit, something which she heavily suspected food might be involved with.

At night when nobody was watching her, Kana would sneak off and dispel her Henge disguise, inspecting herself thoroughly for changes. If her real body changed while she was under the Henge, it would gradually become more and more uncomfortable to maintain the same disguise, something which really bothered Kana.

When gauging her own height against Ryuu, whose back was facing her on the opposite side of Fuzō's stretcher for many hours every day, Kana figured she might be a couple centimeters taller. Her limbs and sides weren't quite as thin either, her ribs less prominent. And so, every once in a while she would update and re-apply her Henge disguise with changes that more accurately reflected her real body's shape.

Still, despite whatever else the Yuka Group was lacking, what they could provide was new clothes, something which had become desperately needed as time went on. Fumio had apparently considered the issue of the weather and Kana's grubby garb, gifting her a spare grey uniform set of cleaner and softer clothes with a Yuka Group emblem on their sleeves. They were long-sleeved and made of thick cloth, good for the cold yet didn't incite much sweating.

The set included some plain unisex undergarments and a heavy white doctor's robe too, which would be knee-length on an adult, but was shin-length on Kana. Kana's real clothes under her Henge disguise were in fact quite grubby and worn out in comparison, so she gladly accepted. The new ones fit much better and were far more comfortable against her skin, no longer causing constant abrasions. The undergarments were most significant improvement relating to this.

Her now-unnecessary old clothes were gifted to the medics for use as rags, which was in truth about all that they were still good for. The difference was as clear as night and day, greatly improving Kana's overall comfort during the journey. Where Kana was grateful to Michiko for providing shelter, she was now equally grateful to Fumio for providing clothing.

The only part lacking from the doctor-style robe was unfortunately a hood or cowl, so Kana still kept and wore her old overcoat atop the new clothes, both the real one and an adjusted rendition in her Henge disguise.

On top of being useful against rain, Kana wanted to be able to put her hood up to hide her face and hair just in case her disguise were ever dispelled unintentionally. There was no telling what might happen, but this was an easy enough preparation to make.

The days pressed onward and eventually Kana caught on to something else that was excellent. If she 'woke up' early enough in the morning, she could witness a brief time when the samurai practiced a few sword drills and techniques. All she had to do was cut her nightly meditations a bit short into the morning and she could learn some basic swordplay via spying.

When the convoy halted for the nights, she would use her looted tantō and try to mimic their movements from memory, which came surprisingly easily. Her body and observational memory were every bit as sharp as she felt they were back when she had first practiced atop Mt. Shumisen.

Thinking back so much on her time in that mountain temple made her long for the hidden hotspring there again. Weeks of travels had a tendency to build up grime and stiffness, unpleasant issues which could be perfectly addressed by a good soak in a hotspring. And not just for Kana, the other Yuka members smelled rather pungent themselves.

Sometimes having sharp senses could be a disadvantage, Kana mused absentmindedly. That there was a lesson to take to heart, too.

Thoughts of hotsprings stirred thoughts of the convoy's destinations, one of which was literally named the Land of Hotsprings. Thoroughly interested, Kana inquired of Ryuu about it as they traveled, liking much of what she'd heard. Ryuu himself was apparently a native of the the Land of Hotsprings, from a town just outside Yugakure, which was the military headquaters for ninja in the country. It was one of the only things he was forthcoming with when talking about. Something called homesickness seemed to permeate the Yuka convoy, Kana had surmised by now.

The Land of Hotsprings, sometimes called the Land of Hot Water by those of older generations, was a neutral nation famous for its pleasant climates and abundant water-related attractions. A whole network of hotspring inns, hotels, and resorts filled the country, as well as some gorgeous coastal regions east along the Haran Bay and Kaizoku Sea.

About thrice the size of the Land of Grass, the country had a vibrant economy founded on various industries, tourism being one of the more famous ones. While they maintained a military and shinobi village, it rarely if ever had to mobilize. The country's attractive and pleasant atmosphere was a foundation on which friendly relationships with all the neighboring lands were built.

According to Ryuu, feudal lords from of the Land of Frost and the Land of Lightning were particularly fond of vacationing there. The Land of Fire and Land of Rice, too, to a lesser extent.

It was a routine day traveling and listening to an anecdote from Ryuu about his homeland while the convoy went about making camp that Kana noticed something seemed amiss with Fuzō.

She shivered slightly on her stretcher, left hand twitching towards her waist. Feeling the woman's forehead revealed that she was somewhat abnormally hot as well. Unwilling to inspect with her own chakra for fear of discovery, Kana alerted Ryuu with a point and a whisper.

"Ryuu-san, I think... something is wrong with Fuzō?" her voice betrayed a slight concern and frustration.

Normally Kana would try to resolve it herself first, since it seemed to work usually, but there was no way to do so slowly or discreetly. And this time it looked like an urgent response was needed.

Cutting short his story about the forest fragrances of his hometown, Ryuu nodded seriously and leaned to check Fuzō's condition, noticing the twitching arm and a bit of blood around her waist. Together they set the stretcher down and Ryuu turned to face Kana.

"Hmm, very good catch Kana-san. I think the sutures around this gash wound have come undone. I'll need to redo them and disinfect it. If left to fester, it could have caused an infection and seriously threatened Fuzō's life in her weakened state."

As he said this, he fetched his medical bag from a nearby wagon, retrieving from it a suture and surgeon's kit. He then knelt to the woman's left and unwrapped a few waist bandages, but before he used his tools, he inspected them and grimaced.

"Ah, my needles and blades seem to have gotten quite dirty. I can't operate on her wound like this, I have to clean them first." His frown deepened as he rubbed the blades; some dried substance, possibly blood, was stubbornly clinging to them.

"I could have sworn I'd cleaned them already. Kana-san, If you could, please go and fetch some firewood. I'll have to made a fire and sterilize the blades with heat. As I said before, an infection could be lethal for Fuzō."

Ryuu then set his medical bag beside the stretcher, stood, and looked over towards another wagon before adding, "I'll go get a water pail and a clean rag. I ought to clean the wound as well."

Kana nodded her assent and quickly trotted off to find some firewood. It was best to address this quickly, so she went to the wagon rack which already had some kindling collected on it.

She had just turned around to head back when she caught sight of Ryuu returning to Fuzō's side in the distance.

Eyes still closed, Fuzō's right hand suddenly darted out, snatching a light scalpel-like blade from the medical kit lain beside her.

This hand then slashed aside with precision and skill, drawing blood from Ryuu's neck as the man stumbled backwards in surprise. The water pail he had recently collected spilled to the side and splashed across the ground.

With a low and shuddering scream, Fuzō lurched up off the stretcher and fell onto one knee, eyes now sharply glancing all around. Her left arm and leg hung limply to her side, her body trembling as she struggled to rise. Conversely, the blade in her right hand was firm and steadily gripped, poised and braced to stab or slice.

Two nearby nurses, each sporting numerous bandages of their own, rushed over to help the fallen woman. Wild slashes from Fuzō forced them back, thin lines of blood marking new wounds on their ankles and forearms.

Clutching a hand to his bleeding neck, Ryuu let out a pained shout. "Wrath of the heavens Fuzō, is that really you?! Calm Down! You're among friends here!" He looked like he wanted to continue, but started to hyperventilate.

By now the commotion had spread through the whole camp, the returning Kana included. Everyone's eyes were on the scene, eyes that widened as the heavily wounded Fuzō somehow shakily rose to her feet, lurching sideways for a few steps while still brandishing the knife menacingly. She whirled around several times as if searching for something, a way out perhaps?

The actions aggravated her wounds and blood started to seep into her bandages anew. The pain only now seemed to hit her, as the woman stumbled and cried out in a gasping and urgent yell,

"Get away! Keep aw- away from me!"

Followed by pained murmurs that Kana could barely make out as "It's everywhere, all around" and "surrounded, surrounded".

Fuzō made it a few more steps away, practically dragging the entire left half of her body behind her, before again falling to a knee. Even still, she dragged herself away with groans of effort that seemed to emerge from her very core.

It was also admirable that despite all of the pain she must be in, her right hand still held her little blade in a white-knuckled deathgrip, brandishing it carefully. Perhaps the only part of her body not trembling was this hand.

The samurai rushed forward to surround her at this point, hands already on their blades, before being stopped by an arm abruptly raised in front of them by Fumio. And so they stood in a stand-off, scared and worried faces decorating the Yuka members surrounding the scene.

Now four people were bleeding, Ryuu, Fuzō, and two nurses, but no one dared move to help until the situation was resolved.

Kana could no longer stand idly by, shaking away her own shock. It looked like Fuzō might die from overexerting herself, a fear that unexpectedly rattled Kana. And Ryuu looked in a bad way as well. She'd left for a dozen minutes and such a tense scene had developed, centered around a person she held a lot of interest in. Somehow, Kana knew she could help. A little stab wound wouldn't be much to someone like Kana.

She dropped the firewood she'd been tasked with collecting, the clattering noise causing Fuzō's pained gaze to dart in Kana's direction. Kana approached at a measured pace and as Fuzō got a clear look at her, this pained gaze loosened and filled with hope.

"This feeling!?" She again found her words, letting loose a frantic exclamation. Before Kana could get any closer, Fuzō followed this up with a desperate plea.

"Help me please! I cannot stand it!" She took a few hoarse and labored breaths before continuing, looking at Kana's neutral expression, "Can't you sense it, too? It's everywhere. Everywhere! It comes from everyone! And it only brings death, death! You're the only one it doesn't- please, please, tell me I'm not losing my sanity!" Tears ran from her eyes as she could barely whisper this last part.

By now, Kana had reached Fuzō's side, holding her shoulders and supporting her weight as the woman practically sobbed at her.

Everyone around watched in shock as Fuzō eased her grip on the blade and dropped it beside Kana, making no further attempt to defend herself before collapsing into the young girl's arms, once again nearing unconsciousness.

Kana held the bleeding woman in her arms for a long moment, just staring at her before glancing up sharply at Fumio, pointing to Ryuu with one hand and then gesturing for the bystanders to help.

Fumio seemed to get the hint and barked out instructions that Kana didn't pay much attention to. She was too focused on Fuzō, whose words still echoed in her ears. Kana had no idea what she was talking about, but she could sense the earnestness of the woman's plea and the desperate trust she placed in Kana. Why her? What was it that scared her so much as to be afraid of people she should recognize? Why was her first response violent defense?

It was all rather overwhelming. Kana had intended to intervene, but could never have expected something like this. And now, cradling the woman's head in her arms, Kana felt loathe to leave Fuzō's side. It was a dilemma, too, for Kana knew she could not do much else to help the woman, who still needed urgent medical treatment.

She looked up and around again, and soon enough a female medic with a wizened face that Kana vaguely recognized approached to help, hands glowing faintly with medical ninjutsu as she proceeded to close Fuzō's reopened wounds and deftly reapply bandages. She even sutured as necessary with a fresh toolkit.

They shared no words between each other, the medic tacitly accepting the necessity of Kana's presence and vice versa. Unbeknownst to Kana, Fumio had just ordered that should Fuzō reawaken, Kana's was to be the first face she sees. This was in the hopes that, based on what they'd just seen and heard, Kana could keep the woman calm enough so that they could all figure out how to proceed.

Kana was not the only one seeking answers about this situation, which had for some reason brought about the conclusion that Kana was the only one who had not received Fuzō's unexpected hostility.

Examinations of Ryuu and the others wounded by the woman revealed that Fuzō had targeted vital blood vessels, all of which would have left lethal wounds. Had she not been a few centimeters off with her frantic aim, Ryuu could have bled out in seconds, a fact which greatly perturbed Ryuu himself.

Fumio stroked his chin gravely as he pondered what happened in the distance.

After the medic finished her work, Kana began to channel some of her chakra into Fuzō while carrying to woman back to her stretcher. Again, very slowly, very gently, Kana's chakra seemed to comfort Fuzō, whose body went limp and relaxed, her temperature stabilizing.

Staring at the figure below her, Kana saw a single line of tears finish rolling down Fuzō's face. The sight of which, strangely, brought a bit of moisture to her own eyes. It hadn't been the most dangerous situation Kana had ever found herself in, but for some reason it felt just as desperate.

Kana found just now another confusing feeling that she would have to thoroughly reflect upon.