6.12

    I lay on the fur pile, nursing a bitten finger and trying to sleep. Karin, the grabber, had ensnared me the moment I settled by her side. She wasn’t only a grabber, though. In the ten minutes I was here staring at the darkness and trying to sleep, she pulled my hair, kicked my legs, scratched my arms.

    Was she having a bad dream? A careful, probing look left me with more questions than answers. Her face was calm and peaceful, as if she dreamed of something pleasant. This was contrary to the reality I was experiencing, but I decided to endure it instead of shaking the redhead awake. It had nothing to do with her holding me and the human contact. Nu-uh. I just didn’t want to wake her up. That was all.@@@@

    I closed my eyes, thinking of blondes, cupcakes, and dates. I wanted to see Ino.

    It felt like I had just blinked when everything changed. The light from the ceiling crystals was brighter, the chattering and rustling all around louder. My mini-ninja-killer abused finger was no longer smarting from the bite, and Karin was still making me her pillow. For the second time, I disentangled myself from her.

    I got up, looking around. The previous night, tired from the ordeal and lack of sleep, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to realize we could be in real trouble. I cleared the crust from my eyes, unlimbered my sore limbs. It was time to get the ball rolling. I pushed my chakra, created a beacon for my Kuro Raikou no Jutsu. There was a tinge of painful heat inside my body following that. I held back in a groan. Fucking fucker Orochimaru.

    Karin was still asleep even after all that moving about. Was this a side effect of me draining her life force twice in a single day? I shook her awake.

    I pressed the wood kunai to Karin, and while she got ready, with one last stretch, I left the furs. I looked around, trying to see what was different from before I fell asleep. The guards I noticed before falling asleep weren’t here anymore, but many more were going around outside the alcove.

    Badgers, a lot of ninja badgers. Tiny cubs running, grunting, and playing. This small group was trying to throw shuriken, which was too big to hold. Another older group was play-fighting. Or at least, I hoped they were play-fighting. It looked brutal enough, but there was no blood, so I was keen on thinking they were only playing.

    “Good morning, Karin-chan.” I wrote with my threads.

    Karin pulled the bed hair out of her face. Fur lines marks on her skin. She looked worse than I’d seen her ever. “Errrhhr” she groaned. I took that as a yes.

    The small nook we slept in led to a larger tunnel or area. The crystals in the ceiling provided some illumination, but it was like faint moonlight. Enough to move by. With no idea where exactly to go, I picked the direction with the most chakra bundles. Karin shambled behind me.

    A familiar female squeaky voice squeaked in response, “Imma no cub no more pops. I earned my name.” The little devil turned to me and growled. It was adorable. “And why not? She’s tainted and brought an unworthy one!”

    I didn’t like where that conversation was going.

    A chuckle that sounded more like an earthquake preceded the answer. “Right, Kumoko.”

    That was a strange choice of name. If I understood it right, didn’t that mean Spider Child? Why would a mini murder badger be named that, of all things?

    The big face turned toward me. It was marred with many scars. Most were hidden beneath the coarse black and white fur but still visible if I paid enough attention. Somehow, the atmosphere changed after the chuckle, like a switch turned on.

    “You arrived uninvited and dying,” the big one said. “I gave you shelter. I shared my food and water. You partook in my hospitality. No harm befell on you,” the big one stopped, glanced down at Kumoko, “that wasn’t of your own making.” Was he implying the little-she-devil was right in biting me? I mean, I did try to pet her, but still. “Customs were observed.”

    There was a pregnant pause. Was I supposed to say something?

    “I’m the patriarch of this clan, and you may call me Tsuchigaru. Why have you come here, Hebigan Kuchiyose-te?”

    My mind raced at the question. I knew why I was here. It had been a gamble, and I needed to escape. I hadn’t known where I would appear, but as long as it wasn''t snakes, I was happy with making a contract with any other shinobi animal clan. But there was something strange in his way of addressing me. Names, I was coming to realize, meant a lot to these badgers. The big one meant Earth Growler, which was fitting, all things considered. If I took it at face value, the way he addressed me meant Snake-Eye summoner.

    I wasn’t sure what that meant, but I could convince them to sign a contract with me as long as they weren''t hostile. I thought back on what benefits I could provide. I had my modified storage seals, my explosives. I could help them get things from the human population and bring it back here. It might be expensive, but I wasn’t that poor anymore. I nodded. I could work with that. I opened my mouth. I didn’t manage to speak.

    “You reek of the snake clan. Why shouldn’t I let my daughter eat your eye and entrails for trespassing into my lands?”