With his shopping now done he needed a place to stay, he found himself on a muddy road echoed by the soft drizzle against the street. Hearing the swishing sound of bodies walking past each other on the street. The clashing sounds of metal houses reminded me the difference between the architecture of this country. The metal houses are known as a barn dominium, also known as a barndo to keep out the rain. Even with these interesting houses, they're still not spaced out properly, showing me just how small and poor this country is. I could see housewives shopping, old men having melancholic faces while staring at the sky, with muddy children playing. I can tell life is harsh but here the people accept it and find their own forced peace of mind.
While walking around I notice people by the trash cans. The once melancholic scene is changed with something nothing less than hopelessness. The alleyway is filled with nothing but broken people shivering, hoping for people to drop food by the alleyways so they can be the first to eat the scraps. Its a sad sight but theirs nothing I can do for them and I don't plan to fix this.
I've only been here a day and already I saw some pretty wild things. Older girls being beaten into serving older homeless boys, who would order them to go make them money. Without ninja's here to act as policemen the streets became a lawless place, with this mainly being a case by the outskirts of the village.
But there I found the person I was looking for. There shivering to the far right of the dumpster by a door was Konan. The five-year-old girl is probably waiting for the person living in that building to throw away their garbage.
Good Yahiko hasn't come along and led her towards her own death yet.
Standing alone in the rain, the little girl holds her hands together over her mouth hoping to use her breath to find some warmth as the rain covers her. With her body as thin as a stick, one hard push and her bones would break. The girl looked cautious, her hair disheveled and dirty, with dull amber eyes. The sight could make anyone shed a tear out of heartache. I decide to walk over to the girl hoping to finish this quickly.
Yo! I'm Jaden what's your name? I muster up my best protagonist smile and talk to her.
"K-Konan." The girl hesitantly replies not sure on what to do. I can tell she's a bit wary of me, its sad she's at this point. I wonder how many people the girl might have already asked for help, only for them to brush her off.
"How about you join me, I promise it'll be better than this?" Jaden says while looking around pointing to the dumps.
The girl knew she didn't have anything to offer the boy as she was still a child and couldn't sell her body like the older women, she'd see from time to time. The older kids didn't pick on her as they weren't interested intaking care of her. The only way for kids like her to serve was to sell themselves, steal, and to rob other people. With the strongest boys stealing and robbing. To them she's just another mouth to feed who wouldn't be able to contribute in any way.
The other people in the alley watching this exchange didn't think much of it. As they knew Konan to be useless and the other boy didn't look much bigger than her. Thinking if he planned on stealing he wouldn't get far not to mention the kids who led gangs would just beat him up and might kill him if he's not careful.
Konan didn't know what to think as if she waited here by the dumpsters people would throw away a lot of food. And she'd be able to eat two meals a week. But she was constantly cold, she really hates the cold and living outside. She'd hate to agree only to live in a worst spot with no food.
But it was something about the boys smile that was so inviting and not to mention his eyes that oozed confidence and security. Konan couldn't fight off the blush she got from looking at the boy wanting to trust his words.
"O-Okay sure." Konan finally decided to hear the boy out and see where this goes.
Jaden nods his head and leads her out the alley way back to his home. Jaden had to admit the more he saw this place the more he understood that this world needed to change.
Konan has been living on the streets for a year now and knows the world is a cruel place. From the moment she joined Jaden in wherever he's taking her, she knew she'd have to repay him somehow. So what can she offer him. It has to be the only thing she has. That being her unwavering loyalty.
Jaden took Konan to his makeshift laboratory on the side of a cave. Opening the locked door he can't help but say
Home sweet home.
Taking off his raincoat and showing Konan to her seat. He then goes to retreave the dinner he made last night, next handing it over to the girl. The five year old's face starts to light up as the food's arouam is inviting her to eat. But she still waits to look at me expectingly.
cute I can't help but say
Yes Konan you can eat
Konan started to shove the rice and chicken into her mouth rapidly.
Konan I yell
The girl is frightend by my loud voice, meakly looking at me
I couldn't help but hate myself for the moment but the girl needs to hear this. Slow down an chew your food no ones going to take it away from you nor are you going to have to worry about not having any more.
The girl stops for a second and her mouth twitches. then she cries happy tears from hearing this and begins to eat much slower.
It was sad watching the girls snot tearful face eat in between bites. I promised myself then and there to never let this girl hit such a rock bottom point again. Also vowing to never let her be pulled into any of that child of prophecy nonsense or get too close to Nagato and Yahiko. As its not obvious from now theirs no chance in saving those two as eventually Obito and Zetsu would never let Nagato go.
"Why?" Konan timidly after she finished eating.
Why? I say knowing exactly what she's asking but want to hear her say it.
"Why feed me?" Konan looked to the floor and tried to wipe her tears.
Well I have a couple of reasons. Jaden remembers what he planned on saying to the girl if he met her.
I need a partner
A partner
Yes a partner to help me. I plan on leaving this place in less than a month to help me start a business. At first I planned on getting this older girl in helping me but the girl is foolishly too loyal in protecting Ame. She even wanted me to join her and be a ninja as she saw my potential. But I want more than what this place could offer and it'd be too much work to make this place presentable.
Whoosh
I show Konan my transformation using one arm as a demonstration.
Konan is shocked and is a bit frightened stepping back.
Is that really enough to make you afraid.
N-No Im not afraid
Sigh its fine if you stay around me long enough you won't be afraid. I did this just to show you.
My full name is Jaden Onikuma, my clan can all do this. But that doesn't matter, my father sent me on a mission to form a diplomatic treaty with the Daimyo of the Land of Birds. But that was a ruse to get me out the country, I was betrayed as my village hired assassins to kill me.
Jaden then pulls out the Iwa head band he kept. I defeated an Iwa shinobi to get here so I promise I can protect you. Jaden says while giving her a warm smile.
So since I wasn't able to convince her I needed another person to help me. The reason I chose you is because your smaller than me for one. Sure an older boy or girl could work faster but their more likely to steal from me and get away with it. The older girl I wanted to convince was someone I could trust to watch my back so that problem was eliminated.
If I hired a kid, the same age as me, they wouldn't be able to get by me as their movements are too obvious. Not to mention children aren't yet set in negative way of thinking, with me still have to convince them that what their doing is wrong. So, it's safer for me as your less likely to betray me or steal from me
So, what do you say Konan, if we work together, we could accomplish a lot of great things and have full belly's when it's all over.
Hearing this Konan's eyes light up with excitement with small tears about to form.
I promise I can help, and I won't let you down.
Great to hear.
Jaden reaches out his hand to Konan.
Go ahead lets shake on it. The two kids shake hands completing the agreement.
Konan's childlike smile finally came out.
Once we shook hands I couldn't help but look down at Konan's appearance.
The girl noticing my gaze started to look down as her head never looked up at me and her hands stretching out the fabric of her shit. Konan looked like she was trying to appear as small as possible.
Im sorry the girl stuttered out.
Sorry for what I say in confusion
I am dirty the girl said not looking up
Oh, well that's not your fault, you can't help the situation you were put in but now you don't need to worry about that. Come with me I say
Taking the little girls hand I take her to one of the sides of the cave and shower the DIY shower I made. I explain that I made this from stuff I found in the dumpsters, bought in stores, and stole from abandoned houses. Then I start to turn the nob to show her how it worked. Luckily the height is low enough for the girl to use but she may not be strong enough to turn it. Welp I'll worry about it when It comes to be a problem. Then I give her a towel I stole from some of the homes and tell her to take off her clothes and wash up.
After a while I heard the shower head turn on and could see the steam coming from behind the curtain. I give a content smile and walk away. After 15 minutes a much softer Konan comes back with a content smile. I nod my head in approval as a hot shower can cure all, well at least heal the mind a bit.
Sitting down I give her another serving of food and tell her to eat up. I then cough to get her attention after a few bites.
Alright chubby cheeks I think its time I tell you what your job will be. Konan wipes the food from her mouth looking a bit embarrassed from the nickname and her lack of table manners. You know I find it really sad how much people down play Bulma back in Dragon ball, thinking the only useful thing she built is the time machine and gravity chamber for the Saiyan. Of course, no one can forget the item she built named after the show, being the dragon radar. Any one of the three items would be legendary in any context. A device able to locate anything on earth, if you think she can't then explain the randomness of locating an object that hasn't been seen of in thousands of years. I room that controls gravity up to 200 plus normal earth gravity, without ki, chakra, or Saiyan DNA that would crush a human body like a watermelon under a women's thighs. The lastly the most insane concept of time travel. For all the anime characters that travel through time its nothing but an ability their given or just used to start the show. The characters couldn't explain the concept of time travel nor how they used their abilities if they're life depended on it. Even the ones who used devices to travel back in time don't know how it works or could repair it if it broke down. Let alone build a time machine from scratch. And the one character that did manage to accomplish it are seen as one of the smartest people in anime, even though he has no control over it and is instead time's bitch as the time gods keep killing his girlfriend over and over again to fuck with him.
And do you know anyone able to perform time travel, explain how it works, and control it like they were taking a walk. That's right only one person in anime can brag about that, Bulma. But she has more interesting inventions under her belt all before the age of 15. With me and Konan going to work on one of them. Being the PP candy. The candy is nothing but a gag in the show as she could just yell out the word Pii Pii and make anyone go to the bathroom. While it may be a gag using this in battle could make it impossible for the enemy to attack me. I could change the effects and make a person's body paralyze or turn the can't into a spray. But I can only dream about doing that in the future. For now were going to turn these ingredients into solider pills, then later adding a chakra replenisher once we get more equipment.