The light of the Sky Screen hanging high above the entire Shinobi World flickered, and the scene abruptly changed.
The woman looked not yet thirty. Her red hair was already dry and tangled, caked with dust. Her clothes were in tatters, wounds covered her body, and her face was frighteningly pale. She radiated the weakness of prolonged hunger, exhaustion, and severe injuries.
She held the hand of a tiny girl beside her, who timidly hid behind her mother, her clear eyes filled with fear and unease.
The people of the Shinobi World quickly recognized her. This was Karin as a young child.
After the two entered Kusagakure and settled down, mother and daughter still did not have enough to eat.
To survive, to feed her only child, she could only make the most desperate choice.
In exchange for a little food, Karin's mother set aside all her dignity and sought out injured people herself.
She let the injured bite her, using her special chakra to heal their wounds.
At first, she only healed a few people in secret.
But the healing effects of the Uzumaki bloodline were far too extraordinary, far too conspicuous.
This strange, astonishing gift soon drew the attention of Kusagakure's ninja.
The scene on the Sky Screen changed, and the story abruptly took a darker turn.
Several Kusagakure ninja suddenly came to her door and forcibly took control of Karin's mother.
The scenes began shifting rapidly, one brutal, oppressive image flashing past after another.
Once they had her under their control, Karin's mother lost her freedom completely.
Kusagakure's leadership kept her under strict guard. Injured ninja from the village, senior officials wounded on missions, and even people hurt during training all lined up to have her heal them.
Day after day, night after night.
Countless people took