Author's Note: I can tell that this story is quickly going downhill and, as I don't want to make this story a lot worse by adding short boring chapters, I'll just finish this up with one last chapter. Thanks to all those who've read this so far and reviewed (all 3 of you…) and I hope you'll enjoy the final part to the story (and not just enjoy the fact that it's over).
"What are you talking about?" Kin asked taken aback by the fact that Anko knew about her curse mark. "What curse mark? I don't know anything about any…"
"You don't have to lie to me Kin." Anko said calmly trying to act as though Kin trying to hide the curse mark, which Orochimaru had given her, didn't bother her. "I found out about it while I was listening to your sleep talking. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I merely wanted to let you try and overcome your inner demons on your own. I know now that this is a burden too big for anyone to be expected to carry on their shoulders."
"Anko-san, why do you sound like you know so much about what I'm going through? What do you know about the curse mark?" Kin inquired finding it rather odd that anybody, even the Hokage himself, could act like they knew so much and seem to actually have some experience to back it up with. "Do you have a friend who's living with the same curse mark I have? If so, can you please take me to meet him? You have no idea how helpful it would be to talk with someone who's gone through what I'm experiencing. Someone who can teach me how to restrain this curse mark and keep it from consuming me."
Anko smiled seeing that her help would be rather well received. "I guess you could say that." Anko answered grinning at what she was about to share with Kin. "However, it's a woman. You know her a lot better than you might think." Kin was about to demand that Anko stop playing around and take her to see this woman as she couldn't stand not being able to learn more about what she'd been through and how she's dealt with this affliction for so long when she saw the Jonin stand up, turn around, and remove her coat exposing the symbol on the upper part of her back before turning back around to see Kin in awe of what had been unveiled to her.
"I'm the village expert on Orochimaru remember? You shouldn't be so surprised that I'm the one who's gone through what you have." Anko said somewhat nervous at what the girl might think of her now. "I can help you keep it under control Kin but it'll take a great deal of work and dedication. In addition to that, once the Hokage has been informed of this, you'll be as hated as Naruto Uzumaki in the eyes of the citizens of Konoha. They don't exactly look kindly upon something as dangerous as this especially when its source is the demonic Orochimaru. I'm not going to pretend that your life's going to get any easier but I can tell you that you'll always have me to confide in. It would probably be easier for you to speak with the Hokage directly instead of having me as your advocate. If he sees the face of the person who's fate he's deciding perhaps that'll cause him to go a little easier on you in terms of how you'll be monitored."
Kin looked at the woman, as though she'd gone insane, which she was very certain was a distinct possibility after having to endure the disgrace of the curse mark. "Um…I'm not sure if you recall this or not but I'm still being kept here to recover from my fight with Shikamaru. The personnel aren't exactly going to let someone who had a concussion recently simply walk out the door." Kin said a little patronizingly as she thought that this was painfully obvious.
"Well then, it looks like I'll have to use some jutsu then won't I." Anko said rather smugly as she was about to make Kin even more shocked than she already was. Before Kin had a chance to question this statement as well Anko put her palms up to the girl's head and shouted "Mystical Palm Technique" as she gathered charka in her hands and utilized it to heal the girl's wound. When Anko had completed her technique Kin's bandages were removed, and to the Genin's surprise, found that the injuries she'd sustained in her fight had completely recovered. Kin glared at Anko as though to berate her for taking so long to do this.
"Look, I know you're made that I left you waiting to heal naturally but I had good reason for not healing you right away." Anko said upon noticing how angry she had made Kin. "First of all, the Mystical Palm Technique uses up a lot of charka. I doubt I'll be able to use much more than D & E level jutsu for the rest of the day. Second, I had to know how you were involved with Orochimaru. This made it vital to leave you somewhere that he was aware of. I knew that he'd send one of his minions to finish you off which would give me the perfect opportunity to interrogate them to find out what they knew about his plans. It was a rather good stroke of luck that the person who Orochimaru sent had been Kabuto."
"Super…can we go now? " Kin replied sharply still somewhat annoyed with Anko's hesitance to help her. "I'd like to speak with the old geezer soon so I can find out what I have in store in terms of restrictions and the like." Anko was rather pleased that Kin was starting to feel a little more confident and after putting on her coat said that they could head out after they had spoken with her doctor and signed some release forms.
After what had felt like a mountain of paperwork and an eternity of waiting Kin found herself standing in front of the Hokage with Anko ready to discuss the terms of what would become of her.
"I'm sure that you need not be told that we are well aware of the full extent of your situation Kin now the question of what to do with you still remains." Hokage informed the two sounding like he had already come up with his own ideas. "In order to keep you protected from any further attacks by Orochimaru as well as from yourself you will need to be placed under the careful watch of a few members of the ANBU black ops. We will place Dosu and Zaku under the same care; of course we will have to wait until Zaku has recovered to take him out of the hospital. I do understand that you have grown a close bond with the girl Anko and believe that you should have the right to state what you believe should be done based on what you've learned of her. Such extra inisight could easily prove essential to taking proper measures in terms of deciding her fate."
Kin looked at Anko with desperation as though pleading to save her from that sort of torture. "Sir, with all due respect I believe your plan is hardly the best course of action." Anko began formally knowing full whom she was speaking to but still trying her best to undermine the theory he'd reccomended. "At best, the ANBU black ops would be biased against her. It would be only natural as, much like the rest of the village, they would most likely see her as an unnecessary threat to Konoha. This would prove rather unfair to the girl and her friends as they would most likely not be taught anything more, to ensure that the threat level they pose wouldn't be heightened, thus halting their development as shinobi. I recommend that you leave them in an environment where they would get the proper provisions and instruction that they deserve. This is why I suggest that you put them under my care. Being a Jonin I am of proper level to take on a squad of ninja under my tutelage. I believe that their performance in the exams exemplifies their skills and serves as a more than acceptable substitute for the preliminary test to see whether or not they are ready to be Genin."
"Anko, I'm well aware how close you feel to this girl but you have to keep in mind that she does pose a threat to our village with her curse mark. I am also hesitant to give them free reign as they were trained under Orochimaru and therefore could be dangerous. In spite of this I do have to admit that if anyone was qualified to take on this responsibility that person would be you. However, even if I do agree to your proposal what would their living arrangements be?" Sarutobi replied somewhat reluctant to give in to Anko's idea despite how ideal it seemed as a prospect.
"I would give them shelter in my apartment. I have more than enough room to house 3 more people. I also make more than enough to provide proper care for the three of them. Being someone who used to be Ororchimaru's apprentice I believe that I have a good idea of what kind of an upbringing they were subjected to and believe that I can best take them from what they are now to respectable ninja of the village." Anko replied somewhat pleased that it seemed the Hokage was finally giving in to her concept.
"Anko, though rather hesitant to do so, I have full faith in you and grant you the three of them as your own students to raise and care for. I do however believe that daily check-ups with the ANBU black ops will be a necessity for the first two weeks to ensure that nothing goes awry. I know you won't let me down Anko and I look forward to seeing what you can make of these kids as well as how being a sensei will shape you as a Jonin." Sarutobi stated knowing full well that Anko's argument was too through and well backed up to fight against any longer.
"Thank you sir." Anko said glad to have saved the Genin from a life of hell. Anko and Kin made their leave rather promptly afterwards not wanting to stick around incase the Hokage might change his mind. When they had made their way to the streets of Konoha, Kin looked at Anko with quite a bit of curiosity and asked her "Did you really mean what you said? That Dosu, Zaku, and I are going to move in with and be taught by you? Are you really that willing to sacrifice your own privacy for us?" Kin questioned a bit disbelieving that Anko had really meant what she'd said.
"Of course, I can't let you guys come to any harm. I'd bet you'd get a good deal of emotional damage being looked after by the ANBU black ops. I know what it's like to feel like you've got nowhere to go and nobody to turn to for help. I had to grow up like that after Orochimaru abandoned me and I won't allow you kids to go through the same pain that I did. It wouldn't be fair to you. We victims have to stick together Kin." Anko said giving Kin a grin and a thumbs up. "I might be able to help Zaku heal tomorrow but for now let's go get Dosu from Shikamaru's place and get you two set up in your new home."
"Aren't you afraid of what might happen if I lose control? How am I going to keep it from overwhelming me Anko-san?" Kin questioned somewhat worried of what might happen if the curse mark were to overcome her.
"I have faith in you Kin. I know you have the willpower to do anything. Everything will be fine Kin, we'll take things just like I did, one day at a time." Anko responded trustingly as she stopperd Kin for a moment to give her a hug to let her know that, though she'd gone through hell, she'd never have to be alone again.
Author's Note: Well, it was a bit choppy but there you go. I didn't want to let it remain unfinished so I wrote this to just bring it to an end instead of just no longer writing anything and leaving it discontinued. I hope you liked the series fic and I'd really appreciate it if you left a review before you left.