Chapter Text
The old tales say fairies are born from a wish. Sakura knows otherwise.
Fairies are born from all sorts of things: a beautiful flower, a raindrop, even a gemstone. All they require is the willful gaze of another living being to make it so.
She once asked her mother how it’s any different from a wish. Her mother laughed and answered so, “A fairy isn’t born with words alone. There’d be many more of them if that were the case. And even a gaze isn’t always enough. There must be intent and appreciation behind it, enough will and maybe, just maybe a fairy will be born.”
“Appreciation?” Sakura had asked, still confused, but understanding enough even at only seven the rest of her mother’s words. “For what?”
“Why, for the beauty that has inspired your gaze. How can a fairy be born without someone who understands their worth otherwise?”
“I guess they couldn’t.”
“Exactly!”
Her mother smiled and Sakura smiled back, thinking she had the most beautiful and smartest momma in the whole world.
But that was so many lonely years ago now. Sakura’s mother and father had succumbed to illness the year she turned ten. Sakura recovered from that same illness, but she didn’t understand why when it took both her parents and nearly half the village.
She searched for answers, but all the books she read had no such answer for her. When the esteemed Royal Healer, Lady Tsunade of the Senju came to her village in search of answers herself for the epidemic that was overtaking the land village by village, Sakura was in awe. Here was someone who could give her answers, and even if she couldn’t, she could find them.
But what really had Sakura in awe was the fact Lady Tsunade had a fairy. A fairy with the power to heal, a rare and coveted talent. And the fairy who called herself Shizune was looking for Sakura. When Sakura asked why, she was not prepared for the answer she got.
“Because you are the only one who’s recovered after being afflicted. You may hold the answer for the cure.” Shizune kneeled to look her in the eye, a gentle and warm smile on her face.
“How?” Sakura asked.
“It could be in your blood, child.” Lady Tsunade had answered. “It would not be the first time a disease was cured this way.”
“Like with the Smallpox? A vaccine? But that was done with Cowpox. We don’t really know what was making people sick. No one’s had anything like it before.” Although at the time Sakura didn’t know how to pronounce the word vaccine and it sounded more like ‘vac-sheen.’
Lady Tsunade blinked, looking taken aback, her mouth parted open in surprise, but it was Shizune who spoke to her, her tone sounding pleased.
“Now, how did you know that? That’s not something taught in your school at your age.”
“I read it in a book. I want to know why I got better, but Momma and Papa didn’t, but none of the books I’ve read can tell me.” Her eyes watered and she swiped furiously at them, not wanting to cry in front of strangers. Her momma told her that’s rude.
“Well, that’s what we’re here to find out.” Shizune said, her tone gentle again as she stroked Sakura’s head. “Will you help us?”
Sakura wasn’t expecting that. “I-I can?”
Shizune nodded. “Yes.”
“In more ways than one, I expect.” Lady Tsunade added. “You don’t have any other family, girl?”
“My lady…”
“What? She’s clearly got a sharp mind and motivation to learn. And if there’s no one left to claim her… well, I’m not going to be around forever, you know.”
“Still, my lady, I don’t think no-”
“I don’t, I’m an only child and so were my parents. My grandparents died when I was still a baby, my momma told me. And my name’s Sakura.” Sakura had spoken up, putting the pieces of the conversation together like the puzzles she and Momma used to do. “You think I can be a healer like you?”
“I do.” Lady Tsunade said.
“Is that something you want, though, Sakura?” Shizune asked. “It’s one thing to help us by letting us use your blood, but becoming a healer can be challenging, especially without a fairy to help you. There are only a few of us, so we can’t assist everyone.”
Sakura nodded and clenched her fists, bringing them to her chest. “I want to. I want to know what made Momma and Papa and everyone die. And I want to make sure it never happens again!”
Lady Tsunade laughed out loud, smiling widely for the first time in weeks since the plague had encroached the land. “She’s ambitious, I like her even more now!”
Shizune sighed, but even she couldn’t help a small grin. “Alright, if that’s what you wish. I guess there’s no helping it then.”
“I’m telling you, Shizune. I’ve got a good feeling about her, and I don’t just mean about her blood. I think you’ve got something special, girl.” Lady Tsunade stepped closer and kneeled down closer to meet Sakura’s eye.
“I’ve never seen such bright green eyes like yours before. I wonder what fairy will get to be born after being gazed upon by them.”
So Sakura became the first and only apprentice to the Royal Healer of the Land of Fire’s Imperial Family.
Shortly after, Lady Tsunade and Shizune discovered the ‘illness’ sweeping through the land was actually a potent death curse cleverly disguised. Sakura carried no antibodies in her blood, as far as Tsunade’s science could tell her and whatever magic, if it had been magic, that spared her life Shizune could find no trace of. Sakura carried the scars of snake bites on her shoulders, though, that proved she did once have the curse.
Three months after Sakura lost her parents and the country lost almost one third of its people, the curse stopped in its tracks without warning or preamble. Those already afflicted perished and the rest were spared, although how the curse infected its victims and why others were cursed and others not, neither science or magic could tell. But the most troubling question was who.
Sakura, under Tsunade’s and Shizune’s tutelage, thrived as a healer-in-training. Tsunade’s feeling about her paid off when it became clear that Sakura had an impeccable memory and the ability to channel healing magic, a rare human skill once thought lost to time and legend. Tsunade's own skill, Creation Rebirth, was no less rare or formidable, but it came at a cost and she only used it when the matter was beyond her medical techniques and Shizune's healing magic.
Tsunade did not tell Sakura until she was much older, though, that her unique ability may have saved her life, but she did not know how or why Shizune couldn’t tell Sakura had such an ability until Sakura assisted unasked in a tricky surgery, many months after they’d run all the tests they could to develop a cure. It had been so long since someone had shown such a skill, trial and error became the only ways to separate fact from fiction in terms of what Sakura was capable of.
Sakura wasn’t satisfied with that answer, but even after so many years, she still couldn’t figure out how she had managed to channel a death curse unknowingly. Tsunade suspected Sakura could channel other types of magic, but fairies were uncommon during these times and their masters hoarded protectively those who chose to serve humans. And her free time was limited between training Sakura and tending to her duties as Royal Healer. There simply wasn’t enough time to test her suspicions and there were far more pressing concerns.
For even more frustrating was that without a trace of the curse left to study, no one, not her or even Lady Tsunade or Shizune could develop a means of preventing another outbreak. And Tsunade harbored a bad feeling that whoever unleashed the death curse wasn’t finished yet…
Now, however, at sixteen years old and finally of age, Sakura prepares to embark on the last leg of her training before she could become eligible to take the Royal Medical Exam and become a full-fledged Healer in her own right. Only so many could become Healers each year and they only allowed participants to re-take the exam three times if they failed the first time. The field of healing left no room for error when it could mean someone’s life, especially when there are so few healing fairies around, as Shizune had warned her.
But Sakura believes in her mentors and her own skills. She knows she can do it! The last thing she must do is travel abroad and hone her skills with another Healer. Lady Tsunade is the best in the Land of Fire, so Sakura received special permission to travel to one of Fire’s Allies and learn all she could from one of their best. Much to Lady Tsunade’s chagrin, but to Sakura’s delight, she already received a request to train under Lady Chiyo, an esteemed Healer from the Land of Wind with a specialty in poisons and curses.
As much Lady Tsunade grumbled about it, though, she begrudgingly admitted that Sakura would be far-pressed to find a better offer. The two had been at odds for years, rivals and once bitter enemies on opposite sides of a drawn-out war that happened long before Sakura was born.
“Who knows? She ignored me when I requested her insight on that damned curse, but it seems she has already taken a liking to you. Maybe that old crone will give you some insight about it.” Tsunade huffed, holding the letter with the edges of her fingertips as if it were poisoned.
Though the stories Sakura has heard through the years… maybe it could have been. Sakura felt no ill effects after handling it herself, however.
The Land of Wind’s slow response back then did not surprise sakura in those days when the ink on the newly signed treaty between them was still drying. Fire had waited four months to even send a messenger for aid, Sakura’s village and parents were already afflicted by the third month. And the curse plague stopped only three months after that. It left a bitter taste in Sakura’s mouth to think about, but she didn’t hold it against Lady Tsunade who she knew did all she could. Even the Royal Healer’s influence only held so much weight in the palace and Sakura felt the blow her mentor’s pride took in even sending out the missive for aid. Only for Wind to not have enough time to respond, but who could have predicted that a plague like the curse would disappear so suddenly after taking its time to make its presence known?
Sakura shakes her head, dispelling such thoughts for the moment. She even pats her cheeks for good measure.
“Don’t get lost in your thoughts now, Sakura. Still gotta meet Shishou and Shizune-sensei before you go.” She mutters under her breath to herself.
Tugging on her black gloves, Sakura grabs her pack and medical bag and heads out towards the village’s main gate. It doesn’t take her as long it normally would, excited as she is to start the three-day journey to Suna in the Land of Wind and meet Lady Chiyo.
Well, it might take her a little longer than three days as she still needs to make a stop in Hancho and maybe even Tonika to see if she can employ a helper fairy. She’s not sure what to expect working under Lady Chiyo, and best to come prepared, even if she doesn’t have a healing fairy. If she can’t manage to find one in Hancho, she hopes her desert guide to Suna won’t mind the extra stop in Tonika when they rendezvous at the border.
“Sakura, over here!” She hears Shizune calling out to her as the village gate comes into view.
Sakura turns her head and smiles, catching sight of Lady Tsunade and Shizune waiting off to the side of the massive gate doors. She picks up her pace, hurrying to stand in front of them.
“Good morning, Shishou, Shizune-sensei!” She greets them, dipping her head with her right arm across her chest in the traditional sign of respect.
“Now, now, none of that! You’ll be at my level soon enough, anyway,” Tsunade scolds her, but her tone is light.
“Shishou…”
“My lady, I understand what you mean, but you shouldn’t be that outspoken about it. Sakura still needs to complete her apprenticeship and earn her Certification in next year’s exam. Which we have no doubt you’ll pass with flying colors, Sakura!” Shizune says her last words to the young healer in front of them brightly.
“Well, that’s certainly true. I’d appoint your Certificate today if those damn traditionalists didn’t keep insisting we adhere to this outdated system. Honestly, anyone who has the skills…” Tsunade shakes her head, breaking off her tirade to give her only pupil a proud grin, “Anyway, we’re counting on you, Sakura, but we know you won’t let us down.”
“Right!” Sakura agrees with a nod.
“You have everything you need? Your visa and travel papers?” Shizune asks, her wings fluttering behind her in their usual nervous motherly way.
“Yup!”
“That’s good,” Shizune says, relieved. “Oh, and I wanted to give you this.” She reaches into her sleeve and holds out her hand to Sakura, revealing a teal-gray omamori in her palm. The gold lettering etched on the outside signifies safe travels.
“Shizune-sensei…Thank you…” Sakura feels tears prick her eyes as she gingerly picks up the charm, but a small gasp escapes her when she feels the warm rush of magic in her fingertips. The charm emits a subtle teal glow, sparkling with unmistakable fairy wing dust. “You charmed this yourself?”
“Well, Ino did help me gather the magic from my wings. It’s quite difficult without help otherwise. She put some of her own on the thread so it wouldn’t fray before the year went out. Oh!” Shizune gasps herself from Sakura throwing her arms around her in a bone-crushing hug.
“Thank you both so much! Oh, you’ll tell her when she gets back, right? I can’t believe she didn’t say anything before she went on assignment.” Sakura says.
“Well, we did want to surprise you. She’ll be so happy when I tell her how much you liked it.” Shizune laughs, returning Sakura’s hug.
“Like it? I absolutely love it!”
Tsunade clears her throat and the pair tense, stepping back from each other sheepishly. Shizune still smiles, though, smoothing the front of her yukata while Sakura tucks her omamori safely in the front packet of her medical bag.
“That reminds me!” Tsunade says, a rosy tint to her cheeks, reaching into the folds of her green haori. “I also brought you a gift for your journey.”
In her hands, Tsunade holds a small tin, tied with a red ribbon.
“Shishou, you didn’t have to..I couldn’t…” Sakura feels the tears coming again, but Tsunade hushes her, placing the tin in her hands.
“Enough of that, I told you. Now, I want you to look carefully at what’s in here, alright? I had to go all the way to the Valley to get it.”
“The Valley? You don’t mean the Valley of the End, do you, my lady?” Shizune asks, her tone nervous.
“You know any other valleys? Of course, I meant that one, Shizune!”
As Shizune starts to quibble over her Healer’s precocious tendencies, Sakura is captivated by the too-warm tin in her hands. Even through the metal and her gloves, the magic leaks out, but how? The tin only seems big enough to hold a few rolls of gauze and some needles. What could possibly be in here that holds enough magic to set her fingertips tingling and goosebumps on her skin. Where did Lady Tsunade go in the Valley of the End?
Wait, isn't that place there?
"It's alright if I open it now, right?" She asks, interrupting their bickering.
"Of course, I was hoping you would. I want to see what happens." Tsunade grins.
Shizune sighs, pressing a hand to her forehead.
Sakura swallows, a little nervous now. Nevertheless, she tugs on one end of the ribbon, untying it, and reaches for the latch. Lifting the lid carefully, she blinks when whatever’s in the tin catches the sun, obscuring her vision for a few moments.
Squinting as her vision readjusts, Sakura blinks again, staring at two shiny black rocks nestled on a small red silk pillow within the tin. She almost mistakes them for uncut gemstones, but she recongnizes the coal. No, not quite coal. Anthracite. Out of all coal, it burns the hottest and is the most valuable.
But this anthracite comes from a sacred place. Sakura would have figured it out even if her Shishou hadn’t told her where she went to get it.
The Fire Fox Den. A mine held by the Royal family that no one is allowed to use or go near without explicit permission for the coal there not only mainly consists of anthracite, but is enchanted. Legend says the mine used to home an ancient deity, Kurama the Nine-Tailed Fox, worshipped by both the fairy folk and humans. It’s unclear what happened to Kurama. Some say he was slain by another deity. Other stories say he fell in love with a fairy (or human, depending on who’s telling the story) that passed before their time and rather than continue to live in the mortal plane without them, he chose to go with them to the After. Either way, Kurama was a fire deity and so powerful, he was constantly leaking magic into his surroundings. It’s said nothing can grow anywhere near the mine even after so many centuries because of the excess magic. Fairies with fire affinities are said to pilgrimage there if they’re granted access by the Daimyo to strengthen their natural magics.
Sakura’s never been allowed to hold some in her hands like this. Anthracite from the Fire Fox Den is only ever used by the Royal family for special holidays and occassions. The flames from anthracite like this are as sacred as the coal itself and said to cleanse those who bask in their glow and grant them good fortune.
As Royal Healer, Lady Tsunade has access to the mine, but only for official Royal requests and the occassional favor from a noble related to a Royal family member. There’s no way she would’ve gotten permission to give Sakura, a commoner with a rare ability but a commoner all the same, any as a gift.
“Shishou, you didn’t…” Sakura whispers, staring at the brightest of the two pieces. She’s never seen coal sparkle in the sunlight before. The few times she’s seen anthracite has been at night for special occasions like New Year’s, hopefully granting another year of prosperity and safety for the Land and All Souls Day, cleansing the people of their grief for loved ones lost over the previous year to send their souls to the After. Even then, in the light of the fires being lit to prepare, Sakura thought anthracite beautiful when it reflected back the flames, sparkling in oranges and reds as if it were already on fire.
In sunlight, however, it really is like a jewel…
“Huh?” Sakura squints her eyes again as for just a moment, the lump of anthracite she gazed at shines brighter before dimming again.
However, sitting atop it now with his head bowed and eyes closed is a fairy…
A fairy!?
Sakura blinks, not beliving her eyes. Did she really…
“Oh, my.” Shizune says, raising one hand to her mouth.
Tsunade’s grin widens into a smug smile, as pleased as punch.
“No way…” she whispers. The fairy stirs, seeming to have heard her, and she jumps, nearly dropping the tin but she catches herself.
Before she can think further, the newly born fairy opens his eyes from the jostling and looks up at her.
He has coal black eyes and what she thinks are freckles that look like whiskers on his cheeks. She realizes his eyes match his hair which is the same shade of anthracite he sits upon but instead of smooth locks, it sticks up in jagged tufts. His skin is a warm beige color, which she thinks briefly is odd but remembers what he was just born of. Not all fairies are, but he’s actually born with simple clothes, wearing a black fitted shirt with loose grey pants. No shoes though.
“You’re a human, right? I take it was you who allowed me to be born.” He asks, standing up atop the anthracite.
“Uh..”
“You can bet your wings it was her, alright!” Tsunade bursts out with a laugh. “I knew something interesting would happen with this if nothing else worked.”
“Huh,” he says, crossing his arms. “Are you sick or something? Or is it normal for humans to have pink hair?”
Sakura blinks, taken aback by his tone. “Uh, excuse me? No, I am not sick and there’s nothing wrong with pink hair!”
She suddenly has flashbacks of the village kids teasing her as a child for her hair color and even attendants who thought she’d been abused or that it was a side effect of the curse when she first came to the palace.
“Geesh, alright, alright, I got it. No need to bite my head off, Pinky. I was just born, you know.” He says.
“Pinky?” she seethes, tempted to slam the lid of the tin on his head.
“My name is Menma, by the way. Uzumaki Menma. It’s nice to meet you.” He continues, oblivious to her plotting.
Sakura takes a deep breath, her annoyance mollified by the fact she actually birthed a fairy and this is not a dream.
After a few moments, she smiles, “Nice to meet you, Menma. I’m Haruno Sakura. You can call me Sakura, though.”
“Yeah, yeah." Menma looks around, taking in all the sights around him. “So, Pinky, you looked dressed for a trip. Where are we going?”
“We? I’m going to the Land of the Wind,” Sakura responds, baffled and annoyed.
“That sounds cool. How long will it take us to get there? And where is here anyway?” Menma asks.
Before Sakura can respond, Tsunade interjects. “Well, would ya look at that? I’m glad you two are getting along so well already.”
“Shishou, thank you, really, I-I don’t even know where to begin about the anthracite, but I don’t think I can take Menma with me.” Sakura says.
“Well, I don’t see why not. It sounds like he’s already made up his mind to go along with you.” Shizune speaks up, stepping forward to lean closer to the smaller fairy. “Hello, Menma. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Shizune. And this is Lady Tsunade, she and I are Healers.”
“You’re a fairy like me, huh? I almost didn’t notice, you carry yourself like a human.” He answers. Sakura's fury spikes as he blatantly ignores not only her, but Lady Tsunade as well. The nerve.
“Well, I’ve been working alongside humans for about a century now. I guess I’ve picked up some of their habits.” She says with a light laugh.
“But, Shizune-sensei!” Sakura says, trying but failing to not sound like she’s whining. “He’s rude!”
“What’s rude is not answering someone when they speak to you, especially after they just woke up.” Menma counters.
“I-I was in shock! I’ve never made a fairy come into being before!”
“Huh. You haven’t? That’s odd. Would’ve thought a Channeler of your caliber have birthed a ton of us by now.” Menma tilts his head to the side, holding his chin between his thumb and forefinger in thought. When he bursts into flight, Sakura takes a step back as he gets closer, scrunitzing her.
“No, I haven’t. And while it’s true I can channel healing magic, I don’t know what a ‘Channeler’ is so I can’t say if I am one or not.” She says, questions swimming in her mind.
What does Menma know? Or more accurately, what does the magic-infused anthracite he came from remember? Knowledge lost to time? She knows that fairies are born with a certain amount of knowledge about the world already from the objects they’re born from. But she’s never heard of a fairy being born from anthracite from the Fire Fox Den before. Is it possible Menma would know of things humans have long forgotten? Does that mean he’s somehow connected to the fire fox deity himself, Kurama?
“You sure don’t know a lot for a human, don’t ya?”
While Sakura sputters for a retort, Tsunade interrupts again, using her official tone as Royal Healer.
“Well, this has certainly been interesting, very interesting indeed; but Sakura there are some other things I should tell you, and Menma too, before you start your journey. So you’re not caught off guard by the state of things in Wind.”
That’s right; she’s supposed to be well on her way to Suna by now, damn it!
Sakura has a sinking feeling, however, that her Shishou’s gift and whatever she’s about to say now is only going to leave with her more questions than answers.