Happy Chapter Day everyone!
"Another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
This month I've been celebrating/coordinating a handful of birthdays, and it had me reflecting on the way time has been passing. As I grow older, certain loves never waver. Including my writing. Especially for Sakura.
Rather than being my anchor for stagnation, she has become my inspiration for change.
Her strength and growth that showed you can become the best of yourself without losing yourself and the things that makes you-you. Flaws and all.
You can get updates on all of that on my Tumblr. Or type KATSURA369 (Find my socials)
CHAPTER 17
A week had passed since their unproductive encounter with Long Feng—the pompous puppeteer as Sakura now decided to call him. He held to his word to keep the group under constant surveillance by the Dai Li. Soon they were seeing Ba Sing Sei from an entirely new angle. The sanctuary, the safe haven from the 100-year war had curdled into a prison overnight. One of the endless rules and stifling bureaucracy. Sakura could barely temper herself to keep from confronting those agents who were changing shifts amongst the rooftops and dark corners, which they thought kept their presence silent.
She didn't mention the extent of their presence to the others because her friend's were already prickly over their situation and she didn't know what kind of reaction she might set off if she told them about this.
For days, the group had wandered in a depressive stupor, each moment heavy with inaction. Their hopes of an audience with the Earth King had vanished like smoke in the wind, and the relentless shadow of Long Feng's leverage loomed over them like a guillotine ready to fall over and cut their access to the city. To their chance to find Appa.
Despite the troubles, Sakura was consumed with finding the solution.
Pale light crept through the ornate windows of their new house in the Upper Ring just a few minutes ago but everyone was already scattered along the common room. Well, almost everyone. They all failed to calm their restlessness, but leaving the house knowing that someone was watching them did not put anyone in a great state of mind. And Sakura knew that when she walked into Toph, Sokka, Aang, Katara, and even Momo, slumped across the floor, heads sagged into the cushions.
That changed when Sakura came in to give her announcement, ready to touch on the subject that none of them had even reached for the entire week. "We have to start looking for your bison, as soon as possible. If we do that, then we can confront Long Feng and try to reach the Earth King,"
"No arguing there, but this city is huge." Ba Sing Se was a maize with the possibility of an infinite game of hide and seek. And it's doubtful that whoever had Appa would show him off to the public eye if they knew he was stolen.
Sakura took out a stack of papers, and handed them to Sokka, "I've done this kind of investigation work before. Here are the typical places and usual suspects to start looking into."
Appa was a large creature, according to the description they had given her and he was rare, perhaps the last of his kind. That meant he wasn't sold for cheap, and whoever had him, needed to be able to provide a space wide enough to confine him and keep it a secret. However, even with the narrowed paths Sakura presented, they didn't have the manpower to scour the entire city. But it was a start.
"I think we should also get some posters made," Katara said, a new spark in her eyes. "Someone might've seen something,"
The room was filled with a new energy now, as Sakura managed to encire them back towards their goals. Even if it was the long way around. After they found Appa, Sakura intended to extend her talents to her friends and show them just how easily it would be the access someone if a shinobi knew where they resided.
"And I'm going to get a job," The room fell silent again, the previous vigor gone replaced by shock and stunned silence.
"What?"
I've decided I'm going to get a job," Sakura repeated, watching as Sokka's face twisted in confusion, pulling his lip out, a habit she caught on to quickly.
"Why do you want to do that?" It's not as if they were lacking in anything here. Contrary to the constant survey and halt on their plans, money wasn't really an issue while they were in Ba Sing Se. Their meals were provided for them, and their lodgings were taken care of. There wasn't much of a reason to spend. And to top things off, they had more pressing matters that they were literally just discussing.
Sakura went to pour some tea, after moving to the table. "I spent quite a bit on my dress, and I'm not expecting anyone to carry me. Besides I might need to restock on my weapons and supplies. I don't know how long I'm going to be in this world,"
Katara, interjected softly, "Where are you going to get a job, Sakura?"
Sakura's lips curled into a small, confident smile. "I have that covered."
..
..
..
The matter might've seemed frivolous if not somewhat distracting from their objective but Sakura wasn't acting without cause. There were certain indicators that only she seemed to notice, and chose for the time being to investigate on her own. Long Feng, knew that Aang's Bison was missing but how? There were two conclusions she drew. Either he became aware after they spent the day searching around for Appa. This seemed to be a likely case, as Joo Dee was with them and had ties to that so-called cultural minister. But something else clicked to Sakura.
Long Feng wielded more power in this city than its king and insinuated that the royal was completely oblivious to what was happening on the outside. To hide a war of 100 years, was no small feat. To prevent that kind of information from leaking he had to be ahead of everyone within the Earth King's circle. Surely they also couldn't have been the first to reach out for assistance in this war. All these factors told Sakura that Long Feng made it a point to get three steps ahead of everyone on the board so that he could move the Earth King out of the view of the war.
Ba Sing Se was a city that was flooded with refugees, it was a safe haven. Sakura had seen it herself, these high walls that prevented invaders meant that security was airtight. How could someone just bring in a supposedly extinct animal that only the avatar possessed without alerting the authorities?
If Appa was as big as they described, he could not just be brought in with that train cart. No there had to be certain efforts made to bring in an animal of his size. But what was odd is that no one seemed to be operating in the exchange of exotic animals. Smuggling was a possibility that came to her mind, but with this wall and the tight grip the minister had on the city just didn't seem plausible. The only other explanation was that Long Feng knew more than he was letting on.
However, if he did know where Appa was, he wouldn't give the information to Aang, otherwise, that would be like handing him the noose he had tied around all of their necks. They wouldn't have an excuse to remain civil and would endanger Long Feng's reign by revealing the truth to the Earth King.
This was just a board game, and they were all the pieces, right now Long Feng knew where all of them were standing and Sakura had to find a way to move across secretly without alerting suspicion. Information was key to the success of any mission and she knew exactly how to get it without drawing up attention.
She thought it would be even more effective if her friends believed the deception as well. These were nothing more than unconfirmed theories and she didn't know if they would be able to hold themselves back from taking drastic action if they realized that Long Feng might be a major conspirator involving their bison's disappearance and she'd rather not induce Aang's avatar state. It would only give Long Feng the capital he needed to throw them out before they could reach the Earth King.
In times like this, she knew that the best way to get results was to take a different approach.
Sakura took a deep breath of the crisp morning air as she strolled through the Lower Ring, matching pace with the bustling crowds. She had chosen to keep her hair dyed black to blend in with the masses, and hopefully give those pesky Dai Lee agents a hard time. The streets bustled with life, merchants calling out their wares, children weaving through the crowds with mischievous laughter, and weary laborers trudging toward their daily grind.
She walked with purpose, though she allowed herself to take in the surroundings, getting lost in the maze of unpaved roads and uneven stone pathways. Her gaze flickered from one makeshift stall to another, scanning the worn faces of the people, the cracks in the walls, the desperation hiding in plain sight. This was where war refugees ended up, to escape the turmoil of the war.
Finally, Sakura stopped in front of a small unassuming building that stood wedged between two larger ones, its faded white paint now a dusty beige, peeling in places like old parchment. The wooden shutters on the windows were warped with age and darkened at the edges as though rot threatened to consume them. Above the entrance, a hand-painted sign read 'Medical Clinic.' The letters were uneven, the paint chipped, but the message was clear enough.
Sakura exhaled, the sight pulling at something deep within her. A clinic in the Lower Ring, struggling just as much as the people it served. It was a place where she could make a difference—not just for the injured and sick, but for their investigation. If any illicit dealings were happening in Ba Sing Se, especially in the shadows of poverty, she was willing to bet she could find whispers of them here. Blending in would be easier, and the Dai Li wouldn't question a simple healer working due to a delay in plans.
She pushed open the door and was immediately met with the sharp, sterile scent of herbs and disinfectant, barely masking the underlying traces of blood and sickness. The clinic was cramped, with no grand hallways or separate rooms, only a handful of beds lined against the walls, each sectioned off by thin curtains that swayed slightly from the draft of the open door. A few shelves lined the back wall, crammed with what little medical supplies they had, and a small wooden desk sat to one side, cluttered with parchment and jars of salves and a back room.
The waiting area was overflowing. Elderly men and women clutched at aching joints, mothers rocked feverish children, and a few injured workers sat slumped over, their wounds hastily wrapped but still seeping through the bandages. The place was overwhelmed—understaffed, under stocked, and undoubtedly underappreciated.
Her attention settled on a slender woman moving briskly between patients, her delicate hands skillfully wrapping bandages and pressing damp cloths to fevered foreheads. She looked to be in her mid-twenties, her shoulder-length amber hair pinned back in a hurried yet practiced fashion. The soft glow of the lanterns reflected in her brilliant blue eyes. Clad in a simple light green dress with brown sleeves, and white pants.
Sakura waited patiently, leaning against the wooden frame of the door as she timed her approach. Only when the woman took a brief pause to retrieve medicine from the counter did she step forward?
"Excuse me," Sakura said, her voice polite but firm.
The woman glanced up from the small earthen jar she had been carefully measuring from, her lips curving into a welcoming smile. "Yes? How can I help you?"
"I was wondering who I could talk to about getting a job here?" Sakura asked, not hesitating. In this profession, there was no time for hesitation.
The woman's eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise, but before she could respond, another voice cut into the conversation.
"That would be me."
A middle-aged woman emerged from the back, balancing an open wooden crate filled with glass bottles brimming with pungent herbal concoctions. The sharp, earthy aroma permeated the air, a testament to the potency of their contents. She had the poised demeanor of someone well accustomed to leadership, the creases around her warm brown eyes suggesting both wisdom and years spent tending to the sick and injured. Her green robe, tied at the waist with a modest sash, bore subtle embroidery.
Setting the box down on the counter, she dusted her hands off on her apron before offering a slight nod of greeting. "I am Hina. I run this medical center."
Sakura mirrored the respectful gesture, bowing her head slightly in return. "My name is Sakura Haruno, and I'd like to work here if you'll have me."
Hina crossed her arms, assessing Sakura with a keen, appraising gaze. "Getting a job isn't a problem if you qualify," she stated matter-of-factly.
"Well—"
Before Sakura could launch into a rundown of her extensive medical expertise, the front door burst open with a resounding thud, rattling the wooden beams. A gust of night air rushed in, carrying with it the scent of sweat and iron. Two figures stumbled through the entrance—one man barely conscious, his head lolled back, revealing the unsettling whites of his rolled-back eyes. His skin had a sickly pallor, his labored breaths punctuated by pained groans. The second man, his arm wrapped tightly around his companion's waist, struggled under his weight, his face a mask of desperation.
"Help! We need help!"
"Set him down here!"
"What's the problem?"
"W-We don't know; Yang just said he was getting chest pains and having trouble breathing and now-Oh!"
Sakura rushed over to them without a word, she gently stepped in front of Hina to examine the person. She removed the top of his robe, her hand glowing with chakra, she placed it over his chest and pulled back a second later. "His larynx has shifted to the side; it's a Tension pneumothorax."
A pneumothorax is a collection of free air in the chest outside the lung that causes the lung to collapse. In some instances of a tension pneumothorax, the lung continues to leak air into the chest cavity resulting in compression of the chest structures, including vessels that return blood to the heart.
"Are you certain?" asked Hina frowning "You've barely looked at him"
Sakura nodded, "He's lungs collapsed; his heart being pushed against his chest."
"What do you we do!?" the man that carried him in masked
Sakura looked around but this medical center didn't seem to have the proper equipment she needed to extract the fluid in the man's chest so that he could breathe.
"We don't have the proper tools for treatment here!" Hina exclaimed
"Don't worry" Sakura said "Someone grab a bucket of water and fill it!"
The girl behind the counter went to do that immediately.
Sakura turned to Hina "I need certain herbs for this mix, can I check?"
Hina nodded gesturing to the back. "Behind that door is where we keep everything,"
Sakura rushed to the back door and grabbed a few herbs quickly before returning to the man. The girl had brought the bucket of water and Sakura quickly took the herbs and started rubbing them together in her hands extracting its fluids and allowing it to fall into the water as quickly as possible. Sakura then used her chakra-coated hand to reach into the bucket and pull out the water; it raised up and Sakura placed it over the man's chest. The fluid began to pour into the man's chest.
"What are you doing?!" asked Hina
"Gathering the fluid and fixing his lung." She said
After a few minutes, Sakura withdrew her hand and the liquid appeared very different than before; almost a greenish colour was drifting in it. Sakura placed it back into the bucket. It took but one tries to see the automatic difference in the man's breathing and form.
"This is usually a method I use for extracting poison but I figure it would work the same."
The man was able to breathe normally again.
Sakura sighed; she was always relieved after treating someone successfully. "He'll be alright now."
As she went to the back to dispose of the fluid Hina came up to her "That was quite impressive."
Sakura rubbed the back of her head "Well-
"That technique; are you by any chance a waterbender?"
She shook her head "No; I'm not-I just have a skill for healing."
"Well whatever that was it was splendid; we could use someone like you around here." Hina said she pointed to the girl "My daughter Yuki and I are the only ones who work here. We don't have a lot of medical supplies to treat people and you can imagine how many sick people there are here but there's usually nothing we can do; since the Dai Li refuse to give us any money or supply enough medicine to us."
Sakura placed a hand on her chest with a bright smile, "I know how to make some medicines as well"
"Then you got the job."
Sakura grinned "YEAH"
Quickly she covered her mouth with her hands; blushing at her outburst when she realized that all eyes had fallen on her, "Sorry...."
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