Chapter 6: Surgery and Dreams - pt. 1

Tsunade had arrived at the hospital shortly after Jiraiya got Hikari in a room and stabilized. She ran into the room and froze for a split second before the need to save her child shattered any restraint the sight of blood may have caused. She began to work quickly. Shizune came in shortly after they had started and paused at the sight of Tsunade already focused on the task at hand. She gave a conflicted smile before jumping in to help her teacher.

"The cut wasn't deep, so the bleeding is much worse than the wound," she said out loud, more for Jiraiya's sake than anything. She had to pause once she got around to the eyes themselves though as the sight made her intake a sharp inhale of breath. "The angle of the blade slash swept through both eyes. They're damaged beyond repair." She finally said mechanically.

"So there's nothing that can be done?" Jiraiya stated more so than asked, as the void-like feeling in his chest grew.

"That depends," she responded before turning to Shizune. "Go check and see if we have anything available and ready to use. If not, start looking and also put in a request with the research team to see if they have anything viable."

Tsunade then turned back to her daughter and steeled herself. She took a deep breath for control and slowly let it out. "Keep everyone away from here. I need total concentration, and I refuse to allow anyone to mess this up."

"Understood. It will be done," Jiraiya coldly replied before turning to Hiashi who had just arrived to check on the situation. "Could you have your clan members help out?"

"Of Course. It was our neglect that had caused not only my child to be taken but yours to be injured as well," Hiashi firmly replied before turning to his clansmen. "No one enters this floor or gets close without being reported to Jiraiya and I for the duration of the operation."

"HAI!" They all shouted in unison before dispersing to every corner conceivable in the hospital.

As the perimeter was finished being set, Shizune returned to the room with a cooling box. "They had a pair ready, and it matches everything based on the medical records. Lowest chance of rejection possible and no need for drugs as just her chakra alone will keep them properly." Shizune reports as she hands over both the box and the medical report.

Tsunade scanned through the medical report looking for any abnormalities whatsoever that could have been missed. Since the document in front of her was raw data, it was up to the person reading it to decipher. Finding no issues, she handed it back to Shizune before opening the box. Inside was a pair of crystal blue eyes floating in a cylindrical glass tube. When she saw the color matching almost identically, Tsunade's resolve hardened even as tears formed in the corner of her eyes and began to work.

Meanwhile, Hikari found herself wandering in a lightly wooded area. She couldn't exactly see around her; her state of mind was reflecting her current knowledge of her body. She was blind. At three years old, she had been attacked by a ninja from God knows where and was blinded. Letting out a sigh, she cursed the mischievous goddess thinking this was another one of her stupid schemes to make things "interesting". She then started exploring the area she was in reaching out from tree to tree, which she found to be quite annoying as she couldn't understand why she would be blind in a dream as well. She was someone who obviously knew what stuff would look like, though she felt it was weird because this didn't exactly feel like a dream either. As she wandered deeper, she came to a clearing with a cave and stepped forward gingerly without any trees to touch for guidance. She heard a masculine voice call out to her, "Who are you, Child?"

Usually, this creature was very cautious of humans, as he hates them with a passion. Because of the many times he'd been used as a convenience and then scorned and put aside, he became overbearing and had a hot temper despite actually being the most caring and laid back of his siblings. However, the child that wandered in front of him at this moment was giving him a warm and kind feeling. He knew immediately this must be his host, but he knew nothing about her. So instead of the usual aggression he would have started with upon meeting his new host, he again asked, "Who are you?"

Hikari's head snapped up at the sound of the voice and looked in the direction of the it, "Whos there?"

Rather than being angry at the ignored question, he replied, "I am Kokuo. Now, Child, who are you?"

"I am Hikari. Senju Hikari," Hikari replied and then asked, "Where are we?"

"We are inside your inner-world, Child." Kokuo explained.

Though she already somewhat knew the answer, she asked, "Why are you in my inner world?"

"I was sealed here several years ago. It was actually quite the unusual and powerful seal compared to the previous ones used. I could neither see nor hear what went on outside and though our souls were connected, I couldn't influence you either."