Overcoming the Odds.

Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The Hearing.

In the Land of Fire, matters were operated in a manner such that the military and diplomatic powers of the land never clashed. Karin knew this all too well – Orochimaru had made her understand the inner workings of the Feudal Lords and the Hidden Villages.

For starters, the Hidden Leaf was the official military power of the Land of Fire. However, the Daimyo had managed to balance this by increasing the number of his own army, the samurai. The samurai made up forty five percent of the nation's military while the Hidden Leaf had fifty percent. The rest was just a couple of independent institutions.

The Daimyo's side handled the diplomatic side of things. The judiciary was wholly managed by the Feudal Lord's court. It was such that any ninja held captive that wasn't under the direct authority of the Hokage would be tried and sentenced by the Daimyo. The judicial system's decisions on such matters were final and the Hokage couldn't interfere then.

All these Karin mused as she slowly walked towards the final door. It was her only hope, and she desperately held on to it. There were few options she had considered. One, being sent to the Land of Grass as a rogue ninja. Two, being sentenced to life imprisonment, which was what people like her got. Three, being executed publicly.

Or, they could let her go. She had given the Leaf all the intel she had on the Sound. That could count, right? Hopefully, Naruto would success in his mission and—

She stopped. Naruto was and had been away for two weeks and half, so he should have been returning. She held on to the delusion that if he'd come back, her Naruto would have a way to save her. He was her hero, wasn't he? Heroes didn't abandon their comrades. Heroes were people like Naruto; people who had big and loving heart.

However, a of it was just fantasy. She knew it, but held on to it anyway.

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Karin looked around the courtroom and noticed that it was a good size and well kept, with marble flooring and nice furniture that looked inviting and comfortable. They walked up to the receptionist who was currently scribbling things down on a notepad.

"Ahem." One of the ANBU cleared their throats.

The girl continued to write things down, but eventually she stopped and looked up at the group expectantly.

"The prisoner... She has a hearing scheduled," the masked man reported. The receptionist grabbed a clipboard from her desk and flipped through numerous pages.

"Hm..." the girl thought aloud and then looked at a clock on her desk. "7-22?"

'That's my identification number,' Karin thought.

"Yes," the two ANBU members stated after remembering the number the chūnin from before had given them.

"Right this way." The receptionist stood up and walked to a door that was a distance away from her desk. One ANBU forcibly nudged Karin forward, which earned a grunt and a glare from the red-haired girl. The receptionist opened the door and walked in with the group following behind her.

The room they entered was actually a long hallway. At the end of the hallway, there was a big set of doors with benches seated alongside the walls. They all walked towards the large doors but were stopped from going any further by the receptionist.

"Wait here," she said as she entered through the doors and promptly closed them behind her.

A still silence ensued. Karin could hear her heart beat faster as the seconds grew by.