You chose: <Civilian Village>

"B-Buh!" You wave your small hands at a woman, who smiles kindly at you. She's a pretty woman with hair the color of fire, and she loves you to death.

A man comes in. He squeezes your cheeks and cooes at you something you don't really understand, but you giggle anyways. You don't know why, but you feel like you're related to him somehow.

The woman scoops you up from the nice, comfy box you're in and begins to cradle you. Soon, you fall asleep.

---

<Congrats! Thanks to good food and a lot of love, you are now three years old.>

"K-Kaa-chan! Tou-san! Hungry!" The two adults, with their backs facing towards you, turn and smile down at you. Your tou-san whispers something to your kaa-chan before giving her a kiss and scooping you up with his hands still covered in dough. You make a face; kisses are eeeewwwww.

You soon forget about the traumatizing scene, because you are preoccupied with prying the dough off of your tou-san's hands before it dries. From experience, you know that dough is really fun to squish! Before it turns hard though, 'cause when it does, you can't squish it anymore.

You succeed in getting about two ounces off before your tou-san sets you down in the back of your house. You know that your parents call it a 'pantry', and it's filled with all kinds of bread; from normal to whole grain to cakes. Sometimes, if you're a good girl, you can eat a cake. . .

Or two.

Your parents let you, but you know that afterwards, you won't be allowed to eat them again for at least a week because you'll get bad black spots on your teeth. You don't want that!

---

<Congratulations! Because of lots of sleep and hugs, you are now six years old.>

"Kaa-chan! Can I help?"

Your kaa-chan laughs. You like her laugh - it's nice and airy and light. She agrees and teaches you how to grind the grain and make the dough and form it into a ball of warm, toasty deliciousness.

Your father has explained to you that your family owns a business called a 'bakery'. You are confused by what that means, but he says that it's a shop that sells lots and lots of bread.

You like bread. So you're happy.

Today, as you bounce alongside your mother on the way to the grocery store, she tells you that she's recently learned how to make dango from a neighbor, and that she's going to teach you how.

"Which neighbor?" You ask.

"Tsunami-chan, the nice lady that lets you hold Inari sometimes." She laughs before ruffling your hair.

"You're just too cute," she mutters.

You sweatdrop. You don't think you were supposed to hear that.

---

<You are now eight years old, thanks to your kaa-chan's magic bread.>

You're walking around the park one day when you see a boy. It's been a while, but you still recognize him.

"Inari!" He turns, and you notice the man standing beside him. He's obviously a fisherman, with a strong, muscular body and wind-weathered face. His smile is kind and fatherly. You like him instantly.

Ever since his father died, Inari had been left with a family that was missing a large part of itself. This man would help Inari, and change him for the better.

"Hello, my name is Kaiza," he says. He crouches down so that you're eye level with him. "What's your name, little one?"

You pout. For a eight-year-old, you are very short - Heck, you're almost the same height as Inari, and he's two years younger than you!

"I'm Sachiko Pan, and I'm not little! I'm already eight years old!"

Kaiza smiles at you. "Of course." He ruffles your hair. Your pout increases in size. He's not taking you seriously! How dare he!

—-

Your kaa-chan and tou-san have been whispering a lot lately. They think you can't hear, but you do.

"Shop. . . close. Money. . . . . . Gato. . . . . . Bridge. Tazuna. . . . "

You're curious. Why are they talking about a bridge? What does it have to do with Tazuna-ojii-san? Who is Gato?

Tazuna is you ojii-san in anything but blood. He gives you candy, plays with you, tells you all about the adventures he had when he was young.

You usually sit next to your 'adopted' otouto, Inari. You two spend so much time together these days, Tsunami-oba-san sometimes jokes that this is your home away from home. Though, considering that your house is about a block away from theirs, it really can't be considered 'away from home'.

One day, as you're sitting at the dinner table with Kaiza-oji-san, Tazuna-ojii-san, Tsunami-oba-san, and Inari (you're eating dinner with them after a playdate with Inari), you ask them who Gato is.

You notice that Kaiza-oji-san and Tazuna-ojii-san both tense.

"He's a bad, bad man," Tsunami tells you. "But don't worry about him!"

You nod, though you're still worried. "B-Bad?"

"Don't worry! Sachiko-chan, you see my arms, right?" You nod.

"Yes. . ." Kaiza-oji-san's arms are huge and amazing. They're nothing like your tou-sans', which are pudgy and squishy, like a roll of bread. Though, in hugging terms, your tou-san's arms are more fun to hug than Kaiza-oji-san's. Not that you'd ever tell him that.

"I'll protect you with these, and so will everyone else in this house, and your parents, too. You'll be okay."

"Y-You promise?"

"I promise."

You smile widely at him, because you believe him.

---

<Thanks to. . . Magical unicorn potatoes, you are now nine!>

You roll out of bed, stretching your back and letting out a satisfied yawn as your back pops. It'd been about three weeks since Kaiza-oji-san saved the D-Sector from being flooded! He's being called a hero. You couldn't be more proud of him.

You hum as you go about your business, making breakfast for your two parents (who aren't out of bed yet, it's a Saturday, so they're taking a break while you run the shop. You're honored that they put so much trust in you.)

When you finish, you set the plates of food down on the table before quickly devouring yours and setting your dishes in the sink. You quickly run to the 'pantry,' taking inventory of all the types of bread you have, and the things you need more of.

Finding that you're low on melon bread, a customer favorite, you dash to the kitchen - not the one in the apartment behind the shop, the one that's especially for the bakery - and proceed to fish out the ingredients from numerous cabinets. Since it's Saturday, the shop opens at eleven AM. You have plenty of time to make more.

Unfortunately, you soon hit a stumbling block when you realize you're low on butter. Without the butter, the bread would lose its' creamy taste! You stop assembling the ingredients, hastily remove your apron and grab a wicker basket from the stack behind the counter. Throwing on your shoes, you check the time before racing down the street towards the bustling marketplace.

You skid to a halt when you notice a large crowd gathering around the center of the area, shouting something. Is something going on? Maybe a play! You, being a curious person, bound over and squeeze between the throng of people. As you mutter "excuse me" over and over, your hand whacks onto someone's shoulder.

You look down, apologizing before realizing it's Inari. And he's crying. Looking up, you realize that there is a mesh-wire fence keeping the crowd out of the area, and in the center. . .

You gasp in horror, basket slipping from your numb fingers.

Kaiza-ojii-san is tied to a cross, both arms gone, blood trailing down his face and out of his mouth. A short man in a business suit and sunglasses (you have never seen anyone so ugly) shouts accusations you know are false at Kaiza-oji-san. Your eyes widen. At this rate. . .

Kaiza-ojii-san is going to die.

Inari is screaming next to you. Instead of freezing up, you begin frantically looking for a way to save your uncle.

The gaps in the wire mesh seem to be just wide enough to fit your fingers and toes into. Some of the nearby market stands have cloth coverings - you could try to climb up onto one and jump onto, or over, the fence. Or, you can push against the fence with all your might. It might break. You look around, panicked. You're only eleven years old! You don't have enough strength! What are you going to do?

If you wish to <Stand There And Cry>, go to >7<.

If you wish to <Ask For Help>, go to >8<.

If you wish to try doing it yourself and <Jump The Fence>, go to >9<.