A/N: Introduction—PLEASE READ! Hey all, I'm back with another fic, this one a far cry from "Anko's Roses". Before I begin, I'd like to thank Kishi for completely screwing up the timeline for Kakashi's backstory. That makes it incredibly difficult to pinpoint what happened when for continuity's sake, and especially for the sake of logic. That being said, I claim creative license, and MY timeline for his backstory up until the point of this fic is as follows:

Jonin Promotion Age/Obito's Death: 12 (Wiki claims Kakashi and Obito are the same age, but I do believe Kakashi is supposed to be younger. However I didn't want him to be that much younger, otherwise this story wouldn't work very well.)

Rin's Death/Joined ANBU: 13 (Minato was not Hokage for very long. He placed Kakashi in ANBU almost immediately after he began his tenure, and roughly a few months later, he received news that he would soon be a father. Minato died 9 months later, thus we can conclude that he was only Hokage for about a year.)

Minato's Death/Initial Interaction with the Foundation: 14 (According to Wiki, Kakashi and Yamato are roughly 4 years apart in age. When the Third Hokage tells Kakashi about the abducted infants, he says that if any infants implanted with Hashirama's cells had survived, they'd be about 10 years old, leading to the conclusion that Kinoe/Yamato was 10 when he first met Kakashi. That would make Kakashi 14 at the time.)

Our story begins with Kakashi at age 15, immersed in the early years of his ANBU career. Again, if we go by Naruto Wiki, Anko is about two years younger than Kakashi, so she will begin this tale at age 13. One reason for putting her starting age at 13 for this story is because she was promoted to Chunin at age 12, presumably before Orochimaru left the village. Although the Land of the Sea Arc is apparently not canon…I say bullshit. If it wasn't canon, they wouldn't have even created it, right? I'm estimating that she was outside the village with Orochimaru for somewhere between 6 months to a year before she left him. Another reason for putting her starting age at 13 for this story is because that age seemed appropriate given her flashbacks in the Land of the Sea Arc.

Sorry about the long introduction. Now that the timeline has been established, let's begin our story, shall we?

Chapter One: The Outcast

The crows cawed and the owls began to stir as the sun dipped down behind the mountains. She walked home from a long day of training with her friend and rival, Ibiki, and she was starving for something good to eat. She hoped mama had prepared something yummy for supper, and maybe something sweet for desert. Her stomach growled and she placed a hand against her belly, sympathizing with it. She would be home soon enough.

"Anko," came a voice from somewhere to her right.

She stopped and narrowed her eyes to gaze into the shadows only to tilt her head in surprise.

"Lord Orochimaru?"

He stepped out into the orange light of dusk, and suddenly they were the only two standing on that particular street.

"Good evening, my child. Headed home, I see."

"You bet! I'm so hungry I could eat…well anything really! I'm not picky."

He chuckled. "Of course not."

"Did you need me for something, Sensei?"

He gave her a sideways smile, his eyes bright. "Actually, I wanted to extend an invitation to you."

"Really? What kind of invitation?"

"You know I've been dedicated to my research for quite some time, and it appears that if I want to further it, I'll need to expand my work outside the village, which will require an extensive amount of traveling. Since you are my favorite pupil, I thought you might like to accompany me."

"Sure," she beamed. "How long do you think we'll be gone?"

"I'm not sure. A while. At any rate, if you do come with me, you must be fully committed this venture. But of course I'm not worried. Your curiosity is unmatched by any of your peers. I think you can handle it, don't you?"

"No sweat! It sounds like an adventure!"

"Indeed. If you're sure, then take this." He handed her a folded piece of paper, and when she took it, she read its contents. "I would like to leave as soon as possible, but I have a few things I need to take care of first. Go home, have dinner with your family, and in the morning, I'd like you to head to Tanigakure and find me these supplies."

"Why can't we go together?" she asked, confused. "I can wait for you."

"I'd rather not waste any time, and if you can get those supplies for me, I can meet you there and we can begin our travels together. How's that?"

"Okay, whatever you say, Lord Orochimaru."

"Excellent. Then I'll see you soon, my child."

With that, he disappeared back into the darkness. Anko's stomach growled again, and she suddenly remembered her hunger. Shoving the folded paper into her pack, she ran home to eat and to tell her parents of her new mission.

X-X-X

Her eyes fluttered open and she blinked away the bleariness of sleep only to shield herself when she found that the sun was too bright. It took her a few moments to be able to get a good look around, but when she was finally able to take in her surroundings, she only furrowed her brows in confusion. Sitting up, she glanced to her right, then to her left. She was on a beach, and she was all alone.

The girl rose and walked along the shoreline, scanning the area in search of familiar faces. Surely there was someone else there with her. She tried to remember how she'd gotten on the beach in the first place, but for some reason, she had no recollection of any events prior to waking up there.

Biting her lip, she called out for help. "Hello? Is anyone here? Hello!" She stopped in her tracks and said more softly, "Anybody?"

No answer came. Seeing a dock up ahead, she headed toward it, hoping it would help her see across the ocean in case a ship happened to pass by. If she could just find one person, they would at least know where she was and maybe they could even tell her how to get home.

She walked out onto the dock and cast her gaze straight ahead. No ships. Only a few islands in the distance.

'Where…where am I?'

She tried again.

"Hellooooo! Anybody out there? Helloooo! Somebody? Anybody!"

She waited for a response, but none came. She frowned as she looked out at the islands.

The breeze coming off of the ocean picked up, ruffling her hair and her clothes, and despite its warmth, it gave her goose bumps. A sudden sharp pain ripped through the back of her left shoulder and up into her neck as if someone had just stabbed her. It took her breath away, and her hand flew to the sight of the pain as she grit her teeth, her eyes squeezed shut.

Her pulse quickened, but at the same time, she could feel a second pulse resonating from the back of her shoulder, this one much slower, as if it belonged to someone else. Visions flashed before her mind. The eye of a snake. A laboratory. A long, dark hallway. Those eyes again. She heard the laugh of a mad man, and suddenly, she was being chased by white snakes. She heard herself scream and another sharp pain forced her eyes wide open. Her mouth was agape in a silent cry of agony and though she looked out at the islands, all she saw was a crazed, white face with dark hair, gold eyes and long fangs.

Finally finding her voice as well as her legs, the girl ran from the dock, screaming and holding her head, trying to erase the terrifying images that plagued her mind.

She was still being chased by those snakes, and that laughter came from all sides.

"No! Stay away from me!" She spun and swatted at the air around her only to fall backwards. She scrambled to her feet and kept running. "I said get away!"

In her imagination, one of the snakes wrapped around her ankles and she tripped and fell. Her impact with the sand dispelled the horrible illusion, though she now lay quivering in fear, trying to catch her breath. Her neck still hurt, but the pain was beginning to dissipate.

She pushed herself up onto her knees, panting. She hadn't the strength to move, and so she simply sat there, endless questions circling in her mind. 'W-what was that? Was it real? Did it really happen? Where am I?'

She was so lost in her own confusion that she didn't notice when the three masked men surrounded her.

X-X-X

"It's no use," she said as she held her head in her hands. "I don't remember anything. I should know this, but everything...It was dark, empty...My body was in so much pain..."

"Just calm down. Take as much time as you need to think," said the medic that knelt before her.

She touched the back of her shoulder, feeling tired, frustrated and helpless. "I'm not even sure if I got this weird mark while I was there." She had told them about the visions she'd had since waking up on the beach, but since she couldn't tell if those were memories or figments of her imagination, they weren't much help at all.

The medic, his expression forlorn, looked to the Hokage who stood behind the girl. He sighed. "The damage is deep. Everything she knew may have been erased."

Her frustration overtook her and she fought to hold back the tears. Her body shook with sobs though, no matter how hard she tried to contain them. She was surprised when a hand touched her shoulder and she looked behind her to see the Hokage kneel beside her chair.

"Rest easy," he said quietly. "I know you must have been through quite an ordeal."

"I..."

"It's going to be fine. Don't worry about remembering. Our priority is treating the curse mark before it gets worse."

"Lord Hokage…I…I'm sorry. I'm trying—"

"I know, Anko. It's alright. Rest your mind for now." The Third stood and motioned for the sealing team to step forward.

Anko looked around nervously, suddenly frightened by the ANBU that had surrounded her. "Lord Hokage...?"

"We must seal the Curse Mark," said Lord Third, his tone leaving no room for discussion. "Be prepared for a great deal of discomfort, but I promise, once the Sealing Jutsu is complete, you will no longer suffer under burden of the Curse."

She watched as the four ANBU operatives took their positions and waited for the Hokage's signal.

"Are you ready?" asked the man in front of her who wore a bird mask.

She was a bit afraid of the pain she might feel, but if it got rid of all the awful hallucinations and the pain of the Curse Mark, then she supposed she shouldn't complain. She steadied herself and took a deep breath. Then she nodded reluctantly.

The Hokage also gave a nod of approval. With a flurry of hand signs and the proper incantation, the seal painted on the floor began to move toward Anko, wrapping around her legs and winding its way up her body. She screamed at the sensation of having fire dragged across her skin and smoldering within her shoulder. The three-pronged mark began to glow only to be smothered by the seal before it went dormant and reverted to its original, black form.

Anko grasped her shoulder again as she bent forward, breathless and panting. She felt the Hokage's aged hands on her again and heard him call her name.

"Anko, are you alright? It's over now, I promise."

She tried to open her eyes but found that her vision was blurred and she felt dizzy and nauseated. She opened her mouth to speak, to utter some kind of reply, but the effort was too great and she blacked out.

X-X-X

"It's pointless to question the girl," said Tsunade as she stood with the village elders before the Third Hokage. "She obviously isn't going to remember that easily."

"I know," said the Hokage. "But we must work on her nonetheless. From what she has told us of her visions, I think it's safe to assume Orochimaru is behind all of this. He did leave the village without a trace, and we've been searching tirelessly for he and Anko ever since."

"You are right, Hiruzen," said Homura. "There is no doubt in anyone's mind that this is Orochimaru's doing. And since he is a rogue ninja, it is imperative that we find out as much information from the girl as possible."

"That's right," Koharu agreed. "If it means keeping the village safe, there is no other choice."

Tsunade growled and glowered at the two elders. It was common knowledge that she and the Third often disagreed with the rigidity of the Council. "Even if that means forcing Anko's memory to submit to our will?"

"I agree with Tsunade," said Danzo, finally speaking up. "Orochimaru is gone and he no longer poses a serious threat to the village. Why waste our efforts on this girl and on tracking him down?"

"Because he's a criminal, and it would not be wise to assume he's harmless. The man is anything but," said Homura. "I say we focus on uncovering the girl's memories."

"At what cost?" barked Tsunade. "Do you have any idea what kind of strain it would put on her mind if we were to force her to remember something that has obviously been hidden from her own consciousness by a high level genjutsu? Not to mention that at some point, she's going to have to be told about the fate of her parents. Why subject her to that kind of mental torture all at once?"

"It isn't that we do not care for the child's wellbeing, but we must think of the greater good," insisted Koharu.

"The greater—!" Tsunade bit her tongue, knowing that it wasn't wise to speak out so boldly against the Council members.

"That's enough," said the Hokage slowly. "Homura, Koharu, I appreciate your input as well as your concern for the village, however I have to agree with Tsunade. To invade Anko's mind so violently would cause her too much trauma. I believe she has suffered enough, and sadly her suffering is not yet at an end. There is no need to put her through all that. We will continue to work with her and hopefully we will be able to unlock pieces of her memory, but I do not hold much hope that we will recover it all."

"For once, the Hokage and I are on of one mind," said Danzo.

Lord Third's eyes swept to the leader of the Foundation, knowing full well that they were not of one mind. They were close enough, however, and so no arguments ensued between the two—this time.

"So you're going to leave this up to chance?" said Koharu disapprovingly.

Hiruzen took a drag from his pipe. "I'm afraid so. I will not risk the health of the poor girl. We are already aware that Orochimaru had been experimenting with forbidden Jutsu, and Anko's Curse Mark tells us that he has continued to use human test subjects. I doubt she would know Orochimaru's current whereabouts anyway. I think we can safely assume that he would abandon his former hideout just in case we did manage to piece together her memories."

"Do you think it wise to operate under the assumption that Orochimaru would not have confidence in his own work?" asked Homura. "He thinks much too highly of himself. He probably believes his Jutsu will hold up no matter what methods we use to dispel it."

"I am not a fool," said the Hokage with an air of authoritative finality. "We have dispatched two teams of ANBU Black Ops to search the Land of the Sea since that is where Anko was discovered. Make no mistake when it comes to my methods for protecting this village. This discussion is over. My decision is final."

Tsunade held back a smirk as she took in the rather sour looks of the two village elders. She supposed she should have more reverence for the pair, but the fact was, they were never happy with any of the decisions made by the Hokage, no matter who the Hokage happened to be. As far as she was concerned, they were just a couple of old bats fighting for control over a village that would never listen to their long list of complaints. At least the Third was strong enough to hold his ground against their judgmental badgering.

"Tsunade," came the Sarutobi's now much calmer voice. "You will head the medical team assigned to work with Anko. I entrust the girl to your care."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

Homura and Koharu threw her annoyed glances but Tsunade ignored them. She had her orders. Their opinions didn't matter. However, as she looked at Lord Danzo, she noticed that he seemed far too pleased. Something about that man never sat right with her, but she had no time to dwell on those thoughts at the moment.

X-X-X

It drove her crazy, not being able to remember. Anko fisted the white sheets in her hands as she sat up in the hospital bed. She had been told to relax her mind and to not try to think about the past that was lost to her, but it was such a difficult order to follow when she desperately wanted answers to her own questions.

Like, why had she been taken out of the Hidden Leaf Village? And by who? Why didn't anyone else seem to know where she had been? Had she been kidnapped? How long had she been away? How did she get the Curse Mark? How long had she lain on the beach before the ANBU had shown up? Why was she left there in the first place?

It was all so frustrating, but she knew she had to stop her brain from running in circles. She was giving herself a headache, and she had nothing to show for her efforts.

Her head shot up when she heard the door to her room slide open. A familiar face with long, blonde hair and kind, brown eyes stepped into the room with a smile.

"Hello, Anko. Tell me, do you remember who I am?" she said as she reached the bedside.

Anko looked up at her, a bit confused by the question. "Of course I do, Lady Tsunade."

The older woman nodded. "Good. Forgive the seemingly obsolete question, but I simply wish to ascertain at what point your memory was erased."

The girl frowned and looked back down at her hands. "I remember the village just fine, as well as the people in it, but..."

Tsunade leaned down and placed a hand on Anko's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it right now. I promise we'll work together to help you remember, but as of right now you're in no condition to be put through all of that. Once you've recovered from your ordeal, we will try again to break the genjutsu."

"But Lady Tsunade, what if it doesn't work?" Anko protested. "What if I still can't remember anything?"

The Sanin sighed and pulled the stool over to sit beside the bed. "Look Anko, I can't promise you that we'll unlock all your memories, but we will give it our best shot. And anyway, we already know who you were with and we are certain that he is the one who gave you that mark."

Anko stared at her, eyes wide and mouth agape. "You-you do?"

"Yes," said Tsunade, closing her eyes. "You were with your…former teacher, one of the Sanin like myself; Orochimaru."

At the mention of the name, Anko saw that pale face in her mind, those glassy, golden eyes staring at her, judging her. And that voice, it called her name in a tone that seemed to mock her.

"Orochimaru…Sensei…?"

"That's right. He left the village half a year ago, and he took you with him. We've been attempting to find him—and you—ever since. I don't want you thinking on this too hard, and that's why I decided to tell you what we do know. That way at least you have a few of your questions answered."

Anko looked away from Tsunade. "But why…why would he do this to me?"

"That we don't know. He had begun experimentation with forbidden Jutsu, and when Lord Hokage found out, Orochimaru fled the village. More than that, we don't know."

Tsunade stood and pushed the stool away. "Now that you're awake, I'm sure you must be hungry. I'll have someone bring you something to eat, how's that?"

Anko watched with slumped shoulders as Lady Tsunade headed toward the door. She had answered a few of Anko's questions, but the admission also stirred new ones in Anko's mind.

'How could I be so stupid? How could I have followed him? Didn't I know he was doing bad things?'

Her stomach began to churn as she wondered if she'd followed him willingly, despite his misdeeds. She couldn't live with herself if she came to find out that such a terrible notion was true. On the other hand, if she hadn't known…then she would forever curse herself for her own ignorance.

Feeling like a fool, she wrapped her arms around herself, knowing there were only two people who could comfort her in her time of distress.

"Lady Tsunade?"

The Sanin stopped. "Yes?"

"I…I want to see my parents."

Tsunade was silent for a long moment before she ducked her head. "I'm afraid that's not possible."

Anko stared at her, not understanding. "Why not? I won't tell them anything…I mean, I couldn't even if I wanted to, right? If you're worried I'll say something I'm not supposed to…"

Tsunade was torn. The poor girl needed her loved ones, but little did she know that they could not come to comfort her. Anko needed to know, but now was not the time. Not wanting to be dishonest or to mislead the young kunoichi, Tsunade replied, "We'll talk about it later. For now, just rest."

As the Sanin left the room, Anko couldn't help but feel cold and alone. Where were her mother and father, and why couldn't she see them? All she wanted were her parents. But perhaps this situation was far too delicate for her to see them just yet.

She glanced out the window, hoping that she would get to return home soon. Wouldn't mama be so surprised?

X-X-X

A few days later, Anko stood before the Hokage, Tsunade, and the Konoha Counsil to discuss where they would go from there. It was decided that her physical health was stable, but interrogations and other procedures meant to break the genjutsu were deemed inappropriate and potentially damaging.

Anko was both relieved and disappointed. On the one hand, she was dying to know what had happened to her over the last eight months, but on the other, she wasn't sure she could handle the mental strain. Not right now. Maybe in time, she would ask the Third Hokage to help her uncover and piece together her lost memories.

"So, am I free to go home now?" she asked, the desperation evident in her quiet voice.

She noticed Lady Tsunade's expression fall, and Lord Danzo looked away. Homura and Koharu closed their eyes while the Hokage removed the pipe from his lips and seemed to take in a deep, steadying breath.

"About that," said Lord Third. "There is something you should know."

A feeling of dread began to weigh on her, making her uneasy as she watched the rather grey expressions on the faces of her elders.

"What is it?" she asked, afraid to hear the answer. "Are my parents okay?"

A deep sadness swam in the eyes of the Third Hokage as he met her gaze squarely, knowing full well that she had every right to know the truth.

"I'm sorry, Anko. Your mother and father are no longer with us."

She stared back at him in horror, eyes wide as she tried to quell the rising sickness that was quickly threatening to overtake her.

"What…what do you mean?"

"Your parents are dead," said Danzo frankly. Both Tsunade and Hiruzen shot him a dark look for his insensitivity.

Anko took a step back and shook her head. "No… No, you're lying."

"We apologize for not telling you sooner," said Tsunade. "But we wanted to make sure you had enough time to recover from the ordeal of your memory loss."

"No, it's not true!" she shouted. "It can't be true!"

"But it is true, dear," said Koharu gently.

The girl covered her ears, her eyes squeezed shut as she shook her head again, trying to deny their claims.

"Stop it! Stop lying! Mom and Dad are fine! I'll go home, and they'll be there, waiting for me!"

The Hokage had risen, stepping around the table and approaching the distraught child.

"I'm sorry, Anko, but I'm afraid it isn't a lie." He reached for her, but she slapped his hands away.

"No, get away from me! Leave me alone!" She turned, attempting to bolt for the door, but she tripped over her own feet and ended up huddled in the fetal position on the floor.

As her body shook with the effort to hold in her pain, Hiruzen knelt beside her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She tensed further, turning her head to hide her face, wishing a hole would appear to swallow her up. It couldn't be true. It just couldn't. Her parents had to be alive. They weren't Shinobi—they were supposed to live long, healthy, happy lives.

"It's alright to be upset," said Lord Third. "It is a terrible thing indeed, and no one blames you for the hurt you must feel."

"No…" she nearly whined, thinking that this had to just be bad dream. Silently, she begged him to take it all back, but when he said nothing else, simply continued to rest his hand on her shoulder, the sobs came. She tried to contain them, but the effort was too great.

"There, there," he said quietly, moving his hand to rub soothing circles against her back. "It's alright. I know this must be difficult for you, but the pain shall pass. For now, it is okay to cry."

Tsunade and the Counsil had left the room to give the girl some privacy to mourn while Hiruzen slowly and gently pulled her up into a sitting position. She no longer protested as he brought her into the circle of his arms, and she turned her face into his robes and sobbed.

The last thing Anko remembered was eating supper with her parents; laughing and joking with her mother; wrestling with her father. She remembered saying goodnight to them before heading upstairs to bed. Now, they were gone, and she would never get to hug them or hear them say 'I love you' again.

X-X-X

The door swung open, light pouring into the entryway. Beyond it was a darkness that only intensified her pain. Her heart had dropped into her stomach and it laid there like the heaviest of stones.

She stepped beyond the threshold and into the house. One foot after the other, she walked beyond the light until she stood immersed in the shadows of her childhood home. To the left was the kitchen, and to the right was the living room. A set of stairs separated the two, rising up into a black hole that made her stomach churn.

Anko bit her lip, trying to be brave and hold back her tears. She tried, but it was too much for her, and she found herself running away from that house, unable to confront the reality that her parents had had their lives cut short within its lonely walls.

Earlier, once she had gotten a grip on her emotions, the Hokage had told her that it was likely Orochimaru who had been responsible for their deaths, taking their lives so that they would be unable to tell anyone in the village where he and Anko had gone. When she was ready, he had taken her to visit the graves of her mother and father and had stood with her in an understanding silence as a war raged between her ears.

She felt like an idiot and blamed herself for their murders. If Orochimaru was such monster, how on earth could she have been fooled into following him? She wished she could remember the day she'd left the Hidden Leaf, and where she and Orochimaru had gone, but for now she had no choice but to live with the questions and to find a way to cope with her despair.

It was too soon—she couldn't go home. It couldn't even rightly be called 'home' anymore. What was a home anyway? Did it even exist if the people you loved were gone?

She ran and ran through the empty streets until she made it to the outskirts of the village. Still she kept running, wanting to lose herself in the forest and needing to be as far away from that house, the memory of her parents, and the unbidden image of their cruel, untimely deaths as possible. When her legs couldn't carry her any farther, she collapsed on the forest floor, her cries coming again and her body shaking with the force of her sobs. Leaning against the base of a tree, she pulled her knees to her chest and buried her head in her arms. Even the woodlands were deathly silent as she cried alone in the darkness.

X-X-X

Her feet carried her through the now busy village streets with no destination in mind. She hadn't eaten anything in more than twelve hours, but as she passed Ichiraku and other eateries, the smell of the food only turned her stomach. Turning her nose away, she continued on to nowhere.

Part of her had hoped that if she walked among the crowds, she would feel a little less alone. However it seemed that the villagers wanted nothing to do with her, regarding her with what looked like suspicion and keeping their distance. She ducked her head as several people spoke in hushed, conspiratorial whispers, careful to avoid eye contact. She even managed to make out some of what they were saying.

"Look there."

"Isn't that the girl that was with Orochimaru?"

"Yeah, it is. Wonder what she's doing back in the village."

"I'm surprised the Third Hokage let her come back. If she spent all that time with Orochimaru, she's got to be messed up in the head."

Even parents who saw her ushered their small children away in a hurry. Anko ducked her head, not only feeling alone, but realizing that she didn't belong there anymore. Out of the corners of her eyes, all she could see were looks of fear, suspicion, and disgust on the faces of civilians and shinobi alike, and she brought her shoulders up to her ears wishing that she could just disappear.

She turned a corner and kept walking, trying to remain inconspicuous when she heard two familiar voices behind her. She stopped in her tracks, a flicker of hope returning as she spun around to face her two former teammates.

"Shito! Nuka!" she shouted, bounding toward them.

That flicker was quickly extinguished as they swung their heads forward, their chipper expressions replaced by shock and alarm. They took several quick steps back, instinctively reaching for their hip pouches, and Anko froze, her face falling.

"Hey…what's the matter you guys? Don't…you remember me?"

"Sure we remember you," said Nuka coldly. "You're kind of hard to forget. Where's our Sensei?"

Suddenly she felt ten inches tall and she ducked her head again. "I don't know."

"You expect us to believe that?" asked Shito, pushing his glasses more securely against the bridge of his nose.

"Guys, I'm telling you the truth. I don't know what he's doing, or where he is. I swear, I'm not like him—"

"Really? Then why are you still wearing that?" asked Nuka.

Anko clutched at the snake fang pendant around her neck. Truthfully, she had thought about throwing it away, but she had decided to keep it as a reminder of Orochimaru's betrayal and the threat he still posed to the village. But she could tell they didn't want to hear any of her thoughts on the subject. No doubt they would cast it off as an excuse.

"We knew he wasn't right, and you never wanted to listen to us. As it turns out, the sicko was conducting human experiments. You mean to tell us you knew nothing about that?"

"I…"

"Save it," said Shito. "You made your choice, and you chose him over this village. You shouldn't even be here."

She reached for them even as they turned their backs on her, and in the end, she let her hand fall to her side as she was left standing by herself in the middle of the road.

It hit her that she was now taboo; blacklisted; a black mark on the village; a disgrace. She could have kicked herself for her own naiveté in choosing to follow Orochimaru in the first place, but what for? The rest of the village seemed to be doing a good job of it. Maybe that was what she deserved.

The villagers were right. She didn't belong there. Instead of trying to fit in as if the last year hadn't even happened, Anko made her way back out of the village, back to the forest, and into the trees. Perhaps she was better off alone.