The young mothers' hands shake, watching terrified as the baby girl in her arms gurgles happily at the comforting touch of her mother. Noa wishes she could copy the carefree and happy charisma of her infant. Just for this one moment, she needs the strength of an innocent heart. She trembles and looks cautiously at Hiroshi, finding that her husbands' face is the same pasty pallor as her own. They lost one child to Orochimaru. That mistake will not happen twice.
Her first child, Taro, was the snake lords' prime choice. The first born descendant of the Koori clans' military general and the terror of the west. Taro was perfect in his parents' eyes. To his mentor, Orochimaru, he was a tool for war.
Noa and Hiroshi couldn't help giving up their son. They had no choice. Strong as they were Orochimaru had serious leverage over them. He knew they were wanted criminals. They had deceived their clans and become rouges. Orochimaru had weaseled his way into the lives of the very organizations working their butts off to kill Noa and her husband. Hiroshi also knew that they couldn't kill Orochimaru, not with Noa expecting a baby. Even Hiroshi couldn't hold the snake ninjas' power at bay while protecting his wife. The two ninja also owed the Akatuski member a favor. While he threatened to expose them, he also gave them shelter and blinded the trail to find the two parents. When they took the offer, they didn't know the cost.
Taro was allowed to stay with Noa and Hiroshi until he was six and knew some proper jutsu even without full chakra control. After that, he was taken by Orochimaru. Noa was told he would become a student. Nothing to worry about, she would still see him. They could still be a family.
Then Taro was murdered.
He was too young to become a vessel. Orochimaru made a mistake. Or, so they were told. Unfortunately, little Taro took after his father, lacking his mother's prized kekkei genkai. That's the real reason he died. Not strong enough for Orochimaru's demand. No matter how long his master waited the hidden power never surfaced. Taro died because he didn't have enough potential. Orochimaru gave Noa and Hiroshi no body to bury. Taro's ten year old body was wrapped up and dumped in a ditch with the rest of Orochimaru's failed experiments.
Noa, of course, made an attempt on Orochimaru's life. Hiroshi helped. They were this close to being exposed. They surrendered instead. Costing them their second child.
So now the distraught parents stand. In the rain. In the cold. Waiting to sacrifice their baby girl to a man who killed the infants' brother. Ren was the girl's name. She was lucky, bright white hair and brilliant blue eyes showed promise of Noa's treasured kekkei genkai. Orochimaru may let her live.
He did, but the worrying mother would die before she found out Ren had made it as a healthy and promising vessel choice.
For now, the concern was the creaking door frame and the ghostly figure slinking out of the shadows.
"Orochimaru." Hiroshi says, eyes cold and back straight. "I would say it's good to see you at long last, but then, I'd be lying."
"Ah, Hiroshi." The snake hisses. "Always so bold in the face of your greatest fear. You never change."
Hiroshi's gaze darkens and he moves to further shield his wife.
"Show me the child, Hiroshi."
Noa steps forward, hesitantly brandishing the bundle to Orochimaru while keeping the baby as close as possible to her own body. She flinches when he picks her up. He holds her surprisingly gently, yet a wicked flicker of hunger flashes in his eyes as he feels the infant's chakra resist and rage in her untrained body. Her eyes and hair please him even more. His acceptance of the baby should be seen as a good sign to Noa, but all she wants to do is sock the devil holding her daughter in the face.
"Yes…" Orochimaru purrs. "She shows much more promise than the other one."
Noa slips. Black chakra floods into her abdomen, feeding off her hatred and anger and converting it into divine power. Black icicles shoot out of the ground around the kunoichi's feet and a little black blizzard rages above the threesomes' meeting place.
"You bastard!" She screams. "How dare you touch her! How dare you say that after what you did to my son!"
She breaks, tears fall as she remembers the fate of her first born.
"My daughter isn't a tool. She won't be used as another pawn for your experiments. Not if I have any say in her future."
"But, see, you don't have a say in her future Noa. I do. She'll die if I want her to and you and your poor little husband won't be able to lift a finger against my choice."
In a split second, a wall of black ice rises up, made completely out of tiny black icicles. It responds to Noa and extends outward toward Orochimaru. Hiroshi lunges forward and grabs Ren from him, letting his wife do the rest. The jagged ice flashes out and imbeds its deadly sharp points into Orochimaru's chest in seconds. The awesome power of the Koori's kekkei genkai displayed in the middle of this ominous forest.
Noa stands straight again, marveling at the corpse of the snake and smiling at the sheer bliss of complete and utter revenge. Her bliss is no different than any other, meaning it is short lived.
"Dear me, Noa. Testy today, as usual, I presume?" Orochimaru asks, speaking in his creepy undertone as he slinks out of the shadows behind her. His clone now rotting on the tip of her ice statue.
She adopts his fake personality. "I've always been known for my temper."
The jagged crystal statue stands behind her, shadowing the kunoichi in its gruesome shadow.
"So it seems," Orochimaru continues. "It won't help you here. Give me your daughter and you and your husband survive. She may survive as well, you never know. Resist me again, and every single fighter who wants your head on a platter will know where to look for it and just how to slice it cleanly."
Now Hiroshi stands, holding a now sleeping baby Ren to his muscular chest.
"You think the two of us really care about that?"
Orochimaru raises an arched eyebrow.
"We will do whatever we can for Ren. Even if it means facing our hunters. She won't grow up in captivity with you as her master. Come what may, Noa and I will protect her with our lives. We won't let you touch her."
Orochimaru only smiles.
"Shinobi. Always so brave. Especially the ones with something to protect. Bravery is just another word for stupidity. You haven't even thought this out. You say you won't let me have your daughter, but if I don't get what I want, you are your wife are hunted. You've said that you're perfectly fine with that, even though you know it means death. Here's the catch though; you claim you're protecting your child by keeping her from me, but if the shinobi chasing you catch you, and they will, do you really think they'll show mercy on your child? You accept your death but pay no mind to your daughters. Give her to me, and she has a chance of living and becoming stronger than you could ever believe. Betray me, and keep her to yourself, and she'll die at the hands of your hunters. Entirely up to you."
Hiroshi hesitates. Noa walks over and stands by him. The two are incredibly strong, the ninja looking for them could never hurt them in a small group. But the couple have many enemies. Including the ANBU black ops from their own clans. If that many ninja show up, they don't have a chance of survival. Ren's chances of life are even slimmer.
They have to give her up.
The deal is made. Noa and Hiroshi have six years with her before she begins vessel training. After they hand her over, chances are they'll never see her again. But what choice do they have? The only option is their daughter's life.
"Train her to kill. If she has even a tinge of compassion I'll kill her." Orochimaru hisses. "She needs to come to me lethal and cruel. That's her only chance at survival."
He slinks back into his cave, Akatsuki robes fluttering in the wind and rain. The door shuts. The parents are left alone in the wilderness.
Hiroshi drops to his knees, closely followed by Noa.
"What have we done?" He whispers. "I couldn't protect her, even now…"
Noa lays down on the mud and hugs Ren fiercely. "I'm sorry, my darling. I'm so sorry."