CHAPTER 1: THE EARLY BLOOMER

I made my first kill when I was eight years old.

I matured more quickly than my cohorts, and there was a boy I liked. He was in the level above my group. I liked the way his hair fell over his cheekbones when he tilted his head just so, and the silly way he'd strike a victory pose whenever he won a spar, despite being punished for the display of childishness later.

His name was Kohei.

I wanted to kiss him, even though it was against the rules, and told him so.

And he smiled at me in that special way I liked, so I did.

It wasn't until he was convulsing in front of me, and bleeding from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, that I realized I'd done something terribly wrong. And there was nothing I could do to stop it, but hold him, crying, begging for it to stop. And it did stop. In a matter of less than a minute — which felt like hours — Kohei grew still in my arms. The expression of utter agony on his young face smoothed out into blank emptiness. His bloodshot eyes glazed over, no longer staring at my face, but at nothing at all.

I didn't believe he was dead at first, shaking him, trying to get his eyes to focus on me again. But then the smell of human waste met my nose, and I couldn't help but scramble away as disgust and revulsion roiled in my blood. The stench of death was a smell I'd eventually grow very familiar with. Little did I know that I'd wear it like a perfume in the years to come, bathe in it up to my neck, with a smile on my face and a song in my heart.

The others came soon, finding me shivering and folded into a corner, as far away from Kohei's body as I could get. And then Danzo-sama was there, holding his hand out to me as he'd once done when the bad men came and destroyed my village. But instead of warmth and kindness as he'd given me that day, he forced me over to Kohei's corpse and made me look at it.

"Let this be a lesson to you," he said, "of the potency in your blood."

"I-it was..." I shook my head in disbelief. "It was only a kiss!"

I'd seen Mommy and Daddy kiss before, and nothing like this had ever happened to either of them.

"So it was..." said Danzo, looking down at me with a calculating expression. "And what does this teach you?"

"I-I..." I frowned at the fallen form of Kohei, my face crumpling as more tears slipped down my cheeks, then looked back at my mentor. "I can't kiss anyone...?"

"Perhaps not..." he said, and I looked down at my feet in despair. So maybe kissing boys wasn't all that important, but I didn't want to not kiss anyone else for the rest of my life!

"Then again," Danzo added, squeezing my hand so that I looked up at him again, "perhaps you might save your kiss for those who deserve it most..."

I blinked once as the thought clicked in my head.

"...Enemies of the Leaf?"

Slowly, the old man smiled.

I was born in a remote village in the north of Fire Country.

We were a small, unaffiliated clan. The Dokugamori were relatively new blooded in the larger world of ninja, and had only been around for the past several decades or so. But we did well enough for ourselves, and had a reputation for getting the job done right and on time, no matter how difficult it was. But that was neither here nor there in the village proper.

I remember it as a bustling, joyous place. Everyone was always busy and smiling. Something good was always cooking and you could smell it in the air when you walked down the streets. The scent of burning leaves was always present as well, and left a warm feeling in one's chest. It was built around a huge, hollowed out tree whose flowering branches covered over everything, scattering large, pink petals that children would make masks from during festivals. It served as a town hall, and headquarters, as well as the home to the village leader, Yoshitake. All the other houses were built around it in concentric circles. That tree was the most important part about the village, after all. It kept us all safe, so in return, we kept it safe too. We called it the Goshinboku.

The God Tree.

It was said that the site of the village had once been the stage for an epic battle, and that the trees had been grown there by the God of Shinobi himself. Only, very few people had actually seen these trees. And that is because their flowers — which bloomed all year round — released a pollen that was fatal to all who inhaled it. Well...all but one, that is. The founder of our village, Yoshimaru, a poison master and a botanist, stumbled upon the Goshinboku's Hollow during a mission gone wrong...

When he was surrounded by his enemies, he found himself shocked when they all dropped dead. And when he started to lose consciousness, he panicked. However, legend states that Yoshimaru heard a voice speaking to him in his delirium — presumably the God Tree. He was told that if he only gave into it, embraced it, he would be saved. And sure enough, Yoshimaru lived to see another day. In fact, he lived many years after that, researching the Hollow and the effects its poison had upon his body. Eventually, he found a way to completely inoculate himself and others by fusing the trees' toxin with his blood. And in doing so, not only did he create a new bloodline limit, he created a safe haven for his friends and family. Everyone was safe and happy here. No one could break down our natural defenses. The wars raging outside couldn't touch us.

Or so we thought.

I was six years old when the bad men came.

They all wore special masks that helped them breathe.

I'd never seen so much blood before that horrible day.

I could always tell which blood was which, because Dokugamori blood is almost iridescent in its candy-apple color, and sizzles when it hits the ground. Like a corrosive acid, it eats away at anything organic. And that day, at the roots in the God Tree's Hollow, a sea of acid burned away everything it touched...

I remember I was playing hide-and-seek with my friends when the bad men came. I had been waiting for a while, because I was always the best at hiding, always the last to be found. Sometimes I hated playing the stupid game, because I was too good at it, and often times, the other kids would just go home and abandon me without letting me know the game was over. I'd always end up stomping home after dark in a foul mood, because it meant I'd missed dinner, and with Daddy around, there were never any leftovers. You'd think I would've learned my lesson after a couple times, but for some reason I was always hopeful someone would find me...

That day, I was thankful that nobody did;

Not until it was over, at any rate...

And by that time, the slick, sticky sap of blood had crept its way between the toes of my naked feet. I had been sitting alone for hours beneath the roots of the Hollow — still protecting us, even as we fell, one after another, after another, after another — my knees drawn up to my chin, and pressed up as far into the shadows as I could cram myself. I hadn't moved an inch or made a single peep for what felt like days. It didn't even feel like I blinked, because I had my eyes peeled open so wide, pupils blown out in animal terror, swallowing up the vivid green that marked me as Dokugamori.

"Many deadly things in nature wear the brightest colors..." my mother once told me.

And this was true for most Dokugamori as well. Genetic variation mixed with the God Tree's poison made way for extremely interesting results. One of my friends was even born with green skin if you can believe it. In comparison, my pigmentation was abysmally dull. With straight black hair, and a colorless complexion, the only thing that spoke of poison were my eyes. Aside from that, I didn't look dangerous at all, but I'd been told I'd grow to be a great beauty.

And maybe, just maybe, that was what saved me.

I couldn't even scream when the man appeared landing in a crouch in front of my hiding place. He wore no mask upon his face, and at first, I felt enormous relief, as I assumed one of my clansmen had come for me. Perhaps my parents had gotten out in time too, and they sent him to search for me? But when the man went to take a breath, he placed a breather over his mouth and inhaled deeply.

I don't know how I got the courage to speak, but somehow my mouth blurted out, "W-who are you?"

The dark haired man took another pull off his breather, watching me critically from beyond the shelter of my hiding place with hooded black eyes.

"Who are you?" he returned, his voice impossible to read.

Still suitably terrified out of my wits, I was unwilling to give any ground.

Stubbornly, I insisted, "Y-you first."

The man's lips gave just the slightest twitch of something like amusement before they were covered once again by his breather.

Then he said, "I am Danzo Shimura of the Leaf Village. We were sent to provide aid."

I leaned forward a little bit more at this. I knew of the Leaf Village, vaguely. I'd heard Daddy grumbling about it a couple of times. He didn't sound too happy about it, but Daddy was always complaining about the other villages. Something about 'monopolizing business opportunities'...whatever that meant.

"I...I'm Hanae," I said. "Hanae of Dokugamori. Do...do you know where my Mommy and Daddy are?"

His silence proved enough answer in itself, and for the first time since the first drops of blood hit the ground, I felt tears on my cheeks. They made little holes in the collar of my colorful kosode because Dokugamori tears are just as deadly as their blood, you see. I'd never felt so lost or alone as I did in that moment. I'd never seen war, or witnessed tragedy, much less been subject to it...

"Hanae."

The sound of my name shook me from my despair. I'd almost forgotten about Mr. Danzo, and I looked at him with shock written on my features. I was surprised he was still there. I tried not to flinch as he extended a scarred and gnarled hand into my hiding place.

"Why don't you come with me?"

I blinked in confusion.

"T-to the Leaf Village?"

"Hmn." He gave a pensive nod, gesturing me closer with a twitch of his grizzled fingers.

I did so hesitantly, a slow graduation out of the shadows of the God Tree's protective roots.

"Is it..." I began, my voice hardly more than a whisper, "is it safe there...?"

His eyes held a certain dark conviction as he declared, "We make it safe."

Still unsure, I drew a little closer.

"You promise...?"

He looked at me right in the eye, and said, "It's the promise of a lifetime."

And so, not knowing any better, I took the man's hand.

They all love me.

Every last one of them.

Even when they're dead.

That last one died with a smile on his face.

I'm learning to control it now.

I can choose whether I want it to hurt or not...

Poisonous flowers bloom from corpses.

I have enough to start my own garden now.

I wonder what sort of flower I will grow next.

It's the same thing over and over again...all the faces just blend together.

Danzo-sama says I'm doing a good job of keeping our home safe.

But even though there are many flowers here, why does it feel so empty?

Danzo-sama says it's time to accelerate my training.

Even now, the God Tree is protecting me; its poison has begun healing my body.

But it hurts...

I want to stop hurting — I don't want to hurt anyone else.

I'm so tired.

I just want it to stop.

It feels better when I just stop feeling.

'Nothing' is better than the hurting.

But the emptiness is still there, yawning wider each day...swallowing me up.

I've been assigned a special mission.

I am to integrate into normal black ops ranks.

I am to recruit Itachi Uchiha.

Each mini-section counts as a year since Hanae killed Kohei. She's now around sixteen for those still wondering.

I hope everyone enjoyed this short introduction to our MC's life in Root...such as it is. It's not been so pleasant thus far. But I hope it was at least interesting. I also hope you'll stick around for the next chapter, where introductions with characters such as Kakashi, Shisui, and, of course, Itachi, happen.

I'd love to hear any thoughts so far!

Does anyone have any predictions about what will happen next?