It was pitch black as a crisp wind barreled through the Village Hidden In The Leaves. In a rundown alley, a small child, no older than six sat shivering up against a wooden wall. She had matted white hair, and crimson red eyes dulled from neglect. The child had no name, she was an orphan for her parents had abandoned her. Why, she had no idea. She was simply too small to remember. It could have been she was born into a poor family whom failed to support her, or perhaps they had died. Various reasons for her abadonement were thoughts that always seemed to hover over her like a cloud of despair. When the girl attempted to shake these saddening ideas from her mind, she was dismayed to dicover that such gloomy thoughts enjoyed her company. So for most of her life, she had reasoned that such a pathetic creature as herself lived merely to wander with vacant expressions playing on her face.
It seemed to be the only logical reason why she had been cursed with such a fate. As she scanned the skies with dull eyes searching for answers to her miserable exsistance, it began to rain. " What am I doing?" she whispered sullenly to the ominous sky. " What's the matter with me? Why won't anybody smile at me? Won't someone play with me?" The sky thundered in response and the girl shuddered. Out of nowhere, a looming figure twice as tall as the girl came into sight. It growled ferociously, stalking forward. " M-mommy?," she shivered. Under a brief glimpse of a houselight in the distance that flashed, she caught a glance of the creature before her. It was a massive dog, foaming at the jowels. Covered in mud and soaking wet it lurched toward the child with black beedy eyes. She screamed in pure terror. "G-go away bad doggie! Leave me alone!" Her sobs were muffled by a clash of lightening as rain began to pour harder. " MOMMY! DADDY! Please save me!" The yelling agitated the dog and it howled angrily. It's fangs became apparent for a second and then were concealed behind a steady flow of foam. With yet another flash of lightening, the dog charged, it's fangs bared. A blood curdling scream that should have woken the entire village fell upon deaf ears, for the boom of lightening cancled out the cries for help. Cowaring in a corner, the girl gingerly held her right leg, blood seeped in rivers from a fresh wound and the salt in the rain only increased the poor child's agony.
The dog spiraled around, forcing the girl out of her corner, and swayed in her direction. In fear of another assault, the girl quickly started the tedious task of crawling away, her injured leg dragging behind her leaving a trail of blood which was washed away with the rain. A mix of thunder claps and barking filled her head and she quickened her pace as much as possible. It was nearly impossible to see even with the light produced from nearby houses. After passing a ramen stand she came into the very center of the village. Homes were lit with warmth; it was almost enough to cause the girl to pause and bathe in the inviting light. It was at one house she halted and she lifted her head to just barely peer through a window. A family sat around a dinner table, preparing to eat. " They…they all look so happy," she whispered. The food looked so appetizing that her stomach lurched hungrily, reminding her of her missed meals. Another gut wrenching howel told her she was in trouble if she remained stationary for much longer.
Eyes frantically flicking about searching for salvation, the girl spotted what looked like a small mountain just a ways in front of her. Praying the rabid dog would not have enough common sense to pursue her to such a dangerous height, she pulled herself toward the dark sillouette. The entire way, the girl would cry out at spontaneous moments, " I don't wanna play anymore! Mommy, Daddy... help." Closer inspection revealed what she thought was a small mountain was the great Hokage faces. With the ever present thought of the mad dog shredding her thin body to bloody pieces, the girl began climbing. Her arms were weak and her leg was still bleeding profusely, but with another howl of the dog catching scent of his prey, she ignored her injuries and shimmied up another stone.