Jade Star:

Age: 16 (Soul, Maka, and them are 13 and 14, and the Naruto people are 16 and 17, too.)

Appearance: Teal eyes, olive complexion, athletic build, white hair usually in Neji-style hairdo.

Zakk Riot:

Age: 19

Appearance: Purple eyes, pale, built (even though no one has ever seen him do any sort of exercise), visual kei hair that even he doesn't remember the original color of.

White Star stared into her eyes, "Take care of Black Star and never forget your mission." He smoothed her hair back one last time, staining the white hair she'd inherited from him with red. Her mother's and his blood. "This is the only time you're allowed to run away." She clutched her baby brother and nodded, not daring to cry in front of her father.

"Yes, sir. I won't forget, sir," she managed past the lump in her throat.

"Happy birthday, soldier."

He charged back into battle, ignoring his already fatal wounds. The fire was quickly spreading towards the room. She knelt down, ignoring the blood staining the bottom of her dress, and kissed her mother's cold cheek, "Goodbye, mama. I'll come back as soon as I can to bury you all." Her brother sighed in his sleep as she hurried out.

Once she was far enough into the forest, she began to sob. It shouldn't have happened like this. She should've been helping to fight those godawful meisters, too. She should be killing those damned villagers for ruining her birthday celebration. Her father had hijacked a circus caravan for her birthday, for god's sakes!

She could hear them searching for her. Someone shouted, "Over here!" She subconsciously wrapped a protective arm around the sling holding her brother as she began to run. Why? Why were they villagers hunting her down? What harm could a five-year-old possibly do to an entire village?

A figure ran into her field of vision and turned towards her. She tried to stop, but it was too late. The figure had already seen her. The figure advanced as she retreated, into a tree. The figure came into view. It was her mother's killer. She screamed; an enraged, feral scream that woke the baby. He began to cry. The dark-skinned boy stopped, "Uh, Nygus, what do we do if there's a baby?"

-11 years later-

Shinigami watched the young meister with deep concern, "Are you sure, Jade Star? Have you spoken with Zak about this?"

Her face, inscrutable until then, became sad, "He doesn't know. Nobody does. If it's alright with you, I would like to keep this secret until after Zak becomes a Death Scythe."

He nodded thoughtfully, "You still need 2 Kishin eggs and a witch soul, don't you?"

She nodded slowly, "Do you have a mission?"

Spirit came in stumbling up the stairs, "Good times at Chupacabraaaa's! Hey what's with the long face, Jade Star-chan?" Shinigami sighed at the plastered Death Scythe.

Her voice was so soft, it was barely audible, "I'm retiring."

As per always, he bugged out and started shaking her, "What? But you're so young! You have your whole life ahead of you to kick ass and take names! Don't tell me you've been listening to Marie again! Where's Stein, he'll agree with me on this one! No, not him, not again..."

They gave him nonplussed glares, and she replied, "I don't want to fight anymore, Spirit-san. I've lived my whole life here, trying to keep the world safe by killing Kishin. I just wanna feel life again, you know? Maybe someday I'll come back, but right now, I just need to get out. I'm just gonna take one more mission so I can make Zak a Death Scythe."

He calmed down, "Well if that's the case, there's a mission that needs your special touch. I was gonna post it, before I got a coupon for... Chu...pa..." he edged closer to the teenager, watching Shinigami's hand suspiciously, "Anyway, there's a witch there who's infiltrated the village elders of Konoha, and made them Kishin. We need you to kill them and help keep things stable for as long as it takes until new elders are named."

She nodded, "How many? How long might we expect to have to stay?"

"It's just four. Three Kishin and one witch. You two might have to stay a month or two just to make sure, though."

"Should we make up a cover mission? Or just live there?"

"You're going to participate in a sort of foreign exchange deal with Konoha. We take in two teams and you join one over there along with another team, got it?"

"Who? When do we have to be gone? I have to tell Stein..."

"I dunno. I think they're going to place you when you get there. Please don't retire. You'll be leaving on Monday. The team you'll be going with, they'll help with it, alright?"

She smiled awkwardly, not wanting to remember, "Oh, Spirit-san, they can just take that time off... I'm sure Zak and I will be fine..."

Shinigami patted her head, "Well, go home and tell Zak and Black Star about this. And, you know, pack."

She nodded, starting for the hallway, "Yes, sir. I'll be going now, if that's alright." She walked slowly, deep in thought. How should she break it to him? They'd been together for so long, she was starting to forget what not having him around was like.

Her partner was waiting just outside, "Hey. What'd Shinigami say?" They started walking through the halls of the academy. How long would it be until she walked through these halls again? Would they stay in touch, or would he be too angry?

Her head jerked up to face him, "Nothing. Well, not nothing. I got us 'The Mission'. We're gonna go to the shinobi village in the Land of Fire and get us three Kishin and a witch. And we have to relive senior year, 'cause we're supposed to be students on an exchange for a month."

He grinned foolishly, "Not all of it, right? That hairstyle was the worst idea in history. "

She laughed, "Shut up. Let's go, we have to be completely packed by Monday."

He stopped, "Jade. I've told you this before, so it's gonna come as no surprise to you, but you're an idiot."

"Why this time?"

"It's SATURDAY."

"We're gonna take everything? I WAS planning on leaving most of the furniture with Black Star."

"Maybe you aren't as dumb as I thought." They laughed, and continued walking.