A Frozen Heart
The bitter wind bit into the skin on Ino's face as she trekked through the cold land of snow country. The setting sun reminded her that she had only reached the land of snow this very day. She had originally been excited about the current mission she was on. She had been chosen as the new ambassador for the Leaf Village and the Land of Snow. She was supposed to have traveled in a stylish caravan, out of the cold. That had been up until the new ninja village, Ice, attacked. Now she was trekking towards her final destination, the palace of the land of snow. 'It's about damn time,' she thought to herself.
Turning behind her, she made the all clear sign. Following behind her appeared her two main bodyguards for the mission, Naruto Uzumaki and Kiba Inuzuka. Naruto was 18 and had the remnants of a broad sword strapped to his back. Kiba held nothing in his hands, save for the fur of his ninden, Akamaru. Both were wearing winter parkas and had large backpacks strapped to their backs. Behind them followed an army of Naruto's, carrying the essentials for their updated mission.
Everything had changed when that ninja had arrived. Ino's thoughts wavered back to the attack launched at noon. The caravan had stopped to rest for a bit, taking a moment to prepare lunch and recheck the maps. Ino had waited in the caravan, wondering when Naruto and Kiba would give the all clear. Then things started happening all at once. She heard the alarm cry, followed by the sound of something large shattering and breaking. Not long after, a torrent of ice in the form of a dragon smashed through the side of the caravan. The wooden structure was shattered to pieces and Ino was splashed with the blood of the snow country samurai standing at her door. She quickly rushed forward and began to heal the one closest to her, a fatal wound already progressing too quickly.
She had been surprised at what she had seen next. A lone ninja stood over her, the body completely covered in mithril chakra armor. Flecks of blue were scattered throughout the armor, and the face was masked by a horrible visage of a monster. Ino fought down the urge to scream, and instead stood to face her masked assailant. Before she could do anything though, a letter dropped at her feet.
It had held a clear message. "We are the ninja of the ice. We wish to be recognized as a hidden village of our own, and will have no part in the treaty between the land of snow, and the land of fire. We do not wish to ally ourselves with those who would treat demons as humans. If you do not recognize us, we shall take the life of the princess, and then wage war against your land. If you do recognize us, send us the demon in your midst. Send him alone. You have until the winter solstice to reply to our demands. For every month you delay, a royal family shall die."
The winter solstice was five months away. There were six royal families. And Ino's job just became a lot harder than Tsunade said it would.