Slowly, Rose of the Hidden Star Village in Bear Country (yes, it's a real place in Naruto) trudged up the steep mountain pathway to the snow topped pinnacle.
In her mind, she replayed her reason of coming to the fang mountain.
The day that Rose had learned her crystal technique, the Mystery Witch Finder had taken an interest in her.
The Mystery Witch Finder was a well known legend in her country. She was known for finding talented ninja and teaching them witchcraft, an art of many generations past that used not chakra, but magick. A soul's very essence, with almost unlimited power.
Magick was an interesting study, it could improve a person's endurance tenfold, making a ninja almost indestructible, or it could heal those with fatal injuries- it could even make people fly.
But like every great power, there was a sacrifice.
Your soul is destroyed at the end of your life, making reincarnation impossible. This was because her religion was considered unholy, even though it was about helping people. She often heard people hiss 'devil's spawn' or 'unnatural creature' in churches or even in the marketplaces.
Rose did not feel that humans deserved to be reincarnated, she believed that reincarnation was wrong and that those who were reincarnated did not always appreciate the idea of a second chance, or a third.
It was the perfect place for her, her religion was more important to her than her soul. If she believed in something, who was to say that that something wasn't real? Especially if she showed them proof in her magick.
When Rose was sixteen, she had almost died in a storm, struck by lightning, she was trying but failing to find shelter to heal herself properly. She had created a special jutsu on that day, that she called the Crystal Rose Prison. She had found a rosebush, taking one of the three red flowers, she produced a small crystal from her travelling bag, hoping to use the two for a prayer ceremony, she placed both on the ground in front of her.
She said her prayers and suddenly, hand signs sprung into her mind.
Wolf, squirrel, lion and bird. Taking it as a sign, she used the four only to find when she opened her eyes that the rose was dead and black, trapped inside the crystal and the crystal had turned a clear, pale pink. With natural human curiosity, she picked up the crystal.
For a moment it did nothing, but that changed soon enough.
The crystal doubled in size, then quadrupled, it was the same size as the rose bush by the time it stopped growing.
Cautiously, she graced her fingers on the strange crystal again, it grew some more, to the size of a house.
She frowned to herself at the mystery and sat on the ground in front of it.
Her head was trying to make sense of it, but it stopped its thoughts when a voice interrupted.
"Do you not know what to do with that crystal?" A young woman's voice asked.
Rose opened her eyes, looking at the pale, brown haired young woman before her with profound curiosity.
The woman had a curvy shape, with boobs that would astound anyone- man or woman, it was a wonder that her back hadn't been injured from the mere weight of them...
Her eyes were kind and soft, mismatched and somehow the same. She gazed into the mysterious woman's blue and brown eyes with something akin to passion.
The woman stood up straight and put a hand on her waist. "Add water Rose, you might get lucky."
Slowly, she sashayed away.
"Wait, please. I know that you're busy, but might I be so bold as to ask your name?" Rose whispered.
The woman turned and looked at her. "You may call me Young." She whispered.
Then she disappeared, leaving behind a very confused Rose. 'Hang on... how did she know my name?!'
Just to see if Young was right, she pulled out her bottle of water, slowly pouring it over the rock, she watched it run through it like acid.
"Wow." She said, amazed by the effect of the water.
Slowly, with practise, she had managed to sculpt things, using water style jutsu.
She had helped her family pay for their needs with her master sculpture skills, selling statues and in the local market.
That was when the Witch Finder found her.
Training under the careful eye of her master, Rose learnt magick. All that the Witch Finder wanted in return was her services, it was no different to being a ninja really.
She was actually climbing the mountain to discuss a mission with her master, the Witch Finder. They always chose a different secret location because the Witch travelled around, searching for more students.
She reached the top, where the Mystery Witch Finder was meditating under a leafless tree. The reason that she was a mystery was that she wore a mask that covered all but her soft, mint green eyes.
"Hello, Rose."
"Ohayo to you too, Witch Finder." Rose replied, smiling as usual.
She sighed. "How many times have I told you, you may call me Elder Witch, Rose."
Rose walked over to the woman and sat in front of her. "It is alright for me to call you Witch Finder though, isn't it?"
She nodded. "Indeed, if that is what you think you should call me, then so be it. Now, I would like to discuss your mission with you."
Rose cocked an eyebrow, questioning her actions. They always had a long talk before discussing business.
"I know, but I don't have much time today and I need to discuss the mission in detail. It's very dangerous and needs to be handled with care and precision, two things that you have."
Soon after she saw the look in her mentor's eye, she realised just how hard this was going to be. "What is it that I must do, Elder?"
"One of my old pupils has fallen dangerously and turned to a different, violent religion and practise. He's stopped using white magick and instead uses black magick- far darker than you have encountered."
Black magick. The worst form of murder is often found by necromancers and other practitioners of the art- even though white magick had more possible uses, including types of death spells.
"Why would anyone do that? White magick is perfectly powerful." Rose said, more to herself than anyone else. She had often had to rehabilitate people, making them see why white magick was the most important and why black magick was too dangerous.
"They do it because black magick is a seriously evil ninja's tool. White magick is so pure and even though it can do evil to some, it does more good to them. Black magick is also like a drug, it's addictive, just like becoming more powerful is."
"I know why they do it but..."
"I understand and agree, Rose. It is usually terrible, but it is essential for the balance of the Universe. The problem is, this man has singlehandedly managed to upset the balance."
Roses eyes widened considerably. "He must use so much... to be able to tip the balance on one's own... that's unnatural."
She nodded her head in agreement. "He is fully aware of what he's doing and is not stopping, it's your job to make sure that he does."
"Who is he and where is he? I must find a way to stop him."
"Your mission, Rose, is to infiltrate the Akatsuki... and bring the Black magician Hidan back to the light. Do you accept?"
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." She said, smiling mischievously.
Little did she know then that her insane mission would change her more than she thought possible.