Oy, this is my first fan fiction... Enjoy... I hope...
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Naruto, they belong to Mashashi Kishimoto, who better not kill Itachi. I only own my own characters.
Krimzon : protector; one who keeps another safe from harm; a lover
Chapter One:
Prayer
In the forest of the Village Hidden in the Leaves...
Inori brushed her long dark hair with a comb. The comb itself was beautiful, and in the hands of a beautiful young woman to match. She pushed aside her bangs, reveling her dark luminescent blue eyes that seemed to stick out on her fair skinned face. She was pale, not too pale, and had no need for make-up.
She treasured such beautiful warm days; where the wind was blowing, making the soft rustling of the leaves. She put her comb down and dipped back into the grass. She stared up at the sky and smiled. She then closed her eyes and drifted into a sweet slumber, until the nightmares came.
Her dreams filled with memories of her old home, in the land of Mist. Dreams of a cold and poor, yet somewhat beautiful place, where snow never stops falling softly. Inori dreams of how her mother would beat her for reasons she never knew, dreams of being so hungry with nothing to appease it. She remembers all the emotional and physical pain she had suffered, and she opens her eyes to chase away such hurtful images. Was she ever thankful that her Uncle had come and taken her away from that bitter existence. If he never came, who knows what may have happened to her, she may have ended up being sold into slavery or prostitution.
Inori smiled as she thought of her uncle. Her uncle has raised her like his own daughter. He was the head priest of the family temple. He is the brother of her deceased father, making her next in line to manage the temple. Inori stood up and pulled a kunai out of her bag and examined it.
She was also quite a good medical ninja, she could never bring her gentle heart to kill so she trains more in the medical field. But she still knows a ninja also has to be strong to survive. Inori was also training to manage the temple when she was older, in other words she was training to be a sort of priestess, so she didn't't have a normal team like others and didn't't go on very many missions.
She still had a sensei that checked up on her and accompanied her on missions though. She smiled again when she remembered how proud her uncle was when she became a chunin two and a half years ago when she was 14. She really loves her uncle, she would die for him.
The girl finally put the kunai away and began to meditate. It was her method of building her chalkra, the more chalkra you have, the more useful you are.
----------
It was night, Inori was on her way home to the temple. She sighed. It was pretty hard to balance out her ninja and spiritual training. "Honestly, I don't know how I do it." She mumbled to herself.
When she got home, the first thing she noticed was her porno reading super flirt drunk ass of a sensei sitting with the uncle in the kitchen.
"Asaki-sensei? Has something happened?" Both of them smiled widely at her. "Well...its about your enrollment into ANBU..." Asaki said.
Then her uncle yelled out, "They accepted you!! Tomorrow they are going to initiate you and some others who made it!!"
Inori stood there in disbelief then cheered out, " Oh my god I'm an ANBU? I'm a freaking ANBU!! Am I dreaming" She and her uncle both hugged and began dancing around. Being an ANBU was an honor, and plus it was a good paying job. She will finish her spiritual training in two more months.
Life was perfect for this teenage ninja-kung-fu-kick-ass-priestess. Maybe too perfect.
----------
It was really happening, she was being initiated as an official ANBU ninja by the third Hokage himself. She was given a cat mask by the ANBU Black Ops captain. She received her katana and outfit, then they did the part she hated most of all, they placed the mark of the ANBU on her left shoulder.
After that, they gave her and the 3 other new ANBU a lecture and they told them all the rules, and gave them all a handbook to study. This book included tips and pictures with the abilities of some criminals. Inori was an ANBU, but she felt more like an ANBU in training, a rookie.
On her way out, another young woman who looked like she was about 21.
"Hi, I'm Yuri. Hey you're the new girl that's on my squad, nice to meet you." She let out her hand and Inori shook it, while letting out a nervous smile. "Common I don't bite, say...lets be friends kay? Ill show you the ropes and teach you about us a little more. Besides our squad leader is always busy somewhere."
"Sure." Inori answered a bit disappointed that her leader wasn't't always around, she felt like she wouldn't't get the proper training she needed But on the bright side, she really never had a real friend before, just the monks and nuns of her temple.
"Well see ya tomorrow." Then Yuri went poof and was gone.
Inori began running home. 'Yuri is kinda nice, she seems so cheery...' She smiled to herself, proud of her accomplishment. 'I will train hard. Ill be one of the best the ever was Ill make my uncle and sensei very proud of me.' She thought as she approached her home.
----------
Almost one month later, Inori was really getting the hang of the ANBU stuff. It wasn't't easy, but she knew she definitely was improving. She could feel it and it made her feel strong inside. Yuri was a great friend, Inori admired her very much.
It was such a beautiful day. Inori has just finished meditating and picked up her katana and began sharpening it. Today she had an important mission. Even though the day was beautiful, she felt kinda sad... in a lonely kind of way, like something was missing in her life and in herself. She also felt sad about the third Hokage's death. Konoha was still in repairs for when that scum Orochimaru attacked the village.
The Third was such a peaceful old man, and it was an honor to have worked for him. She sat up, since there was no Hokage to watch the village, those old geezers, no... ancient fossils where running things. They announced that they have to work harder to do as many missions as possible, something about not letting other countries knowing they has lost a lot of power thus preventing an attack. In other words they seemed more strict than the Third, and gave her more complicated missions.
Konoha had lost many to the wrath of Orochimaru. She hated Orochimaru for being responsible for the death of many of her new friends, and the rest of the people. She remembered how she barely survived that day. Then she felt bad for harboring such thoughts against the fossils, but she was just a little angry that she cant do much of her own things anymore.
There came a knock on her door. She snapped back to reality. She looked down ans saw that she had sharpened too much and there was blood on her hands. She wiped the blood on a cloth and got up to answer the door, it was Enrio, another ANBU on her squad. "Enrio, its early"
He walked in. "I know, but I just want to talk to you." He sat down and took off his wolf mask.
Inori had a small crush on him, he had the most beautiful green eyes she had ever seem. He had a handsome body with wild brown hair. He was a kinda quiet and serious to do his job ANBU, but a fun to be around friend.
"I heard those old bats had asked Jiraiya to be the next Hokage." he said.
"What? That guy? He is worse than my old sensei!"
"Yes, I know... but he refused." Inori looked at him. "He is going to look for Lady Tsunade and ask her to be the next Hokage."
Inori gasped lightly. Tsunade was a legend, and an inspiration to a lot of kunoichi.
"Also.." He continued. "Naruto, that nine-tailed kid is going with him, Jiraiya had asked to take him specifically."
Inori smiled. "Well the kid is full of surprises, I remember at the Chunin exams, when he fought that Hyuga kid, honestly he really made me turn my hea..." Inori was cut off when Yuri barged in.
"Hurry, come now! Two S-ranked criminals have been spotted."
Inori and Enrio got up instantly. Inori took of her kimono which had her outfit underneath and grabbed her mask and katana, soon all three were zooming to the location.
"The client is Might Guy, he requested back-up, but most of the ANBU had just left the village, an emergency messenger has been sent to retrieve them right away. The fight has already begun. Three jonin, Asuma, Kurenai, and Kakashi have engaged in battle." Yuri explained.
They finally arrived to find that Kakashi was unconscious and that the criminals had escaped. Gai was giving information to Enrio, and some other ninja who had just showed up. It was Enrio's job to get information for the squad. Enrio came back to Inori and Yuri.
"The two members are from an organization called Akatsuki, as Kurenai and Asuma said. One was Kisame Hoshigaki, an s-ranked criminal from the Mist of whom is guilty of espionage and the potential murder of a feudal lord. The other... Itachi Uchiha."
They all became quiet. Their very own Itachi Uchiha, the kid who went to school and graduated the same school year. The prodigy of the Uchiha clan...
...the destroyer of the Uchiha clan.
Inori looked down.
----------
// A younger Inori was wandering around the halls of the Konoha Ninja Academy. She was lost and kinda of scared. This was her first day of ninja school and her uncle has just brought her to live Konoha just a week ago. She put her hand against her mouth and began walking to where she tough was her classroom. She walked passed a bunch of boys, and became self-conscious, she didn't't want to mess up in front of these boys. She was too paranoid of being teased that she tripped over her own two feet.
The boys began to laugh at her, she felt humiliated as warm tears streamed down her face.
"Hahaha that was so funny!"
"What an idiot!"
"Clumsy troll."
"Crybaby!!"
...they said in between laughs. She curled up into a ball and began crying a bit harder. She heard them laugh harder and felt so stupid, so stupid.
"Leave her alone, she is very new to this, and afraid."
Inori looked up to see a boy with raven hair and onyx eyes. The boys shut up immediately and began walking away.
"Yeah, yeah... whatever... Uchiha." one of them managed to make out.
She sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Stop crying..." she heard as he came closer to her.
"...a ninja isn't't supposed to show any emotion."
She looked up at his face again, he had a slight smile on his face and seemingly sincere eyes.
"I...I'm sorry...I'm lost..and then..." She stopped talking when she saw a hand reach out to her, she stared at it and looked up again.
"Ill help you, so stop crying."
She smiled at him and grabbed his hand. He helped her up, and she held her hands against her chest with a small blush.
"Which room are you looking for?"
"Ummm... room C-4..."
He gave her a half smile, "That's my room too, follow me."
He started walking and she followed. She felt really weird being near him, like he was watching her. 'Is this what its like to be with another person as old as me? I'm so nervous... so paranoid...'
He stopped in front of a sliding door. She almost bumped into him.
"Itachi... I'm Itachi..." then she watched him go into the room.
'Itachi?' she thought.
'Is something wrong with him?' //
----------
"Helloooo!" Yuri called as she waved her hands back and forth in front of Inori's face.
"Is something wrong with him?" Inori blurted out.
"Huh?" Yuri replied.
Inori came back to reality and saw a stupid curious expression on Enrio face and Yuri who look confused. Everyone else was already gone.
"Ah...sorry...I blacked out. Hee..."
Enrio shook his head and poofed away. She looked at Yuri who began talking.
"I took the chunin exams with him... that Itachi..." Yuri looked up. "He was the smallest genin Id ever seen, I though he'd die the first day." Then she laughed, and her voice almost broke when she spoke again. "I never though the runt would one day take out the strongest clan in Konoha single-handedly... and they really were elite... those Uchihas..."
Inori looked down absorbing everything Yuri was saying. Yes, she too couldn't't believe.
What Itachi had...
It was hard to think about it, what he'd done.
She found herself in another memory.
----------
// "Uncle? What's an Uchiha?"
"Hoho.. Here in Konoha, we are blessed with numerous families, all of which contribute to the power of Konoha. The Uchiha clan is said to be the greatest of them all. They are greatly respected among the people here."
"Really? So they are really strong?"
"Yes, you can say that... but it doesn't't matter which clan you are from, you can become an exceptional shinobi, you just have to work hard."
"Of course uncle... i'll become very strong..." She though about Itachi. 'No wonder those boys where scared of him...'
"Well either way... I'm gonna become better than Itachi Uchiha will ever be!"
"Haha That's the spirit, my little Inori." //
--------
'Ever since then...I grew more confidence day after day...I wanted to beat him...but I never did...' Inori thought.
She looked at Yuri. Yuri just looked down and sighed. "Yuri, What's wrong."
"Nothing...just going through my memories of the time I had with my best friend." Yuri replied.
"Really? What's her name, do I know her?" Yuri bit her lip slightly, then answered.
"Anita Uchiha."
"Anita Uchi...Yuri I'm so sorry..." Inori said in shock at her realization.
"Neh its ok..." Yuri felt a hand on her back. Yuri suddenly changed her mood. "Well, we have been given orders to try and track down those bastards... Common..."
// "Stop Crying... a ninja isn't supposed to show any emotion." //
Inori couldn't help remembering.
'Are we ninja really doomed to such a fate? Must we all really have suffer alone?' She thought. Then she remembered seeing ninja and their families, younger ninja loafing around and laughing with their friends. She remembered seeing a cherry haired kunoichi who poured all her love and admiration to a raven haired boy through her eyes and she remembered seeing a certain dream chasing blondes fight against a Hyuga. She smiled as she completed the sentence of a young boy who had disappeared a very long time ago.
"A ninja isn't supposed to show his true feelings...on the battlefield, otherwise, he can pour his heart out."
----------
It was evening. Inori, Yuri, and Enrio where patrolling the forest. They had just recently received news from another ANBU. They had struck again in a small town near Konoha. It was confirmed that they are after the demon sealed inside of that Naruto kid. The sannin Jiraiya fought with them until they fled from him after using some unknown technique.
Only one person was really injured and it was Sasuke Uchiha who had been trying to reek revenge. He was severely damaged, physically and mentally. If they happened to spot the criminals, they had to get back up and not go into battle alone at all costs. Naruto is safe with Jiraiya and have already departed in search of Tsunade before they could ask questions. And that was about it.
"Hmph, I wish they had let us ask questions..." Yuri complained. Enrio laughed.
"Hey lets go to my place for awhile, its close by." Inori asked.
"Yeh, besides I need the bathroom too anyways." Yuri said.
"Well lets get going then." Enrio finished. They headed out. They were walking up to the temple talking.
"Haha, you know I heard Kisame looks like a giant blue fish."
"A FISH?!" Yuri cried. Inori stopped suddenly.
"Huh? What's wrong?" they both said in unison.
"The lights..." Inori whispered. Yuri and Enrio looked at her home and noticed the lights were not on.
"They should have been lit a long time ago..." Inori said as her heart beat faster. They all stared at the unlit temple...
Inori whispered to herself,
"I'm scared...I'm scared to find out..."
To be continued...
Well I hope you enjoyed... I tried to fit it into the anime as much as possible... so don't criticize it if you're not satisfied. Well I need reviews, I need motivation to go on...