The Hidden Village of Mist is situated on an island within the country of Wave. Due to it's location, the people of Mist were isolated from the outside world. The village of Mist acted as the capitol of the man island but it had many problems. The main problem being that the village was not stable. There was no Kage, no leader, the people had a feeble democracy which was doomed to fail. Over time, many civil wars spawned from battles between feuding lords. Mist was also cut off from other countries and therefore had little revenue and few ninja. Like Konoha, the Hidden Village in the Leaves, in the country of Fire, Mist was home to many clans which posessed bloodline limits. One of the many bloodlines which lived in the hidden village of Mist was the Clan of Arai, the New Well. To preserve their clan, the Arai left the village for many years, hiding in a deserted part of the island. Where they hid few people bothered to go. Perhaps no one wanted to live there because it was impossible to survive, but somehow, the Arai managed to do so.
Origins of the Arai clan and their doujitsu, the Hitono, are not known. It is thought that the Hitono may actually be the ancestor of the Byakugan. Both the Byakugan and the Hitono are doujitsu are bloodline limits which affect the eye. The Byakugan is superior in terms of insight where the Hitono is much more versitile. However the Hitono and the Byakugan formed, the Hitono of the present day is not what it used to be. Because of the isolation of the hidden village of Mist and the country of Wave itself, the Hitono was able to grow and evolve without interference.
By the time Gato gained control of Mist, the Arai clan had already rejoined the village and was one of the most influential groups, and easily the most powerful clan. Though there was much war, the Arai clan was able to support itself. Behind the scenes, the Arai had begun to infiltrate Gato's organization and was responsible for various assinations of Gato's company and associates. Once Gato was defeated, the Arai worked to unite the village of Mist and connect it to the rest of the world.
Our story chronicles the story of Kasumi Arai, a femme fatale with whom it is not advisable to crossblades. Few people have and come out alive, though it is suspected that she is not nearly as cold and cruel she seems. Then again, it is difficult for one to tell how a person really is, isn't it? Of course, my dear reader, the final verdict will be up to you. Kasumi Arai, friend or foe?
Part 1: Origins
The sun had barely begun to rise and already two figures could be found on the water. One was an adult, a powerfully built man, and the other wasa child, a girl of perhaps ten or eleven years. Birds began to rise and chirp softly which was all that was audible over the drips and splashes of water.
"Control and maintain!" the man snapped sharply at the littler girl. She was tiny and fragile looking, pale and almost sickly in appearance. Her vivid blue hair shone with beads of water and her white tunic was soaked as if she had gone swimming in it. "Hai!" answered the girl, making the sign of the dragon with her hands. Her eyes closed as she concentrated, bending her knees slightly while standing in the large pool of water. "Release!" She shouted, leaping into the air. Water droplets fell from her body, racing to the pool below. As the girl began her descent she flipped in the air, turning so that she seemed to be diving into the pool of water in which she had been standing. This makes little sense, seeing as the water had only been up to her knees at most. However, instead of diving head on into a pool of water, the girl somehow landed on the surface as if she were on ice.
"Control!" Repeated the man to her, following her movements with a nervous eye. "Hai!" came the response again. With a controlled tumble, the girl rolled upon the water's surface and came to a defensive fighting stance. "Sensei! I can do it!" squealed the girl, jumping up and down on the water's surface in happiness. She bounced over to her teacher and muse awaiting a compliment. There was silence for a moment, as though her teacher was unsure what to say.
"Good work Kasumi, we will continue tomorrow." was all the praise she received. "Hai sensei." Responded Kasumi before bowing to her teacher. She should have known better than to expect any rewards in the form ofkind words. The hidden village of Mist had no room for weaklings. This training was something that she needed in order to live and it was not a game. She could not show any weaknesses or faults in the Arai household, weaklings were disposed of quickly and quietly in order to preserve the strength of the clan.
"Hello sun." Kasumi whispered looking at the new day which lay before her. She would begin her life today, all that was before was merely training leading up to this day.
The initiation was comming soon and that fact made Kasumi nervous. The initiation determined whether or not she was a true Arai, if she had the gift of the golden sight. In preparation, Kasumi sat in her partitioned room nervously. She was about to be given her final test. She already had control of her chakra enough to form a field around her and allow her to walk and act on water as if it were land. Now she would be tested and with luck, her own Hitono would awaken. She prayed silently that she would receive the full Hitono. The golden eye of the village hidden in the waves, the eye which watched over the village of Mist.
There was a knock on the partition. "Are you ready Kasumi-san?" asked a soft female voice. It was her mother, Kasumi's mother, the one person Kasumi could not stand. Instead of replying, Kasumi got up and left the room without a word. Sad eyes followed Kasumi as she walked away from the woman who wished desperately to be in control of her daughter's life. She walked through the hall and found her sensei in the courtyard.
"Sensei, I am ready." She stated evenly, bowing low and waiting for permission to rise.
"Kasumi, you are 11. Typcally your initiation would occur on your 13th birthday. You are incompetent and ill prepared. You will not gain the Hitono in such a state." The man who was her sensei watched for signs of weakness, timid acceptance of his words. He found none. "Get up, we're going to be late if you keep lollygagging." Kasumi rose and followed her sensei as they left the compound, heading for the Arai family dock. This was going to be a long day, but Kasumi was glad that this day had finally come.
"You are sure she's ready for this?" Asked a skeptical elder as Kasumi and her sensei boarded the small boat. It was manned by 6 Arai clan members who were to row the boat out to see for Kasumi's final test.
"No, but we'll find out, won't we?" chuckled Kasumi's sensei in an unkind way.
The trip out into the sea was uneventful at first, but the farther out the boat was, the more violent the waves became. One might wonder why a ship of 6 oarsmen and 3 passangers would purposely go out to sea in such a manner. Of course, the Arai were not known for their kindness. They were instead known for their brutality in the elimination of those they considered weak.
"This is far enough." The elder Arai yelled over the howling winds. The oarsmen halted. Kasumi rose to her feet and face the elder. "May you gain the golden sight." He said, placing his wrinkled hands upon her head in a grandfatherly manner. In one swift movement, he grabbed Kasumi by the shoulders and threw her out into the raging ocean.
"Ryuu!" muttered Kasumi under her breath, making the formation of the dragon seal. A field of blue glowed around her body as she struggled to emit chakra from all of her tenketsu to slow down her fall. The low which had begun to engulf her soon became an aura that surrounded her. "Release!" Screamed Kasumi, forcing chakra from all her tenketsu. This explosion of chakra caused Kasumi to spiral as she flew through the air, and after she had a moment to gather her thoughts, Kasumi halted the spiral and flipped up into the air, landing on the water with a dull thud which could barely be heard.
"This is going to be a long day." muttered Kasumi angrily as she narrowed her eyes, looking around for the boat the main island itself. The waves rose and fell with Kasumi standing upon them, working hard to hold her balance. She had no idea where she was and wasn't sure how to get back. If she didn't figure out which direction to go, she would run out of chakra and drown. If possible, Kasumi wished to avoid drowning, but the question was, how would she do that? Her small blue eyes scanned the horizon for any signs of land. Of couse, there would also be the ancient genjutsu which would make it appear that there was no island. This was a proctection, but it was now another obstacle in Kasumi's path to truly being one of the Arai clan. To dispell he genjutsu, Kasumi formed a quick hand seal and muttered "dispell!". Lo and behold, a dark shadow appeared in the mist, but it wasn't close by any means which greatly frustrated Kasumi.
"Figures as much." She sighed,focusing more chakra into her feet and hands. The waves made it difficult to keep her balance, so Kasumi needed chakra to exit nearly all of her tenketsu so she could stay above the water. By focsuing chakra into her hands and feet, she hoped to consevre chakra and also move quickly across the water. The waves tossed her uncaringly about the surface, causing her to stumble and fall every now and then. "Where are you?" Kasumi asked to no one as she searched the horizon once more. By the time Kasumi finally figured out where she needed to go, she was running low on chakra. Instead of sending chakra to he hands and her feet, Kasumi sent chakra only to her feet. It had been hours already and she knew she didn't have much time left.
"Do you think she'll make it?" Asked Kasumi's sensei to the Elder who had bodily hurled Kasumi from their small boat that morning.
"Come now, Saito, you don't have enough faith in her to know yourself?" Saito, Kasumi's sensei, remained silent. His pale blue eyes stared at the ground as if he was trying to decipher a mesage written in the pebbles.
"Denali," he said slowly, "I don't know whether it's a good idea to risk giving her the Hitono. She isn't stable."
"Saito," replied Denali, using the same tone as his subordinate, "I think she is more than ready to have the Hitono. She's more stable than you are in anycase. Not to mention more refined." Denali gave Saito a stern look, the way a father might treat a disobedient son.
Out on the ocean, Kasumi could see land as she tried run across the surface of the water. The waves were becoming less choppy and easier to walk on as she neared the island and she was eager to reach land. "I'm so close!" Her inner self screamed, Kasumi's chakra supply was low and it was already late in the afternoon. She had been out on the ocean for some time and spent a lot of her time going in the wrong direction. She should have known that the genjutsu which was placed on the island to protect it would not be limited to one simple jutsu. The island was, of course, in the direction of the first genjustsu she dispelled. Tired, frustred, and hungry, Kasumi found herself on a rock just meters away from the Arai dock. She took a moment to rest on the rock and conserve her energy and her chakra. She was so close! There was no turning back now. She had long since made her mind to achieve the Hitono, but instead of being forced to awaken the Golden Sight in her eyes, she as just tired and nearly out of chakra.
"See," said Denali to Saito as they walked along the coast, "there she is now." Denali began to waddle down towards the shoreline to welcome Kasumi and congratulate her on becomming one of the clan. When he reached the dock, he found Kasumi lying on the dock and glaring angrilly at the sea.
"Elder, sensei." Kasumi said quietly with her back towards the two men as they approached her.
"Have acheived your goal?" asked Saito urgently. He didn't understand why she was so angry, she had lived and surpassed his expectations, why would she be upset?
"I am sorry Sensei, I have failed you." Kasumi replied, rising to her feet and turning to Saito. She bowed deeply, "I have not received the Hitono through the initiation. Forgive me Sensei." She waited for the command to rise and hoped that her Sensei would not be disappointed in her.
"You are not worthy of the Arai name," Saito began, staring down at the back of Kasumi's head as she was bowed at his feet. "From this day forth, you are disowned. You have no place within the clan and are no longer welcome in our home. Leave this place and do not return."
"Hai." replied Kasumi. Bowing deeply to her, now former, sensei, Kasumi lifted her head and walked away from everything she had known. She knew this could happen, but she did not expect to be on the receiving end of disownment. Where would she go, what would she do? How would she live in the Hidden Village of Mist without her clan? All of these questions whirled about her mind as she walked into town. Kasumi had no idea what she was going to do. She had never learned at the Academy of the village, her clan taught her much more than anything that was learned at the Academy. As she walked past her clan home, she saw the full members with their pale blue eyes watching her. Their eyes were blue meaning they were completely blue, there was no white, they had sclera. In turn, she stared back at them with her unchanged eyes. Everyone understood, she was no longer one of the clan and was not welcome.
"Halt stranger!" Denali yelled, causing Kasumi to spin around and give the old man a quizzical look. Why did he even speak to her? She was disowned. She was a leper esentially.
"You are not welcome here, leave at once!" Denali threw some chakra kunai at a very surprised Kasumi who dodged the first 3 easily but found herself facing two more which were aimed for her head.
"Ryuu!" Countered Kasumi, making a small shield with all of her remaining chakra in order to deflect the kunai(s).
Kasumi's breath came in ragged short pants and she cold hardly believe what was happening. First she failed the initiation, then was disowned, and then attacked by Denali. This didn't make any sense!
"Surrender and we will decide a suitable punishment." Called Denali as he slowly approached Kasumi. He had a grin on his face as if this was some sort of elaborate game. It would be all fine and well if that was the case, but Kasumi wasn't sure what to believe at this point.
"I surrender." She sighed, bowing to Denali when he finally reached her. What else was there to do?
"Perfect!" Grinned the elder, clapping his hands together like a child. He grabbed Kasumi by the arm and lead her towards the Arai complex.
"Eh?" Was all Kasumi managed to get out of her mouth as she was hauled past her former familymembers and into the houseold. Denali was leading her down one of the 3 main hallways, past the courtyard, and to the Lesser House.
Slightly smaller, and set off to the northern side of the complex, the Lesser House was where the lowest level Arai clan members lived. Because of their low strength as Ninja, they were reduced to menial tasks to make up for the income they could not bring in as ninja. Inside the Lesser House were smaller portions set aside for families with communal kitchens and washrooms. Though it was not very decorated, the Lesser House had a silently majestic beauty to it. All the inhabitants who lived in the Lesser House wore simple white with blue borders and had the mist and Arai clan symbols on their backs. The Lesser House was where Kasumi would continue growing up. She would become one of the clan, though as an outsider, even though she had the blood. It was an unusual way to achieve greatness, it should have been easy for her. She was the child of two powerful Ninja, but was considered a failure because she did not have the Hitono. Though, in reality, the clan should have been proud, she was alive and strong, she did not have the Hitono, but instead already had the strength to survive initiation.
"This is where you will live, girl," said Denali, showing her into the oldest room of the Lesser House. It was a room that was never used by anyone of the clan, and especially not anyone of the Lesser House. The person who'd used it before had comitted suicide in a gruesome display in the room. She was actually the woman for whom Kasumi was named. She was Kasumi's grandmother. It was unclear as to why Denali would want to place her there, but she figured it would be better to accept the room gratefully. "Thank you sir." Kasumisaid softly, bowing deeply and entering the room. It was white and had only a dresser on one wall. The remaining walls were starch white and there was a bed which was neatly made, lying in the center of the room on the floor.
Denali smiled at Kasumi and left. This was going to be quite an experience, perhaps she would be the Kasukage, the one who would unite their island and make it strong. There was no reason to exile her, though that was what was called for in such a situation. Denali was an old man, perhaps he was becomming senile in his age, but he knew better than to let Kasumi stray too far. People of her caliber were not of the Upper House, they were in a class all their own. Atleast, that's what Denali hoped, only time would tell.