Author's Note: Hello dearest readers! I am so sorry I haven't been updating as much as I should have been. However, I did not like the way the story was going. I have revised it and it seems to flow a lot better and all the holes in the plot line have been filed. Chapters 1 through 4 will be fully out to view shortly. I appreciate all of those that follow and favorite. Y'all are amazing. Thank you for being so patient

"They called her Ningyo. She was beautiful, or so I was told. Her hair was the color of the river itself and her eyes reminded her family of honey. When she sang, many men-"

"Okaa-chan, " a tiny voice whinned. A woman looked down at the child in her arms. "That's you! Why are you describing yourself?" The child glanced up at his mother. She did indeed appear to be the woman from the story. For she had sapphire hair of like a river and honey brown eyes. She smiled and hugged the child closer to her.

"No, that is the Ningyo. Now where was I?" She pondered. A baby's cry echoed throughout the apartment. The woman looked down at the child and gave a sad smile. "When I get back from taking care of Koto-chan, I'll finish our story. Alright, Sora-kun?

"Okay, Kaa-chan." he sighed. Sora moved aside of the futon so that she could tend to his baby sister. He watched as she walked around the corner. Sora huffed and crossed his arms. Why did he have to have a baby sister? It was better when it was just the two of them. Sora caught his reflection in the mirror that sat across from him.

Sora touched the gill marks on his cheeks and sighed. For a child of five, he couldn't help but know that he was different. He was a light blue, for kami sake. His mother never told him of his father or of anything of his other family as a matter of fact. He reached up and touched his blue hair.

In the Academy, no one would play with the child. His teeth were pointed and his skin was blue. The only thing normal about the child was his honey brown eyes that Sora inherited from his mother. He envied his sister, who was had a robin egg complexion and his mother's hair and eyes as well. Sora scowled at the mirror. Everyone called him a freak except for his best friend Naruto. Naruto didn't have any parents and loved to come over and play with Sora. Naruto even loved to train with him. He didn't think Sora was a monster or a freak.

"Sora-kun," his mother had called out. Sora looked at the doorway to see his mother. He thought his mother was beautiful. She stood about five foot nine and he heard Kakashi oji-san say once to Sarutobi-san that his mother had everything in all the right places. Her hitai-ate hung around her neck while her shirt resembled a green kimono that was cut in half. Her skirt was an ninja scroll that was unraveled and wrapped around her waist giving her ample time to summon kunai, shuriken, and other ninja tools. Her hair that stopped at her knees were filled with senbon during missions. "Are you ready for the rest of the story?"

"Hai!" Sora exclaimed. He loved his mother's stories. Sora scooted over on the futon and his mother sat with him.

"Alright where was I?" She thought out loud, "Ah, now I remember. There once was a princess that lived in a far off land….."

"Ningyo-hime!" A voice called out. The princess with hair of the sapphire river and honey eyes never looked up from the water. She sat beside the river that allowed her to be what she was. The Ningyo. The princess. The cool water ran between her ivory fingers. She hummed as the fish kissed the tips of her fingers. She loved to be near the water as it was always quiet and serene.

"Koi-chan!"A different voice called. She sighed and looked up. Something caught her eye in the water across the way caught in the reeds. While the current was mild today, something shouldn't have come down stream this early in spring. Koi stood up from her spot and noticed that it wasn't just something it was as someone.

"Nii-san!" She screamed. Koi panicked and shed her outer kimono and dove into the river. She swam over to the body. Koi noticed that the person was rather a boy. She grabbed the boy's arm and wrapped her arm around his body. Koi began to swim back across the river. By the time she reached the shore, her brother and her father were standing at the edge. She hoisted the boy on the shoreline while her father dragged him away from the river. Her brother helped her out of the water.

"I saw him there and I don't know if he is breathing, but he is blue!" She coughed. Her father was a tall man with grey hair and black eyes. He put his ear to his chest.
"He is still breathing, but he is waterlogged and wounded. I will take him to your mother," her father spoke. "Thank you, Koi-chan." She nodded as her brother placed her outer kimono around her shoulders. Her brother was a carbon copy of her father. Strict and stoic just like him as well.

"Nii-san.." Koi started as she stood. "Who was that?"

"It seems to be the apprentice of Suikazen-teme." Her brother said. Fuguki Suikazen was one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and a ruthless brother once told her that he looked like a human pufferfish. Koi glanced back at the river Why would the river bring the apprentice to her? "Maa, let's get back to Kaa-chan."

"Hmm." She agreed. Koi grasped her brother's hand as her mind wandered. The river knew something. It had to.

"Holding hands again?" Her brother mused. His gaze made her blush. Koi was just a month shy of being fourteen and out of habit grabbed her older brother's hand. Since she was a small girl, Koi held her brother's hand in fear that he would disappear. Being a shinobi with no allegiance to a village, it still made things difficult for her.

"I'm sorry," She made to let go of his hand but he held it tighter. "Sota…" Her eyes lingered on her brother. He smiled at her.

"Ne, only for you imouto," He grinned. As the pair made it through their clan's gate. They noticed the elder of the Uta clan with a man. Kou stared as she recognized him as Fuguki Suikazen. She took a guess and figured out that it was about his apprentice. Koi tighten her grip on her brother's hand as the elder turned her gaze upon the siblings. The elder bowed deeply as Suikazen just glared at her.

Sota took notice of his sister's sudden grip and lead her to the pair. "Yuki-sama, Fuguki-san."

"Sota-kun," Yuki, the elder, smiled. For a clan leader and head, she appeared young with long gray hair wrapped in a bun. No one could even suspect that the woman was actually over a hundred years in age. "Ningyo-hime, We appreciate what you did for Hoshigaki-san." Koi eyed the man next to her.

"Suikazen-san should bow when introduced to the princess of the Uta Clan." She stated coldly. Fuguki suddenly bowed against his will. His eyes widen as he now faced the ground instead of the young girl. Yuki laughed as Sota escorted Koi away.

"She can do a lot more than make you bow, Suikazen-san," the elder laughed, "if she were to be evaluated by any shinobi village they would have her ranked as a jonin and a s-ranked one at that." Suikazen stood up straight and watched the girl walk away. Thoughts began to bubble inside the swordsman's head.

Koi entered her home and shed her outer kimono. Sota followed in tow taking of his sandals. She turned her head and saw that her father was sitting at the family kotatsu reading. Normally it wasn't a good sign for her and it meant that at talk needed to happen.

"Okaa-san!"Sota called out, "We're home!"

"Over in the spare room," their mother called from down the hall. Sota put a hand on Koi's shoulder before leaving her to face their father. She gave a sigh and moved slowly toward her father. The paper in front of the man ruffled as he signed with his brush. Koi sat with her legs underneath her and bowed to her father.

"Suikazen." He spoke.

"He is a liar," She started, "There is something off about the man." His image

remained vivid in her mind's eye. The orange bun on the top of his head , the sharpened teeth, and the green marks upon his cheeks. "He wishes to have Hoshigaki-san reside with us until he is able to take a mission for Mizugakure."

"Oh," The blue boy Koi saved popped in her head. He was an interesting character.

"In any case, there is something else I'd like to discuss with you." Koi watched as her father met her gaze. Sadden shown in his eyes.

"Otou-san?"

"The Mizukage has requested you to participate in the chunin exams." Her eyes widened. She was not a kunoichi of the Mist. She was the Ningyo of her People. A warrior to the clan. "Mizukage-sama has asked we allow this as a favor."

"I am not a genin nor am I a kunoichi of his village." Koi scoffed, "I am a young woman who has been taught the shinobi way to protect the clan. I am not a cold blooded killer like most of the Genin there." Her anger was a force to be reckoned with. While she did not detest the village, she did not understand the violence that the shinobi caused there. Yagura was a cruel leader and her has not kept ties to the Mist since the first Ningyo.

"Koi." Her father started. His voice thundered in the room. The man stood up. His gaze softened as he placed a hand on his daughter's shoulder. " For the clan,"

"'For the clan,' her father said." The woman finished the story and have the sleeping Sora a kiss. She moved off of the futon and stretched as she started toward the door. A sharp knock rung throughout her apartment as she closed the door. The woman made a beeline for the door. Upon opening the door enough to glance out, her worried gaze turned into a deadly glare.

"You do know that it's eleven at night and my children are sleeping," She hissed, "If you wake them, I'll slit your throat where you stand."

"Maa.. Koi-chan," a man groaned, "You're always so violent." Koi rolled her eyes and let the man in. She was glad that she had a fews days off, but her children, Sora at least, had class and both needed rest. She watched as the man whose gray hair defied gravity stumbled to her couch.

"Not always," She mumbled as she shut the door.

"Yes you are." A muffled voice called. Koi looked to the couch to see his hair standing out from her black couch.

"Another rivalry challenge?" she changed the subject, "Ne, Kakashi?" The man hiccuped and she raised an eyebrow.

"We drank and the drunkenly spared." The idea of the Youthful Green Beast of Konoha was hilarious to Koi. However, Guy and Kakashi in a drunken fight was even more humorous. She stifled her laughter and shook her head. Kakashi looked up to see her walking to the kitchen. He knew that she was getting his aspirin and water. He groaned some more and a rolled on his back.

"You know," Koi laughed, "You should have known better." Kakashi scoffed and tried to smother himself with a pillow. "Guy is your best friend and you drank with him. I'm just surprised he is not at my door."

"Koi-chan…"

"Ne, Kakashi-kun," Koi emerged from the kitchen and walked to the couch. Kakashi sat up as she held out her hands. Kakashi tried to stand, but he swayed. Despite being a ninja, his balance was off thanks to the challenge. Kakashi started to fall forward as Koi moved to catch him.

CRASH!