Hey all!

After 2 years of just reading, I've decided to make my own Naruto fanfic. Normal disclaimers apply to any and all characters of Naruto and other characters (whose names could be changed) from various anime, which might appear within this fic.

Here are some notes on my story. These are important so don't skip these.

1. I'll be using Japanese terms for titles, labels and so on. For those who have little to no familiarity in Japanese, there will be a glossary at the end of every chapter. I will also be using the Japanese way of saying names and such.

2. Naruto (Ito) and Iruka (Karasu) are girls in this fic although people will think that Ito is a boy (Naruto) until the Sandaime dies in the Chuunin Exams. For convenience's sake, I'll use the name Naruto only when a character who doesn't know her secret talks or thinks about her.

3. Updates will be slow but there's no way that I'll abandon my first fic. In the immortal words of Naruto, "Believe it!"

Pairings: Itachi & Ito, Kakashi & Karasu, one-sided Mizuki & Karasu

If there are any questions, comments or suggestions, just review and I'll answer them. Can't say when I'll be able to reply though since I don't want my family to know I'm writing in my spare time.

Anyway, ON WITH THE FIC!

Prologue: A Story Once True

Many stories have lessons to teach those that listen to them. Most of the time, these lessons are known from the very beginning; other times, they are hidden for both hero and listener to discover as the story matures. Yet the most important lesson in every story is never discovered until the very end. Stories with this important lesson are as numerous as the leaves of a tree. This is just one of them.

The sky was a shade of dark violet that only comes with the setting sun. All around the small shinobi village of Tenpuu, housewives and small children were diligently tending to the fires that cooked the small feast that they prepared for that evening. Workers from various fields of occupation, who before would trudge home like the living dead after a hard day's work, now had a spring in there step (whether they were jumping from roof to roof or not) and a smile on their faces. One would think that they were celebrating the anniversary of a victory against a great foe. However, the truth is that they were celebrating a death, the death of the greatest leader and strongest warrior of Wave Country.

Now why, you ask, would they be celebrating such a solemn occasion? This is because of a myth handed down by word of mouth since his passing nearly a thousand years ago. As with all other legends, specific details were either dropped or altered while a few things were added here and there. Yet all agreed that it started that fateful day when several villagers claimed to have seen a silver-winged angel by the forest. Their leader, a callous but fair man called Kazama Kyuuzo, personally went to investigate this with two others as this could be a matter of security and influence. Also, he was curious to see this angel.

They traveled through the forest split up when they found several trails leading in different directions. Kyuuzo-sama followed his trail deep into the woodland until he heard not the rustling of feathers but the singing voice of a woman. Quite intrigued by this new development, he went quickly but silently only to find that the singer was not only the angel the villagers reported but also that she was bathing in a nearby river. So enchanted was he by her slim figure and the way the light reflected off of her stunning silver wings that he unconsciously dropped whatever shinobi training he possessed and alerted the angel to his presence.

Now normally, in most of these old stories, when a woman whose bathing was interrupted by a man turns around, she would instantly fall in love with the said mortal watching her. This, amusingly, did not happen as there were neither floating hearts in the air nor the sudden blooming of fragrant little flowers in the area. Instead, there was a loud "YOU DISGUSTING PERVERT!" that was heard throughout the immediate area followed by a deafening crash and utter silence.

The two shinobi accompanying Kyuuzo-sama had strict orders to return to the village should anything happen and rushed back to Tenpuu to prepare the rest of the shinobi. A week passed yet there was no abnormal activity coming from the forest. Kyuuzo-sama also failed to return and this caused great worry for the villagers.

On the eighth day, Kyuuzo-sama surfaced from the woods with a fair, raven-haired woman wearing a cloak named Sayuri. (A/N: Think Kagome from Inuyasha but with blue-eyes.) Kyuuzo-sama explained to the villagers what had happened in the forest. He was quite vague about how he actually met Sayuri and what she had yelled at him before the thunderous din. With good reason, if the glare that Sayuri was sending him was any indication. He told them that Sayuri would be joining the village until such time that she decides to leave.

Months passed and the villagers, both civilian and shinobi, grew to adore their newest addition. She was kind, sweet and generous. She also had a very vocal temper that she was not afraid to show anyone, not even Kyuuzo-sama. For the villagers, the pair seemed uncomfortable whenever they were in each other's presence. However, they did notice the vivid blush that would grace Sayuri's cheeks and the small, thoughtful smile on Kyuuzo-sama's lips after casual, mostly awkward (on Sayuri-hime's part) meetings around the village. The blonde messy-haired leader's features also seemed to soften during such encounters and his dark eyes were not as cold as prior to Sayuri's arrival.

The shinobi, of course, had a more definite understanding of what was going on between their previously stoic leader and the blue-eyed raven. Not long after the third loud outburst from Sayuri (extremely loud arguments not included), the two married.

Some years had gone by and Kyuuzo-sama's time was slowly running out due to an illness. On his deathbed, he made a promise. "My time has come but my line shall continue," he said. "She shall come and return the land's hope." With that, he breathed his last. Everyone searched for Sayuri-hime to have their questions answered. They searched well into the night yet all they found were the cloak she had worn that day and a letter saying, "Hope shall return."

They believed in the words that were left behind. They believed even when their story turned into fairytale and fairytale into myth. As families and friends sat at the tables laden with food fit for a Kage, they celebrated the ancient promise that was made for one last time as the last hints of the sun faded from the sky.

So what do you guys think? Reviews are welcomed and flames will be considered as creative comments unless they are just rants on what I did wrong. For those who want to know what Namikaze Kyuuzo looks, he's from Samurai 7, which I also don't own. I'm just borrowing him since I'm not good in making my own characters.

Sayuri is also not mine either since her appearance is based on Kagome from Inuyasha (as mentioned above) and I only changed her name because I like the name Sayuri much better.

Glossary:

-hime: princess

Kage: literally means shadow; leader of a ninja village

-sama: title for someone of higher rank

Shinobi: ninja

In any case, the prologue is done and, for now, so am I.

See ya! =)