A/N: I was so graciously given permission to take a piece of art and short story by Asta (underscoreasta on Tumblr) and turn it into a full story. This chapter is a bit short because it's just the prologue, but hopefully it is magical enough to set up the rest of the story!
Please remember to review/comment, subscribe to alerts, and favorite this story! And as always, the characters/plot of Naruto do not belong to me. I am merely writing this story out of my love for this series.
Hatake Sakumo was a very kind, very quiet man who resided inside of a village built in the middle of a large clearing surrounded by miles of dense, dark forest. He lived in a little stone hut with a thatched roof and crooked door. Behind the hut was a vegetable garden that he tended to meticulously. He had wild silver hair that stuck out in soft spikes, running down to his mid-back, and deep-set dark brown eyes nearing black that were always so full of warmth and compassion. Sakumo had no need for fancy clothes or nice things, so he was always dressed in a worn floor-length white cloak, the hem lined with embroidered red triangles that had begun to fray. A floppy hat was usually pulled over his head, though it did little to hide his mass of hair. His feet were often wrapped in soft-soled leather shoes tied with cord.
The entire village knew Sakumo and considered him to be the one true peacekeeper of the village, the one who looked after every civilian and made sure the borders were safe from outsiders - especially the Dark Wizards who had turned their backs on white magic and used their powers for evil. Despite being such a quiet and calm wizard, Sakumo was fearless and put his life on the line every time the village was in danger and could be fiercer and more ruthless than any Dark Wizard. This quickly earned him the title of "White Fang" - though Sakumo liked to pretend he got that title (and his unruly hair) from the stray dogs he sheltered inside his small hut. Each dog appeared in the fields outside of his home and each one seemed more magical than the last; something in their eyes and how they held themselves said they weren't ordinary dogs. And his hair had gotten far more wilder and silver, the more dogs he housed.
As the years went by, the solitary mage did his customary rounds through the village, greeting the shopkeepers, instructing children, and helping those in need. A few more dogs trailed behind him and eventually gained a place sleeping on the hardwood floor in his hut in front of the fireplace. A dozen or so crows roosted in one of the large trees on the border of his yard, watching him with dark black eyes and letting out raucous caws when he shuffled past. He, unlike many other villagers, did not bother to shoo away the black birds since the dogs at his heels were enough warning to keep them out of his garden. If it was winter or spring, he would not mind if they rooted through the garden and found something to eat, since he'd have no precious crops to protect during that time, but autumn was time for harvest and he couldn't risk losing a single bean to the troublemakers. However, he never went as far as some of the villagers who lobbed rocks at the birds and shouted curses - some human, some magical that they must've heard Sakumo or other passing witches and wizards use. As much as he didn't want the birds eating his food, he didn't feel that they were causing that much harm.
But Sakumo's view of crows and stray dogs and white magic and black magic were slowly turning into views far different than the ones the villagers held. Many people did not like the crows hanging around the village, afraid their crops would be destroyed and they would not be able to take care of themselves. They did not realized that most of the crows stayed only in the trees outside of Sakumo's house since he asked them kindly one day to stay on his property only and they complied. They also did not like the stray dogs since there were many of them and they had sharp teeth, and dirty coats, and seemed very loyal to Sakumo. They did not realize that sharp teeth are normal for dogs and Sakumo bathed each dog once a week, once they were comfortable enough being touched. And as far as the villagers were concerned, any magic was bad magic. For all they knew, Sakumo could turn on them any day and use his powers against the village.
The moment Sakumo knew something had changed in the hearts and minds of the villagers was when a young mother scooped up her child in her arms and hurried to cross the street, avoiding eye contact with Sakumo. That same day, a teacher ushered her charges back into the school building before recess had ended; a bookshop owner held a key to the lock of his shop, watching carefully as Sakumo passed by; and a shopkeeper grunted out a hurried "Out of stock!" when Sakumo asked if his favorite tea - pomegranate and orange - was available. He was not sure why the villagers had suddenly distrusted him, but the thought of fear in their hearts saddened him greatly. Still, he was determined to serve the village as best as he could, regardless of their thoughts toward him - even if it meant doing everything possible to make them feel safe and uprooting his life to move to the outskirts of the village where people would only have to see him occasionally. So, that's what he did.
Hatake Sakumo was a very gentle wizard and he always seemed to be putting other people's needs before his own. It was something he was very good at. It was something that wasn't very good for him.
