"Take that!" Kento smirks as he throws dandelions in my face. He stands over me with a stupid grin on his face waiting for my response.
"You're blocking the clouds with your big head," I say playfully. He is really hard to entertain these days. We can't even stay in one place for very long without him getting bored.
"Can we go somewhere else now? This is so boooooring," Kento whines," I mean I don't get what's so great about clouds anyways, they never change. They stay the same all the time. Come on Yamouri why don't we go find something dead and poke it with sticks?" He laughs hysterically like it's the funniest thing ever when it's disgusting.
"I think I'll pass, but we can go somewhere else if you want then," I say. It's so annoying how I finally get comfortable and then we have to move again. I quickly sit up and notice Kento is already running through the field ruining all the flowers, and going to the dark end of the woods. " Hey! Wait for me!" I yell. Keeping up with him is like trying to swim with your hands and feet tied. Not fun at all...
"Hurry up Yamouri! How do you plan on being a shinobi one day if you can't even keep up with me running?" He mocks. He starts to run faster to the point where I can't even see him anymore. I try to speed up too, but suddenly I lose my balance and tumble over. I've scraped my knee and now it's bleeding. I try to just brush it off and begin running again; only I don't know which direction Kento went. Kento has always been impatient and self-centered, he has always been a show off too, and he spends way too much time on his silky black hair ever since I could remember.
Kento grew up as an orphan. His parents died in battle when he was only 2, so he doesn't really remember them. He doesn't like talking about it though. You can see his sadness though sometimes in those big blue eyes he has. He tries to act tough around others and especially me since he's older than me and what not. He is also very competitive with my older brother Kyho. My brother doesn't like him at all. Oh well...
"Kento!" I yell, "Where'd you go?" I hear nothing but birds. What a jerk, leaving me in the middle of the woods like this. "I'm going home! I don't feel like playing the cat and mouse game." Suddenly sticks are flying out of the sky and hitting my head. I see Kento above me in a tree. "What are you doing?" I ask. He smiles slightly calling me a dummy.
"It's about time! You take forever, and what did you do to yourself?" He asks starring at my knees, "Come on follow me, and try not to be so slow." I slap the back of his head, "Shut up!" I hiss while laughing at his face expression. Kento hates it when I hit him, but he can't do anything back. We head towards this hill because Kento is determined to climb a certain tree right at the edge.
"Are you coming?" He asks as he steadies himself on the first branch.
"Sure why not," I reply. I didn't want to be a downer and be all scared. I steady myself on the first branch also and see Kento already half way up the tree. "You look like a monkey!" I laugh.
"Don't feel insecure just because you can't even beat me at climbing a tree!" He mocks. I look over and see the branches extend right over the edge off the hill we're on. I can't even see the bottom. I try and steady myself while I climb onto the second, and then the third branch. Kento is almost at the top; I reach for the fifth one and nearly slip, but catch myself in time. The branches are starting to extend right over the edge. I look down and I'm right off the edge, if I slip... then..
"Don't look down Yamouri!" Kento exclaims. He doesn't show he's nervous in his voice, though he is.
"I'm not!" I reply. The branches seem to be more spread out now. This tree is very different than any other trees. There aren't many branches. I reach for the ninth branch now. The branch I'm on starts to crack. Kento hears it to and looks down at me.
"Reach for the other one hurry!" He yells. My hand reaches for the next one, but it's out of my reach, the branch is now making a loud crack sound. I lean forward and manage to get a grip of the branch above, but then that branch breaks off and the branch underneath me does to.
"AAHH!" I scream at the top of my lungs. I fall down two branches and manage to catch myself cutting my arms in the process. The branch I'm on now starts to crack also. All I can see is under me and how there is no ground. My short brown hair all hangs loose and in my face no longer in my tiny side pig tails. The branch breaks. What seems like minutes is only a matter of seconds. Kento pulls my arms back up towards the tree as my body dangles over the edge; he's using chakra to hold his grip on the tree. There's something different about that chakra though, it gives me a strange feeling. He's just started learning things to become a shinobi recently, so how could he already be able to do that? I look up and see Kento looking into my green eyes.
"Kento..." I stutter.
"That's enough tree climbing for now," He says as he pulls me back up onto the ground. Without another word he leaves and walks back to the woods with his hands in his pockets. I didn't even get to say thank you. I guess he just isn't into that. He has been acting so weird though lately, it all started about a week ago when he was gone in the woods far longer than usual and didn't tell anyone what he was up to. That chakra was also very different. Well there's not much I can do now, since he won't tell me what's up. I look at the dark sky thinking where did the time go? I sit by the tree that I tried to climb and failed and notice the stars are out tonight. I sit there for a while to think to myself. "I wish there was a shooting star so I could make a wish right now."
~.::.::.::.::.::.~A few minutes later ~.::.::.::.::.::. ~
"I'm going to be in so much trouble! My mom is going to kill me!" I think to myself while rushing back home.
"You're so busted," Says Kyho as I walk through the door. "Where are they?" I ask. Looking around for my parents with a scared expression.
"Where have you been? We've been worried sick! I bet you were with that kid again. How many times do we have to tell you, chores come first young lady, than you can go play ninja all you want when you've done with your work! I knew that kid was bad news….How many times have I told you not to hang out with him!" Shouts my mom as she enters with my father. I try to get by with just giving them my, I'm so ashamed look, but they don't go for it.
"Kyho had to do yours when he came home from the academy, and he is injured too! What a good kid he is doing your work when he is in no condition to do so, and there you are running around playing in the mud. Look at you! You're all scratched up! Go clean yourself right now! As your punishment you will do double the work tomorrow, you'll do yours and Kyho's," she says angrily.
"What!" I yell making a fist behind my back.
"You heard me!" She yells back sending shivers down my spine.
"That's not fair..." I mumble.
"Oh yes it is! Keep that up and you'll be doing double chores for the next two weeks," She insists." Or maybe the rest of your life!"
"Ow…My arms hurt so bad mom!'" Mumbles Kyho to make me look even worse. I gave him a glare and he just smiled at me. He just has to go make things worse for me for his entertainment.
My parents are the lamest people I know. We don't get along very well. They've always favored my older brother Kyho. He is so boring though, and always does what he's asked to do. I mean he's ok sometimes, but other times I want to strangle him. My parents have always viewed me as a second son, because I'm such a tomboy. My mom says I don't act like a young lady, but none of that matters because one day I will be one of the best shinobi of our clan and our village of the clouds. My brother claims he is going to be the best. I'll show him whose best in a few years. He better just wait.
Many shinobi here are best known for using swords in battle and focusing their chakra in their sword with unique attacks much different than other villages. Our village is a part of the village hidden in the clouds, but a separate part so we have a smaller area. It's located high up in the mountains and you can only see a bunch of clouds from a far. Also most jutsu and techniques have to do with the wind and lightning. Many of our shinobi have been wiped out. Or are always gone doing stuff. Over the years our village as shrunk a bit. Our closest neighbor is the village hidden in the leaves. I've only been in their twice because Kento used to run errands for his uncle all the time. His uncle was once one of the best shinobi until he had an accident and can barely walk now. They live alone in a small part of our village.
"Such a pretty night it is," I sigh while standing at my window. My room has the best view of everything. At night the clouds disperse a bit so you can see almost all of the stars out. My brother and I use to hang out on our roof at night and try and count them all, but that was before he changed too. He acts so bitter around Kento and just doesn't like to hang with me anymore. All he cares about now is training and becoming one of the best, oh well. I like the breeze you feel at night though, so refreshing and soothing. I'm going to need a lot of soothing for tomorrow. I look down towards the woods and notice some sort of blue light coming from dark. It almost looks like a pair of glowing eyes looking back at me. As quickly as I spot it, they disappear. Suddenly a hell butterfly lands on my window seal. All I can do is stay still and hope it doesn't see me, but all it does is sit there, like it's watching me. I can't move my hand or it'll inject me, so my hand just rests there on the window seal. It slowly walks onto my hand and then flies away, leaving me shocked and confused.
~.::.::.::.::.::.~ the next morning ~.::.::.::.::.::.~
"Get up Yamouri! You have double chores to do this morning!" Shouts my mother.
"It's a Saturday can I sleep in first?" I yell back.
"NO!" She yells even louder. Always in such a bad mood she is.
I hurry out of bed and prepare for the gruesome day I have ahead of me. Black shorts, green t-shirt, short hair in pig tails, all set. My mom is waiting for me with a list of things to do. Kyho was injured the other day so all he can do now is sit around and eat our food. He's not much help anyways. I head out the door with baskets to collect things for my mom, and a basket full of dirty clothes.
I take a long walk to the river on the east side to do the mountain of laundry I've been sentenced to. I'd figure I'd see Kento out here at this time, but nothing... not even a little feeling that he's nearby, but something feels wrong. I really want to tell him about the glowing thing I saw last night and that butterfly. I keep having this sick feeling in my stomach... Like something's wrong, but I don't know what.
~.::.::.::.::.::. ~ A few hours later ~.::.::.::.::.::. ~
"There, almost done with all the laundry," I whisper softly, feeling accomplished. Suddenly I get a weird feeling that I'm being watched. And as the minutes pass the feeling gets even stronger. I look around and see nothing and hear nothing. "Is anyone there?" I start to pack up everything and prepare to make my journey back to the house; suddenly the smell of smoke consumes the forest. I look up at the sky and there's a big cloud of smoke coming from the direction of the village. I assume it's another attack of some sort so I hurry with my things to get back as fast as possible. I decide to take a shorter route. Kento's told me about several short cuts. I decide to run a little, but as I get closer and closer the smoke is getting stronger and thicker.
"What's going on...?" I whisper and begin to cough. The more I go the more harsh the coughs become. I start to worry about my family, was this why I had such a sick feeling? I try and pick up the pace, but baskets begin to fall.
"Ugh! Great! I don't have time for this," One of the baskets break, leaving everything scattered. I try to restack everything, but it won't stay together. The smoke is so intense; it's starting to get even foggier. If it gets any worse I won't know where I'm going. I decide to go back and take the longer route with less smoke, but as I step forward a net flies up. Someone has set traps on this route and I've been caught in one so easily. Something cuts the net though; I didn't see what it was, but that doesn't matter right now. I leave behind some baskets and decide to just take one for a lighter load. My cough just keeps getting worse too, and my lungs are starting to fill with the smoke. I start sprinting now towards the village when something flies by and cuts my cheek. I stop to look around, but I can't see a thing. Am I being attacked? I'm running even harder now and trip on a rock and lunge forward. I lay there and all I can see is a black and green butterfly flutter above my head.
"It's a hell butterfly!" I gasp. As it land on my neck. Before I can say another word I feel an intense pain shoot through my neck. My vision starts to blur as the venom starts to flow through my veins. It feels like time has frozen and I'm just floating there. I bite by lip and ignore the pain as I slowly sit myself up; I can't see anything now. The forest has been overcome by the smoke. Realizing it's something far more serious I leave everything behind and start to walk straight ahead of me.
"Help! Where is everybody?" I yell. I see my village has been overcome by fire. My village is burning to the ground! All of it!
"What's going on!" I cry and no response. Is this really happening or is this a nightmare, I can't wake up from? I force myself to run towards my house, but the venom is making me feel dizzy and unable to hold my balance. "Mom! Dad! Kyho!" I cry when I see my house is up in flames. And then it starts to pour down rain.
Standing at the entrance I can see my family and blood, lots of blood, scattered everywhere. I can hear my heart beat faster and faster, an illusion couldn't be this real. My neck is throbbing so much now and so is the pain. The walls are starting to collapse, as the fire consumes everything. It's taking it all away from me. Everyone killed. I fall to my knees and start to sob. The roof is starting to cave in and the village is absolutely silent. No one alive. Tears streaming down my face and a piece of the ceiling almost lands where I am. I jump up and feel something behind me which startles me. I turn around and see a figure, but I can't see its face.
"Kento...?" I ask, "Where have you been? What...?" The smoke begins to disperse and I see Kento's face is splattered with blood.
"Kento!" I gasp. "What happened to you?" That's when I look down and see Kento holding his uncle's sword, drenched in blood. Feeling my body going numb and fear taking over. I look at his face, his eyes are different. It's not even him anymore.
"Kento! It can't..." I stutter. "You did this?" He stares at me with a blank look in his eyes. Part of me thinks this is all an illusion, that I'm lying somewhere asleep. The other part of me says to run. Before I can do or say anything else... I start to back up and Kento raises his sword.
"Ken..." His sword pierces me threw the chest. All that comes out is a weird grunt sound. My face falls in front of his shoulder as blood starts to pour out of my mouth. I can feel his breath on the back of my neck which makes the little hairs stand up.
"You've always been so weak… How pathetic," He says and pushes it more into my chest making me squirm as I gasp out in pain.
My vision goes fuzzy with my body numb. I can feel the gush of blood oozing from my chest and down to my feet as I stumble away from him. All he does is stand there. Like if he is waiting for me to fall over and die. I should be though, because it should have pierced my heart, but I can still hear my heart beat thumping in my ear. Instead I slowly pull the sword out starting to feel an intense pulse from my chest. He comes towards me again, but I slash his face, leaving a line of blood pours forth from the side of his eye to his chin. Then I attempt to stab him through the chest, but he punches my stomach and I fall forward. Tasting even more blood in my mouth; I fall down helplessly.
"Traitor! Trait...Orr...r..."I mumble feeling pain everywhere. I lose my grip of the sword and lay there for what seems like forever. Kento takes the sword again.
…...
My eyes open and I see Kento is gone; the house is still in flames. I must have been out of it for at least five minutes. I notice a picture of my family by the door and next to it is what looks like a pocket knife in a light blue case. Slowly I force myself up and stumble to the objects and grab them, but the pain is too much and I fall over again on the threshold of the door. With the last of my strength I drag myself outside of the house and lay in the middle of the street. My eyes try to close, my breathing becoming very faint. The only sound is wood collapsing, and the rain drops pouring all around me. As I lay there a hell butterfly appears again over my head, and then it goes dark.
