They say that when your heart suffers greatly, it surrounds itself with ice so that it could not feel pain anymore. They say that the owner of the heart turns to be a monster with no feelings, that does not care about other people. They say a lot of things about people whom they do not know.

That is what people do, they talk and judge others without knowing with what they've been through or what they think. That is what people do when they are conscious that those people are stronger than them in actions, mind and body. They isolate those persons from their circles, they make them feel like they don't belong there and they say painful words to those persons until those persons start to think they are like the others say. Those persons start to act like cold-hearted monsters, like ice people and forget about feelings and relations with others. They forget about themselves and the persons they were before the torture started. That is the worst thing people can do: manipulating others into thinking they are like all say.

And that is what happened to you. You became just exactly like they said: an Ice Queen. Before finding out that you could manipulate ice, you were a happy girl, you had a lots of friends and lovable neighbors. That was before your Kekkei Genkai appeared. Then, the happy Umi Chioshi died and Umi, the Ice Queen appeared. The villagers were afraid of your powers and used their worst weapon against you: word manipulation. They ignored you, isolated you in a cave, barely fed you and did not speak to you. The friends you once had, turned their backs on you and started naming you 'Ice Queen'. It was hard for you in the beginning, but with time, you got used to it and became exactly what they said, an ice queen.

One night, before you turned 16, you escaped from your prison, that was the cave, and headed towards the village. When the villagers saw you, they attacked you and angered you, making you unleash your anger on them. All those years of suffering and spilt tears were finally breaking free from their imprisonment inside you and turned into ice. The village was all turned to ice, that started glistening in the light as soon as the sun rise from its slumber. The villagers still had their terrified looks on their faces as they were turned to ice for all eternity. Seeing what you did, you just turned your back on them, just like they did all those years ago. You did not care anymore about what happened to them or any other human being, you just wanted to be left alone, in your ice world. You left from that place and went where ever you wanted. Whenever you arrived in a village, people would step away from you, fearing that look in your once soft brown eyes. Your long, black hair looked menacing, like it would come to life and kill everyone, every time that the wind blew.

Well, if the normal people were frightened by your appearance, you surely attracted the attention of the renown Akatsuki. You were asked to join by the 'Immortal Duo', Hidan and Kakuzu, and you just ignored them. That just resulted in a fight in which they won since you couldn't control your Kekkei Genkai. So, you were forced to join the organization. There, you were trained to control better your powers and always battled against Hidan and Kisame. Soon, you started feeling at ease with the situation and felt like this could be like a new beginning for you. But, of course, you did not show that to anyone. You were sent always with the 'Immortal Duo' on missions and sometimes you went with the Leader and Konan. In, your free time, you would just go on walks, read books or just look at the sky. You never talked with someone, you acted the way an ice queen should act. Sometimes you wished that the others would talk to you, but soon after you would just say to yourself that they are exactly like the people from your village and that they do not care. The truth was that every time someone would come closer to you, to talk or just hang out with you, you would just send them an icy glare that would scare even the Uchiha prodigy, not that he would want to talk to you. Even the cheerful, hyperlly optimistic kid that is Tobi was scared after you glared at him for breaking into your personal bubble that was very big. Let's say that he won't try to hug you anymore after you froze half of his body and let him there to get out for himself. Of course, Deidara just laughed at the poor kid and wanted to high-five you and got himself in the same situation. Not even with his explosive clay he couldn't escape for half a day. So, no one really wanted to get frozen and they stayed put, waiting for you to approach them. And you just waited for them to come to you, to show you that not all the people were the same. So, both sides were waiting for the other to approach. In all that time, you never smiled, not even when Deidara would play with Hidan's head or he would blow Tobi away. It was like your smile was frozen together with your heart. You just stood there waiting for somebody to come and break the ice that surrounds your whole being, and that will show you that you still have feelings, and that he will make your lost smile reappear.

You didn't have to wait too long, cause that person wasn't too far. He was just standing in the shadows, watching your every action, waiting to see your smile light up his world. Of course, he never showed himself to you, he just waited there in the shadows, for you to notice him or his feelings towards you.

It was a cold day, the wind was blowing hard and in every direction. The snow fell from the sky onto the ground, making it all white. You just stared at the sky and at the dance of the snowflakes. Everyone around you seemed to be freezing their asses off, only you were alright in that type of weather. The Leader said that it would be good if they all went to a hot spring that was located in a snowy area, that being your reward for completing your missions. Of course, your comrades were freezing and you just kept on walking ahead, looking at the sky, being completely mesmerized by the beauty of the snow. You felt like you were a part of it. After all, the cave in which you lived before you left your village was made of ice and now you didn't feel the cold anymore. Soon, you arrived at the hot springs and everyone hurried to go inside, to get out of the cold. You looked once more at the sky and entered. There, you saw everyone running towards their room so they could get ready for the hot spring. You took your time slowly, not really wanting to go into the hot water. When you arrived at the hot spring, you saw Konan already there with a content look on her face.

"Hello, Umi-san. Why don't you come inside? The water is so good. It's so much better than being outside in the cold" she said

"Hello, Konan-san" you responded, not saying anything else. You slowly went into the water and felt how hot it was. Slowly, you started being dizzy and after 3 minutes standing there, you just went outside, not feeling very well. The temperature was too high for your body to support, you just had to get out of there and into the cold. You did not know why you couldn't stand the hot water, but you knew that it wouldn't be good for you if you stayed any longer in there. So, you went into your room, you changed and just went outside again, ignoring the screams that were coming from the boys side. You did not care anymore, you just wanted to be outside, like something or someone was calling you.

Arriving outside, you just kept on walking, not caring if you got too far from that place. You just wanted to get out of there, where every time you saw how much fun they had together, your heart would start to feel heavy and pain would always surge through it. You did not know why that happened, but it hurt and you did not want to feel pain anymore. Every time that you saw them laughing or having fun, you wanted to be there with them and knowing that they would never accept you among them made your heart hurt from pain and isolation, even if everything was in your mind. So, you just kept on walking until you arrived at a beautiful place: a frozen lake surrounded by frozen trees covered by snow. It looked like the frozen version of paradise, at least for you. You were so mesmerized by the beauty of the place that you did not notice the person that came out of the shadows. For the first time in years, you let a small smile appear on your face, making it look like you were an angel sent from heaven in that frozen paradise.

"It is a beautiful place, is it not?" the person asked suddenly, making your smile disappear and the regular icy glare reappear in your eyes. Turning to the person with the intention to freeze him, you saw your Leader standing there, looking at the lake. Sensing your glare, his eyes turned to you with an intense stare, making you feel like he wanted to look into your soul.

"Why did you stop smiling? That was the first time seeing you like that. You should smile more often" he said again in a soft voice, making your heart feel something else than pain, but you could not pinpoint what. It felt warm and nice, something that your heart stopped feeling a long time ago. You did not answer his question, you just turned back at admiring the view. Suddenly, you felt a warm hand in your cold one and you turned around, coming face to face with him, making your heart skip a beat, something that it never did no matter in whose presence you were.

'What's happening to me? Why do I feel this way? Why does my heart react this way at his touch? Is something wrong with me? Am I sick?' those were the thoughts present in your head.

He smiled like knowing what you just thought and tugged on your hand in the direction of the lake.

"Come on. Let's get closer. I am sure that it is even more beautiful up close" he said taking you with him, you even not fighting to make him let go of your hand. It felt so warm that you did not want to let go. Even though you never felt that way, you enjoyed it and never wanted to let go of the warmth that started spreading through your body. You just kept following him, looking at him or at your hands linked together, not knowing what to say or do. When you arrived there, you were expecting him to let go but that never happened. He simply turned to you, continuing to smile.

"Umi-san, why don't you smile anymore? Why don't you talk to the others or with me?" he asked. You simply stared at him, not wanting to answer. You just didn't want him to reject you like the villagers. Sensing your answer, he asked "Is it because you fear rejection from our part?" Bulls eye. You just stared at the ground, expecting him to turn his back at you and just walk away. "You know, we took you in as a comrade, a partner and maybe as a friend. If we would have wanted to reject you, we would have never asked you to join" he said making you look at him surprised, your eyes showing feelings for the first time in a long time." You don't have to be afraid of us. You can talk and hang out with all of us. Don't close your feeling inside. Let them all out. We will always be there with you, especially me. All you have to do is to accept us and yourself." He said in his soft, calming voice, making your heart beat faster than normal.

"How could you accept me, a monster that has no feelings? The Ice Queen that freezes one with only a look?" you finally answered, looking again at the ground, tears escaping from their prison after all these years. He just took your chin in his hand, lifting your head up, making you look at him, in his eyes that turned serious that moment.

"Listen to me, you are not a monster. That was what people wanted you to believe because they were afraid of your powers. I do not see a monster in front of me, I see a girl whose life and happiness was refused by the others. I see a girl that just wants to be accepted by the others and that wants to feel more than cold and pain. I see a girl that waits for someone to free her from the cold prison and let her heart feel love and the warmth of someone else. I see an angel whose smile does not compare to the sun, just because it was suppressed all these years. Please, let me see your smile once more, let me free you from the ice and show you the love you need. Please, accept me and my love and accept all the others that want to be your friends." He said wrapping you in his arms, making your head collide with his chest. You just stood there, stunned, not knowing what to think anymore, until the fast beating of his heart broke you out of your state. You felt warmth all over in your body and for the first time in your life, your heart wasn't burdened by your pain and suffering. It felt like it wanted to escape its prison and take its flight up in the sky. You slowly embraced him and let your tears fall freely on the ground, not caring anymore about others. The words he spoke were the words that you wanted to hear from your family and friends, but you never heard. Those words were the ones that made the ice around your heart melt away and let the warmth spread in your body.

"Please, teach me how to accept myself and the others. I do not know how to do that" you slowly said.

"Of course, my angel" he said, lifting your head again and leaning in, capturing your lips in a soft and yet passionate kiss. The piercings were cold and scratched your lips, but you did not care. You felt like you belonged there, in his arms, and you were happy. Soon, you would learn how to act towards your comrades and you would be able to talk to them without glaring and slowly you could have fun. But first, you did not want to let go of this feeling that you felt at the moment. You never wanted to forget how it is to feel love.

"Thank you, Leader-sama" you said looking in his eyes, letting another small smile appear on your face.

"Call me Pein, angel" he said, embracing you again. "When we get back to the hot spring, we will play some games with the others so you could feel at ease with them and try to get closer to them" he said, not letting you go. "But, for the time being, we could stay here and I can teach you more about love" he said leaning in again.

"That works for me" you answered, letting him kiss you again, not feeling the cold anymore and forgetting about the frozen lake and the others.

People say that when your heart turns to ice, nothing can break it. But the people are wrong. It takes a lot of love and the perfect person to say the right words. So, if the words and hate can turn somebody into a cold-hearted monster, the words and love can return him to normal. That is the power of words, a great power that can change the world.