Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for the main character and the Tainu clan

Please be nice to me, this is my first story. I appreciate constructive criticism but don't leave a comment just to tell me you hate the story. The first few chapters may be rather short, but as I get better at thinking of what to write they should get longer. I'm not quite sure how long this will be but I hope to get it to at least 10 chapters. Lots of squiggles, Alaki.

P.S. My beta reader edited this chapter, so now I am reposting it with the changes made.

Sayonara!

-Narrator POV-

A starving young girl was sitting on a cold bridge, her knees curled in to her chest, and one shivering hand held out to the people passing by, hoping one of them would stop to give her money or food. She focused on a noble-looking man, who seemed to be trying very hard to ignore her.

Although there were many people simply passing by the tiny girl, the only one she failed to notice was the one man standing across the bridge, watching her through the falling snowflakes.

-Starving Young Girl's PoV-

I looked at my empty hands and held in tears. I needed food today or tomorrow, or I would most likely die. That was not something I wanted to test.

Ahem.

I looked up. And up… and up, until my eyes finally rested on the bandaged face of a very tall man. He had a large sword strapped to his back, and his torso was partly covered by the same type of bandages concealing his face. Why he wasn't freezing to death was beyond me.

"Come on. I'll take you in," he said, reaching a bandaged hand down to me.

I instinctively shrunk back in fear. This can't be happening… not again! I thought, the tears streaming down my face a little faster than before. I violently shook my head, and pulled myself as close as I could in to the side of the bridge. I would have screamed for help if not for my dry throat, constricting my voice.

"Zabuza," the voice was so soft. I looked up to see a girl standing behind the tall man. "I think you're scaring her."

"This was your idea, Haku!" the man I now knew as Zabuza scowled, looking over his shoulder. "You try talking to her," he growled, stepping to the side to give the girl in turquoise room to speak with me. She approached me with small steps, crouching down as close to my level as she could comfortably get.

"Hello there," she—no, he. That was a masculine voice. This was a man?—he said. "My name is Haku. I apologize if Zabuza-san scared you, but he really did mean well. He took me in many years go, and is now my Master. He may seem cold-hearted, but he seems to have a soft spot for children living alone on the streets. We noticed you a few days ago, and we wanted to see if you were okay. How long have you been living here?"

Here? I'd been living on this bridge for about a week or so… or did he mean out on the streets in general? I hesitated for a moment before trying to speak, but words wouldn't come out; my throat was too dry. I fell in to a violent coughing fit instead, and there was suddenly a flask in front of me. I took it and poured whatever was in it in to my mouth. It must have been water, but you could never be sure.

I handed back the now half-empty flask with a small 'thank you,' before clearing my throat once more to say, "Two years, exactly."

The boy with the soft voice… Haku… nodded with a sympathetic smile. "Today is your lucky day, then," he said. "If you would like, Zabuza and I will take you in. We can feed you and train you to be a shinobi. Would you like that?"

I let a small, nearly non-existent smile escape my lips. "I could be a shinobi again?" I whispered in disbelief. I ignored his look of curiosity and surprise at this comment, and spoke directly to him. "Thank you so much. My name is Shantakai, but you may call me Shan."

I didn't, and still don't, know why, but speaking with Haku, and seeing him smile, made me feel like I was home in my village with my friends and family once more. I felt like I could trust him with any thing, although I knew there were some things that I must keep a secret.

Haku gave me his sweetest smile and held his hand out to me. I took the proffered hand and allowed him to pull me to my feet, following him towards my new teacher, Zabuza.