It was cold and damp. I can't remember the last time it was warm, the last time I felt alive… Or if I ever had felt alive. My name is April Uzumaki, and I've been locked in the dark for the 12 years of my life.
The place they kept me in was inside a hollow cave. At the most hollow place in that cave was a cage, and that's where I was. I didn't know what friends, family, or even what hope was, but I never complained because I didn't know there was more than my prison. I once heard the two guards', stationed in front of the cave, voices echo. They were talking about simple things, their children were going into some Ninja Academy and their wives were more than proud of them. I had always wondered if I ever had parents, if I was ever loved.
The day everything changed, it was raining and the two guards came into the cave to keep dry. My third meal was late and I was sure that the ninjas could hear my stomach growling. My eyes were glued to the entrance of the cave, impatient for the food to arrive.
"What's taking them so long?" grunted one of the men.
"It's probably the rain making the ground slippery." said the other in a more calm tone. "Besides, what would you care? It's not like it's for you."
"Come on, man. Don't be so heartless." The first man turned and knelt at the edge of the bars holding me prisoner. "Don't worry, I'm sure your food will be here soon." he told me, a smile on his face.
I'd never seen a smile before, but I could tell that it was a sign of kindness.
"Don't talk to it!" yelled the other, grabbing the smiling man and pulling him away from me.
Before anyone could say anything else, my food arrived.
"Sorry I'm late." said a snake-like voice.
I knew what the food-bringer sounded like, and this wasn't him. But by the time I realized that, it was too late. The man with the strange voice had attacked both guards and in one blow, they were dead. I stared at the killer with wide eyes as he approached me slowly. He stopped at the cage and tore the metal door off. He knelt in front of me like the other had done, and smiled at me. Only this smile was different, this smile was wrong, out of place… almost bad.
"Hello child. Tell me, why would a beautiful young girl like you be locked up in this place? Have you been a bad girl?" he mocked.
I shrugged, too scared to use my voice. He faked a surprise look, then smiled a smile that was most definitely bad.
"Do you want to find out?"
When I nodded, he reached into his mouth and pulled out a scroll covered in his saliva, which he handed to me. I took it with hesitation, not that I didn't want to know why I was here, but the saliva sort of put me off. I guess the leader of the Hidden Mountain village hadn't wasted his time sending people to teach me to read and write. Instead of opening it like I was dying to, I looked up at the man in curiosity.
"Who are you? And why would you help me?"
"My name is Orochimaru, and I'm helping you because I think you could be very useful to me in the futur." And with that, he disappeared in poof of smock.
I looked down at the scroll, sighed and opened it.
Born on the 10th of October, Naruto and April Uzumaki, children of deceased Minato Namikaze and deceased Kushina Uzumaki, were separated at birth. Inside both of them is shared the chakra of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. They are unaware of each other, their parents or of the beast within them.
I lifted my eyes from the scroll. I felt consumed by anger, rage, hate. I wanted to take my revenge on these people, kill them all, then find my brother. I felt a huge burst of power surrounding me and then I slipped into unconsciousness.