Thud, thud, thud, thud. Quick, silent footsteps filled the air.

Kenaii looked behind her.

"Oh, crap."

Kenaii cursed under her breath. This wasn't going to be easy.

Those nasty men with the stupid black coats were chasing her. Again.

She had made a game of avoiding them, 'cause they always came after her.

What would you do if people chased you every time you went out?

But today, it was getting out of hand. Way out of hand.

She turned into an alleyway, and froze.

Dead end!

She turned around to head back, but they were coming to fast.

Thinking that something good would be down the hall if she went, she ran down the alleyway.

Feeling the wall for something, anything that could help her.

Nothing.

She ran down the middle of the alley, and she did something that would change her life forever.

She tripped.

Naruto shielded his head from the storm of rocks coming down on him. He whimpered loudly, trying to get away.

No such luck.

"Freak! You don't belong here!"

Naruto wailed. No! He wasn't a freak! This was his home!

He turned down a main alley, and ran as fast as her could, thinking that they wouldn't follow him there.

No such luck.

"Ha, ha, ha!"

Naruto ran as fast as he could, and turned down an alleyway.

Tears came to his eyes, because it was a dead end.

He stumbled down it anyway, searching the back of it. He then turned.

Yes! A ditch that was hidden! Yes!

It was small, and yet it could fit two little people like him in it.

He dove into it, and sure enough, the bully didn't see him. But he stayed there, just in case.

A little later, he heard shouting, light footsteps, and heavier footsteps behind.

Naruto peeked over the edge, to se what it was.

And then something happened that changed Naruto's life.

His head was tripped over!

"Ouch!" Naruto yelped.

A small girl with light brown hair peered down at him. Her eyes were blue, speckled with white and gold. She wore black shorts, and a cream-colored tee.

Naruto opened his mouth, but the girl placed her hand to his lips. She wiggled down into the ditch beside him, and peered out cautiously.

She snapped her head down quickly.

Naruto copied her, being as silent and as still as he could.

Finally, she leaped up, grabbed his arm, and took off.

He was led through a series of twisting alleyways, sometimes stopping to turn around and head the other way.

Finally, they stopped at the back of a small hotel. She stepped inside the back door, and herded him up the stairs.

"Quickly, quickly!" She whispered as loud as she could.

Finally, they stopped.

She fished a key out of her pocket and walked inside.