The leaf village was an extremely odd place. Or at least it seemed that way when compared to Iwagakure. The rock village's design was practical, with sturdy houses carved out of stone, wood, and whatever other resources that could be found, while Konoha was well...the houses were all different colors, ranging from sharp lime green to soft periwinkle, and built in an array of ways. Some stretched up several stories-the poorly constructed ones waving dangerously in the air whenever the wind blew-while others hugged the ground so closely that they were almost non-existant. Homes were crammed between shops and resturants and apartments zigzagged through the interior of the village. It was all so compact and complex that it made my head hurt, and made it almost impossible to mannuever through. I wasn't about to lie and say that I hadn't lost my way a few times.

In fact, I was in a similar predicament at the moment.

I stood warily in the streets, letting the many villages slide right past me without so much as a second glance. The way they were so unfazed by my presence irked me a little. How come seeing a little kid all alone in the middle of a street didn't make them worry? Didn't they suspect that I was lost? Didn't they wonder where my paretns were? Didn't they care at all? Everytime I had gotten lost in Iwa, one of Papa's ninja buddies would find me in a few minutes and take me back to him or watch over me until he got back. There, people knew me, people cared, but here?

A man shoved past me brutally, knocking me over. I yelped lightly in pain as I scraped my knees and hands, but he didn't turn around. He didn't say sorry. He just kept walking.

That was when I realized that I was all alone. No one knew who I was here. No one cared about me. If I died, no one would notice. Papa was gone, and he was never coming back. I didn't care if I was supposedly safer here. If this is what it took to be completely confident in my safety, then I would rather be in danger, I would rather be with Papa.

At that time I was sure of one thing: I hated Konoha, and everyone in it.

Until I met him.

I glared at the man's retreating back as I brushed myself off. My knees were cut and bleeding and my palms were scraped to no return. They stung more than anything else, and little bits of dirt and rock were pressing into my skin. I brushed the little bits off and staggered a few steps down the road. My steps were sloppy and unsure, causing me to be unbalanced. I never was very coordinated, which caused me to start walking at a later age than most kids. I'd started speaking much sooner than the average person, but my balance was so horrendous that it all evened out in the grand scheme of things. I was so painfully average at this point in life that it hurt.

Just as I was about to walk by a shop, something tumbled out of it. A few feet away from me, a little boy rolled to a stop in a heap. He grumbled a bit and stumbled back to his feet with a huff, bright blond hair in various states of disarray, just as the shopkeeper came barreling after him.

"How many times do I have to tell you?" the shopkeeper bellowed, face red in anger. "Don't come into my shop!"

He threw something at the boy and hit him smack-dab between the eyes, bouncing off the blondes head and rolling away. It came to a stop near my foot and I saw what it was. A rock.

Something inside of me shifted and I felt anger rise inside of me. It was one thing for the people of this village to not care about me. I was an outsider, someone who had randomly shown up. They didn't know me. They weren't expected to welcome a stranger with open arms. But this boy? He was one of them. One of their own. Someone that they should have loved, should have cared for, should have not thrown rocks at. He was just a boy. He didn't deserve this.

My hands acted as if they had a mind of their own, and before I even knew what I was doing I had picked up the rock and threw it at the shopkeeper. It bounced harmlessly off his rather rotund chest. Both the little boy's and the shopkeeper's head snapped toward me.

It's too late to turn back now, a small voice in the back of my head reasoned. You might as well dive head-first and see what happens. You're not scared, are you?

The little challenge presented by the voice had me standing a little taller, puffing my chest out further, and looking at the burly shop owner in the eye with more confidence than I've ever shown in my entire life. I didn't know why, but I just wanted to prove that voice wrong.

And save that boy from getting hurt?

Exactly, that too.

"Leave him alone," I said, trying to sound firm as firm as possible. A slight tremor coursed through my voice, but I still sounded stronger than I usually did.

The shopkeeper gave me a once-over, trying to size me up. It didn't take long, seeing as I wasn't even three feet tall. The man actually laughed at me.

"Oh yeah, and what will you do if I don't?" he asked, challenging.

I froze in my spot for a second, wondering what I should say. I didn't know what to do in this situation. What could I possibly say to make this man back off? A thought, a simple, stupid, thought popped into my head, and I grabbed ahold of it tight, simply beause I had nothing else to rely on.

I gathered up all the courage I had and raised my tiny, balled fist. A determined look ghosted over my features.

"If you haven't noticed, my fist is at crotch-level," I told him. "So if you plan on having kids later on in life, I suggest you back off."

The shopkeeper glanced toward my fist and gulped a little bit. His eyes then flickered toward the little blonde boy, as if trying to decide if he was worth all of this trouble. Apparently, he wasn't, and the shopkeeper shuffled back into his shop with nothing more than a wave of his hand and a grumbled, "I'm going back because I want to, not because you told me to."

I made my way over to the boy.

"Are you okay?" I asked him. I glanced up at the growing angry red dot between his eyes that had been left behind by the rock. I could already tell that it was going to from a bruise.

He glanced up at me with his large, sparkling cruelen eyes. He looked so innocent and small, mostly because he was. I was surprised to find that he was even shorter than me, which was no small feat.

"I...I...Yeah, I'm fine," he mumbled under his breath, immeadiately tearing his eyes away from mine. "Thanks."

I blinked, surprised that he was actually thanking me. I hadn't expected that from someone who lived here, surrounded by all of these horrible people.

"'Welcome," I whispered back lightly. My confidence was slowly fading now as my adrenaline ebbed and I was beginning to feel shy once more.

I shuffled on my feet for a moment, before awkwardly mumbling a small, "Bye."

"Bye," he whispered back, and we parted ways. But even as I walked away from him, I couldn't help but glance back at him. And when I did, I saw that he was looking right back at me over his shoulder. He smiled lightly, a small, hesitant smile, and I found myself smiling back. I waved tentively and he eagerly waved back. I turned back and made my way back to the orphanage where I was staying, a small smile still tugging up the corner of my mouth.

Maybe Konoha isn't that bad afterall.