April 14, Sunday

Blood ran rivers through the village that raised her, filling the air with the tang and scent of metal. Hakone was being massacred. The steam from its hot pools carried the scent of metal into the air and into Amaya's nose as she gasped for air. Stumbling, she ran through the town, past body after body their blood mixing with the dirt creating a macabre mud. Moving as fast as she could her feet felt like lead as her stomach seized and breathing heaved. The air was full of a bitter scent that caused her brain to feel woozy, combined with the adrenaline rushing through her veins Amaya was out of her mind. Sounds behind her sent panic racing, need to get away, let me get away. She turned the corner that would take her into the forests before slipping to a stop. Four masked men in black stood before her with bodies strewn at their feet. The tallest of the men in black held a man she knew as a baker by the hair and watched as he slit his throat. This couldn't be real, none of this could be real. Chest seizing and unable to breath Amaya tried to turn to run in hopes that she might escape, might go get help. The reality is she wouldn't.

Before she could turn around a hand snatched her by the neck and grabbed like a vice crushing her throat and dragging her upwards. Choked and gasping, Amaya grabbed at the hand scrabbling for purchase before locating the index finger. Pulling it back in an attempt to break the hold. The next instant Amaya felt a leg come in contact with her ribs in a kick that launched her to the ground.

She skidded a few feet before coming to a stop with only a moment's pause. Gasping and staring at the ground she felt the hand reach down and grab her by the throat again hauling her up while another threaded into her hair. As they lifted her into the air her hands clutched the wrists of the person before her in an attempt to lessen their grip. Pulled up to eye level Amaya looked into the eyes of her assailant. Violently purple eyes stared at her from a mask covered face filling her with a new surge of fear as they bore into her. She tried to free herself with a clumsy kick when he released her hair and began forming seals with one hand. Not an ounce of air passed through her lips, his grip on her throat was so tight. Movements became frenzied as her struggle intensified, the burn in her lungs making her more panicked by the second as her already aching began to scream. The face of the man before her began to dim when she saw him perform a final seal. Slamming that hand into her chest, the brunt force combined with a shot of chakra that filled her chest with a burning that left her writhing in agony. If air could pass through her lips she would have screamed loud enough to burst blood vessels in her cheeks.

The burning concentrated in her chest before it worked its way up her throat. Feeling the ninjutsu settling around her neck, Amaya was certain she was on fire, her nerves screaming that she was going to die of pain, of this burning before the suffocation got to her. With a flash of light the ninjutsu ended, and the pain lessened to a lingering scorched sensation. The man threw her to the ground where she landed on her back, hard. He turned to leave as Amaya convulsed Iho to suck air into her lungs. Summoning the wherewithal to move she twisted her head to see the back of the purple eyed man. The men in black with swords and kunai in hand that she had encountered before began to approach as the man called over his shoulder.

"I don't care what you do with her, just make sure you kill her after." The burning in her throat had not entirely subsided when she saw the men begin to circle. If those men circled her she would be lost, she had to move. Amaya reached deep within herself, finding some form of will as she pushed to her feet, stumbling, clutching her throat trying not to be distracted by the pain. Looking into the eyes of the masked men, eyes that held nothing but malice Amaya found that all she could think was how it came to this.

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Kakashi had been a shinobi long enough to have been privy to wars and battles that made the bravest men tremble in fear. It wasn't often that he was rattled by the contents of a mission, but walking through the gates of Hakone was different. He had walked no more than a few feet before the carnage met him, first by smell then by sight as two bodies on the ground came into view saturating the earth with their blood. Taking in the corpses in front of him he noted two things: the fact that the bodies in front of him were children, and the fact that there wasn't one cry, one sound from structures within. His composure warred with a sick feeling in his gut after seeing their tiny bodies. One look at their pale bodies told him there was nothing he could do; despite himself he took a few steps forward and crouched beside the children. Placing hands by their sides and closing their eyes he paused and bowed his head in silence. The partly cloudy sky casting a shadow over them as clouds shifted in the early spring wind. He stood and retreated a few steps out of the village gates. Biting his finger he pressed his palm to the ground and In a puff of smoke appeared three ninken, Pakkun, Bull, and Urushi.

"Bull, Urushi, I need you to go to Konoha and tell the Hokage to send a full team. The village of Hakone has been massacred." Kakashi directed. The two ninken nodded and disappeared in a flash. Pakkun walked up to Kakashi's feet.

"Boss, it smells like a blood bath here," his deep voice made the statement almost a growl while he sniffed the air. Kakashi turned his masked face back to the village, preparing himself for the task at hand.

"Pakkun, look for survivors. Observe and report," kakashi said. Both took off to perform the grim task. Thirty minutes later Kakashi stood at the edge of the village closest to the forest where the buildings faded into nature. Pakkun stood beside him looking into the trees.

"I smell fresh blood in the trees," he said sitting down, "but everywhere else...i found no one alive." Kakashi said nothing, letting his silence be his answer. He continued to look into the trees, noting the damage on the trunks.

"These trees are showing signs of a fight," he said walking up to a scar in maple tree in front him. Gloved finger trailed over it, sensing the leftover impression of chakra, "Be on your guard" he said in Pakkun's direction as he made his way into the trees. The further in he walked the more furious the battle seemed to be. There were craters and large gouges out of trees and earth alike. Twenty feet in he encountered his first corpse. Unlike the bodies in the village This corpse was dressed differently. Hakone was known for its hot springs and textiles of thin, soft fabrics in shades of rich earth tones. The corpse, that Kakashi determined was a man, was clad in thick black, head to toe. The injuries looked as if he had been mangled by a violent force while the injuries in the village looked to be caused by a sword or kunai. This corpse looked like a force tore through his midsection. Kakashi knelt down and noticed a katana near the body. He picked it up and examined the insignia of a barren tree before stabbing it into the ground. Standing he continued following the destruction till he reached a clearing that backed up to a cliff. In the clearing lay two more bodies, three of which appeared to be dead. All of which were dressed in black, and now red, as they lay in various states of gore, one even missing a face. At the center of these body's lay what looked like a pile of rags.

"Pakkun" he inquired.

"That's the one" Pakkun grunted. "The others seem dead." Suspicions confirmed Kakashi kept his movements swift, awareness open to a possible attack while he moved into the muddy clearing. Reaching the pile of rags, Kakashi determined it to be a person dressed in a filthy blue fabric. Kakashi bent on one knee in the icy mud and reached for the body. With care he turned them onto their back where he discovered three things: one, it was a young woman. Two, she had been roughed up quite a bit. And three, her clothes had been torn open leaving her naked. Surprised and a little disturbed Kakashi paused for a moment as his stomach dropped with what it must mean. Pulling himself together he focused to deal with the situation at hand. After a few more moments of assessing the worst of the injuries, all of which didn't seem to put her in immediate danger, he unzipped his vest and lay it over the woman, but not before glimpsing something on her shoulder that looked like a bite. A human bite. The emotion that he had been trying to compartmentalize kept bubbling up in his stomach, that sick feeling you get from seeing something disturbing that settles in and would make it hard to eat later.

"Pakkun, I need you to go back to Konoha and tell them to bring a medic that will meet us halfway. There is a live civilian in critical condition," he rattled off. Pakkun left in a puff of smoke without a second thought while Kakashi returned his full attention attention to the woman. It was hard to get a full read on her as she was so muddy, her face was almost more mud than bare skin, along with what he was almost certain was blood it was as though she was wearing garish war paint. Giving her another once over he adjusted her cold limbs to more natural angles before glancing around the clearing, ascertaining his next move when he heard a small groan. Looking back at her he saw her stirring, shifting her limbs as if trying to regain movement. Kakashi moved a hand to her face, fingertips lightly touching her cheek trying to gauge her state. The young woman's eyes cracked open, unfocused, and looked around to take in her surroundings. Bloodshot eyes locked on Kakashi's masked face and widened with what could only be described as absolute terror.

Hands reached up and caught Kakashi in the chest shoving him back. He steadied himself he saw her attempt to scramble backwards in a crab crawl which lasted all of two steps before she collapsed back grabbing at her ribs. The vest had slipped down and was baring her breasts, something that would have normally been a concern had she not obviously been in severe enough pain that she was gasping while trying to still push with her feet to get further away. Kakashi shifted towards her to try a help.

"Wait don't move-" Kakashi started to say while reaching out when she looked at him again, the panic in her face and breathing growing by the second. He was about to reach her arm when her body began to glow. Kakashi froze. Backing away he recognized the chakra shield she was summoning and didn't want to provoke any further distress, nor possibly be on the receiving end of what could be a nasty attack. The chakra developed and began to swim around her in what could only be scribed as rivers. Rivers of chakra that moved and acted like water flowed around her as she pushed herself into sitting position with an almighty grimace and began to move her hands.

"Go away! Leave!"

The young woman signed and mouthed the words with her hands, frantic. Understanding dawned on Kakashi as he recognized the sign language that she was speaking, one he learned back in his ANBU days. Kakashi stayed, on one knee, never taking his eyes off hers. He shifted forward in her direction when her chakra changed from water to fire, becoming more menacing. He was in awe, his heart racing as he wasn't sure he had ever seen anything like it. He stopped moving and watched as the girl collapsed forward clutching her ribs. The chakra began to flicker like a light about to go out. Hoping to defuse the situation and keep the girl from hurting herself further Kakashi began to sign and speak at the same time.

"I'm not here to hurt you. We received the call for help and came from Konoha," he hoped she could maybe hear as well as sign, and in the hoped he sounded soothing. Lifting her head to look at him he saw the desperate look. Panting she tried to stand and immediately failed, crying out in pain. She signed again, more furiously.

"Leave!"

Kakashi began to sign and speak at the same time, "I won't hurt you. I want to help," he stood began moving slowly toward the young woman. Chest heaving she started to scoot backward till she hit the cliff face with a thump. Gasping her face grimaced. The glow of her chakra was fading in earnest as her strength failed. He kept his movements soft and slow, moving closer as he held his hands up cautious signs. "I'm not with those men who came for your village. I see you are injured and I want to help you. All I want is to help." She shrank into the wall, her chakra glowed again in one last feeble attempt before flickering out. He took a large step forward when her face contorted in fear and she leaned forward signing again as she suddenly spoke aloud.

"LEAVE!" she screamed out loud. In an instant, a red ring of chakra glowed violently around her throat. Grasping at her throat, calorie will you find this, choking cries tore from her, head tilted back as muddy hands clawed at the force causing her pain. Kakashi appeared at her side in an instant crouched in front of her trying to find a way to help her. Her shoulders heaved under his hands as she heaved and struggled to breathe. The girl didn't fight him, a sign of how desperate she was. The red ring finally began to fade allowing her a deep inhalation, her first true breath in a minute. After a few shaky breaths, her body gave out and collapsed into Kakashi who leaned her back down across his lap propped up in a sitting position. Breathing seemed painful as tears leaked out of eyes screwed shut, cutting trails in the mud. Kakashi reached up and wiped the tears from her cheeks with soft ministrations. Shaky hands pushed at his, still trying to get away from him. Her eyes opened and looked into his face, staring at his mask. A memory of the masked bodies lying near the clearing came to mind, The bodies of the men he found all had their faces covered. It was the mask that was causing her to be afraid. After a half second of consideration Kakashi did something he never did and brought his gloved hand to his mask and pulled it down to his chin. Moving his hand to his chest he said,

"Kakashi. My name is Kakashi."

Amaya stopped pushing away at him as she took in the maskless face. Her tense body began to relax as she stopped fighting him. A heartbeat passed, then another heartbeat when shaky hands signed the letters, Amaya, while staring into his eyes with trepidation. Giving her a small smile he reached for the vest that had fallen to her lap and pulled it up to cover her nakedness. When he reached her chest her hand grasped his wrist which brought his eyes back up to hers. Her eyes flitted back and forth between his as she made another sign.

"Scared." Hazel eyes peeked from the mud and blood crust as she trembled. He pulled his wrist from her grasp to grab her icy hand in his and squeezed.

"I know, it's okay," He noticed her fighting the dark sleep of exhaustion, her eyelids getting heavy, "I'll take care of you, I will be here when you wake up". She squeezed his hand back before her eyes slid closed and her body went limp. Kakashi released her hand and scooped his hand under her knees, readjusted the arm around her shoulders, and stood with her in his arms. He looked around the cleaning one last time before looking back down at the girl, and wondered how the world had ever come to this