a/n: Hello everybody! This is chaptyerone of my fanfiction. I hope you gus enjoy this! Anyway, if you have a problem about my fanfiction, PM or leave it on a review.It will help me improve my story. Anyway, without further ado, I give you the first chapter!

I watched you die
I heard you cry every night in your sleep
I was so young
You should have known better than to lean on me
You never thought of anyone else
You just saw your pain
And now I cry in the middle of the night
For the same damn thing
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

Chapter 1: Innocence

I wasn't born to be a ninja nor was I even meant to be brought into this world. My early childhood was not spent training to be a ninja nor spent for play. I was not taught to read and write, laugh and play, and to love and be loved. Nothing special happened when I born. There were no kages nor was I born in a hospital. Only a sterilized blanket and a warm basin of water caught me when I came out of my mother's womb. I was born only in the presence of my parents and a doctor who I believe never really had enough education for his profession.

I grew up in a small fishing village not far from Konohakagure. My father was a fisherman. My mother stayed at home and mended fishnets. Every single morning I would wake up and smell the scent of morning sea breeze and the odor of freshly caught sea bass. I would always immediately wear my zorii, run toward the shore and help Oto-san carry the fish he caught. I would sell the fish to some merchants or to people visiting our village. And after selling all the fish, I would sit down by the shore and make sand castles or collect shells and listen to the sound they make when I put them near my ear. I would then go home and help Oka-san cook our supper. Sometimes, I would wash our clothes and clean the house.

My father was a tall man. He had broad shoulders and a deep voice. I did not inherit his hazel eyes or his amber hair. I did not look like him. Still, I called him Oto-san. But looking back, I never regarded Oto-san as my father but as a mere donator of my genes. Never did he show me affection. Not even once did he praise me for selling all the fish or thank me for helping him carry the fish from the shore; no, not a pat on the head or a smile of approval. Not at all did he hugged or showed any sign of care. All I ever received was the sting of my father's belt which whipped my pale skinny body every time I got home after doing my chores and the cheer of cursing for being a hoodoo who nestled bad luck in me. He despised me, every single cell in my tiny body. He scorned my narrow yellow eyes which he said belonged to the devil. I was like the serpent that tempted Adam and Eve into eating the forbidden fruit. I was the snake that charmed evil and frightened good luck. And Oto-san said that because I was born from the sin my mother made.

My mother. Not even once did I see soft smile on her face. All there was were tears that flowed almost every time I saw her. She never sang me a lullaby nor read me a bedtime story before I slept. She would always rock my tired body and cry me to sleep. And one time when I was setting the table and Oka-san was weaving the fishing nets, she paused and looked at me with so much pity I could not contain. She then hugged me and kept weeping. She kept crying, "I'm sorry!" I couldn't do anything. I didn't understand why. Every morning before I go to the dock, I would always see her sitting on the wooden doorway weeping. And when I return, I would see her sewing a fishnet while sighing continuously as if the entire world's problems rest on her shoulders. I would ask her if she would be all right. She would nod in return and give me a sad look in her eyes but not even once smile.

I was born only after a few years after Konoha came to be. Of course, I didn't know it that time. I was busy collecting sea shells and selling seafood. I never knew that people like them existed. I didn't know the word ninja. When I was around five or four, a few ninjas came to our village. I found out later that they were looking children who had the potential to be like them. They wanted to expand their army, I guess. And as a curious child my age, I wondered what they where doing and asked one of the pleasant-looking shinobis.

"Oni-chan," I asked a young ninja probably a chounin. He had hazel hair and pleasant eyes. He was probably around eighteen. "What's a ninja?"

He looked puzzled at first but after a while realizing my innocent curiosity, he smiled. It was the first time in my life someone smiled at me. I felt very happy with this man. He then, patted my head and handed me a ripe piece of plum. I'm not sure if that plum was really sweet because it might only have been the taste of happiness of that moment. He wasn't really a talkative man. He wasn't also a silent one. He talked lightly but spoke of profound things. That same day, I already admired the man. I admired him so much that I wanted to be like him. I wanted to be ninja.

"Well," he explained to me as simple as he could. "A ninja is a warrior; a strong one. He has lots of techniques called jitsus. He uses those jitsus to protect the people important to him."

I remember it clearly that he demonstrated a jitsu to me; the kage bunshin no jitsu. I was so amazed that my jaw dropped and I couldn't help asking him another question.

"Can anybody kill a ninja?"

"Not likely…A samurai maybe…perhaps another ninja?" He scratched his head and gave a small laugh. I just smiled back.

"Can I be a ninja?" I asked.

"If you try," I smiled again. "You need to have determination, courage, integrity, and patience. You better hurry and get home before darkness falls. Your family might be worried about you."

He waved goodbye. I scurried home eager to tell Oka-san about my dream. I didn't know that time it was the ploy of that ninja to recruit me. I don't hate him, to tell the truth. Actually, I owe it to that ninja my life now. If I were not a ninja, what would have become of me then? I was very excited to tell mother what happened that day. I wanted to narrate to her the kage bunshin technique and hopefully make her smile. But when I got home, I found something else to my shock…

Funny, even before I entered the house I already sensed something amiss. Perhaps it was the empty door was or the hanging torn fishnet or the fishing boat that was not tied properly. Perhaps it was the humid warm air that blew from inside the house or perhaps the unusual silence that echoed through the hot. I don't know. When I got inside, I saw the whole house in complete disarray. The curtains were torn. The clothes and blankets were scattered everywhere. The futon and pillow stuffing were all over the living room-bedroom. The furniture was knocked over and the porcelain figurine was on the floor shattered in to pieces. I immediately ran to the dining room hoping to see my mother and ask what happened.

I found her, her corpse, lying on the floor. Her water-blue eyes were wide open with fear and her head dripped with blood. Her limbs were filled with bruises. And her right arm extended as if reaching out me and asked me for help. And behind her lifeless body was a tall shadow with penetrating hazel eyes. He was so petrifying that I could not move. He made a few giant steps towards me and grabbed me by the collar.

I didn't understand what happened during those times though I should have died during those moments. Even today, I still can't believe that I have it this far. Every time recall that moment in my life, I can't help wonder how made it from there.

He grabbed and sent me flying with all his might. I fell so hard on floor that my head bled and my arm broke. But if my father hadn't done that, I couldn't have snapped back to reality and tried to fight for my life. After hitting the teak flooring of hut, I stood up and carried myself out the door hoping to save my life. My father grabbed a board of wood and tried to hit me. I evaded the first two blows, barely. On the third blow however, he hit me on the left cheek slamming my face to the ground and made mouth bled.

He continued hitting me every time I tried to stand up. By the nth time, I had no more strength to stand up. No more strength to live. I wanted to close my eyes forever. I wished to give up my life. The man I called Oto-san started kicking me, each more powerful than the last. I already could not move and lost consciousness. I thought about meeting my mother in heaven. Will I see her smile there?

I felt the painful kicks stop. I slowly opened my eyes. I gave my best effort to stand up and search the house. There was nobody there except the cadaver of my Oka-san still laying the same way. Oto-san was gone. It was the last time I ever saw him. But I did found out a few years later what became of my father. After I left the village, my father started gambling and drowning himself with sake. He needed money but his income wasn't enough. He figured he needed to catch more fish and turned to dynamite fishing. He died one night when a dynamite bottle exploded in his hand and himself to pieces.

I feebly walked out of the house to ask for help. No one wanted to approach me. The people in that village feared me. For that reason, no child wanted to play with me, no smile on anyone's face. They kept their distance from me because I was a jinx and I will bring harm to the family. But before I collapsed, I saw that ninja for the second time. He mended my wounds and took me to Konoha. He asked me if I still wanted to become a ninja. I consented; I was more than willing to be one.

"What is your name, my friend?" he asked me.

"Namae?" I looked at him puzzled. My parents never gave me a name, I think. My mother never called me and my father always referred to me as "Hey you!" or "Bastard."; never a name. Every one talked behind my back and called me awful things. "My neighbors referred to me as Hebi, sometimes…"

He gave me again a gentle smile. "From now on, you will be called…"He paused for a while to think. "Orochimaru…Yes, Orochimaru!"

I closed my eyes and rested my head on him as we rode a stage coach towards Konohakagure. "Orochimaru…I like hat name…"

I was brought to the Konoha Ninja academy. I was presented to the Hokage. He was an old quiet man, though I don't really remember I how looked like. I was taken to small room where I met other children like. I met also people like the hazel haired person I met in the village. I studied a lot of things; about charka, taijitsus, ninjitsus, and genjitsus. I also discovered new findings. It was there where I learned the ways of the greatest kind of people in the world; the ninja.

a/n: That was the first chapter. I hope you guyz enjoyed it!