'Thoughts'

"Speaking"

"Seal Symbols/Words"

Disclaimer: I own nothing from Masashi Kishimoto. Enjoy.

Chapter 1

Inside a gated cell, a little ruby haired girl in torn rags was holding a whimpering brown-haired baby boy. She brought him closer to her chest, cooing at him, in hopes to comfort him. Sensing that someone was coming, she scrambled to hide between her bed and the wall. Peeping through the side of the headboard, she saw men donned in black with menacing white porcelain masks entering her cell. She quickly scooched back into her hiding spot. A few seconds went by. The bed was suddenly kicked, landing against the nearby wall with a bang. The loud noise had made the baby boy cry out. Holding the baby tighter to her chest, she took a few steps back, yelling, "Stop! Don't come any closer." The men started to close in on her. The little girl found that she can no longer move backwards as she felt her back hit the corner of her cell. With nowhere else to go, she could only tremble. One of the masked men reached out a gloved hand.

Eyes then blinked opened.

Looking up towards the ceiling, a woman sighed. "That's the third one this week," mumbling to herself. Groaning, she slowly sat up while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, flinching when her golden scaled bracelets around both of her wrists touched her cheeks. Looking around, she noticed that she had fallen asleep on the floor underneath her coffee table. Scrolls were strewn everywhere. Some were opened, others had blue and pink sticky notes sticking out from the ends. Yawning, she looked over her left shoulder at her bedroom window and noticed that it was still dark out. She stretched out her legs and leaned back using her arms to support herself. Turning her head towards the right she saw her black cat shaped clock on her bedside table. The black cat clock swished its tail left and right when the digital numbers changed to 5:00am, at the same time letting out a small meow. Her eyes widened, "Drat. I'm going to be late."

She quickly rolled up her scrolls, gathered them in her arms, and placed them onto her bookshelf located across the foot of the bed. Next to her bookshelf was an opened door. She reached her hand out to feel along the wall. When she found it, she flicked on her bathroom light. She grabbed her bumblebee handled toothbrush and began brushing her teeth. Once done, she washed her face and dried it with her yellow face towel. Grabbing a comb, she looked in the mirror to see pale sky blue eyes looking back at her. Running her comb through her waist length hair, she worked out the knots. She went out to stop in front of her closet dresser. Opening the doors, she began to peruse through her clothes. Her eyes stopped at a navy-blue yukata with sunflower prints. She quickly changed out of her night clothes and put it on. To complete the look, she grabbed a crème colored obi and tied it around her waist. Going back to her bathroom to look at her mirror, she turned her body a few times to ensure she had centered the bow on her back.

Looking at her clock, the time said 5:30am. "Glad I made muffins yesterday," she said to herself. She went back to the mirror and opened the top drawer under her bathroom sink. On display were a variety of hairpins. All differently colored, in different shapes, long and short. Some were multiple toothed, some had a single tooth, and others were just clips. With ease, she wound her hair into a neat bun, and secured it in place with a doubled toothed golden butterfly hairpin. With one final look in the mirror, she gave herself an encouraging smile, walked out of her bedroom, and into the hallway. There was a beam of light that had slipped through the opened door of her empty spare guest room located at the end of the hallway. She turned left and passed a closet, a bathroom, and entered the upstairs lounging area. She passed an L-shaped sofa tucked into the right corner of the room. In front of the sofa was a large round coffee table. To her left was a window, which had started to show a little bit of the suns rising rays. There were two reclining chairs with a table stand nestled between them.

Across from the sofa were rails connected to a stairwell. She started her descent towards the bottom. Once there, she turned right to enter her dining room, which shared the space with her kitchen. On her dining table was a bamboo basket covered with a white cloth. Last night, she had baked some blueberry muffins to take to the office in the morning. Ensuring the cloth was secure, she grabbed the basket. Walking through the doorway that she had come from, she entered her living room, which had a three-seater brown leather sofa, a small coffee table, and a tv against the wall. To the left was the entryway into an unlit hallway that led to another closet, one large guest room, a library, and another bathroom. Across the entrance of the dining room were two crème colored sliding doors that had black sketches of butterflies on it. After sliding the doors opened, she switched out her shoes, stepped out, and closed the sliding doors.

She was now in her shop. When she had first gotten the house, she had turned the front of it into a little shop. Walking around her register counter, she made her way towards the exit. Passing a table to her right, she paused to look at a small bonsai tree. She grabbed a small wire cutter and snipped one of the wires off from the tree. Setting the tool down, she continued onwards to the exit, while passing potted flowers that were aligned on a shelf to her left. When her back was fully turned, all the plants turned to look towards her.

Ensuring that the sign said closed, she unlocked her doors to exit her house. Turning around to lock her doors, a voice called out, "Good morning, Daimyo-sama!" Glancing back, she saw an older man with a straw hat who was waving in the streets. Recognizing him as one of her neighbors who always traded his eggs for her cucumbers, she smiled brightly, "Tanaba-san, good morning. Did you get the tea I sent you?"

Tanaba's wife, Mitsubi, had caught a cold a few days ago, so she had sent her some soothing tea leaves. Bowing in gratitude, Tanaba said, "Thank you, Daimyo-sama. Mitsubi-chan appreciated them very much."

She responded, "You're welcome. I must get going to the office now. Have a great day! If you need anything, let me know!" The two then waved bye and parted ways.

As the sun's rays began to peak out from the horizon, she watched the streetlights turn off one by one. The crisp cool morning was starting to warm up as the sun continued to rise. Pulling at a corner of the cloth in her basket, she took out a muffin. Placing the cloth securely back in place, she took a bite out of her muffin. She watched the trees sway with the breeze while listening to them whisper to her about many Man who flew amongst their brothers and sisters.

Her concentration on what the trees were saying broke when something ice cold brushed against her skin. 'They're back,' she thought to herself. Not showing any outward reaction, she continued finishing up her muffin. As she neared the capitol building, the lights hanging outside had turned off. Stopping at the doors, she readjusted the hold on her basket to pull the doors opened. As soon as she came into view, several voices called out, "Daimyo-sama!"

Grinning, she greeted, "Good morning everyone. I brought muffins if you haven't had breakfast yet." She closed the doors behind her while handing her basket to one of the assistants so that they can bring it to the shared kitchen space. The staff shouted out words of thanks.

Just as she was going to go up the stairs, the noise of running feet made her pause. A scrawny man with an elongated face dressed in a solid blue yukata stopped in front of her. He was bent over with both hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. Recognizing him as one of her delegates, she was about to greet him when he angrily turned towards her, "Daimyo-sama!" Taking in another breath, he continued, "What is this I hear about you insisting on living by yourself?! If you refuse to live in the capitol building, then at least hire shinobi for your own protection, Daimyo-sama! Konoha has plenty of capable shinobi who can protect you. If you insist on living alone, then we implore you to relocate to Konoha so that you can be better protected, Daimyo-sama!"

Her eyes soften, she said, "Tana-san, thank you for your concern but I don't live too far from the capitol building. It is only fifteen minutes away."

"Enemies of the Land of Fire only need three seconds to kill you, little girl," retorted a nasally voice that came from a hallway leading towards the kitchen. A bald, rotund man with a twisted mustache came to view, wearing a solid neon green yukata. As he drew closer to the two, tiny round spectacles can be seen sitting high on the bridge of his nose. On the edges of his mouth and his mustache were some crumbs and a few blueberry pieces. Just as Tana was about to reprimand the man for insulting their Fire Daimyo, Sora's voice hardened and asked, "Sato-san," to which Sato stiffened, "was there any word back from Konoha?"

Sato quickly shook his head no, "No D-Daimyo-sama. We have not received any word."

She asked, "Has there been any sighting of any Konoha-nin recently in the capitol?" Sato looked at Tana. Tana sighed, "Yes, however, sightings were few and far in between. Of those we have asked, they could not say for certainty if the forehead protector that they saw were from Konoha or from another village. The shinobi never stayed long enough."

Thinking to herself, 'A change in position, one as high as the Daimyo normally attracts a lot of attention. It would not have mattered if the position were inherited or nominated. My nomination to be a Daimyo candidate was not kept a secret either. But the fact that Konoha had not sent any representative is worrying.'

At his Daimyo's frown, Tana quickly added, "I will send out a message immediately, Daimyo-sama." Calling out to stop Tana from getting far, "No need Tana-san. I will be going to Konoha to meet with the Yondaime tomorrow morning."

'Even if it is walking into a trap the minute I step outside the capitol,' she thought.

Tana's eyes went wide and gasped, "Daimyo-sama! It is too dangerous. I refuse to let you go there alone."

Sternly she stated, "I will have to, Tana-san. If we have not received word back from Konoha, then we have to assume that Konoha has not received our messages."

"You are the newly appointed Fire Daimyo, Daimyo-sama. You cannot go to places without the proper protection. Your safety is of the highest importance." Tana pleaded.

"Tana-san is correct. The roads are far too dangerous for a Daimyo to venture out alone, especially a female Daimyo." Sato had condescendingly said, which she ignored, while Tana looked at his fellow delegate with disdain.

'I cannot wait too long for a representative or a squad to come. I have a promise to keep.'

"Should no word arrive by the end of today, I will make the journey to Konoha the next morning," she said with finality. Tana only sighed in resignation, while Sato grumbled.

"Not even the first week in office and you already want to leave," a voice joked from behind. Seeing who it was, everyone bowed.

"Good morning, Lord Todiyori," she greeted, while bowing slightly. Lord Todiyori was the previous Daimyo before he had decided that he had wanted to retire. Instead of giving the position to his son, he decided to let the people of Hi no Kuni nominate some candidates. Surprisingly, a lot of the nominations in and outside of the capitol had nominated their very own Sora Fujiwara. A young 18-year-old woman who had started her unorthodox business at age 13. Selling exotic plants, teas, and sweets. Instead of accepting monetary payment, however, she accepted anything that the buyer had to trade, as well as a signed contract stating what was traded.

"Good morning, Daimyo-sama," he greeted back. Rising from her bow, she saw seven more delegates behind him. "Since there has been no word from Konoha, what will you do next?" Lord Todiyori inquired.

"We can discuss that in the office," she said, turning around to go up the stairs. Once inside, there was a decent sized desk in the center of the room with a brown leather chair. Behind the desk was a large window. Once seated, she began, "I cannot delay my visitation to Konoha. If no word arrives by sunrise tomorrow, I will leave in the next hour to visit Konoha. Once there, I will meet with the Yondaime, the Village Elders, and a representative from Anbu, as per tradition. However, I will be inviting prominent major clan heads to the meeting as well."

Lord Todiyori asked, "There is already trust between Konoha and the Fire Daimyo. Having a meeting with all those officials over budget proposals is over the top, don't you think?"

The Daimyo shook her head no. "As you all may already know, before accepting the position as Daimyo, I created a business, Tree Leaves. While most of my clients are from Konoha, I want to build a relationship with the people of Konoha as their Daimyo rather than a business partner. I will be going to Konoha to implement some things that may or may not result in changes amongst the shinobi forces, as well as some clans." Many of the delegates then turned to look towards one another as whispers wrang out the room. Words such as 'preposterous', and 'can you believe the woman' were heard.

Coughing to quiet the room, Lord Todiyori advised, "Daimyo-sama, if I may," to which she nodded for him to continue, "Past Daimyo of Hi no Kuni has never overstepped the boundaries between shinobi and non-shinobi. The Daimyo rules the land, while the Hokage rules over Konoha and her people. While they are similar, they are in fact separate entities. Even within Konohagakure, there are rules that will not allow the Hokage to affect a clan's way of life. Such way of thinking is dangerous and will only incite rage and chaos, such as what has been done in the past."

Everyone knew of the incident that Lord Todiyori was referring to. When he was in office, some of the citizens had wanted Hi no Kuni to have one sole ruler. Some wanted the Daimyo only, while others wanted the Hokage. It had led to unrest throughout the land.

Understanding his worries, Sora assured him and the delegates, "The first Daimyo had agreed to allow Konohagakure to be built within Hi no Kuni in return for her services. It is the duty of the Daimyo to strengthen the bonds and protect the citizens of Hi no Kuni. Konoha is a part of Hi no Kuni and as such all those who reside in the village are citizens too, regardless of their status. It is my duty to ensure that they are protected, as much as it is Konoha's duty to protect her Daimyo."

Unable to persuade her to change her mind, Lord Todiyori bowed and said, "If that is what the Daimyo wishes, then it shall be done." The rest of the delegates bowed as well. Nodding in acknowledgement, they were dismissed. At the same time, she felt the ice-cold sensation from the morning spread across her body. 'That makes at least one,' she thought. Ignoring them for now, she started her day.

Throughout the day, delegates would come in and out with scrolls for her to look over. She spent most of her day signing, amending, approving, and finalizing proposals in preparation for the meeting in Konoha. If she wanted this to work, she had to ensure that there were no loopholes, or anything that will end up backfiring.

By the time she stepped outside of the capitol building, the sun was beginning to set. With a sigh, she made her trek home. As she walked down the street, little shops started to come alive as the night life began. People on the street bowed and waved hello to her as she passed, while others had asked if she had wanted to have a free meal to take home, to which she politely declined.

Now away from the busy main street, she began to hear the whispers of the trees again. They warned her about how she was not safe from the cold souls. Picking up her pace, she could spot her house from a distance. It was one of the last ones on the end of the street. Her three warm yellow lights that hung at the top of her shop were on. Their lights flickered off the large windows on either side of the door. On the left window were the words written in large gold calligraphic writing, Tree Leaves. Underneath the words was her company's logo, which consisted of a Hashirama tree that Hi no Kuni was famous for, and three small butterflies flying beside the left of its trunk.

As she drew nearer, she can just make out the shapes of the variety of cacti and succulents she had put on display on the windowsill. Weaved around the plants were strings of tiny little lights that twinkled in the moonlight as if to welcome her home. Outside her windows, she had planted varying summer flowers in her flower bed, such as peonies and chrysanthemums. Once reaching her front doorstep, the ice-cold feeling burned against her skin, which contrasted greatly with the heat emitting from her golden bracelets. The flowers in her flowerbeds whispered in unison for her to run. Quickly, she opened her door to go inside. The minute she closed the door, a seal activated, and she was bombarded by the terrified whispers of the plants in her shop. Every voice was saying one word: blood. She dashed towards her living room door, swung the door opened then quickly closed it.

Outside the shop, the two nin had watched their target go inside. When they saw her close the doors, they went in after her. When they both stepped foot into the shop, they soon realized that they could not find or sense her anywhere. Just as they were about to move closer to the doors behind the counter, the shop began glowing red as a seal appeared underneath where they stood. They both tried to jump to escape but found that they could not move. One of the nin heard something growl, but before he could react, it was too late. They were swallowed by shadows. The shop turned back to its original state, as if nothing happened.