Several months had passed, and given the circumstances, Seiri thought everything had turned out quite well. She had a new place she could now call home and she had an occupation that was similar to her previous one, except without all the trickery and treachery, so it wasn't too much of a shocking transition. Being an ANBU wasn't entirely different than being a Priest, the only difference being they had a conscience and cared for the innocent. Which was actually quite a huge difference. All the compassion was something she had never really seen before.

Most importantly, living with Kakashi was nice. It lifted her spirit greatly to be around someone who cared for her so much.

She didn't let Kakashi cross any boundaries as far as their relationship was concerned, though. She wanted to hold true to her beliefs. Beliefs that had shaped her for most of her life. That didn't mean it wasn't difficult. She liked Kakashi, and she could tell that he liked her too. But, for now, she wanted things to stay neutral between them. Nothing more. She had made vows. Ones that weren't a tough sacrifice for her at the time during her childhood, but she needed to honor them now. She wasn't ready to break them, and she was thankful that Kakashi accepted and understood that. It hadn't been easy to talk to him about it, after all.

Currently, Seiri was being briefed on a new mission. The location was a temple in the snow village. While not in the jurisdiction of the Land of Fire, or the Hidden Leaf for that matter, the ANBU had been hired for the job. The natives in the area were unable to handle the situation on their own and had reached out to Lady Tsunade for assistance.

Rumors had sprouted that there was a cult organizing there. Seiri scowled to herself and felt slightly disappointed. 'Too bad it wasn't my old temple…' she thought. She would have enjoyed visiting them again just for the pure pleasure of teaching them a lesson.

A painful lesson.

As it turned out, the mission was simply to gather information on the growing cult. Nothing more. The rumors only suggested that the cult was gathering a following at the moment, they weren't yet a danger to anyone. No plans for hostilities. But those plans could change in a matter of minutes. That was why the ANBU was being sent. Gather info, but if action needed to be taken, they would be prepared to handle it.

The Hokage finished the briefing and everyone was sent away. Seiri returned to the house quickly to pack provisions. Rations, spare weapons, the essentials. Then she, and five other members of the ANBU, met at the front gates. Once together, they left. The red head thought about Kakashi as she jumped from tree to tree. She hadn't said good-bye to him. Not that she could have anyway, he was on a mission with his students. They had their Chunin Exams approaching soon and they needed to be prepared.

Seiri shrugged, there was nothing she could have done. It wasn't like she could have gone off to find him before leaving. She didn't have the time. The ANBU had to leave immediately. Besides, she had no idea where she could have started to look. From what little she had heard, that trio of students of his was a handful. Especially when the blond one-Naruto, she believed-and the Uchiha-was it Sasuke?-got into arguments. They could be anywhere.

The forest blurred past Seiri like streaming ribbons as she focused only on the direction in front of her. It was a streaking, continuous line of greens, browns, yellows, and reds. It was only the middle of autumn, but she wondered what this place would look like in Winter. With the dazzling white snow sparkling as the sun hit it. Or did it even get snow here?

Either way, it must be beautiful.

The group traveled all day. From the second they had left Konoha this morning all the way until now, as the sun was beginning to set below the trees and then the horizon. Seiri knew she could still go on but she wasn't the only new recruit. There was one other, and they weren't as well trained for all of this like she and the rest of the ANBU were. So they stopped and made camp, lighting up a warm fire in the middle. And even though she knew they all could have gone a bit longer, everyone slumped appreciatively in front of the flames.

Seiri's mind wandered as she stared at the golden embers of the fire. She hoped Jun would be okay. She paid the stable boy extra to take care of him while she was gone. So far, she had been taking care of Jun every day ever since she got to Konoha. This was the first time she had needed to pay someone to take care of him for her. Of course, she paid to let her horse stay in the stables, but then took care of everything else herself. Besides, Seiri couldn't very well take him with her on this mission. It would be unfair to all the other ANBU who would have to run the entire way. It would compromise the team. And she knew how important it was to stick together.

As the fire burned down to nothing more than glowing ashes, everyone started to settle into sleep. She had first watch and would be up for a few hours. For her post, Seiri jumped into a tree that had a good overview of the camp, then settled onto a branch than was large enough for her to lean back against the trunk on and rest in a sitting position. All was quiet, and as the red head looked skyward at the stars that were blinking into visibility with the ever darkening sky, old memories began to surface. Memories that she wanted to forget.

"Mommy!" A boy screamed in the streets. He was scared. Houses were on fire and dozens of bodies littered the ground. Blood pooled around each. Weapons sticking out of the figures. Most were people the boy knew.

"MOMMY!"

Seiri ran up to him and grabbed the little boy, he was no older the five and she no older than seven. No one was going to help him and she couldn't leave him standing there screaming. Seiri ran, anywhere would do. So long as they got away from the place. She picked the boy up, letting him piggy back on her as she ran through the village until they were finally clear of the destruction. Then she stopped and looked back over the burning and screaming. Screams that filled the air and people that rushed around like mice unable to escape a snake in a cage. She turned away, she didn't need to see any more. Didn't want to see any more. And the little boy didn't need to see it either. Only once she turned around and started walking, she ran into something… Or rather, someone.

"Oh, and where are you two going in such a hurry?" A dark voice had asked.

Seiri screamed and tried running away but the man pried the little boy from her back, him yelling to be let go, and she turned around to pull him back, frantic. She held onto the little boy's foot and tried desperately to get him away. She wasn't going to let this… this monster take him from her. She shouted curses at the man, using the biggest vocabulary she knew. Which was very limited.

He only laughed at her attempts and yanked the boy from her grasp. Seiri screamed louder at him and tried to get the little boy back. Tears were streaking her face in lines, carving their way through the soot and dirt from the fires she had walked through.

She never did get the boy.

Instead, the man got them both.

Then, back at the temple that their abductors called 'home', the little boy and she received the mark of the Priest. The hot iron biting into their flesh and leaving a scar in the twisted shape of their Order. Seiri could never explain the agony she felt when they had to hold her down to do so.

After the joining, she met up with the little boy. She had only an hour to say goodbye before she would be assigned to her new master… an old man in his fifties called Shujin. So she rushed towards the little boy she had tried to save and hugged him tightly, telling him she was sorry she couldn't save either of them from this terrible fate. He shrugged the matter away, as if unimportant. He told her it was unavoidable, they were kids, they weren't strong like adults. Seiri told him her name, smiling broadly as she did so. This was her first real friend. He then told her his…

Yehvon.

The stars looked identical to the way they did that day, but then, they were stars.

Always unchanging.

Seiri could still feel the heat of the burning houses on her face from the memory. The blare of explosions and the light ringing of clanging weapons across what was now a battle field. She still wondered why they attacked her old village. Why they made her relive that day. What hatred did the Judge hold for her old village? What did they do to him?

No doubt something he deserved.