Chapter 1 A journey begins.
Deep within a forest sat a small village, this village was protected by three families. The three families were experts in different forms of martial arts. One family held the power of flames alongside impressive fighting abilities, the next held the power of waves and was said to be strong enough to move mountains, the final family was shrouded in mystery, they were rumored to possess the power to grow an entire forest from a single seed and disappear amongst the leaves. Within this village lived a young girl, unaware that destiny has big plans for her and the friends that she's about to make.
Dark clouds were gathering, it looked like it was about to rain, a boy with blue and orange hair with dark skin,wearing a white shirt, blue shorts, and sneakers was helping a girl with long orange and blonde hair, with pale skin, wearing a gray shirt, brown shorts, and sneakers, haul freshly cut lumber into the village. The blue haired boy had set the ax they had been using to the side. "C'mon, we gotta get these logs into the town hall before the storm starts!" The blue haired boy called to the girl as they lifted another log into their cart. "I know! We can't have a repeat of last summer!" The girl said before the other could say anything. The two loaded the logs when a figure staggered into view. "What the..?" The boy said, watching as the figure came into view. The figure was a boy with tan skin, brown hair, they were wearing a black mask, they had a light brown scarf that was patterned with darker stripes, his shirt was the same way, he had gray shorts on along with sandals. They had fingerless gloves on, they had a pair of shuko, which were traditional hand climbing claws. The boy fell to the ground clearly injured. The girl was about to rush in to help him when leaves began to swirl in small tornadoes and gradually began increasing in size.
Suddenly a pair of tan skinned individuals in greenish brown ninja armor appeared. They were wearing pale red masks and each had dark green hair that fell in long braids down their backs. They were each carrying a set of sai as they approached the injured boy. The blue haired boy and the orange haired girl watched as the two grabbed the injured boy and disappeared as it started to rain. "Crap! We gotta hurry!" The blue haired boy said as he grabbed the last log and the ax they had used to cut the lumber and threw them with ease onto the cart. The orange haired girl was impressed as she climbed onto the cart and pulled a tarp over the logs to avoid them getting soaked by the rain as the wind began to howl. The girl slid off the cart and grabbed one of the handles and helped her friend pull the cart into the village as the guards shut and bolted the gates with a heavy wooden beam. The inhabitants of the village quickly ran indoors for cover as the rain started to pick up. "We have to hurry!" The girl said as the dirt paths of the village started to become muddy. The two pulled their cart of wood into the town hall just as lightning and thunder began to flash and crack outside.
"Nasty storm we've gotten." An old man with a long crooked nose said as the two entered the town hall. The man had dark skin, gray eyes, long white hair, and was wearing a dark green robe. "Elder Bushido." The two kids said as they bowed respectfully to the old man in front of them. "Alright enough formalites, Kazu, I want you to set the cart over there." Bushido said, pointing with a wrinkled and scar covered hand to a spot in the corner. "Yes Elder Bushido." The blue and orange haired boy, now known as Kazu, said as he pulled the cart to where it was indicated it should be. "Junipur, could you be a dear and make us some tea?" The elder asked, addressing the orange haired girl. " Yes Elder Bushido." The orange and blonde haired girl, now known as Junipur, said as she bowed and headed into the kitchen just off the main room of the building. She entered the kitchen and turned the light on just as the storm began to worsen. "Man, that storm really is getting bad." Juniper said as she grabbed a step stool and opened a cabinet and pulled a teapot that was white with blue flowers out of the cabinet alongside three matching cups. She grabbed some lavender tea leaves and put them in the teapot after filling it with water and set it on the stove and attempted to light it but couldn't get a spark going.
Footsteps were suddenly heard, Juniper spun around just in time to see Kazu walk into the kitchen. "Kazu? What are you doing here? I thought you were out in the main hall with Elder Bushido." Juniper said she looked surprised to see him. "He asked me to see what's taking so long with the tea." Kazu said, explaining his sudden presence in the kitchen. "I think the stove's busted, it won't light." Juniper said as Kazu approached the stove to see what the problem was. "It's not busted. It's an old wood powered stove, it needs an external flame and kindling to light. My grandma has one of these." Kazu said, looking at the stove and opening a small hatch on the front. "There's plenty of kindling, we just need a spark." Kazu said, looking at Juniper clearly expecting her to do something. She sighs and focuses and small sparks start appearing in her hand. She took the handful of sparks and lit the kindling. Kazu shuts the hatch on the stove as Juniper turns the knob on the stove, the stove lights almost immediately, Juniper puts the teapot on the stove and waits for the tea to boil. The two waited patiently and soon enough the tea began to boil, that's when the sound of shattering glass was heard in the main room of the hall. The two immediately ran to investigate the crash only to discover that elder Bushido was lying on the ground with a kunai lodged in his back. "Elder Bushido!" Kazu and Juniper both yelled as the old man reached a trembling hand towards the two. "R-Run you two, it's an ambush!" Bushido called to the two as an arrow suddenly flew into the town hall and landed with a solid metallic thud as the heavy metal tip sticks into the wood, red and gray feathers decorated the shaft of the arrow.
The room went silent as time froze for a minute then all at once the windows shattered and hundreds of razor sharp arrows flew into the town hall. Kazu grabbed Juniper just as she was about to make a break for Bushido who was laying on the ground in a spreading pool of blood as arrows pierced his body. "Let me go! Kazu, let go!" Juniper yelled as she was dragged back into the kitchen as men in red armor with a purple and gold spider insignia on the back, and red and gray armor entered the town hall bows at the ready. Kazu quickly turned the stove off and covered Juniper's mouth and pulled her into a pantry. Juniper and Kazu watched as a man in the spider insignia armor entered the kitchen and looked at the freshly boiled tea on the stove. He was about to leave when he noticed three cups sitting on the counter instead of one. "Well, well, well, looks like a couple of spies have fallen into our web." The man said as he grinned and took out a kusarigama. Kazu watched the man still covering Juniper's mouth, he was terrified but hardly showed it. He pulled something partially from his pocket. "When I say now, make a break for it." Kazu whispered into Juniper's ear and motions towards the back door of the kitchen which leads outside. Juniper nodded as Kazu uncovered her mouth. The enemy warrior approached the pantry where the two were hidden. "Now! Ground style, Mud slap!" Kazu yelled, pulling a small bag out of his pocket and pulling the drawstring on the bag. The armored man stumbled backwards as mud was flung into his eyes and he was blinded as the two burst from the pantry. The two dodge as the armored man screams and tries to rub the mud out of his eyes. The two rushed out of the kitchen and into the storm just as others burst into the kitchen to find their companion stumbling around. They tried to help but ended up having to avoid the armored man lashing out in a panic.
Kazu quickly locked the back door of the hall as he and Juniper quickly got soaked by the storm. The two run and inform others of the ambush. Soon the entire village was filled with the light of torches as the scene of the attack was investigated. Bushido's body was recovered and the damage was looked at. A man with long red hair that faded into a reddish orange held an arrow in his hand. "This wasn't just any ambush. These arrows are from the Skarmory clan, some of the best craftsmen and the most dangerous archers in the region." The man said, looking at the arrow. "Everyone be on high alert!" He called out as the armored men were captured. "Ariados mercenaries, what are they doing here?" The man said his eyes widened a little bit in shock. "Sir." The voice caught his attention, a young man with short green hair and ninja gi was suddenly in front of him. "Hello Lee, did you and the other Treecko find anything?" The man asked
"We found these darts in the necks of the sentries." Lee said, taking out a handful of purple and white striped darts. "Poison sting darts, that explains why the alarm bell wasn't rung at the first sign of intruders. Ariados' mercenaries aren't exactly known for stealth. Lee, have the sentries taken in for treatment immediately, poison sting darts can be a pain to handle." The man said as Lee nodded and disappeared in a flurry of leaves, he then turned to address the gathered villagers. "Tonight we have suffered a heavy loss, please return to your homes at once, funeral preparations will be made in a few days time." The man said to the saddened crowd.
A few days passed quickly and Kazu was standing in a black suit and tie looking at the fresh engraving on the village's memorial wall. "It's hard to believe he's really gone." Juniper said standing next to Kazu in a black dress, it was a beautiful summer day but the air was choked by grief. "I shouldn't have left him alone, if I had been in the room when it happened–" Kazu couldn't finish his sentence as tears streamed down his face. "Kazu, it wasn't your fault. We should get going, the funeral is about to start." Juniper said, taking her friend's hand. Soon the two were standing with the rest of the village. The same red haired man stood in front of the crowd of villagers. A lot of them were sobbing. "People of Little Root village. I am Kai of the blaze family. It is with a heavy heart that today we lay our dear friend and village leader Elder Bushido Dirteng of the konoha clan to rest. As you all know Bushido was killed a few days ago in an ambush on our town hall. My niece Juniper and her friend Kazu were the unfortunate witnesses of the awful event. Bushido lived a long and happy life and we must remember that despite our loss our village will grow stronger no matter what." Kai said he was shaking during the speech he gave.
Soon everyone had said their final goodbyes and Bushido was lowered into the grave to rest. "It looks like we might be training under our respective families for a while but I'm sure everything will work out." Kazu said he was starting to perk up a little bit but his body language gave away the grief he felt. Juniper didn't say anything she simply left. Kazu watched her leave, he was worried about her now. He was going to go after her but Lee stopped him and gave him a look. "Ok, I'll leave her alone for now." Kazu said as Lee smiled a little bit which was a rare sight from the normally stoic teen in front of him. Lee was about a year older than Kazu and Juniper. He was thirteen while Juniper and Kazu were only twelve.
That night Juniper was running across the wall around the village hiding in blindspots of the sentries. She eventually makes it to the gate and takes one more look at the peaceful village before she drops down on the other side and runs up the forest path, adjusting the strap on her rucksack as she goes. By morning she had reached the next village, a small village called Oldale village, the small village had several shops boarded up. Juniper had a black t-shirt and matching shorts on with matching sneakers, it was a stealth suit, her long orange and yellow hair was tied back into a ponytail. "What on earth happened here?" Juniper asked out loud as she walked into the village a lady screamed. "Fire type!" The lady screamed, dropping her basket of produce. "Woah, hey, it's ok, I won't hurt you." Juniper said, putting her hands up. The lady screams again and Juniper gulps. "Woah, easy now, she's from the Blaze family." A voice said and suddenly between her and the lady a boy appeared. He was the same boy that had shown up at the village injured. The lady looked between the two skeptical but then decided to hurriedly collect her produce and leave. "Sorry about that everyone's been on edge lately." the boy said, turning to face Juniper.
"It's alright not everyone is a fan of fire types after the war and all." Juniper said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Thanks for the save there." Juniper quickly added so she didn't seem ungrateful. "It's not a problem especially since the folks in Littleroot patched me up after I was ambushed by the Poochyena bandits while on the road." The teen said giving a thumbs up he was rather peppy for someone covered in bandaids. "Oh yeah, my name's Zeshin but everyone calls me Zigs since I'm a Zigzagoon." Zigs said officially introducing himself. "My name's Junna but everyone calls me Juniper or June for short." Juniper said, introducing herself as well. "I'm gonna call you June." Zigs said, shaking her hand. June smiles a little bit at the kindness since a lot of people outside her village were hesitant at best and hostile at worst towards her.
"So what brings you to Oldale?" Zigs asked out of curiosity as they started walking through the village, June noticed the rather messy state the small village was in. "I was just gonna buy some food and move on." June said as an old man glared at her and a woman pushed her child behind her. Zigs took notice and put a protective hand on her shoulder. "What happened here?" June asked taking notice of several fire damaged buildings, some ruined ones were still smoldering. "Poochenya bandits attacked recently said they were collecting a fee for their boss. Apparently one of them started a fire as an example and then it quickly set half the town on fire." Zigs explained as he led June to a small market place. The two were about to enter when a vendor stopped them. "Sorry we don't serve fire types." The vendor said he looked genuinely sorry. June sighs as she sits on a bench and waited as Zigs went and got her supplies.
Back in the village Kazu was standing at the gates with a backpack filled with supplies. "Kazu be careful and please bring my niece back." Kai said as he nodded to the sentries and with the sound of wood grinding on wood the beam across the gate was lifted and Kazu stepped outside the safety of Littleroot village alongside Lee who had insisted on coming along. The two nodded to each other before setting out, their first stop was Oldale village.
June and Zigs gathered their supplies and were about to say their goodbyes when a loud scream was heard. The two looked and saw an older woman running into town from the north where the berry fields were, her arm coated in blood with a shuriken sticking out. "Ma'am what happened?" June asked, easily stopping the poor woman. "It was the Poochenya bandits! They're back!" The woman cried out causing the villagers to become fearful. "We can't face them, they burned down half the village last time." One of the villagers mumbled. "I'll go." June said she had been itching for a fight for a while now. The villagers looked at each other and then back at June. They didn't trust her in the slightest. "I'll go with her." Zigs said to reassure the townsfolk. Before anyone could say anything the two set off to the berry fields.
After a few minutes the two were in the berry fields. In the field there were three young teens laughing as they munched on berries. June and Zigs walk over to the three. The trio noticed the two and immediately got up to face the duo with sneers on their faces. "Well, well, well. Looks like we've got a fire type and a pathetic normie!" The leader of the trio sneered making a jab at Zigs being a normal type. Normal type pokemon had a reputation for being the weakest type out there. "I'm not pathetic." Zigs said in response to the sneer, his anger was bristling. "Oh really, well you think you can face the Poocheyna bandits?! The trio leader exclaimed, baiting Zigs into attacking. Zigs took a step back and the three laughed. They laughed until Zigs rushed the leader with a low football tackle and June rushed in and punched another in the face. The third bandit grabbed Zigs by the back of his shirt and threw him away causing him to roll across the ground. June and the bandit she punched were locked in a fist fight. June ducked a punch and used the resulting opening to punch the bandit in the face with an uppercut. The leader of the bandits pulled out a Kunai and stabbed June in the shoulder. June yells in pain and grabs her shoulder. She grits her teeth and turns to face the leader just as the other bandit recovered and rushed at June as Zigs recovered and started fighting the last bandit. June was stuck defending herself against two bandits at once.
June and Zigs ended up being cornered by the three bandits, June was holding her injured shoulder and her hair was filled with mud and sticks. Zigs had blood dripping down his face and staining his mask. The two were bruised and had multiple cuts all over them. The two looked at each other as the bandits closed in holding weapons of their own. "Tch, three against two is hardly a fair fight." A new voice said. The five looked around just in time to see a boy with long gray hair tied back into low ponytail, red eyes with yellow whites, dark gray face paint made to mimic a scary face, a gray vest, a dark gray t-shirt, black shorts, gray fingerless gloves, and black and white sneakers jump the fence at the back of the field. "Oren, what are you doing here?" One of the bandits said in shock. "Stopping you." Oren said and with that he rushed in. "Ground style sand attack!" Oren exclaimed, kicking up a blinding cloud of sand. The bandits coughed and yelled and within a few minutes the bandits turned tail and ran with several injuries.
"Thanks for the save." Zigs said as he approaches Oren when June stops him and grabs Zigs and steps in front of him protectively. "Why should we trust you, you know the bandits." June said glaring at Oren. "It's true I knew a long time ago but I cut ties a long time ago." Oren said he looks at the two. "I understand if you two don't trust me. A lot of people hate dark types." Oren added as he turned to walk away. "Wait. I'm sorry, I'm just on edge." June said she understood being discriminated against due to typing. "You know, if you want we're heading to Petalburg next if you wanna come along." Zigs said surprising both June and Oren. "I'm sorry 'we'?" June said, raising an eyebrow. "I wanna tag along and get stronger, if that's ok." Zigs said looking a little embarrassed. "Ok, you can come, Oren, right? You can come along too if you want." June said she laughs a little bit ruffling Zigs' hair. "It's Orion. We'll set out as soon as we're patched up." Orion said he starts heading back to town and June and Zigs follow.