Naruto: Of bone and ice

"No, I won't let them take him! He's too young!" Kachina screamed as the others held her back. Shimo placed his hand on my shoulder and pulled me away. I looked back at Kachina, she was in pain. Not physically, but deep inside. "No, I won't let them!" She screamed. Breaking free of one of the men holding her arm, she began making signs with one hand. The other man quickly let go and jumped to the side. Ice spikes rose from the ground around her and would have impaled both men if they hadn't dodged. She rushed, moving like the wind, towards Shimo and pulled out a Kunai. Shimo blocked the Kunai with the ice he created around his hand.

- Kachina! How dare you, you know the laws!"

She didn't care, all she wanted was not to lose me. Even in this world, a mother's love was unbreakable.

- I won't let them use him as a weapon! I won't let them! - She pulled away from Shimo, leaning back. She made a few hand gestures for me to quickly follow her, and ice spears formed around her. I couldn't see Shimo's face. But his aura spoke for itself.

"Very well… You leave me no choice." He dropped both his hands to the floor, ice forming around his forearms and palms like blades. They collided, ice shattering on ice. "So this is what a battle between two powerful Kekuei Genkai users looks like." I thought to myself.

It was beyond anything I had ever seen. No one could move that fast in my world, and no one could use ice like that. Kachina tried his best, but Shimo was clearly stronger. The ice on his blade-like hands was now stained with blood, it was Kachina's blood.

"This is your last chance, I don't want to kill you, Kachina!" Shimo said.

Kachina was breathing heavily, the loss of blood beginning to take its toll, but her face still held a defiant expression.

- I won't stop. I think I told you: as long as I'm alive, I won't let anyone take him away from me!"

Shimo sighed heavily. "You leave me no choice, Kichina." He disappeared in an instant, taking her back and kicking her in the middle. She flew through the air and landed hard on the ground a few feet away from me. I looked at her, then at Shimo. "He was going to kill her? His own daughter?"

This woman had taken care of me, provided for me for the last 5 years. Although she had not replaced the mother from my previous life, she was quite close to me. Shimo stood over her, raising his hand. I had to do something, anything. I couldn't let her die like this. Without thinking, I rushed forward, forcing myself to move.

Somehow, I made it in time, standing in front of Kachina with my hand raised to block Shimos's strike. "No!" Kichina screamed. Time seemed to slow down again. Had I done the same thing again? I had leapt into death's arms for the second time. No... I wouldn't let that happen again. Not this!

Shimo's ice blade hit my forearm and, to my surprise, stopped dead in his tracks. His face was twisted in anger and horror. To my own surprise, I managed to stop his attack without losing my arm. I looked closely and noticed three white bones sticking out of my arm. That's what stopped Shimo's ice blade. It was a bone.

I lunged forward and managed to push Shimo back while he was still in shock. I looked at my arm, it didn't hurt at all, even with three large bones sticking out of it. I didn't have to think too much about it, and the bone slowly began to return to my skin, as if it was never there.

I looked back at Kachina, her face was full of confusion and she was looking down at the ground. I turned and looked at Shimo. His face was expressionless, the others around us began to whisper, and one word caught my attention. Kaguya. Shimo raised his hand to silence them before speaking.

"You see, Kachina, I warned you about this. He has inherited not only our Kekkei Genkai, but also Kaguya. The sad truth is that he is nothing less than the perfect weapon." Kachina began to cry and scream. Shimo slowly walked towards me.

"Fuyun Yuki. You are the Curse of the Yuki Clan." He turned his back on her and walked away. "He's leaving today, Kachina!" That was the last time I saw Shimo. Kachina was taken away to be treated for her wounds, and I was taken by two men I had only seen while walking around the village.

Kaguya… It all made sense now. I knew how powerful this ability was. Watching Naruto for all these years had really come in handy. What I didn't expect was the reactions of the others. Was this ability really that scary in this shinobi world? I had never been called a curse before. This was my life now, and no matter how crazy it seemed I had to endure it, these abilities I had been given might be a curse to others, but not to me. To me, it was a gift from the heavens.

The journey lasted two days as we crossed and descended mountainous terrain. It would have been much faster, but neither man wanted to carry me. I couldn't jump very far or run up and down walls. After all, I was only five years old physically. Plus, I had no idea how to use any chakra.

It was mid-afternoon when the village came into view. I recognized it from the pictures I had seen. It was the village hidden in the mist, Kirigakure. "Come on kid, we're almost there," one of the men said without even looking at me. Damn, these guys really hated me. We approached a large gate and were stopped by shinobi hidden in the mist.

- State your name! - said one of them.

I looked around and could count at least twenty guards around the wall and the gate. They were all armed with swords and wore hidden mist vests. This wasn't the latest one I saw in the anime, in fact, it looked older. Honestly, I had already pieced it all together. Considering the fact that the Yuki clan was still alive, the timeline had to be long before Naruto was born.

"We are from the Yuki clan. We have come to make our offering to the Mizukage." One of my companions said.

I noticed the looks the guards were giving us. And it wasn't just me, they really didn't like us. Are they really that afraid of the Kekkei Genkai here?

"Open the gate!" The guard shouted, stepping back and spitting on the ground. "Let them in." My clan mates led me out and we walked down the street. I certainly understood why the village was called the village hidden by the fog. This village was nothing like the hidden leaf. No, this village was full of life, people walking the streets, chatting and going about their daily lives. This place was the complete opposite. The stone buildings were dilapidated, there were very few people on the streets, and those that were seemed to be in a hurry to leave. I had never seen anything special in this village except for the large building in the center. I guessed that was where we were heading.

After passing through the village, we finally arrived. We were led inside and up a couple of flights of stairs. There were no windows in this building. Only one entrance and one exit. We entered a large stone room lit by gas lamps. Two rows of guards lined up along a square Shoji made of translucent paper. I could see the silhouette of a man sitting inside, and I was willing to bet he was important.

The two men knelt down and pushed my head to do the same. One of the shinobi spoke through the paper wall in a whisper that I couldn't hear. He knelt down again and a low voice came from behind Shoji, "Welcome, members of the Yuki clan." The voice spoke. The man to my right raised his head and spoke as well.

"Thank you, Mr. Mizukage. We have come with our donations for the Academy."

I felt everyone's eyes turn to me.

- Come closer, child."

I looked at my Yuki clan mates and they nodded. I stood up and slowly walked towards Shoji. One of the shinobi raised his hand, "That's close enough."

I stopped and tried to get a better look at the shadow behind the paper wall. If I could just get a look at the Mizukage's face, it would help me determine the timeline of this world. Not that it mattered. I was pretty sure that my presence in this world wouldn't change much. Suddenly, Shoji's door opened, and all the shinobi in the room quickly lowered their heads in surprise.

I didn't know what to do and bowed my head, not taking my eyes off the man. He had long black hair with small beads running through it. It was the Third Mizukage! "Did you want to see my face, child?" He said with a questioning look at him.

Oh shit. I didn't think he'd understand. He walked around me and sat back down in the chair.

"You amuse me, child. How old are you?" He asked with a slight grin on his face.

I didn't look up as I answered his question. "Five, sir." There was a moment of silence before he spoke again.

"Shimo really doesn't mind? He's very young." The Mizukage spoke, addressing his question to the other two Yuki clan members. One of them answered without hesitation:

- Yes, my lord, but he is gifted."

The Mizukage looked from him to me. I felt his gaze grow cold as he stared at me.

- Is that really so?

There was silence again before he clapped his hands.

"Very well. I trust that old goat Shimo. If he thinks the boy is ready, I'll take him. But you know I can't promise he'll survive."

My Yuki didn't even raise their heads. "Of course, Mr. Mizukage."

"You may go now." The Mizukage said after a moment. I could feel his gaze on me even after I left the room. It was scary.

I was handed over to two hidden mist ninjas by the Yuki clan without even saying goodbye. I didn't care. I was taken to a large barracks, where I was given new clothes and a name tag. The clothes consisted of a black training shirt and black training pants. After I changed into them, I was taken to a classroom and left alone.

The room was full of other kids, all older than me. They were wearing the same clothes as me. I guessed it was protocol, took an empty seat, and decided to keep to myself. They didn't look like a friendly bunch anyway. Soon a man entered the room. He was clearly a ninja, with the appropriate clothes, and a Hidden Mist forehead protector.

- Okay, sit down and shut up! - everyone quickly did as he said, and silence reigned in the room.

"My name is Hotaka! You will address me as 'sensei'. Is that clear?" The class responded with a loud "yes, sensei!" and he seemed pleased.

- Welcome to the Blood Mist Spawn Academy."