The Tale Of Flowering Fortunes

Jiraiya walked Murasaki back to the shrine, stopping just short of the tree line. He looked at first, like he wanted to say something, but simply shook his head.
“Be careful, kid…” He said, turning his back to go. Murasaki stared after him, a million thoughts raging in her head. Her eyes felt tired and sore as she watched the white haired sannin disappear around a bend in the road. She turned, facing the shrine, taking a deep breath before reluctantly setting foot on the grounds. She knew Noriko wouldn’t be happy with her…
But luckily enough, Yuuki-sama had come back from his travels. Yuuki was the head priest, an elderly man with a kind smile and even kinder eyes. Noriko usually modified her hateful behavior when he was around.
He smiled when he saw her coming up the path towards the shrine.
“Well, if it isn’t our little Murasaki…” He said, patting her on the shoulder. “Where did you disappear to?”
“A friend of mine…he passed on…” She said quietly. Yuuki smiled at her.
“It will be okay…those with strong, pure souls will fly through this world…” He said, patting her on the shoulder again before turning to go back to his work. Noriko came out of the sleeping quarters and saw Murasaki, narrowing her eyes darkly.
“Murasaki, come here.” She barked, beckoning her closer. Reluctantly, Murasaki came forward, watching her reproachfully. Once out of Yuuki’s hearing and vision range, Noriko grabbed Murasaki by the arm.
“Where have you been?” She hissed, her fingers digging painfully in to the young girls arm. Murasaki squirmed, trying to break free, but Noriko tightened her grip. “You ran off to see those dirty shinobi, didn’t you?” She said, shaking Murasaki violently. “Didn’t you?”
“N-Noriko-sama!” Murasaki protested.
“Shut up, just shut up! Shinobi will rape you the first chance they get, do you hear me? Then, they’ll kill you…” She said, forcing Murasaki to look into her eyes. “Do you understand me? Do you?” She pinched Murasaki’s chin, causing light bruises to form. Murasaki nodded, and Noriko let go, turning to go.
“Chigaou!” Murasaki said, anger fueling her heart.
Noriko froze, turning around.
“What did you just say?”
“Chigaimasu…” Murasaki said, a little softer than before. Noriko’s dark eyes flickered with unspeakable anger and hatred as she advanced on Murasaki, who looked around for all possible exits. Noriko stood in between her and the door. Noriko raised a hand, slapping Murasaki on the face, sending her sprawling on the floor. Murasaki looked up at the priestess.
“I will kill you…” Noriko said calmly. “and your soul will wander these lands in torment…” She said, grabbing Murasaki by the front of her kimono and lifting her up. “And you will become a wretched demon…and find no solace…” She said, pinning Murasaki to the wall, punching her across the face. A second hit fell on her rib cage with a sickening crack. Murasaki gasped for air, looking up, horrified, at Noriko’s face.
“Just like that wretched shinobi friend of yours….” She snarled, twisting Murasaki’s arm until the bones snapped. Murasaki gasped and fell to the floor.
Something inside Murasaki came apart at the insult of Obito.
“You’re wrong!” She cried, looking up at Noriko with angry, tear filled eyes. She lunged at the woman, knocking her to the floor. Murasaki struggled past her, almost making it to the door before Noriko grabbed the back of her kimono and hauled her back.
“You little brat!” She snarled, grabbing one of the ceremonial instruments from a shelf. “You’re just like you mother…she stole everything from me…” Noriko hissed, striking Murasaki with the pointed end of the instrument, drawing blood. Muraskai struggled to stand.
“She stole my parts, all my parts…” Noriko said, hammering on Murasaki with the staff, creating vicious gouges in the girls back.
“She forced me to retire and become a priestess…” Noriko snarled, ripping at the kimonos to deal more painful blows. Blood flowed freely down Murasaki’s back and sides ans she shook from the pain, sobbing.
“She was a whore who was too lazy to raise you after that dirty shinobi got her pregnant…so she dumped you on our doorstep…” Noriko said, dropping the staff and grabbing a knife from beneath her straw-mat bed.
“And from the moment I saw you, I swore…I swore that someday I would kill you…” Noriko said, laughing maniacally as she raised the dagger in the air. Murasaki curled, trembling, into the fetal position, the floor soaked in her blood. Noriko aimed a kick at the girls ribs and Murasaki gasped, her vision darkening. She felt dizzy from blood loss and pain…
There was a loud sound and out of the corner of her eye she saw Noriko hit the floor, a trickle of blood coming from beneath her dark hair.
“Don’t. Ever. Touch. My. Little. Girl. Again.” Hissed a familiar voice. Murasaki looked up dimly to see the outline of Jiraiya, his entire body seemingly bristling in anger.
Murasaki struggled to stand, clutching the remains of her clothing to her body with her broken arm. Jiraiya knelt down, lifting her gently in his arms.
“It’s okay, sweetheart…daddy’s got you…” He said softly. Murasaki blinked up at him, her mind spinning from blood loss and confusion.
“Da-addy?” She whispered, before passing out in his arms.

When she woke up, she was in a warm room on a western-style bed. She hear two familiar male voices speaking quietly over her.
“I had no idea…” She heard Yuuki say softly.
“Niether did I, to be honest. It wasn’t until she came for the funeral a few days ago that I finally got a clue…” Jiraiya replied. She could feel someone’s hand holding hers. She continued to fein sleep, eavesdropping on the conversation.
“Nonetheless, I shall turn her over to your care now…” She heard Yuuki say with a heavy, sad sigh. “She will be missed…” He said, patting Murasaki’s knee.
“Thank you…” she head Jiraiya’s voice say as the hand that held hers tightened slightly. It was at that point, Murasaki became painfully aware of the needle in her arm. She heard Yuuki leave and her eyes flew open. She was in a pure white room, on a bed with white blankets. Jiraiya was sitting beside her, holding her hand. A heart rate monitor was beeping by her side and an IV bag hung on a metal stand, transferring it’s contents into her veins.
“Wh…where am I?” She asked, looking around. “And why am I here?” She looked down at her right arm, which was covered in a white plaster cast.
Jiraiya smiled down at her. “You’re in Konoha…” He said, taking a deep breath. “And I think you should look at this…” He said, handing her a piece of paper. It was a DNA test.
“You’re my daughter…” He said quietly, squeezing her hand. “Please, Understand, I didn’t know…sometimes adults do things that they shouldn’t…it was just a one night stand…” He said softly. Murasaki blinked at him, processing the information. Her head pounded violently.
“You…you’re my…father?”
He nodded, clasping her small hand in between his two large ones. “Forgive me…I didn’t know…”
Murasaki smiled. “I’m glad…”

About a week later, she was out of the hospital, and Jiraiya had enrolled her in Konoha Academy. When she first found out, she was torn between excitement and fear.
“What if I’m no good at being a kunoichi? What if I’m only good at being a miko?” She said the evening before she was to go. Jiraiya chuckled.
“Just do your best, that’s all I ask…” He said, picking up a dish from the table. “But don’t try too hard, not yet, anyway…wait until your body heals fully before you give them hell.”
“What if nobody likes me?” She said, following him into the kitchen with a few more dishes.
“I’ll still love you. You’re my little girl…”
Murasaki looked at the floor. “What if they pick on me?”
“We’ll just have to wait and see tomorrow morning, eh?” Jiraiya said, filling the sink with water. “You should get ready for bed.”
Murasaki nodded and obeyed. She lay in bed, listening as her father finished the dishes. He came in and checked on her before leaving the house. It was nothing new, no more than the nightly routine…
She had a hard time falling asleep that night, but it came eventually. She got up extra early the next morning, getting dressed and waiting patiently for her father to get up. In the meanwhile, she made an attempt at cooking breakfast.
Jiraiya woke up to the smell of smoke and rolled over with a groan, getting out of bed and finding his daughter putting a flaming dish towel in the sink.
He sighed and helped put out the flames.
“I’m sorry dad…” she said, scrubbing the ash off the stove. He smiled grimly. “I’ll have to teach you to use the stove after school…” He said, glancing at the clock. “Speaking of which…”
Murasaki kissed him on the cheek, grabbing her book bag and running out the door.
It was a rainy September day, around the 20th or so. Murasaki ran towards the Academy, right behind a boy with a chocolate brown ponytail.
“Hey, you’re new…” He said as she caught up with her.
“Yeah…” She panted, her newly healed ribs aching slightly. “I just moved here…”
“I’m Iruka, by the way…”
“I’m Murasaki…” They hit the door to the academy just as the bell rang. Panting, they found there seats.
“Hey. Hey you…new girl.” A pale girl with long black hair said, tapping her on the shoulder. Iruka gave her a weird look.
“Go away, Hebeko…” He moaned, putting his head on the desk. The girl smirked.
“You’re in my seat, new girl…”
“Hebeko-san, please sit down next to Tsubaki-san…” The sensei said, tapping his hand on the desk. Hebeko looked irritated, but consented. Iruka looked up.
“She thinks she can get away with anything because she’s one of the Sannin’s kids…” He scoffed.
“One of the Sannin? Which one?”
“Orrochimaru…” Iruka said, sniffing.
“Hey…hey, new girl…”
Murasaki turned around. “What?” She was surprised to see a bushy-eye browed kid with shiny black hair sitting behind her.
“What happened to your arm?”
“I…I broke it…” She said dumbly.
“Duh. Wow, not only are you ugly, but your stupid to.” The black haired girl laughed.
“Don’t listen to her. I’m Maito Gai.”
“Fujiwara Murasaki…” Muraski said quietly.
The sensei cleared his throat and class began.
She hung out with Iruka and a strange, dark haired boy named Gai for the next month.
Minato and Kushina were in and out of Jiraiya’s apartment, getting ready for the birth of their son, whom they had decided to name Naruto, after a character in one of Jiraiya’s books.
It was October 10th, and Murasaki was headed to school with Iruka and Gai. They took their normal seats in the classroom, laughing and talking. Murasaki had caught up with most of the class and was now in the top ten. No one suspected what would happen next.
There was a loud explosion that shook the building, as if a bomb had gone off. Yokoi-sensei ran to the window, looking out.
A shy, dark haired girl named Kurenai suddenly started screaming, pointing out the window. All the kids ran to see what was going on.
It was as if a nightmare had come to life. A large, gaping hole had been blown in the defensive wall that surrounded Konoha. Over the tops of the trees, the kids could make out the burning outline of nine giant tails.
The teacher from another class came running in from down the hall.
“We need to get the kids into the caves! The kyuubi is attacking Konoha!”