Chapter 1: "With No Regrets."

I honestly never set out to do anything.

Personally I never really had ambition to change anything, to do anything ground breaking that would make me be remembered forever, and much less even attempt to live another life. Yet, here I was, living another experience without much regard to how it happened or if it meant anything. It was strikingly terrifying to realize that I was in a world qhere power could be dealt out of your fingertips to murder and brutalize. A saga of never ending demise for someone, no matter what side you aligned yourself with. I never wantwd that for myself.

I didn't push myself to do it.

I didn't want to live through that- to die through that at some point. That was always inevitable- unavoidable in the life of shinobi. Bloodshed and heartache. I can respect that some people believe so strongly in their land that they want to fight to protect and their people, but that was not the life for somebody like me.

My childhood was littered with it. By the time I was able to walk, the Third Great Shinobi war had begun. My father was one of the countless shinobi that died in the fodder. Just a grim reminder to never head in the way he did. My mother sided with that ideal, and was most definetely glad that I never expressed interest in following in his footsteps. She had lost her husband and she didn't want to lose her only child in the same fashion.

It likely would be too much for this woman to bear.

Mayumi Sato was alright with teaching me to follow in her footsteps. She had a shop in Konohagakure specifically for her work, Mayumi was a seamstress, and a fairly good one at that. As a child, I had dabbled in the art for a while, which made it easy for me to pick it back up and do as I was instructed. Meticulous, the motion you move at can be tedious but it gives you time to think and relax.

So that was how I spent majority of my youth, helping my mother in her shop after finishing my few short years at the cillivan academy. It was an existence I was quite content with, I had no complaints with my choices.

"Midori, how is the latest order looking?" Mother asked, she was looking at me from across the room. I was currently pinning the spots on the dress to match our most recent adjustment. Removing a pin from my mouth, I looked back at her. "Just right, mother, I think we're going to be early this time, actually. All this one needs is a few more minor adjustments and then the delivery."

"Excellent." She murmured, and then went silent once again. She must have had something on her mind, it wasn't often she spoke without purpose when we were in the shop.

"Is there something you wanted to ask?" I spoke up. It was my personality to get to the point as well, I didn't see a point in dancing around something unless it was rather- emotional.

"I need to leave the village for a little bit, The Fire Daimyo's daughter is getting married, and I've been chosen to design for the ceremony. It is a great honor, but I need someone to run the shop while I'm gone." She said. "Our business will certainly grow with this, so we can't afford to close up."

"So, you want me to take care of things here while you and Tsuki-san take care of that?" I concluded. Tsuki was my mother's first apprentice, she was damn good at what she did. I expected her to follow my mother where ever she went, so I expected as much when she broke this news.

"Well- yes, you always knew how to see the point." She smiled. "You can handle it, after all, you'll have Masami-chan to help."

Masami was the most recent apprentice to my mother, she had only recently graduated the cillivan academy. She was twelve years old, and had been staring into our shop's windows for years. My mother was the one who convinced her to join us for an apprenticeship, she was a little clumsy but she tried. I could run this place with my eyes closed, so I had no worries.

"You can count on me."

"I know."

We fell back into our work cycle until the bell jingled at the front of the shop, Tsuki announced her arrival. "Sensei, Midori, I'm back!" She was carrying a heap of fabric, her balance was beyond perfect otherwise she might have dropped our newest shipment of fresh pieces. "The floral patterns you ordered are absolutely lovely! You must see them!"

Mother glanced at me. "Keep up the work, Tsuki and I will be up font." To which, I nodded and kept my flow. So, that was how I lived day to day. I worked with my mother, and then went home to my apartment to make dinner, sleep, and then repeat. I liked the normalcy it gave me. Patterns made me feel stable, and I liked living fhe way I did.

Mother departed the following day, with her supplies and Tsuki in tow. I waved them off, and soon they disappeared beyond the gates to fulfill their job. "How long will they be gone, Midori-san?"

I glanced down at Masami. "At best, two weeks. With a serious client you want to be careful and precise. You take time and get the right stitch, it pays out in the end, Masami-chan." My explanation would appease her for the time being. We had to head back to the shop to start the day, and while I humored her a lot, when it was time to get serious she knew what to do more or less.

"Is there anything we need to pick up today?" Masami asked as we strolled along the dirt path.

I clicked my tongue. "Tsuki-san did it yesterday, but I expect you to pick up the next shipment from Fujiwara-san's shop in the next few days. We've had a flurry of people come in, spring is always a hot season for weddings and proposals. Keep that in mind," I spoke. "Sometimes we have a good number of appointments pop up within days- well, you've seen the shop before joining us. I have a feeling it might be a busy spring, and with Mother and Tsuki-san gone, we have to do our best."

Masami bopped her head. "I understand!"

"Good, that's important. You can't just slack off because my mother isn't here to catch you. If you're serious about this then prove it to me, alright?"

"I'll do my best to make you proud." Masami murmured. She was young, but she was somebody who didn't want to become a shinobi. In that regard, she was similar to me. It just wasn't the career for some people, and if she wanted to make it in this world then she had to take her art seriously. When my mother trusted her with me, there was an underlying gesture that she wanted me to see if Masami really was going to be somebody that was worth taking the time to apprentice. She had only been with us for two months, and while she seemed to want it, there were times were she would get distracted and gaze out of the window.

There was no hard feelings about it

. When the world was based around living in a village filled with ninja, often people like us were overlooked and forgotten with ease. While I was comfortable with that, it didn't seem like Tsuki or Masami were okay with that. So, it was up to them to prove themselves and make their lives the way they want it, with no regrets.

Often times I would see shinobi from the window of our shop. People that were out there to prove something, often being that they were strong enough to protect our village and its people. I had no regrets with my decision to stay away from the shinobi way.

...

Later that day, it seemed like Masami had found a groove to work in. I had set the girl to cut and measure the right line of fabric for the newest assignment my mother had given to do. She was doing it right, but a little quicker then I would be comfortable with given her knowledge. "Be careful, Masami-chan, you don't want to cut yourself." I scolded the teenager as she attempted to cut a fine edge into the fabric. "A steady hand is best, take a deep breath and slow down. No need to rush."

"I can't come in Wednesday, so I feel like I need to make up for it by working harder today." Masami said. The brunette glanced back at me before turning to her work. "But I suppose rushing just makes it sloppy... haha."

I racked my mind for the reason she told my mother days prior. "Isn't your brother's... Jonin promotion celebration then?" I hesitated for a moment, I knew her brother was a ninja but I didn't know much else then that when it came to basic information. I assumed my guess was right when she nodded her head and continued to speak to me.

Masami smiled. "Mhm, and I promised my mom I would help bake the cake. I'm so proud of my big brother, so we have to do our best for him! He's so strong, he wants to teach some Genin soon. He's a big goof." Masami stuck out her tongue. "I can't see him teaching but he will probably prove me wrong."

"Give him my best, oh, your mother too of course." I nodded, before returning to counting the daily income. I marked out a few numbers and attempted to finish the last bit before Masami spoke up once again.

"Why did you hesitate?"

"I'm sort of uncomfortable around shinobi."

"Oh."

"They just remind me of my father- you know that he passed during the Third Great Shinobi war, and myself and my mother tend to not talk much about him anymore because it's a painful memory to drudge up. It's a lot to think about." It was a lie more or less, but nobody had to know how I really felt or anything. It was easy to live behind these words because it was so similar to how my mother read the situation.

"I- I didn't know that. I'll remember that next time, for sensei and your sake." Masami bowed her head.

I offered her a weak smiled in return. "Thank you, Masami-chan. That's very kind of you."

It was a reminder that shinobi existed, I tried my best to avoid them. I went out of my way to make sure I would never cross paths with someone that I knew would cause me trouble later. Trouble could stay away from me, I used to be a magnet for the stuff and I had yet to face it once again. I was hopeful that trouble and curses would stay away from me in this go around... I was perfectly happy with my life and I knew that as long as I stayed in my spot then I would be okay.

That all changed one day when a child covered in dirt happened to run into the shop the day I was running things on my own. Trouble had come for me once again, and it had chosen to make it's appearance after years of laying dormant.

This child darted inside and hid behind one of the display, clutching onto what I could assume was food that he had stolen. It wasn't often I saw children steal in Konohagakure, they were cared for in the orphanage as far as I knew. Upon, further inspection I noticed a mop of blond hair.

The only child that could be uncared for would only be... him.

A man ran by outside, screaming about how that 'brat' had robbed him when he wasn't looking. It was a nearby grocer, he ran a shop on the street two blocks from my mother's. He soon passed by, and I frowned. Were people really not feeding him enough that he was out here?

Against my better judgement, I approached him. My hand on my hip, I spoke up. "What are you doing?"

The child seized up, staring back at me with trepidation. His big blue eyes were filled with fear. "You're not going to throw me back out there, are you?"

"I suppose I'm supposed to do that," I considered it, briefly. But if I were to shun Uzumaki Naruto like the rest of the villagers- I don't think I could forgive myself. I never wanted to deal with him, but I couldn't toss him to the wolves. He was a child, and a child that had on the streets for who knows how long. I couldn't with good conscience do that. Against the bile welling up in the back of my throat, I told him my verdict.

"But I'm not going to."

Naruto stared at me like I had grown two heads. I offered him my hand, "Suzumiya-san is big grouch, I won't let him hurt you. My name is Sato Midori, what's your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto." He managed to squeak it out. I had caught him off-guard, obviously, he must have expected me to kick him out to the streets to face a punishment.

"Well, Naruto, you must be hungry, otherwise you wouldn't have taken that from Suzumiya-san. Say, why don't you join me for dinner? I don't usually have company so it would be nice to have a guest tonight."

He looked like he was about to refuse me, but his stomach spoke for him. "Well, if you're offering, I guess I can!" He cracked his first real smile, and took my hand.

Reluctantly, Naruto had followed me home at the mention of free food. As bad as it was, he might've followed any person who was nice enough to offer that- even at cost of what unfortunate things could become of him for following some stranger home. I was glad that he had followed me at least, so I could figure out what was going on and how exactly I could try to make it better for him. If I could do anything at all, if minor I would feel a lot better about the situation. Naruto glanced around my apartment, it wasn't the biggest place in the world but it gave me a space that wasn't in my mother's house. She lived in the room above the shop, and while there was room for the both of us there, I liked the time to myself.

"You live by yourself?" He asked.

I nodded my head and went to hit the light switch. "Yeah, I moved out of my mother's place a few months ago because I wanted a space for myself. That shop you stumbled into is actually my mother's dress shop."

"Dress shop?" He cocked his head to the side, then stuck out his tongue. I doubted he had much interest in clothes, he was a typical little boy after all.

"Mhm. She's a master seamstress, and I'm getting closer to the title myself. I work there full time, making all kinds of clothes for people that want them specially made for them." I explained.

"Sounds..." He trailed off.

"Boring?" I supplied.

He smiled, rather sheepishly.

As I had expected. I reheated some of my left overs that I had planned on eating, but decided to give to the kid. I placed it in front of him and nodded my head, "Eat up, kid, your skin and bones."

He bowed his head, "Itadakimasu!" He cried before digging into the plate like he hadn't seen that much food in days.

"So, where do you live Naruto?" I turned the conversation back onto him once I was sure that he knew enough about me to feel comfortable telling me something- anything that would tell me something.

"Uh, nowhere." He finally said.

"Naruto, shouldn't you be in the orphanage if you have no where else to go?"

He squirmed uncomfortably, looking rather to cram some food down his throat. I didn't blame him for doing it either, he looked beyond tiny for his age. That wasn't healthy, and without Kurama inside of him, he would likely be dead quicker. "I don't want to press, but, if you're sleeping outside and stealing food to survive then something isn't right."

"I don't like it there."

"The orphanage?"

"Nobody likes me there! I got in some fights there and um... So, I ran away!" He explained the situation to me as he saw it. "Sometimes I get some fish n' cook them if I can catch them in the river, taste pretty good 'ttebayo! Its like camping, much cooler then any gross orphanage food."

"That seems like you're avoiding the real answer, Naruto." I sighed. "Why don't you sleep here tonight? It would certainly make me feel better knowing that you're not outside on the street. Plus, as long as your here then you don't have to worry about Suzumiya-san coming after you for taking from him again."

"...Can I have some seconds if I do?"

I couldn't help but to laugh. This boy would always have food on his mind, that was something that I could recall from years ago. At least I could trust that if I ever needed to convince him of something, that I could barter with food in the matter. "Sure, I'll go grab some."

When I awoke the next morning, I had made up my mind that I needed to get Naruto out of that orphanage- in the official regard. It wasn't like he was even living there, the way that he made it sound it seemed as though he had been on the streets for a while. If I had to assume an amount of time, I would probably beg a month or two at best. As someone who knows what it was like to be dealt a bad hand, I couldn't just let Naruto sleep where he was. He still had a year- maybe two before he would be able to get some cash for his own place, and that would come from him enter the shinobi academy.

He wasn't going to sleep in an alley until then.

I would not allow that.

"Midori-chan, why are we going back there?" Naruto asked, as we headed towards the orphanage together. I insisted he come with me there, he didn't seem to like the idea- but I promised him ramen afterwards.

"Well, I figured that they should know you're with me instead of on the streets and in the forest." I shrugged my shoulders.

He mumbled something along the lines of "They won't care." However, I knew somebody had to. He had to have some kind of Anbu guard on him at all times, you couldn't exactly leave somebody with such a high class status without eyes on him. He could get snatched up, it was always possible. I didn't know for sure though, these guys knew how to mask their presence and my slim knowledge of the shinobi arts left me at a loss with that.

"Well, I care that you're taken care of." I told him. I could feel his eyes on me. He probably couldn't figure out why I was even being so nice to him. "And don't worry, I'm gonna take care of everything right now."

...

"Would you care to explain why this child is out on the streets when he could be being cared for here?"

I approached the woman that was so familar to me.

Chinatsu made a face, she seemed to think I should know why. I knew what she thought, but I doubted she understood how pissed I was realizing just how neglected this boy was. She was a friend of my mother, actually. Chinatsu was a customer that my mom often chatted with over the last few years, so I knew her through that... yet, Chinatsu was one of the few attendants that worked for the orphanage. I never knew she was someone who would allow this to happen, she always seemed to care for children.

She leaned closer, "Midori-san, you know why.." She whispered.

"No, I don't. Why don't you explain it to me? This child is an orphan, is he not? It's your duty to take care of him until he either joins the Shinobi Academy, or gets adopted." I narrowed my eyes. "For somebody who prides herself on her love for children, you're doing a sorry job, Chinatsu-san."

Naruto hid behind me, his grip was tight on the edge of my dress. I doubted he was happy even being around children who didn't like him, and adults who were basically letting him suffer because of a misconception, a predijuce that he did not deserve. Kushina and Minato didn't perish for their son to be kicked around. When I saw him- I saw a piece if my old self, and I was not about to let him experience anything like that anymore.

"If you're going to let him beg for scraps, and get kicked around by people then you're just hurting him." I said. "So, I've decided, I'm adopting him."

"Midori-san, what would your mother think?"

Staring straight into her eyes, I repeated the statement. "I think you should ask yourself that question." Leaving that hanging in the air for a moment, I took a deep breath. This was an anger I had not felt in a while, such frustration I had not felt since... a long time. "Chinatsu-san, look at it this way, if I take him then you won't have to bother yourself with him anymore."

When I put it like that, she let me have my way. I had no regrets for this decision either.

Why am I uploading this when I should update my other story? Because I can, haha. Midori is different then my other oc, Hana, and in many ways its interesting to write a perspective that didn't chose to be a shinobi.