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A high pitched cry breaks out in the middle of the night, abruptly ending the calm and quiet of those asleep. The shuffling of feet are instant in its response.Magick- now most commonly known as magic- took form in the way that flowers bloomed, in the way that fire ignites, and in the way that life is born. The very fabric of reality itself proves the existence of magic, each living being inherently containing a bit of that magic in themselves. Of course, for some, they contain more magic than others."Sakura-chan won't stop crying, dear. Maybe we should take her to the hospital?"Souls are like vehicles for magic. Wherever the soul goes, the magic of that being follows. It goes to say that a horribly powerful witch, brimming with magic, will undoubtably be reborn into their next life with the same potential of greatness. However, when it comes to this particular witch, it seemed that her blood was too strong. Her soul was already irrevocably attached to that overflowing power that when she had been reborn, the essence of her being was never truly wiped as it usually does with these things. Instead, her memories, her thoughts, and
magick
clung to the soul and as the soul entered a new host, those same things followed suit."You're right, honey, we can't just leave her like this."The fall from greatness is, of course, jarring. The Witch had awoken with no control over basic movement and the fear of being overcome by a great evil (once again) caused her to shed tears. Never mind the fact that she hadn't cried in decades, it just felt
right
at the time to voice her distraught emotions. So as large arms envelop her, and soon after a bright, clinical light is shone onto her, the Witch soon realizes that not all is well."Little Sakura-chan seems to be fine, Haruno-san. I know it's your first child, but don't get too worked up every time she starts crying. Trust me, you'll get used to it."Not all is well, indeed....Death and birth- or in her case,
rebirth- are concepts that are well enough in itself. The Buddhists got it right that the circle of Samsara keeps human beings on an eternal loop, but The Witch is fairly certain that she should have no memories or sense of self in her new body. Her current situation felt too much like the times where she transfigured into a black cat or crow; her body didn't feel right, too many places itched, and her perspective was throwing her way off. The witch wondered if this was all some cruel spell thrown onto her by her enemies before remembering that her enemies were the last things she's seen before her untimely death.(And she knows she has died because her neck is particularly itchy and achey. Her body feels too hot, as if set ablaze. Her lungs feel full with something other than air.)Huffing and deciding that thinking too much on the matter won't do her any good if she can't actively search for answers, The Witch resolves to see her magic stores and if she can still manipulate the fabric of spacetime. When the space above where she lays starts warping and folding into itself, she lets out a happy giggle in relief.The sound alerts one of the giants, her new mother, and all too quickly The Witch disperses the magic and smooths out the wrinkle of reality."Aww, what'cha laughing at, Sakura-chan? Your mobile is cute, ain't it?" Her new mother coos and as if accentuating her question, the older woman spins the mobile around.And if the witch lets out another amused giggle at the way the light catches the reflective curves of the shiny spheres, she doesn't try to hide it....Sakura, her new name and aptly fit, is two and a half when she decides to speak. That's not to say that she didn't communicate at all, this is just the first time she's put out an entire coherent sentence."Mother-, I like t'go ous-side." The voice is high pitched and slightly slurred, fine motor control not yet mastered.Mebuki stills and stares at her daughter, amazed at the sudden eloquence of her first words. Sakura almost repeats her request again if not for the sudden arms embracing her into a tight hug."Yay! My daughter's first word is mother and not father! Wait till Kizashi hears this!" And though her mother seemed to only focus in on the first part of her sentence, Sakura is thankful that she is still taken outside."Come back home before dawn, okay, Sakura-chan?" Her mother leans down towards her and gives her a bright smile before heading back into their home, undoubtably going to look for her father.Now most would consider Mebuki's off-hand approach to parenting reckless, such as leaving her child to do as she wishes, but the witch can gather that the world she has been reborn into is vastly different from the other one. The faint silhouettes of people jumping to-and-from the rooftops clearly say so.The Witch wanders around at the beginning of her first outside adventure, overcome with the new knowledge of not only a new life, but a new world as well. Her (also new) home is rural and not-rural in a sense, there were bookstores and then there were wheelbarrows with hay, but the most prominent observation she has is that magic still runs in this world. It runs deeply.The very trees of a nearby park hum in magic, human-like and warm in its presence. The people with metal decorating their headbands were especially curious; some buzzed with the potential of stronger magic, others blared the strength of their souls. She briefly wonders if anyone else could pick up her own sound but the thought quickly passes as The Witch has manipulated her magic for so long that she's confident in her ability to suppress her own power.She roams the streets a while longer. Some strangers kindly smile at her while others simply walk away in disinterest, many other young children are found littering the streets and The Witch- Sakura now, Sakura- safely presumes that a two and a half year old out alone by herself isn't a strange sight to see in this place.Having seen enough of the residential roads, Sakura opts to look for a forest. Thankfully, it seemed her whole hometown is surrounded by trees.Placing oneself around flora was a surefire way to tap into one's magic stores. Plants were nurturing in their being so magic is naturally drawn up and out much easier than doing so on your own. Sakura lets a small trickle of her magic leak out and though it is minuscule compared to her true amount, it is enough to spread out her senses and see the whole town- or, now that she's seen it- the whole village.She feels the lulling motion of the trees, the steady buzz of what appears to be a school, and the swiftness of the figures that leap around. All in all, the village seemed alive with magic and the chance of finally being accepted into a world where her skills won't be demonized fills The Witch with the beginnings of hope.But then
fear
came.The shock that overcomes her as she comes across magic so deeply ingrained with hatred and fury is enough to knock her onto her back. As her magic recedes back into her she feels tainted, her skin feels oily and her soul seemed to glow an angry red having absorbed some of that ancient hatred into itself.No, this was not a place that freely accepted magic users. Just as there had been demons in her old world, this one, too, seemed to be ripe with it.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A quick cleansing spell takes 3 grams of ground sea salt, root of turnip (ripe), a charcoal infused candle, and a simple flame. It takes all this and a bright new moon to cleanse one's soul of a curse or any other strong filth. All of this, that is, if you are a beginner. The Witch is so far above being even mediocre at her craft that it's laughable. No, the now pink haired girl simply lifts a tightly clenched fist above her heart to dispel the tainted fury that has started to spread onto the rest of her soul at an alarming rate.However, she continues to hyperventilate, panicking from the onslaught of her senses when that polluted
magick
had assaulted her. As she gathers herself to slowly stand, her eyes shake, nearly all of her body in some kind of pain; it was this sensitivity to magic that made her so finely in-tuned with the natural world around her, but it was also her greatest weakness that had eventually led to her ultimate demise."Damn." She mutters, barely able to say the word not only because of her motor control failing her but also of the pain inflicted onto her.She slips her hand under her shirt and puts it over her heart as she focuses on the fabric of her existence. Each tissue, cell, molecule, and atom that makes her who she is slowly, slowly vibrating in tune with each other at her command, and soon enough her fingers sink into her chest, her skin pulling aside easily though there is no blood because The Witch did not hurt herself, she simply allowed access to her inner body through magic.Her fingers twitch before finding its target and slowly wrapping her hand around it; her heart pumps quickly and it feels as jittery as her nerves. The slick feeling of the pumping muscle has long since lost its novelty since she had first tried reaching into herself, instead she focuses on calming it down as if heart was a separate entity to her, like a pet.(And in many ways various parts of her body being sentient would hardly surprise The Witch after the numerous spells and wards she's placed in and around herself.)Slowly, the harsh thumping lulls into a steady beat and The Witch no longer feels as if her heart would burn itself out at the jackrabbit pace it had been going before. She releases the muscle and pulls out her hand, flicking the dampness off with a swipe against her leg, before heading off to find the source of that intense
magick.~Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.~By the time she had gotten close enough to her mark, The Witch was deftly out of breath and the sun was inching closer to the many-faced horizon. Her legs in this current body are like fresh sprouts: barely able to support its own weight and wobbling at every little breeze that is put upon it. Were it not for the Loud Sounds so nearby— a few even lounging in a nearby seedy-looking bar— The Witch would have eagerly called upon a familiar or broom to aide her in easy traveling, but her intuition tells her that though this world seems more accepting of magick,
a toddler suddenly showcasing prowess in it would hardly be passed off as an everyday occurrence.Though given the way her ankles are sorely starting to ache, she reconsiders the thought just once more.Thankfully enough, Red Fury is also heading towards her direction, and rather quickly at that. Careful not to lose her mark, she picks up her pace by summoning what is left of her strength to catch the source of the growing magick.As she runs forward, The Witch notices that she's in the shadier parts of town with boarded up windows and dirtier streets, not to mention other people whose souls seem to be laden with black slick. Shaking her head, she pushes on until she sees a bright head of yellow belonging to a boy around her age."You! Stop!" The Witch yells out but strangely enough the other child flinches and starts running away from her."I say- Stop!" She repeats again to no avail. They continue the chase, Red Fury taking turns that seemed to appear out of nowhere as the alleys start thinning out until there is only enough room for a child such as herself to fit through. Her already weakened legs start to give out which makes an irritable frown mar her features as she watches the blonde take yet another turn.Having enough of this game of cat-and-mouse, The Witch makes up her mind to screw the consequences and use her magick, any onlookers be damned. Stopping to halt, she focuses and reaches out a hand towards the direction where the boy ran off to. As discreetly as possible, she pushes a little of her magick out from her fingertips and sends it out.~Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.~Naruto grips the edge of a wall and ducks to hide behind it, the lack of the other girl yelling at him assuring him that he was safe and sound. He lets out a few heavy breaths, grateful that she had been easy enough to lose.He had gone out to scavenge some kind of food for dinner but unfortunately it seemed that fate had other plans for him. Why couldn't people just leave him alone? What did he do wrong this time?Clenching his fists he hung his head to hide the tears that leaked down his face; he was crying not because he was angry— though that is part of the reason, admittedly— but because he could not understand why even children his age had to pick on him. Naruto was slowly being able to accept that he would live his life without family so wouldn't he be allowed at least friends? But after constantly being bullied and harassed by other children, he's starting to think perhaps the children are even worse than the adults.Too preoccupied with wiping away the streak of tears, Naruto fails to notice the sudden small root that grows next to his foot that is growing and wrapping around his ankle at a speed only allowed through magick. After it grows big enough to secure itself around the boy does he notice the tightness on his leg and looks down before promptly shrieking, "AAAAA!"~Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.~The Witch follows the sound of the high pitched shriek to an abandoned alleyway. She wonders if the lack of response to such a loud noise was due to the unscrupulous nature of their surroundings or the nature of the boy in front of her.Taking a closer look, the other child could not be much older or younger than her, definitely worse off if the shabby clothes were to prove anything, and currently bawling his eyes out as he tries to tug his leg away from the large vine-like root coiled around his calf. Releasing a small sigh, definitely not from exhaustion, she says, "Calm dow-, only hol- you in place."The boy snaps his head up at the arrival of the girl, then realizing he needed her aide, "Help me! Is hitting me!""No, it does'int." She replies with a deadpan, knowing full well that any pain from such a small root would come from the person trying to extricate themselves from it."Relax, okay? Don' run or again." She warned, wagging a finger at the teary-eyed boy who vigorously nods his head in acceptance.Seeing his compliance, the pink haired girl lets out a small smile and puts a hand at her waist, nodding as the root unwinds and sinks back into the earth and frees the shocked looking boy.
Did that girl just do a justu?!, Naruto thought to himself. Excited at meeting someone who could already be a ninja, he goes up to her with admiration dotting his eyes."Did'ja do that? How? You a ninja?" The boy starts to question as his eyes light up at the sight of her manipulating magick.
Ninja, the word echoes in the girl's mind with familiarity. Now where had she heard of that before?"Imma be a ninja too!" The boy exclaims, ignoring the other's contemplative look, "Uzumaki Naruto, next Hokage, belie- it!""Uju-, maki?" She tests out, slightly embarrassed at her still very slurred words."Yah! Was ya name?" As if the other boy couldn't get anymore energetic, he comes up close to her face and waits for her answer.Blinking once and hesitating, she finally says, "Haruno Sakura."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Listening to Red Fury talk on and on about anything and everything enlightened The Witch to many things. One, they live in Konohagakure, a ninja village headed by the Third Hokage. Two, these
ninjawere capable of feats only told in the ancient Wicca manuals of her old life―not to mention that the Loud Sounds belonged to this group of magic users. Last and entirely not least, magic was not called magic instead it was
chakra.Or at the very least that is what the rosette inferred from the way the boy talked about using chakra to do 'jutsu' (in her case, spells).That first week of her meeting with him―Naruto, whose name suited better for his cheery countenance than Red Fury―consisted of meeting back up in the same alley from earlier.Sure, there was the danger of the overall area towards young girls like the body she inhabited right now, but The Witch would sooner die again than allow some brat a hundred years too young to cause
herany harm. Just to avoid any more trouble however, she usually cloaked herself with magic disguising her presence.Her daily outings surprisingly didn't bother her 'mother'. Mebuki continued smiling that clueless smile and Sakura continued seeking out the blonde boy.Although the boy himself was more like a baboon at times, there was a lingering presence within him that itched at The Witch's senses. A barely there wisp that appears in her peripherals only to disappear as she tries to examine further.It was strange. As much as she was curious, another part of her felt intentionally turned away, as if there was another force at hand directing her focus away from the boy. Almost like some kind of ward.The conundrum was enough for the rosette to force her hand and flex her magical prowess. A passing feeling of guilt towards using the boy as a means to an end courses through her but she's been through this before and it was not going to stop her now.
※
Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.
※
"I'mma try som'thin―" Sakura says as she meets the boy in their usual spot. The clouds are overcast leaving the already dreary area of this district even gloomier.Despite all that the smile on the boy's face could not radiate any brighter. He had a friend now afterall, "Sure!"Stopping just short of rolling her eyes at the blonde's optimism, Sakura then reaches over to put her palm on his head. Ineffable energy wells up at her fingertips as she touches skin and then there was
nothing.
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Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.
※
By the time she opens her eyes she finds herself nearly knee-deep in a dank sewer of some kind. There are large bars across from her but she overlooks them in favor of the looming figure those bars have jailed.The rosette makes out the shape of pointed ears on its hulking body before her ears pick up the rumbling coming from the creature."You dare come to me in some poorly-made disguise? Show yourself at once, you quivering worm!" Comes a booming voice, deep and laced with fury. As the creature steps forward and into the dim light, The Witch realizes that this
thing
was the true Red Fury all along."Wha―?" She replies, confused by the accusation. Her usual remarks were cut short by the titan fox whose features were blackened and gnarled with hatred."Playing dumb, are we? Come a little closer and I will personally tear the skin you call your disguise off myself." Red Fury sneered.Blinking away her shock―which The Witch belatedly noticed it's been a while since she's felt something as strongly as this―she looks down on herself. True to the fox's word, her skin seemed to rend and wobble above her bones as if flummoxed by the skeleton it's wearing.With a bit of focus she manages to slough off the false skin and as she does, the body that appears beneath it becomes more and more visible... and familiar."What is this place, Beast, to force me into my old form?" She finally speaks up, her voice exactly as she remembered it; not the high-pitched slurs of a little girl but the deep and sturdy tone of a witch.The Beast barks out a mocking laugh, "You are in this
Beast's
prison, worm.""A jailed demon within a child? For why are you confined in the first place and who was moronic enough to make a mere child's body your prison?" The Witch clenches her fists, misplaced anger towards the dangerous containment more so than the morality of it all.She's heard tales of overconfident warlocks placing demons within their familiars only to find the container nowhere near strong enough to hold its prisoner. The result always led to the familiar bursting in blood and gore as the demon makes its escape―and usually killing the warlock too and everyone around it.The Witch is certain that a mere child would receive a fate no better."Each one of you disgusting wretches truly believe yourselves entitled to answers of such questions." A loud
harrumph
comes from the fox letting heavy steam spill out from its flaring nostrils.Having dealt with temperamental beings like this one before, The Witch deigns a sarcastic reply, "If you would allow it, may I at least know what you are called?"One giant, slitted eye colored as red as blood turns to glimpse at her. The Witch does not falter in her own gaze as she looks upon the Beast with stubbornness.Finally, a single name comes from the retreating fox, leaving the The Witch alone standing ankle-deep within a monster's prison, "Kurama."
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Wherever there is trouble, a witch is sure to be found.
※
"―kura! Sakura!"The rosette feels her body be shaken by tiny hands as consciousness returns to her. Her eyes stay glazed over for a second longer before snapping up to look at the yelling boy."Stop." She finally says and grabs his hands with her own equally tiny hands―(just seconds ago her hands were exactly as they were before, perfectly marred with scars and marks and large enough to carry her legendary staff)―to stop the concerned boy's shaking."Sakura! Wha' happen?" Naruto's eyes looked teary and his tanned cheeks were puffed up in worry."Nuthin'. Jus' thought I see sum'thin'," She lets go of his hands and looks seriously into the other boy's eyes, "How lon' did I go?""Umm...three sec'nds!" The blonde says with determination, excited from being able to help his friend in any way.Sakura looks down in thought. Naruto was too young to actually measure time accurately but if it was a short time for him perhaps she really did spend only seconds within that prison; minutes within but only moments outside. No matter the length, she really was in a prison that was apparently kept within a child to house a demon, Kurama.Instead of finding answers in her little venture, Sakura is bombarded with even more questions.At least now she understood why her magic was turned away before: On the bars of the demon Kurama's jail cell there stuck a paper sheet with a ward written on it. The word on the sheet didn't matter so much as the magic imbued within it.For magic relied heavily on intent and proxy.The intent of the ward was to prevent anything from coming out and anything from
coming in―and while The Witch could applaud the maker of the ward for successfully keeping her away for the short amount of time that it did, there really wasn't much of anything that could stop her clutches from reaching.(Except for death of course, and even then she's had some dabbling in necromancy and the likes if you included her sudden rebirth into this world.)The proxy used in the ward was the material of the sheet, the ink, and the word inscribed itself. Separately they did nothing but with the right magic, and
intent, these mere physical objects can become conductors for vast and powerful wards and spells.All this The Witch knew but yet she remains unsatisfied with the lack of answers for her previous questions.Kurama was the kind of beast that the
Dark Spirits
and its ilk were like. Menacingly large with hatred and fury rolling of its hide in waves with no kind word to say towards humans, magic-inclined or not. However, The Witch has experience with these beasts. She'd had one as a familiar after all.That reminds her, she should pay a visit to her grouchy familiar again when she has the chance.Pulled back to her earlier questioning, the rosette again wonders the value in using a mere child as a container for a demon. She would agree that yes, while flesh and bone would hold more solidly than an inanimate object, there runs the risk of foreign magic intermingling with the host and disrupting whatever ward or seal was put in place.This haphazard sealing could only have been done in desperation, The Witch finalizes on. But what situation called for that desperation, and why keep the presence of the beast unknown to its own host? Yet another thing to remark on: Naruto did not seem to know of Kurama or even acknowledge another being within him. Was it to protect the blonde boy himself? To protect the others?She only hopes there aren't any more like this; as old and weary as she is, seeing an innocent suffer by circumstances they cannot control never truly sat right with The Witch.Looking upon the boy in his tattered clothing she notes the faint outlines of some bruising and welts, surely delivered by the mundanes who looked down on him unfavorably for some reason. But despite his pitiful situation, the blonde still manages to smile upon her and look forward to their time together.The feeling that comes forth when The Witch tries to recall the last time she's met with someone like him is almost enough for her to truly remember the bits in her memories she has locked away; her own wards still placed in her mind prevented her access to a few memories she felt were better tucked away in the corners of her mind.And it is with this brief moment of
humanity
that the rosette speaks to the boy again, in a voice made more soft by her body's age, "I take away dem'n, 'Ruto."