“Beautiful,” a deep voice surrounded her. She opened her eyes slowly and was surprised to see an orange glow around her. Three people surrounded the mat she lay on; all holding flames in their hands.

Too weak to move, “Who are you?”

“Dear child, we brought you out of the cold. We healed your body and now we hope you are warm?” the man to her left voiced.

She nodded her head and smiled weakly, “Thank you, but where am I?”

The one to her right answered this time, “You are safe, and that is all that matters.”

The one sitting at the end of her mat spoke up, “Perhaps if we made her feel more comfortable, like giving her our names?” the voice told her that the person who spoke was a female.

“Yes, I believe you are correct. I am Akio.” The one to her left spoke.

“I am Hikari.” the one to her right spoke.

“And I am Aimi.” the one at the edge of her mat added.

She smiled again, “Thank you for being so kind to me, but why?”

Akio smiled; “It is obvious you needed us, and it just so happens, we needed someone else for our team.” The girl frowned, not understanding. Akio shook his head slightly, as if brushing off the idea and asked, “what is your name, dear?”

“My name? Oh, well, my parents called me Izumi before they died-”

“Do you wish to change your name then?” Hikari asked.

The girl thought for a moment, then shook her head slowly, “No sir.” They all laughed suddenly.

“What is it? What did I do?” she asked.

“Nothing, Izumi. It’s just,” Aimi stood and walked away then suddenly light filled the room, “Hikari and I are the same age as you, if you are indeed thirteen.”

Izumi could finally sit up and she did. She smiled; she could finally see what they looked like. Akio, who was on her left, had a Ninja headband on his forehead. Dark, almost black, hair covered the sides of the headband but did not touch his shoulders. His clothing; so many things on it she could not count it all, but his black pants and grey top were the basics of his attire. Many bags hung from his belt, and he wore a dark blue mask that hid his nose and mouth. His eyes were a mesmerizing blue and his white skin showed that he did not go out in the sun much.

She looked to the girl, Aimi, who was standing by the light switch on the wall. Her long red hair fell down to about mid-back and she too had pearl white skin. She had startling red lips and grey eyes that seemed to see every detail around her. She too had a Ninja headband that matched Akio’s, but she wore it on her right arm, just below the shoulder. She had on a knee-length grey skirt and a dark green halter top. She had glove-like things on her lower arms that stopped at her wrists which were grey as well.

Finally she turned to Hikari, the boy sitting to her right. His light brown hair and soft, tan skin made him appear different from the other two, but he wore the same Ninja headband on his forehead. His hair was short, but just long enough to cover parts of the headband. His grey shirt and dark grey pants were, again, the basics of his attire. He too had plenty of small bags on his belt. In addition, he had a black tattoo on the side of his neck, almost like three balls spinning.

“Why do you need me?” Izumi was finally able to speak up. Akio sighed and nodded to Hikari, who stood to leave the room.

“Izumi, I have been training these two for quite some time, and I want them to be in a squad, however, we don’t have a third person.”

“You mean, I would become a Ninja?”

“If you want to, yes. I know this may be a bit of a shock-”

“I thought someone had to go to a Ninja school to be a Ninja. My parents were poor, we couldn’t do things like that-”

“Now just calm down.” Akio quickly interrupted and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Most Ninja do go to an academy to become Ninjas, but you can train and become a Ninja without going to school.”

“I-I don’t know what to say-” Izumi said quickly and looked down.

“It’s alright. We will give you three days to think about it.”

“What happens if I don’t want to?” Izumi asked after looking up at the now retreating form of Akio.

He looked over his shoulder with a chuckle, “It’s not like we’ll kill you if you don’t join us. It’s just if you want to. If you don’t, I’ll bring you to the nearest village and help you get a job and a home. If you decide to become a Ninja, then you can come with us to start training.”

Izumi smiled as Akio and Aimi left the room to allow her some time alone. She looked to her right to find food sitting next to her. She didn’t want to be rude, but the growling of her stomach made her eat until she was full. She pushed the plate of food away and snuggled back under the covers that had been wrapped around her. She felt the warmth of the bed and smiled. A single tear fell down her cheek as she gently closed her eyes and was finally able to sleep in a bed for the first time in her life