The ballroom shimmered like a dream golden lights reflecting off polished marble, laughter weaving through the towering crystal chandeliers. Dignitaries, nobles, and emissaries from distant lands mingled in fine attire, raising glittering glasses in honor of the upcoming coronation of their new queen.
Among them, one figure didn't quite belong.
Naruto Uzumaki, cloaked beneath the illusion of noble dress through his Transformation Jutsu, stood at the edge of the crowd, eyes flickering between the tables laden with pastries and the towering ice sculptures. His instincts buzzed—not with danger, but with nerves and wonder.
He had never seen anything like this: a grand ball, a glittering castle, a real queen.
He didn't even recognize half the food.
But none of it held his attention like the woman standing atop the grand staircase.
Elsa.
She moved with practiced grace, but tension stiffened her shoulders. She smiled for the crowd, yet her eyes roamed restlessly, never settling, as if searching for an escape no one else could see. She wore her smile like armor, but her gaze betrayed the truth: she was holding herself together by sheer will.
Naruto watched her, remembering their earlier encounter—the fear, the blast of ice, the distance she had thrown between them.
He didn't blame her.
He just wanted to understand her.
And maybe... he wanted to tell her she wasn't as alone as she believed.
---
[Branch Task Unlocked: Protect Elsa]
Time Limit: 3 Days
Difficulty: A
A pulse of energy thudded through Naruto's mind the moment the tasks appeared, colder than the winter wind curling through the hall.
Protect Elsa.
From what?
Naruto's gut twisted with unease. He scanned the glittering ballroom—the laughing nobles, the smiling emissaries, the music swirling like a spell—and yet beneath it all, something was wrong.
Something was coming.
He didn't know what.
He only knew this:
Elsa was in danger.
And he was running out of time.
---
The music shifted, a lilting waltz blooming through the hall. As Elsa descended into the crowd, her younger sister, Anna, hurried over to meet her. Their conversation started in low, urgent tones—Anna's bright gestures clashing against Elsa's retreating posture.
Naruto edged closer, slipping silently through the throng. The buzz of voices, the clink of glass, the shuffling of fine shoes on marble—it all faded as he focused in.
A word raised in plea. A word snapped in refusal.
Panic sparked.
Elsa stumbled back, hands lifting in desperate defense.
And then—ice.
A sudden blast of cold exploded from her palms, jagged spikes racing across the floor. The polished marble cracked, groaning under a rapidly growing sheet of frost. Guests screamed, stumbling back as the chandeliers above dimmed, their light swallowed by a howling gust of unnatural wind.
The warmth vanished in an instant.
Gasps tore through the freezing silence.
"She's a sorceress!"
"She's dangerous!"
"The Queen is cursed!"
Naruto's breath caught in his throat.
He tightened his hands into fists, the glamour of his Transformation Jutsu faltering. Fear clawed at him—memories flashing of cold glares, hateful whispers, isolation. He saw it now reflected in their faces... and in Elsa's.
Without thinking, he stepped forward, letting the Transformation Jutsu fall away completely.
"Elsa!" he shouted, his voice cutting like a kunai through the storm of fear.
She turned, startled—and for a heartbeat, their eyes met across the shattered ballroom.
Recognition. Pain. Terror.
A single tear, bright and sharp as glass, slid down Elsa's cheek and froze midair.
"Don't come near me!" she cried, backing away, frost spiraling from her trembling hands.
Naruto saw the moment her last shred of composure shattered. She turned and fled skating across the ice-slick floor, through the broken gates, and into the snow-choked night.
Naruto surged forward to follow—but a wall of jagged ice burst up between them, cutting him off. Guards shouted, some frozen in stunned horror, others scrambling to draw weapons.
"Stand down!" one barked, but panic had already seeded itself deep.
Naruto gritted his teeth.
She wasn't a monster. She was scared. Alone.
Just like he had been.
And back then... no one had come for him.
But he wasn't going to let history repeat itself.
Not for her.
Naruto darted through the chaos, slipping between guests and guards alike. The cold bit at his skin, the ice threatening to trip him, but he pressed on without hesitation.
He plunged into the storm, chasing after Elsa's fading figure into the swirling snow.
Somewhere beyond the walls, beyond the fear, beyond the frost-choked gates—she was running. And Naruto vowed silently, with every beat of his stubborn heart:
I'm coming.
No matter how far you run… I'll find you.
---