---
The words from Grand Pabbie still echoed painfully in Kristoff's mind as he lifted Anna onto Sven's back.
"Only an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart."
The two Naruto clones moved quickly, helping strap Anna safely into the saddle. She was barely conscious now — her skin frighteningly pale, ice threading through her braid like veins of frost.
"You hang in there," one clone murmured, adjusting her cloak gently.
Kristoff tightened his grip on the reins.
"We have to get her back to Arendelle," he said, voice low but firm. "Hans… he'll know what to do."
The clones nodded, exchanging a glance. Time was slipping through their fingers like melting snow.
"Let's move!" Kristoff barked.
Olaf scrambled up to sit behind Anna, his twig arms carefully wrapped around her to help keep her upright.
The group set off at a gallop across the frozen landscape, snow and wind battering them from all sides.
---
The storm thickened, swallowing the path ahead in swirling white. Sven charged forward with fierce determination, hooves pounding the ice. Kristoff ran alongside whenever he could, glancing up at Anna with every step.
She sagged against the reindeer's neck, her breaths shallow and thin.
The Naruto clones moved smoothly through the storm — one scouting ahead, the other running beside Anna, eyes fixed on her with quiet focus.
At one point, Anna slipped sideways, nearly falling.
A clone was there instantly, steadying her with a firm arm.
"You're not giving up," he said softly, more to himself than to her.
Kristoff's jaw tightened. His breath came sharp. He couldn't lose her.
He wouldn't.
---
As they raced downhill, Kristoff felt something stir in his chest — heavy, unfamiliar, and terrifying. It wasn't just fear for Anna's life. It was more than that.
Somehow, without even realizing it… She had become his person.
One of the clones ran beside him, watching him out of the corner of his eye.
"You really care about her, huh?" the clone said with a faint, knowing smile.
Kristoff flushed under his scarf, eyes narrowing — but he didn't answer.
He didn't have to.
The answer was written across his face, as plain as snow.
Behind them, Olaf babbled cheerfully from atop Sven:
"Don't worry! True love will save the day! And then maybe we'll have a big summer party!"
Kristoff didn't respond. His heart pounded too loud to hear anything else.
They were almost there. They had to be.
---
The white walls of Arendelle rose through the storm, blurry at first, then taking shape as the blizzard eased slightly.
Kristoff let out a ragged breath.
"Hold on, Anna," he whispered, urging Sven faster.
The castle gates loomed ahead — tall, strong, and half-buried in snow. Bundled soldiers manned the walls, barely visible through the white haze.
Kristoff waved wildly, shouting as loud as he could:
"Open the gates! She needs help! Open up!"
For a moment, the guards hesitated — then saw her. A princess, slumped in the saddle, pale as frost.
"Open the gates!" one barked.
The doors groaned open.
The Naruto clones slowed, fading to the edges of the storm. They hovered nearby but kept to the background, watchful — quiet. Their job wasn't to interfere. Not now.
Kristoff slid from Sven and gathered Anna into his arms. He ran into the courtyard, shouting for help.
Footsteps echoed on stone. Castle staff rushed out. And then — Hans.
He emerged from the palace in a flurry of urgency, flanked by worried servants.
"Anna!" he cried, reaching them.
Kristoff hesitated — his arms tightening protectively around her.
Don't let go.
But he had to.
He had to trust this was what she needed.
He let Hans take her.
"Get her inside!" Hans ordered. "Quickly!"
The Naruto clones exchanged a glance from their hidden vantage point. One lingered just a moment longer, eyes narrowing faintly as he watched Hans disappear into the castle with Anna in his arms. Something about the guy felt… off. But this wasn't his moment to act. Not yet.
Kristoff stood frozen for a heartbeat in the courtyard — drenched in snow, breath steaming in the cold.
Then he turned.
He walked away — each step heavier than the last.
Olaf hurried after him, catching up just outside the gates.
"Where are you going?" the snowman asked softly, eyes wide with concern.
Kristoff swallowed hard.
"I have to," he said simply.
And then he was gone, disappearing into the storm beyond the walls of Arendelle.
---