Title: Moon rises slowly

Rating: T

Main characters: Gekkou Hayate, Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Izuna (my OC), Uzumaki Kushina

Pairings: undecided for main characters, Kushina/Minato, most canon ones at the time.

Summary: The Third Great Shinobi War. A difficult time to grow up, indeed. With the graduation age lowered, things get worse when you have two Uchihas on your team. Not to mention that one of them is a happy-go-lucky child prodigy and the second hasn't even awakened his Sharingan. Hayate was sure his teammates would be the death of him. And then Sensei showed up.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters, they belong to their respective owners. I do not make any profit of this fanwork. I do, however, own the plotline and all the OC.

A/N. That idea came to my mind just a few days ago and I've decided to give it a shot. I've tried to check all the facts carefully and I'm pretty sure that ages, canon events and the timeline is quite accurate. The story starts about 4 years before the Kyuubi attack. I hope you'll enjoy it and good luck to us all!

Chapter One. Sons leave for battle.

Hayate

The sun has definitely chosen that particular day to shed its brightest rays to the pitiful earth. With the birds chirping, the small forest animals rustling in the grass near the road and the unusually warm breeze from the north-west it was easy to forget about the war. Hayate wished he could join these animals in their peaceful lives, so that the wind from the north-west won't remind him of the land it came from. There, seemingly far away but not so for a well-trained shinobi, lay Tsuchi no Kuni and within it Iwagakure no Sato. The wind blowing from there certainly couldn't bring good news, since two months before that a war unleashed between Iwa and Konoha. Hayate reminded himself that he, indeed, was on a mission and it wasn't the perfect time for futile thoughts about the world's politics, especially when one was on his first ever C-rank with his team.

Hayate snapped out of his thoughts and checked the surroundings. Everything seemed fine and they weren't that far away from the village yet, so he didn't have to be at full awareness. The boy regarded each member of his team and sighed, wondering once again what gods he had pissed off in his past life to find himself in such a messy situation. Shisui was walking a bit ahead of the group, his arms raised behind his head nonchalantly, obviously not having a single concern in the world. For Kami's sake, he was whistling! The guy wasn't worried in the slightest about their first C-rank, or so it seemed. Hayate had to give it to the younger boy: for being a seven-year-old prodigy from none other but the Uchiha clan he certainly had a nice attitude, hell, he was the first Uchiha without the usual "I'm a stuck-up bastard who is better than you" behavior Hayate had ever met. It didn't actually excuse his carelessness but that was better than the waves of nervousness and depression radiating from his second teammate. Hayate turned his head a bit to look at his peer who was slightly behind. Uchiha Izuna was nine as Hayate himself, but he already was the tallest of them, the fact that pissed Hayate off quite a bit. What was that with the Uchihas and their early growth spurts? Despite that unsettling circumstance, however, Izuna also wasn't as arrogant as your regular member of that clan. He instead was the most nervous and diffident Uchiha of all Hayate knew. He cursed his luck again: why it was him forced to deal with the unusual guys all the time?

He considered himself the most mentally stable and average of the whole group, the thought both pleasant and a bit sad. Hayate wasn't supposed to be average if he ever wanted to gain his brother's approval…that was the dangerous territory, so he quickly turned his attention to the last member of their small circus on the road: his sensei. Uzumaki Kushina was strange. But, come to think about it, which high-ranked shinobi wasn't? First off, she was young to be given a team of Genin. Usually, Jounin at 19 were off assassinating people for the ANBU corps, but with a war at their hands the Council has decided to let some of the less experienced members to devote their time to building more soldiers for the village. Meaning fresh-from-the-Academy Genin with no field experience, with the graduation age reduced to 9. Hayate knew that some of the guys he graduated with a month ago were dead already, stumbling over an unexpected group of Iwa nins in the presumably safe area. He wasn't sure what to think about it, since it was war, but late evenings left him wondering if he was going to share their fate on his first serious mission. Which was now. The boy returned to his musings about sensei while checking on his surroundings again. She was…not exactly girlish. While the same could be said about many kunoichi, they at least behaved like they were female beings. Kushina-sensei, on the other hand, was rarely seen in tidy clothes with her hair combed properly and her favorite activities included training, pulling pranks on everybody in her sight, beating the crap out of somebody and booze. Not your usual description of a girl, yeah. Gekkou clan females were always so polite and calm that Hayate was at first shocked by his sensei's antics, though after a month with her he thought he liked it better. After all, girls could be such pains in the ass. Some might be surprised by Hayate's peculiar vocabulary, but hell, it was war and not a place for etiquettes and wasting time on useless pretty words. He tried, of course, not to curse much around Shisui: the guy was strong and a prodigy, but too young for that, if anyone asked for Hayate's opinion.

The mission was not too difficult: deliver the huge weapons supply sealed away in storage scrolls hanging all over the shinobi and a new set of instructions to the outpost in Kusa territory. Team Kushina left early in the morning and they were now coming near the border from which it would take them about an hour to reach their destination. Kusa was dangerous, having become a battlefield for the two Great Shinobi Nations, it was devastated and full of traps as well as wandering enemy squads. Kushina suddenly raised an arm and Hayate was pulled back to reality at the rough stop.

'We are near the border. Be at full alert, I'm not having you dead because of carelessness on our first mission. Formation B.'

Her voice was far from the usual mischievous one, sounding rough and commanding.

They obeyed quickly, the formations drilled into their heads during the training month: Shisui, their close-combat one, in the front with Hayate, the kenjutsu user, closely behind; Izuna in the middle and sensei watching their backs. Moving with as much stealth as they could master, the team started on their race. They didn't have a scout on the team therefore infiltrating the enemy territory became considerably more difficult: everyone had to watch their chosen direction carefully. Shisui suddenly stopped and Hayate flinched warily, did he notice anything? Shisui made a few gestures with his left hand, ANBU silent communication code which Kushina had insisted they learn.

'Possible threat. 2 o'clock. Three.'

Hayate studied the given area intensely trying to find the danger but sensei motioned for them to keep moving.

'Just animals. Keep on.'

Shisui nodded and jumped to the next branch. They were high in the trees, the environment working to their advantage, though that was going to end soon, according to the map. Kusa was more fields and plains than forests, not the most comfortable ground for both Konoha and Iwa nins. The edge of the tree-covered area was already in sight so they descended to the ground. Ahead lay a grass field, drowned in sunlight, leaving them with a kilometer-long unprotected sector. The group came to a stop under the last tree and Kushina motioned for them to lower themselves to the ground. Halfway through the field Hayate decided that he hated crawling, especially with all the scrolls and his sword on his back. Despite that, it seemed they were doing a good job of hiding as the team managed to reach the next island of forest without any disturbance. The outpost was approximately 10 minutes further to the north and they became twice as careful. Hayate ran and was feeling oddly uncomfortable though he couldn't quite get what was unsettling him. Suddenly it clicked and he stopped at once. Shisui glanced at him seriously and Hayate hurried to prove his point.

'Too quiet. No birds, no animals. Something's wrong.'

Kushina nodded and closed her eyes, then answered

'I feel 4 chakra signatures near the outpost. Should be 5. Need to check. Possibly enemy. Formation C.'

Hayate shivered inwardly: what seemed to be a simple mission was turning out worse than he thought. There were possible invaders at the outpost and though their numbers were equal, it didn't mean anything in terms of power. He took his place in the new order: formation C was meant for infiltration and combat. Sensei was first with Shisui and Hayate at her sides while Izuna followed behind. They hid in the trees when the outpost came to view. There was no one at the guard position though they should have been noticed already. Silence crept over the place and Hayate was desperately trying not to breath to loudly. Where were the guys sensei had felt? They were surely enemy nins and he suddenly felt vulnerable and unprepared. Maybe he was going to die here.

Suddenly Hayate was sent flying forward with a powerful kick on his back. He somehow managed to turn in the air and landed on a branch near Shisui. He looked up and had to dodge a wave of kunai flying straight at him. The genin flipped backwards and tried to estimate the situation. He could see two nins in zipper-less flak jackets and one-sleeved black undershirts in front and above him, another one who was trying to pin Izuna to the tree with shuriken and a taller guy with a kunai attacking Kushina-sensei. One look at their hitai-ates told him everything: they had 3 Chuunin and a Jounin from Iwa attacking them and there was no way in hell they were inexperienced or hesitant to kill. Hayate's only thought was 'Shit.'

Shisui

Shisui was shocked. He never had problems with admitting unpleasant truths to himself, so that much was obvious. They were being attacked, for real. He knew they called him a prodigy, but he never had been in a real battle before. Sure, intense training with the best teachers the Uchiha clan had to offer wasn't just your everyday morning exercise, but they never intended to kill him and neither did he. The moment Shisui caught the eye of that Chuunin who was sending a wave of kunai at him, he knew that was his reality, the world he had to live in and the rule was simple: kill or be killed. Before he could only listen to his teachers, imagine what would happen to a human body if hit by one of his Katon ninjutsu, but now, looking in the eyes of that man, he finally got it. And he knew what to do.

He Shunshin'ed behind the attacking nin and sliced his throat with his own kunai. At least that's what he intended to do, but the guy just wasn't there anymore. Shisui felt the air shift on his right and used Shunshin again, this time aiming for the enemy's elbow joint where his blow was blocked. They exchanged a few punches and it became clear that he had no other choice. Shisui jumped backwards and up and upon landing on a branch activated his Sharingan. Two angry three-tomoe eyes followed his enemy's movements.

The Genin took a deep breath and sent his kunai flying. He forced the enemy to jump back and to the left where he was met by a pair of shuriken with steel wire attached. With a final flick of his wrists Shisui tied the guy tightly to a tree. 'Gotcha' he smirked. He approached the struggling shinobi quickly and was taking another kunai out when the enemy in front of him started melting. 'What?' he thought and turned around sensing movement. 'A Tsuchi Bunshin!' and then he saw his opponent finish the seals and yell: 'Doton: Doro Houshi'. A river of mud was towering over Shisui and his only way out was up. He escaped the flood and intended to land on the only clear spot. The Genin was some meter from the ground when with another set of hand-seals the Chuunin intoned: 'Doton: Doryuusou'. Long stone spikes rose from the ground and the boy didn't have the time to dodge. He fell hard and three spikes pierced straight through his body.

The Iwa shinobi sighed contently and jumped down to the trembling form of Shisui. He walked casually to his fallen opponent and smirked.

'Looks like you're dying here, poor little bunny. Your eyes I'll take with me'.

'I wouldn't be so sure about that' a voice said right behind him. With wide eyes the Iwa nin saw the figure in front of him melt into mud. He was turning around when he heard the last words in his life. 'Katon: Goukakyuu'.

Shisui rubbed his back tiredly and looked at the ugly deformed form of his opponent. He was dead for sure, but the sight wasn't the most pleasant one: his half-turned face a stiff mask of burned flash, empty eye sockets, left arm completely obliterated, his body held standing by instantly dried mud. And the smell. Shisui held back the urge to vomit. So that's what a Katon jutsu can do to a man. He was pulled out of his stupor by the sound of about ten kunai flying towards him. Shisui jumped up and noticed the exploding tags attached to them. 'Oops' and he Shunshin'ed to the high branch, barely escaping the explosion. He looked down and saw the place where he was just a moment ago completely burnt. The awful figure was gone too, leaving only the legs down from his knees standing, burnt.

'So you managed to fool Kimura. Shouldn't have been hard, he was such a waste. I, however, am a different story. You might want to know that your little friend in blue is dead too. So we're even.'

Another Chuunin was standing right opposite Shisui, arms folded on his chest.

'Izuna!'

Shisui cried out and felt rage and terror like he never had before. His teammate was dead because he wasn't good enough, he spent too much time here, he couldn't help. Shisui shouted, completely furious:

'I'll kill you!' and attacked.

His movements have never been so fast and precise before, but he felt that wasn't enough. He Shunshin'ed and Shunshin'ed, again and again, going faster and faster, trying to get through the enemy's, no, that murderer's defenses. The Iwa Chuunin was taken aback at first, but he gained his composure and was dodging and counter-attacking very soon. That was taijutsu in its grace. Shisui did another Shunshin and felt something he couldn't quite describe. It was as though he was sliding, overcoming the barrier of speed and accuracy of the jutsu, as though he could flow through space with a blink of an eye. He felt that he was just a step away from outrunning the enemy and getting him when…

Shisui fell to the ground feeling as though something snapped inside of him. He tried to stop his fall, to keep going, but his body just refused to move. He hit the ground hard and lay there, panting and hurting so much. The enemy jumped down to him and advanced slowly.

'Looks like you're out of chakra, kid. Time to die.'

Shisui somehow managed to turn on his back but he could only watch as the enemy took out a kunai. A million thoughts flew through his mind. 'Am I about to die? Why couldn't I avenge Izuna? Why am I so weak?!' The Iwa nin swung. Shisui didn't close his eyes.

But the blow never came. The enemy's hand was held tight by another, wrapped in dirty bandages and covered in blood but never moving an inch. Shisui looked up. Izuna stood there, holding the attacker's arm with one hand, the other embedding a kunai in his stomach, his eyes flashing red. His two-tomoe Sharingan was spinning fast, looking straight at his enemy's astonished face.

Izuna

Izuna didn't remember the time when he was considered worthy. His efforts were always not enough, his resolve not strong, his achievements below the standard. He knew all too well how it felt to be looked down at by everybody, even your own family despite all your struggles. And his brother only worsened it. He said Izuna needn't worry, that he was doing well, that everybody else were just plain stupid. But Izuna knew that his brother was wrong, he only said it because he himself hadn't accomplished anything. So he tried harder and knew he wasn't good enough.

When his enemy appeared and leapt on him, Izuna ran. Because he was a Genin, who was unworthy, unskilled and weak and he couldn't hold up against a Chuunin. The Iwa nin taunted him and threw insults at him, but it wasn't anything new. Izuna knew everything he said was right so he fled. But he wasn't fast enough, again, and he was caught. He tried to struggle, tried to hit hard as he was taught, the blows he had practiced with sensei, who was so far the only one of his teachers who actually praised him. That didn't help. A kunai was in his chest and he fell, he fell and it hurt.

The enemy Chuunin laughed and said he wouldn't taint his hands with him anymore, that he would die like a dog himself. And then he took off to kill Shisui who had obviously defeated his own opponent. And that Izuna just couldn't take. His cousin was kind, not exactly considerate, but he treated Izuna like an equal. And he was his teammate. If he died, that would be Izuna's fault. And so he struggled.

Izuna wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he gathered all his strength and rose to his knees. His shirt was soaking with blood, his vision was blurred, it hurt, but he pushed further, pushed with everything he had. And suddenly the world stood still.

It was so clear. He could see every grass blade, every leaf in the tree above him. Izuna took a breath and the air was just too fresh, the world full of life and movement. He felt it rather than understood consciously. So he stood up and saw life in the other way. That was the real world. That was the Sharingan.

A few heartbeats later there he was, holding an enemy's kunai away from Shisui, his Sharingan awakened and finally ready. He could do that and he would. The time was pressing and Izuna acted fast. He threw the Iwa nin away from his fallen cousin and jumped after him. With the Sharingan his natural ability in taijutsu seemed to have increased ten times: he was faster, defter, he could almost predict his opponent's movements. And then a plan formed at once in his head and he flashed through such familiar seals: 'Rat, Tiger, Dog, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger' 'Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!' His shuriken flew hidden inside the balls of fire and Izuna flipped backwards to avoid getting fried himself. The enemy wasn't so lucky. He fell on his back and stayed motionless, two shuriken deep in his throat.

Izuna left out a breath and watched, memorizing. That was necessary, but he had to deal with it later. He limped back to Shisui who managed to sit up already and knelt near him. The younger boy was looking at him with relief and a bit of awe.

'I'm glad you're alive.'

'Yeah, me too.'

And then they flinched at once and exclaimed:

'Hayate! Sensei!'

A/N List of jutsu and other special concepts:

Tsuchi no Kuni – Earth Country

Iwagakure no Sato-Hidden Stone Village

Kusa no Kuni – Grass Country

Shunshin no Jutsu – Body Flicker Technique

Tsuchi Bunshin – Earth clone

Doton: Doro Houshi – Earth Release : Mud Indulgence

Doton: Doryuusou - Earth Release: Rising Stone Spears

Katon : Goukakyuu – Fire Release: Great Fireball

Katon : Housenka- Fire Release: Phoenix Immortal Fire

Please, do leave me a review so that I knew if I should continue with this story! Thanks)