Ch. 1:
C:\Users\Mitsuki\Journals\
Hello Diary, my name is Mitsuki. I am 9 years old. Father often says that there are things he had trouble expressing properly, and that he kept a journal to himself that allowed him to gather his thoughts. He says he regrets not getting one when he was my age, and now carries his own and reports to it religiously. Father is wise enough to tell me he regrets something, and I'd do well to follow his directions.
There are some things I do have trouble expressing, too. Father does and says things that I don't understand, and it frustrates me. He fights and fights a war that we can't ever see, leaving for months on end before coming back home to us. He ruffles my hair and says that all will be well, but the words do not reach his eyes. He is scared, and whenever he is here he teaches me as much as he can about the ways of the ninja. I try and absorb all of it, as I fear that someday he will not return home.
So, here's how it went down, right? I'll start a little bit before everything went to shit. For me at least.
"Get back here, you little shit!"
The alleyways of New Leaf City are my closest friends. They twist and wind just so, allowing me passage when I need it most and only to me. Backdoors to open restaurants led to other avenues, fire escapes led to empty apartments with infinitely more hiding places nestled between them. When I threw up the seals for a transformation technique, I slipped easily into a speakeasy as a small mouse, running along the counter and dodging the stray, drunkenly stabbed kunai that tried to stop my path to the proper exit, a set of stairs covered almost entirely by a bookshelf.
Making it out to Kakashi Avenue, I dropped the transformation and stood at my full height. The smoke dispersed quickly enough with the crowd of city dwellers walking by and waving at the offending remnants of my technique. I blended into the crowd, watching as the chasers in my little game searched for me. It was easy to lose them, considering they were a bunch of meatheads from the local slaughter house. They'd left their post for a boy with a few pounds of cow meat under his arm and a knack for running.
Another turn led me into another one of my beloved alleyways, where I quickly jumped the few fire escapes on my way to the rooftops that led straight to my home. I strode one way, pushing off the edge of one building onto another. The short jog home was filled with a certain magical twinge to it. I could already taste today's haul, as well as some rice… Maybe I'd make curry?
Without my noticing something pulled me back by the collar of my jacket, dropping me on my ass unceremoniously while I worked to keep the bag of meat off the floor. The culprit stared at me with both mirth and ire, menacing blue eyes raking over me and then meeting my own.
"Imagine my face when I get a report about a young boy stealing from Nakamura Meats and running away using ninja techniques." She said, pausing to kneel down and get closer to my face. "The description they gave was spiky red hair, black jacket, blue jeans, eyes the color of the sky…"
She then lifts me off the ground with one hand by my collar, making me rise to my feet uncomfortably before continuing her monologue, "And I think, 'No, there's no way Koru is that stupid.' Imagine my surprise." She finishes and turns me by the shoulder. My sister's face is a lot like mine: angled features, whisker marks and deep, blue eyes the color of the summer sky. That's where the similarities end, really. Where my red hair is spiky, hers is a rusted color that I can't name, pulled behind a New Leaf Shinobi headband.
When she drops me completely, she begins pacing back and forth, continuing her monologue. Man, she must be really pissed over, what? 2000 yen in cow? I never understood her penchant for wasting her energy over chasing me every so often. I'm sure the NLS have far more pressing matters to attend to.
"So, I look for the mystery boy, right? 2000 yen in meats under an arm, cheeky smile and all. And I find Koru, the absolute fucking idiot for a brother I've raised for almost all his life, is the thief!" She turns and grabs the bag of meat from me. A clone pops into existence and runs off with the bundle and my mood sours.
"If you were gonna yell at me then you could've at least let me keep the pull, Kara." I complain.
"That's just the thing, Koru! You think that a relative with a headband and a smile will wash away your stupid mistakes! Do you know what happened before I got here?!" She yelled, putting another finger in my chest. I sighed and stared back.
"What happened, Kara?" I ask quietly. Her tantrums are the worst because they last so long. I get that she's worried about me, but it's a few pounds of meat, for Kami's sake.
"I got chewed out by Captain Hirato about how being sentimental and trying to give leeway in the law for family would keep me out of Black Ops forever! It's my dream, Koru! Do you not want me to meet my goals?!"
"It's not about that- " I try to explain but she cuts me off quickly.
"Then what is it about? After you finished school you've been fucking around and doing nothing but stealing and misusing the techniques passed onto us by our ancestors. We're 16, Koru. What are you gonna do with yourself?"
I don't know. At least, that's what I wanted to say. I really don't know what I want to do, I like the benefits of being a ninja but the way they've put shackles on my twin sister and her time does not appeal to me. I would've followed her into the NLS if I didn't know that Captain Hirato and his kind are absolute fuckheads with nothing better to do than play judge, jury and executioner to random people on the street when they found themselves bored. Which is fairly often considering the times we live in.
"Hirato is just an asshole who wants to play gatekeeper with your success, Kara. Once he retires, or better yet, dies you'll probably get into the Black Ops easily. He just doesn't like the idea of someone getting in while they're younger than he is." I explained.
Kara sighed and sat down in a crossed legged position, putting her face in her hands and leaning forward. With a deep breath she rubbed her face vigorously before looking my way again.
"Please, just stop Koru. Get an apprenticeship or something, something honest. I can't keep defending you, especially when the Hokage is in town." She paused for dramatic effect, but I'm sure she expected a reaction out of me. The Hokage was much like Captain Hirato. I remember reading the history books, how much the title of Hokage was respected and revered. A few centuries after the genesis of our nation quickly dimmed the Hokage's power and influence, especially after the wars had stopped. Who needed a warrior monarch in a time of extended peace? Over the years there had been skirmishes here and there, but never a war like the first 5 Shinobi World Wars.
Now the ninja population was quietly dwindling, with the last of us being descendants of the great families or working for the NLPD's New Leaf Shinobi program.
"Alright, fine. I'll look for something to-" I was cut off by a loud explosion in the distance. There was no visual indication it might've been anything serious, but Kara still jumped to her feet. She turned to the source of the sound, watching the skyline for anything suspicious when another explosion rocked our ears. This one was accompanied by a gigantic ball of fire launching outwards from a skyscraper farther downtown. Kara was already on the move and I followed, moving towards the fire spreading over the tower and the street below.
It didn't take us long to get there, we were on Kakashi avenue and 116th street, this was 86th street. Kara was speaking into a phone, her voice filled with conviction and severity.
"Officer Kara Uzumaki, moving in to a 405 on 86th and Kakashi. Will report findings, expected hostiles based on size of fireball expelled from Nara Tower." She explained.
Crap, this was Nara Tower. A family of super geniuses, who were here during the very beginning years of Konoha as well. I could tell Kara was nervous. The domain of one of the great families being attacked was never a good sign.
I became nervous too, especially when another fireball blew out from a dozen stories above the first. Glass shattered and blew out towards us, forcing Kara and I to cover our heads and duck. A rush of hot air followed the glass. Peeking through my shield in the case that there's more debris coming my way, I see Kara standing and looking at the tower. Or what's left of it at least.
"Don't be a hero, Uzumaki, wait for Black Ops-" I heard a gruff voice that sounded a lot like Hirato give demands over Kara's phone, but she just lifted the phone to her face and spoke evenly.
"I'm going in." She said with finality, cutting off Hirato's instructions with a click of her phone. She turned to me, looking me in the eye.
"It's not a good idea, Kara, you shouldn't go alone." I tell her, but she turns back to the building. I guess there's no convincing her, then.
"There might be people inside who need help. I need to find out what did this; who did this. Watch if you want but keep a safe distance Koru." As soon as she finished, she disappeared in a swirl of leaves. The shunshin obviously led to the floor closest to us. I could even see her as she runs inside the steadily burning structure.
"Shit." I say, plopping down on my ass and watching.
What, did you think I'd go after her?
Lemme tell you something. We Uzumaki are strong. Don't ever think us weak or unfit for the new world. We had adaptability in spades, combine that with a strong life force and you have senior citizens learning to use and abuse today's technology. But still, fighting is what we we're best at.
I could hold my own against idiotic, wannabe gangsters in school, thugs on the street, and other riffraff of New Leaf City. I was absolutely no match for Kara Uzumaki. If she was being told to not go in alone, I'd do well not to follow her, or else I'd end up being in her way.
"You're Uzumaki's brother, right?" I heard a deep voice beside me. A man in a white mask and black cloak was standing where Kara once was just a moment ago. I looked up at him.
Black Ops, previously known as ANBU Black Ops, was a separate sect of law enforcement. They were apart and above the NLPD and NLS, who only operated in the capital city of Hi No Kuni. A group of ridiculously strong ninja who were trained to use all advantages technological or through chakra to protect this great country of ours. It was my sister's dream to be part of the Black Operatives. I always thought they were glorified policemen.
The man's mask had a 051 written in an oriental font near the forehead and red markings that made him look like a dog. I hummed, observing him for a moment before snapping my fingers.
"Yes, I am Kara's sister, and you, Zero-Go-Ichi, are l-" He put a hand over my mouth the moment I was going to reveal his name. Or so he thought I was. Biting at his gloved fingers forced them away from my mouth and I spat the taste of fabric out of my mouth.
"I wasn't going to say your name, I was going to say you were late. Stop trying to be cool and go help her, La-" When his masked face snapped towards mine I stopped my sentence and smiled cheekily at him.
"Just stay here." He says, turning back towards the burning tower before us.
"I'm not sure what I was doing before, but I'll definitely stay here now, sir." I barely had time to chuckle before the 'things going to shit for Koru' genesis of events starting to unfold, starting with the largest explosion to rock the now night sky. This one blew almost the entire base of the tower to pieces, forcing some 100 stories down as the tower collapsed in itself. The debris wasn't coming our way, instead opting to spread over the ground. I heard police sirens and fire trucks line the street below, already clearing the streets of civilians when I saw them.
"Shit!" I heard Zerogoichi say. He was looking up at the sky, where I saw two figures fly down towards us. I scrambled onto both hands and feet, jumping to the side as they landed where I once sat. The figure turned out to be a man above Kara, who had his hand on her throat while he slid her atop the tar covered rooftop savagely. When he stopped there was still black smoke coming from the soles of his feet Despite the explosions he must have caused, considering he was attacking my sister and had just jumped out when the building began to collapse. He wore a white gi that tattered at the ends of his ankles while the chest portion was left loose around his waist.
"By the order of the Black Ops, you're under arrest. Resistance will be returned with lethal force." I heard Zerogoichi say. He stood still, waiting for the man to make a move, never wanting to be the aggressor to an unknown threat.
"The Black Ops, what a joke. To think this is what we've come to." The man said from beside my sister. He turned, and with a flick of his hand, set Kara on fire. The flames were blue-hot, and the moment they erupted I dashed forward to save her, to do something.
I barely got within 10 feet, ignoring Zerogoichi's warnings to stay back, when I saw the man fade into blue flaming ashes. I didn't see him appear in front of me, but I did feel the punch square in my lower chest, above my stomach. It knocked the air out of me before blasting me away. Darkness began to spot the edges of my vision while I felt myself bouncing along the rooftops on Kakashi Avenue. I slowed and slid to a painful stop. My whole body felt like shit, and even though I fought for a strong grasp on my consciousness, the inability to take in air robbing me of my waking thoughts and sending me into the darkness.