Moeru

…

Daichi shifted in his sleeping bag, trying to find a position where he didn't feel trapped, suffocated. Finally he gave up and unzipped it, shivering in the cool night air. He stared up at the moon, hoping sleep would come soon, but his mind kept straying, like always, to other things.

He thought about this mission. It had been his first one away from home, and they'd been gone for almost two weeks. There had been some skirmishes on the border, and Daichi's team—Team 6 of his year—had been sent to see what they could do about them. Daichi glanced to each of his team-mates, thinking of how each had done their part, how each of them had grown.

Isamu, a lazy student who had only earned the lowest test scores because he never tried, had gone all-out to stop some bandits from hurting a group of orphans. Hoshiko, usually submissive, had really opened up and stood her ground during a fight against a rouge ninja from the Land of Mist... A ninja who had nearly killed Daichi.

He thought about that, too. He'd been pinned against a rock, unable to move. The blade of the ninja's sword rested against his neck, ready to kill. He'd known it was over, that he was going to die. Then Hoshiko had jumped out of the bushes—against Yamato-sensei's orders, no less—and had landed a few good strikes on their enemy. This had given Daichi the opening he'd needed to slip away from the sword and hit the guy with a few moves of his own... Only, the ninja had used some wicked water style jutsu against them, and they'd been caught in the torrent, unable to breathe.

In that position, Daichi's body took over for him. He'd felt it happen, the change. His vision became sharper, clearer. He could see the ninja's chakra, catch every move of his hand. It was like the rest of the world moved in slow motion to his eyes. Daichi, already fast, pulled out his shuriken with unbelievable speed and accuracy. The guy barely dodged them, and in doing so had to break his concentration. Daichi and Hoshiko had been left sputtering while Isamu and Yamato took care of the ninja, knocking him unconscious and tying him up. They'd brought him to an outpost, hoping his capture would end the problems at the border.

And now, they were nearly home. Daichi smiled, looking at the moon. He had activated his sharingan. His dad would be so proud. Maybe now Daichi could finally figure out the Clan's signature jutsu. He'd had trouble with it before, but his father had promised to try again once he gained the sharingan. He had trouble with gen and ninjutsu, because he couldn't get the chakra control right. He understood the theory of it, of course, but he wasn't so quick with practical application. He'd still gotten top scores in the Academy, but just barely. It had always been a struggle for him... He'd barely managed to pull off the required jutsu.

His family always was supportive of him, though. His dad and older sister, Yosuko, always were ready to put down whatever they were working on to help Daichi. Yasuko was good at everything, and so was his dad. They helped Hitomi, too, now that she was in the Academy.

Yasuko always walked Hitomi home from the Academy, like she'd done with Daichi, too, dad's orders. Daichi was fine with that. Hitomi liked Yasuko better than Daichi, but she was always picking on both of her older siblings. Yo had always enjoyed teasing Daichi in good humor, like Daichi teased the twins, but neither of them dared to tease Hitomi.

Daichi remembered, too, how he'd been the one to walk Hitomi home when Yasuko had been sent away on her first big mission. They had been quiet walks, both of them missing their older sister. Not that Daichi was talkative anyway, but it wasn't like the outspoken Hitomi.

Now Yo was a chunin. She was top of her class, too. Everyone talked about her, compared Daichi to her. Some, like Yamato-sensei, thought Daichi was something of a failure. Lazy, easily distracted, emotional... not very shinobi like at all. But Daichi's father always made things better, whenever he was upset with his teachers and classmates for putting him down.

"You're doing fine, Dai. You always do your best, that's all that matters. Sure, you do have a tendency to get a little lost sometimes, but that's part of it, too. Part of who you are."

Maybe now, Daichi could prove himself to everyone. Tomorrow, he'd be home, and he couldn't wait. After a long time, Daichi finally fell asleep.

…

"Daichi! Dai, wake up!"

Daichi blinked and rubbed his eyes in the morning sun. It was Yamato-sensei who'd been shaking him. He sat up and yawned.

"Weren't you cold last night?" Hoshiko asked, genuinely worried.

Daichi shook his head, rolling up the covers. "No. I was perfectly fine." He mumbled.

"You sure you're fine? You look tired." Isamu said.

"Yeah... Look, we're nearly home. Let's just get on with it."

"We could get home sooner..." Yamato-sensei said. "If we took the shortcut though that cave over there."

Daichi's face paled. "What?"

Isamu and Hoshiko shared a glance. "Sensei... We don't mind going around." Hoshiko sooke up.

"No." Daichi said firmly. "I... I can do this. Let's go."

"You sure?" Isamu asked.

"Sure."

"Then let's get started." Yamato-sensei said. With that, they entered the cave.

It wasn't really so bad, Daichi told himself. It was a really big cave, after all... Plenty of breathing room. Still, his team-mates kept flashing him nervous looks, and he knew his face must be pretty pale. But he wouldn't back down now.

His pride depended on that.

…

They were nearly out. Daichi could see sunlight, and it made him very glad. Without really thinking, he quickened his pace, and soon was running full speed for the exit. Yamato-sensei kept pace with him, and the others were close behind. Then Daichi was outside, and he breathed deeply in the fresh air.

Then, he heard a terrifying sound behind him, the sound of shifting rock. A cave-in.

Daichi turned, and saw Yamato-sense barely holding open a tiny crevasse with his wood style jutsu. From inside, he heard Hoshiko and Isamu screaming for help.

"Dai!" Yamato panted. "Go, get help. I can't hold this for long."

"I'll never get back in time!" Daichi protested.

"There's no way I'll fit in there, and you can't..."

"Yes." Daichi said, stammering. "I-I can."

And before he could change his mind, he bent over and crawled into the tunnel. So small, so tight. Daichi couldn't breathe. He activated his sharingan, allowing him to see. He couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. It seemed to take forever, but finally he saw them—Hoshiko and Isamu.

He reached out and took Hoshiko's hand. Isamu was already holding hers... He could see the look of surprise that crossed her face for and instant. Silently, dizzily, Daichi led them out. At last, he fell free from the tunnel, Hoshiko and Isamu behind him.

He felt like he was going to faint.

"Dai, breathe!" He heard Yamato-sensei say. His voice sounded far, far away. He obeyed, taking a quick breath. Stars rushed before his eyes, and he was aware of a rushing feeling coursing through him. He was also aware of a crashing, crushing sound behind him—the sound of the cave collapsing the rest of the way.

Hoshiko was there suddenly, crouching over him. "Dai, are you all right? Dai...D-Did you really...?" She bit her lip, shaking. "You saved our lives."

"I don't believe it." Isamu sounded shaken up, too.

Yamato-sensei's face was shocked, awed. Daichi had never seen that look on his face before.

"Are you okay, Dai?" Hoshiko asked again.

Daichi, still shaking like a leaf, shook his head, unable to make his mouth work properly. No.

"Of course he's not okay." Yamato said, a hint of worry in his voice. Odd. "Dai, I'll carry you back, if you need me to. Okay? Forget what I've said to you before... You've got some kind of courage."

"I couldn't have done it." Isamu said suddenly. "In your shoes, I would've gone to get help, and we'd have died..."

Yamato-sensei patted Daichi on the back, and Daichi felt a sudden wave of pride. Yamato-sensei had actually complimented him, instead of putting him down. Before Daichi could protest, Yamato picked him up and started down the path that led to Konoha. Hoshiko walked right behind Yamato, and her eyes met Daichi's for a moment.

She smiled, a slight blush crossing her face. "Thank you, Daichi. You were really brave..."

Daichi felt his own face grow warm as he flashed her a reassuring smile.

…

The next few hours were rather strange. Yamato brought his team straight to the Hokage to report to her, setting Daichi down beside the wall. Daichi felt Tsunade's eyes on him.

"The skirmishes were resolved, Lady Hokage. They were mainly the fault of Shigetsu Hozuki, who we captured."

"I see. We received word of that already... What happened to him?" She asked, nodding to Daichi.

Yamato looked at Daichi, then turned back to her. "On the way back, this morning, we passed through a cave that I knew was a shortcut to the village. We all wanted to get home as soon as we could... Even Daichi said he'd rather take the shortcut. We had just gotten out—the two of us, that is, Daichi and I—when the cave started to collapse. Isamu and Hoshiko were trapped inside, fine, but unable to get out."

Tsunade's eyebrow went up. "What did you do?"

Yamato shook his head. "Me? Nothing. I couldn't go in to save them. I had to concentrate on holding up the rock, and the tunnel was too small for me to fit inside. I told Daichi to run for help... But he knew there wasn't enough time. He went inside, using his sharingan to find his team-mates."

Tsunade looked at Daichi, impressed. "Did he really...?"

To Daichi's surprise, she stood up and went over to him. "You okay? That must've taken a lot out of you... You're still shaking." She smiled. "Want me to take a look at you?"

Daichi shook his head, and spoke for the first time since the incident. "No... Mom..."

Tsunade nodded. "Yamato, go get someone to send word to Minori."

"Right away." Yamato left the room, and came back a short while later. Behind him were Daichi's father and uncle.

"Tsunade, is what Yamato said true?" Daichi's father asked, looking at Daichi.

She smiled. "Yes, Itachi. I'm sure it is... Daichi's been through a lot, apparently."

Itachi smiled proudly, crouching in front of Daichi so he could look him in the eye. "Really, Dai? You went into a collapsing cave to save your friends, and you activated your sharingan?"

Daichi swallowed, then nodded. "Not in that order, though."

Itachi rubbed Daichi's head, messing up his hair. "Dai, I'm so proud."

"Now are you going to try to teach him the Grand Fireball Technique again?" Sasuke asked. "You promised, remember?"

Itachi smiled. "You made him a promise, too, little brother."

"I said I'd teach him Chidori after he masted the clan jutsu."

Minori ran into the room then, looking rather worried. "Daichi? Dai, are you okay?"

"He's fine, Mi-chan." Itachi said. "More than fine."

The Hokage nodded. "In that case... Daichi Uchiha, you are dismissed, as are Isamu Nara and Hoshiko Hyuuga. Yamato, you stay."

They bowed to the Hokage and left, going their separate ways.

…

Itachi picked Daichi up and set him on his shoulders. "So, you're a hero now, son."

"I was scared, Dad."

"That's what makes it mean so much."

Itachi walked down to the little dock near the old Uchiha district, and set Daichi down. "I've told you before that this is where my father taught me the clan's jutsu, and Sasuke, too... Now it's your turn. You had trouble with it before, but I'm sure the sharingan will help you."

Daichi nodded, and turned them on. Itachi smiled, looking proudly into his son's eyes. "Watch closely, now."

He made the hand signs, slowly, and Daichi paid special attention to the flow of the chakra.

"Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

The result was, of course, a gigantic fireball expanding over the water, and Daichi was impressed, as always.

Itachi smiled, patting Daichi's shoulder. "Your turn, Dai."

Daichi walked to the end of the pier, and made the hand signs, careful to imitate the way his father's chakra had been flowing. "Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

Daichi felt it run through him, the rush of power. He knew he'd done it right even before the fireball formed... And form it did, unlike all the times Daichi had tried before.

Daichi smiled up at his father, and Itachi smiled back. The pride in his eyes positively shone.

"Well, Dai, I guess it's time to let you wear the clan's symbol..."

Daichi watched, amazed, as Itachi took off his own jacket and looked it over, holding it up to Daichi. Then he helped Daichi get his arms through the sleeves that were much too long.

"I'll have to roll up the sleeves..." Itachi said, doing so. "It's a little big on you, but that's how you prefer it anyway..." Itachi left the jacket open in the front, and looked him over. Itachi nodded, apparently deciding his son looked fine. "You'll grow into it." Daichi smiled up at his father.

"Yeah." He said. "I'll grow into it."

…

Moeru-"burn, get fired up," or "bud, sprout."

Either meaning would fit the ending.

...