Notes: I stumbled across another fan-made character that had a strikingly similar origin, ability, and living situation as the one that is introduced here. But that person's came first, and though no one will believe me, I wasn't aware of that character until well after I'd started the first draft of this chapter a couple of months ago. Still, I'd like to think that the two stories in which the characters appear are distinct enough that you won't get them confused. But I suggest you read Trenchcoatgirl-Kyo's "The Purity of White" anyway, just because it's a similar idea done in a different way, with a rare couple, and because if you think my character's eyes are weird...

A Uchiha Among Uzumaki

Part 1: The Potted Lily

A Naruto Ficlet by

Nate Grey (XMAN0123-at-aol-dot-com)

"You still haven't told me what I'm doing here, oji-san."

The broad shouldered blond ninja paused briefly to glance down at his niece's curious face. Though her large Hyuuga eyes were always a pale shade of lavender, this became even more obvious whenever she was excited or frightened. Today, she was probably leaning more towards excitement, and as far as Naruto was concerned, that could only be a good thing for what he had in mind.

They had stopped a few feet from Konoha's newest hospital, and not just because Naruto was having second thoughts about bringing his niece along with him. This particular hospital was devoted, almost exclusively, to those ninja who either couldn't or wouldn't be trusted to behave themselves while receiving treatment. In short, the patients here were a danger to themselves, and more importantly, anyone nearby.

He had thought that Tsunade was insane (or at least very, very drunk) the first time she'd proposed such a place. But Shizune had pointed out that if a certain missing-nin ever decided to return to the village, he would be better off in a private hospital with extra security, than in the regular hospital where virtually anyone who might hold a grudge could get to him without too much trouble.

Ironically enough, it was probably Sasuke's fault that they had even come here today, but Naruto would figure that part out later, once he got all the necessary information.

"I brought you here to possibly make a new friend," Naruto said at last, hoping his niece didn't bother to question him on it. It was pretty obvious from the look on her face that when he'd said they were going out, she'd been hoping for something along the lines of secret training, roughhousing with the new Inuzuka puppies, or stuffing themselves silly with sweets before dinner.

"A sick friend?" she asked hesitantly. "Shouldn't I wait until they're better? Most of the things I like to do depend heavily on not being sick..."

"They're not sick," Naruto informed her. "Not physically, from what I understand. But that's not the point. The point is they're probably lonely and afraid. They've never been to Konoha before, and they can't possibly know anyone here their age. You're going to change that."

"I should've brought flowers," she muttered. "We should've stopped by Yamanaka-san's shop. She always knows the best flowers for uncomfortable situations."

"I don't think they'd allow flowers in here, anyway," Naruto sighed. "They burn too easy, and-"

Suddenly, he felt her small hand gripping his much larger one tightly.

"Oji-san. This is about... him, isn't it? The last Uchiha of the Leaf?"

Naruto wanted to smack himself, but she was holding onto his preferred self-smacking hand, so he decided against it, for now. "Yes," he said simply. "Well, probably. I'm not completely sure just yet."

"We're going to get in trouble if my parents find out we're here, aren't we?" she asked.

"Assuming your Papa doesn't just kill me, yeah."

"Oh." She blinked. "Well, why didn't you say that at home? Let's go already!"

Naruto gasped as he was suddenly jerked forward, nearly stumbling as his niece set off at an alarming pace, especially considering she was dragging someone nearly three times her size behind her.

Despite not being able to move much, or maybe even because of that, the girl could hear the voices behind the closed door very clearly.

"Do you really think it's safe to have her here?"

She wasn't sure whose voice that was, having never heard it before. It sounded a bit like the man had gravel in his throat, though. The next one, though, she did recognize.

"She's safer here than anywhere else, Ibiki."

That was the white-haired giant. The one who had come for her, and saved her life. She still hadn't decided if he was to be thanked or despised for that. Glancing down at her restrained body, she was starting to lean toward the latter.

"He was talking about everyone else's safety, not hers."

That could only be the angry woman, who seemed comfortable with yelling at nearly everyone despite her slightly smaller stature. The girl didn't like the woman at all... and yet, she understood what it must be like, to be her.

"Would you be happier if I'd left her where I found her, so that she could become yet another disposable weapon to be used against us?" she heard the giant snap.

"Calm down, Jiraiya-sama," said another voice. "No one here is saying that you were wrong to rescue her. But it would be nice if you could give us some reassurances. We know nothing about this girl, and you're the only one that's had any considerable exposure to her. Any information you could provide-"

"Like what the hell is up with the kid's Sharingan?" the angry woman demanded. "I've known her an hour, and I still haven't seen her real eyes!"

"Don't get excited, Anko," the giant replied with a gruff laugh. "I've known her a whole month, and I've seen nothing but her Sharingan from the moment I found her. She either can't or won't reveal her true eyes. I'm starting to suspect they might even BE the true state of her eyes."

"But that's not possible, is it? The Uchiha aren't born with the Sharingan activated. And there's no way a kid should be able to have it on all the time without draining all of her chakra."

The girl suddenly became aware of footsteps approaching, and the door on the left of the room opened to reveal a big, blond man, and just behind him, a girl roughly her own size with huge pale eyes.

"Remember your manners, Irihi," the man said to his young companion. Then he turned and went to join the meeting in the next room, shutting the door firmly behind him.

The two girls stared at each other for a long moment.

Finally, Irihi moved a little closer to the girl's bed.

"I would've brought you flowers, but they're not allowed," Irihi stated quietly. "I'm Hyuuga Irihi, by the way. Nice to meet you, whoever you are."

The girl blinked a few times, but otherwise did not react.

That, however, did not seem to bother her visitor in the least.

"I heard there's nothing wrong with your body, so I'm not really sure why they brought you in here. And I really don't know why they put you in this dirt body cast. That doesn't look comfortable at all. In fact, it almost looks like they don't want you to... oh. OH." Irihi's eyes widened, which the girl would've thought impossible, considering their original size. "You were bad, weren't you? I bet you attacked somebody important, huh? Nobody I know would've had the guts to do that. You must be really brave."

The girl shifted uncomfortably. She wasn't used to adoration, and it made her feel... itchy, for some reason.

"You got an itch? I'll get it." And before the girl could stop her, Irihi had climbed onto the bed and was slowly running her fingers along the few parts of the girl's neck that were exposed. "Just nod or something when I get there, okay?"

"Arms," the girl murmured softly, avoiding Irihi's eyes.

"Oh. Well, I can't get to those, unless..." Irihi threw a glance at the door her guardian had gone through. "Hold really still for a minute."

The girl watched, fascinated, as Irihi performed a few hand seals, and prominent veins suddenly appeared around her eyes. After a few seconds of staring intently at the body cast, Irihi slowly began to poke seemingly random spots with her fingers, gradually speeding up until her hands were a blur. By the time she realized that Irihi was actually hitting the same few spots over and over again at increasingly rapid speeds, small cracks had begun to form in the cast. After a few more seconds, the entire cast crumbled away, and the girl instantly began to scratch wildly at her arms, very nearly tearing into her skin with her sharp fingernails.

"Hey, slow down!" Irihi's slightly larger hands slid over the girl's, gently bringing them to a stop. "You'll hurt yourself if you do it like that." She slowly pushed the girl's hands aside and began to lightly scratch the girl's arms for her. "You know, I usually make it a point to learn people's names before I scratch their arms..." she commented lightly, apparently determined to have a conversation.

The girl hesitated. "The giant calls me Soshina," she whispered.

"You have your own giant?" Irihi asked in surprise. "Where'd you get him?"

"He came and got me," the girl explained. "I think he's from here... this village."

"I never saw a giant here," Irihi muttered, sounding a bit jealous. "So your name is Soshina?"

"No," the girl replied at once. "It's just what he calls me."

Irihi blinked. "So what IS your name?"

"I... don't have one."

"Sure you do! Maybe you just forgot it."

"I can't ever remember having one."

"Never?"

The girl shook her head.

"Wow. Well, we should get you one." Irihi stared at the girl for a long moment. "You look like a Sayuri to me. I'll call you that until you get a better name."

"Sayuri?" the girl asked uncertainly.

"Yup. Because you were potted when I found you, and your skin is soft like a lily... when you're not scratching it raw, anyway. So you're Uchiha Sayuri."

The girl froze. "How do you know that name?" she demanded.

"It's pretty obvious from your eyes," Irihi replied casually. "You've got the Sharingan. Naruto oji-san and Hinata oba-san told me about it. They used to know someone from your clan. But that was a long time ago, and they don't talk about it much. You're the first person my age I've seen with the Sharingan." As an afterthought, she added, "If the grown-ups send you to the Academy, you can sit with me and Shinju. Look for us in the very back row, okay?"

The girl didn't know what to think about Irihi. Everyone else had had very noticeable reactions upon seeing her eyes for the first time. But Irihi, despite admittedly not being used to the Sharingan in one so young, hadn't even given them a second glance. Perhaps she was just used to people looking at her own eyes in the same way. The girl felt a strange sort of kinship with Irihi because of that, and decided it might be worthwhile to try and learn a few more things about this village from her, before they were separated.

Of course, that was when the door to the right swung open, and everyone the girl had been listening to before Irihi came stepped out, stopping short as they noticed the current state of things.

Irihi seemed to sense that an explanation was required, because she instantly announced, rather proudly, "She had an itch, but I got it!"

Unfortunately, only the giant and Irihi's big blond seemed to find this at all amusing, and things pretty much went downhill from there.

Sayuri (as she had now begun to think of herself, at least when the giant wasn't around) was not enjoying her stay in Konoha. For one thing, she didn't particularly want to stay. She much preferred the several weeks she had spent clinging to the giant's arm, as his oversized toad carried them over all sorts of terrain. Even back when she hadn't really cared for the giant at all, he had at least been very amusing, and a welcome change from all the cold, angry people she was used to dealing with.

But nearly everyone in Konoha seemed to be upset, and Sayuri had figured out very quickly that she was the cause. Something about her origins bothered them, but it was difficult to pick out exactly which problem from her troubled past they took issue with (especially since she only knew bits and pieces herself), or if it was simply her entire past that they didn't care for.

As the feelings of the villagers were rather obvious, Sayuri had hoped that the giant would take her away again. Instead, he took her to a house that was only slightly outside the village, from what she could see, and left her with the people there, under strict instructions not to run away.

He said nothing about behaving herself. Sayuri was quite clear on that point before she made up her mind to make her feelings known.

It didn't matter that the man was Irihi's big blond, or that the woman had the same eyes as Irihi. Neither of them actually was Irihi, and that was their greatest failing, as far as Sayuri was concerned. If they got too close, she bit. If they asked her to do something, she refused.

Sayuri realized, of course, that had she asked for Irihi, there was a good chance someone would've been sent to fetch her. Nor would she have been opposed to Irihi suddenly showing up for no reason at all. But she wasn't about to ask anyone for anything. That would imply that she needed things from them, and that was not the case.

This sort of thing continued until Irihi actually did arrive a few hours later.

"Sayuri!" Irihi cried upon seeing the huge mess she'd made of the house. "What are you doing? You can't just wreck oji-san's house!"

Though she probably should have felt ashamed, Sayuri only felt slightly calmer, now that Irihi was around again. She hadn't known the people were related to Irihi, but even that wasn't enough to pacify her. Sayuri suddenly realized that she wanted to be around Irihi all of the time. Irihi seemed to know things, and more importantly, didn't mind sharing them.

The problem was that, once again, she refused to put that into words. Then it would become a need. Although, Sayuri would admit to herself later on, Irihi was essential to her survival in Konoha. No one else here quite understood her.

But Irihi insisted on treating the damage to her uncle's house as a personal insult, and refused to speak to Sayuri for the rest of the day.

Sayuri knew then that she would not be able to stay with these people, no matter who they were to Irihi. If she were not allowed to attack and destroy things on a regular basis, she would be unable to protect herself efficiently.

So, the moment Irihi left, Sayuri fled the house and hid in the first empty house she came across... which, actually, was less than a minute away, and on the same property. She hadn't technically run away; the people obviously knew she was there, since they left food, clothing, and anything else she might need at the door. Sayuri thought they resigned themselves to the situation rather quickly, almost as if they'd been expecting her to act in such a way. She wondered if the Uchiha they had known before her had behaved similarly, and if that was good or bad.

The next morning, Sayuri woke up to a very loud voice outside of her new house.

"C'mon, Akamaru! Time to practice some jutsu!"

Sayuri frowned, recognizing the big blond's voice. What was he thinking, announcing his intentions to the world like that? Anyone could sneak up, spy on him, and learn... his... secrets.

Hmm.

Although she recognized the ploy for what it was, the chance to copy new jutsu was too great to resist. Sayuri had learned a few things from the giant in their time together, but he seemed to know a lot more than he showed her (certainly she hadn't seen that earthen prison jutsu until he used it on her). She suspected that Irihi's uncle, while not quite as big, might know nearly as much, and if he was willing to share in order to draw her out of the house, she would play his game for now.

She hadn't really counted on the huge dog, which was quite a shock at first. But thankfully, the dog kept its distance, and pretty soon, Sayuri's Sharingan was working overtime to dissect and piece back together the wide variety of jutsu that the big blond displayed. Over half of them she knew right away that she couldn't perform... not yet, anyway. But there were quite a few basic moves included, and it was those that made Sayuri realize that this man wanted her to actually learn, not just copy. Perhaps Irihi had asked him to, because beyond that, Sayuri could think of no reason why he might arm her so thoroughly.

Before she knew it, the sun was high in the sky, and Irihi's aunt came out to call the man inside for lunch. Sayuri noticed for the first time that the woman was pregnant, and began to feel the slightest bit guilty about biting her. But oddly enough, there was absolutely no hesitation in the woman as she walked over and invited Sayuri to join them. Even then, Sayuri thought about refusing. But when she saw the pinkish bite marks still on the woman's hand, she changed her mind.

The food was good, or at least better than anything Sayuri had been used to. Irihi's uncle talked for the whole meal about various things, obviously for her benefit. At first, he only mentioned the Uchiha he had known sparingly, but Sayuri found herself becoming interested, and soon he was talking about nothing else. She wasn't sure if she liked this Sasuke person, but he was family, so he might know things about her that she didn't. From what the giant had told her, though, seeking him out now would be much too dangerous for many reasons, the greatest of which was Sasuke's older brother, Itachi, who hopefully didn't know about her yet.

Sayuri couldn't help but notice that there were no questions about where she had come from. That was just as well, because she didn't feel comfortable saying so. She also saw that, just as with Irihi, there was no negative reaction to her ever-present Sharingan. In fact, Irihi's uncle and aunt seemed to want her to stay with them, which was a startling, though not necessarily welcome change. They were forgiving enough, and Irihi trusted them, but beyond that, Sayuri didn't like the idea of becoming dependent on them.

So, when no one was looking, Sayuri went back to what she had come to think of as her house. It was still mostly bare, but she had everything she needed, for the time being: clothing, running water, and... a white flower that hadn't been there when she left?

It was positioned carefully on her futon, so she couldn't miss it. There was no message attached, but she knew it was from Irihi. It was a lily, after all, and who else would think to give her something like that? Sayuri was so surprised by the gesture, she forgot to be angry that Irihi had been in her private space without permission. She didn't even really like flowers at all, but no one had ever given her a gift before.

"Pssst! Sayuri, wake up!"

Unfortunately, Sayuri knew at once that she wasn't dreaming. Those were always disturbing, and right now, she only felt annoyed because someone had woken her up in the middle of the night.

"Come on, wake up! I'm not leaving until you answer me!"

Seeing no other way to get back to sleep, Sayuri stomped over to the door and threw it open, aiming her most hateful glare at Irihi. "Go. Away."

Not surprisingly, the Hyuuga girl didn't take the hint. "I'm sorry I yelled at you yesterday. Did you get my flower?"

"I threw it away."

"You... oh," Irihi murmured, clearly disappointed. "Well, that's okay. Flowers aren't for everyone. So, I was hoping maybe we could go back to being friends?"

"No," Sayuri snapped. "We aren't friends, and we never were. I don't want any friends. From now on, we're rivals. So don't come here again unless you want to fight."

One of Sayuri's earliest memories was learning to read people's eyes. This was especially easy with Irihi, because her eyes changed slightly with every expression. But up until that moment, she had only seen Irihi display varying amounts of happiness, and a little displeasure.

This was the first time she had ever seen Irihi get angry. Those wide, pale lavender eyes flashed, and suddenly, it was as if the Irihi that Sayuri had known so far never existed. The girl standing before her suddenly seemed taller, by more than just the few inches that had separated them yesterday, and Sayuri felt her own body responding automatically, her muscles tensing as Irihi took a step forward.

"You're right about one thing, Sayuri. We're not friends. But we're not rivals, either. I don't think you know what you're saying... or who you're talking to. I am the heiress of the most powerful clan in this village." The veins around Irihi's eyes bulged threateningly as she stared down at Sayuri. "And you," the Hyuuga girl said softly, with a superior smirk on her face, "are not even in my league. You're beneath me. You literally can't be my rival. You're not strong enough to compete with me. I would destroy you... if you were even worth the effort, that is."

The words hurt, even more than Sayuri's had just hurt Irihi seconds before. But more than that, they made Sayuri furious. She knew precious little about her clan, but the one thing she knew for certain was that they were proud. And she wasn't about to let anyone take her pride.

She lunged at Irihi with almost no thought at all.

And Irihi, a girl she believed to be incapable of violence, simply raised her hand in a halting motion, as if that would protect her.

The next thing Sayuri knew, a great weight slammed into her chest, even though she was positive that Irihi never touched her. The air was brutally driven from her lungs, and she barely had the breath left to gasp as her body sailed the length of the room, crashed into the wall, and dropped limply to the floor. Her chest felt like it was on fire, and even though the room spun crazily for a moment, she could still make out a small, red stain on the wall that explained the warm wetness she could feel spreading through her hair.

Then Irihi was standing over her, and Sayuri instinctively curled into the fetal position, waiting for the next attack.

"Since you're still alive, I'll let you be my rival. I'm going to make you strong, and I'm never going to hold back like I just did. By tomorrow night, you'll be begging to be my friend again." With that, Irihi walked out of the house, slamming the door behind her.

Sayuri waited a few moments before slowly crawling across the floor to her futon. With a trembling hand, she dug out the white lily, holding it up in front of her face. Then, she flicked her wrist, tossing the flower into the air, just before she belched out a stream of flame that consumed the flower completely.

"You are my rival, Hyuuga Irihi," she whispered. "When I can destroy you, then I will be strong."

By the time she had run all the way home, Irihi's tears had finally stopped. The pain in her heart lingered, and she suspected it always would.

She had been so happy when she found out where Sayuri was staying, but now it wouldn't matter. She had lost her friend, and Sayuri would hate her forever. But at least Sayuri would soon be able to protect herself.

"Why couldn't you have been my friend, Sayuri?" Irihi whispered sadly. "Then I wouldn't have had to hurt you..."

End of Part 1.

Endnotes:

Soshina: little gift

Sayuri: small lily

If I understand the Sharingan correctly, even if the user doesn't have enough skill to perform a jutsu they've just seen, they could still master it days or even years after that point, without needing to see it again (assuming the jutsu can be copied, anyway).

The jutsu Jiraiya uses to restrain Sayuri can be considered a variant of Doton: Doryuheki (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall), where the user creates a wall in front of them by spewing out a stream of mud from the mouth that quickly solidifies. The only differences here are that the wall is instead a cocoon of sorts, and not really used for defensive purposes in this case.

Disclaimer: Uchiha Sayuri, Aburame Shinju, and Hyuuga Irihi belong to me, all other characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.