Chapter 1: I Am Uchiha

My name is Uchiha Shin. Shin means new. It means new and flawless and pure. That was what Father explained to me. The Uchiha's name needs to be pure once again, since there are a lot of stains to smear it. I am going to be the messenger to the new Uchiha clan, the boy, who needs to wash it clean. It is my cross to bear, but my glory, too. And I wear it gladly. Even if there is a price to pay.

My price was my boyhood, which I never had. Never had friends, or pets, or family, only Father, who forbid me from having „too much bonds". Or too much words. I have never been very talkative and I learned my lesson not to use many words. Speaking much, it means you are weak. Only the weaklings feel the need to talk and talk, to fill the silence with words, which don't lead to anywhere. Father despises those weaklings. And so am I.

However, sometimes I did have attachments. I remember the first one, since that was the most painful. It was a rabbit, cute and surprisingly black in fur. I called him Usegi-chan – even if I later learned that he was a she -, and sometimes referred him as Uchiha Banii. Father just watched me, when for the shortest time I forgot about being the Newest of the Uchiha generation, and I was just a boy. He watched me and waited patiently to grow the bonds, and then he killed my rabbit in front of my eyes. I started to cry and he slapped me. I was a weakling, and he despised me at that time, too. I do not know if that hurt me the most or my rabbit's death. Or maybe both.

This was the time, when my Sharingan woke up.

As for the other bonds I do not remember too much. Father, when he was in a good mood often said me jokingly that lately he has to be more creative with his methods to make my Sharingan stronger. I never laughed on these jokes. I never learned how to laugh. I guess Father would have been angry if he had seen me laughing anyway.

I do remember when my Mangekyou Sharingan woke up. Father said me after the event, that it was a tricky one. You see, you have to witness one of your close relative's or best friend's death to wake up you Mangekyou. But at that time I had none of them, only maybe Father, but he was not sure that his death would wake up my Mangekyou. Me neither.

So he gave me a mission. My very first mission actually, because my whole life was only training after training with some hints of trauma to make my doujutsu stronger. I was excited and a little worried – two emotions I was not familiar with. Father told me that the mission's purpose is to blend in with a little village. It was the village Hidden in the Waterfall. Not very famous or strong; there were only a handful of ninjas, who got trainings there and they moved to the Hidden Clouds as soon as they could. They desperately wanted some ninjas to look over their village and protect them from the bandits and Father said the task is mine. I was only ten, however a ten year old with a powerful three-dotted Sharingan.

The villagers had no trust in me at first. I had no trust in them either. I spoke to no one. I did not look them in the eye. I was afraid to grow bonds. The children called me to play with them at first, but their parents told them not to. I was on duty to protect them, so technically I was no child. And I was okay with that – I did not feel myself as a child anyway.

I did not want strings attached, but it was inevitable. They gave me food. They gave me some place to sleep. There was a nurse, a young woman who always took care of my minor injuries and she always had some kind words to me. I do not remember her name, or maybe I just forgot, I do not know. I made myself forget. The villagers were distrustful toward me at the beginning, but lately they started to get used to me. I was part of the village, part of a little family. They started to talk about that I should get a badge with the village symbol. And I was proud and a little happy, too, but I never showed them that side of me. They got used to that, too. I was just Shin, and they did not care about the rest, not cared about me being the pure blooded Uchiha. It was a nice turn. I would never tell Father, but I preferred being Shin than being the newest of the Uchihas. I was lying in the bed at nights and was terrified, because the thought telling Father, that I wanted to stay… Impossible. Uchiha Shin cannot have dreams. Cannot have family or village and he already have a symbol on the back of his shirt. The Uchiha symbol what made me somebody and without it I was no one. There was not me.

That night I fell asleep quickly. I did my job right; there was no reason to think Father would be angry with me. If I could stay in the village I did not know, but it was the future's problem. Right now I am invincible; right now I can be the Waterfall's Shin. Or I thought so.

That was the night, when the attack on the village happened. It was fast and brutal and so unexpected. Father told me that the mission is going to be easy. Waterfall is small and insignificant, maybe worthy for some pitiful bandits or missing ninja, but not for any powerful one. I am the newest and soon to be the strongest of the Uchihas, but still a child, said Father. There is no use of me if I die. Then why is this happening now? Is it a coincidence or on the contrary: they are here because of me?

Soon I realized the purpose of the attack was not theft or blackmailing, but they attacked for the sole purpose to destroy everything. The buildings were on fire and there already were bodies on the streets by the time I rushed out of my room. I did not see the attacking ninjas, but I heard screaming in the distance, maybe just one or two streets away from me. I ran; I jumped on a building and I saw a man. He wore a mask and I could not see any emblem on his clothes to recognize where he came from. He grabbed a woman's hair and pulled her to his chest and then cut her neck. Just like that. No vengeance, no rage, no meaning. And then he looked up; our eyes met.

He wore a mask, but I know those eyes well enough. The left eye is normal and black and cold, but on the place of the right eye there is a Sharingan, which is not his. Never asked him where did he take it, did he steal it or someone gave it. Father always acted like it was his and I never dared to question its origins or his rightfulness. And after some time I never really cared. I could easily get out the stitches what prevented the eye to shut down after the use of the Isanagi. He died and came back to life thanks for this not once and not twice, but a lot more. I had no chance against him. Father did not die that night, not because of the hands of me. He knew that I will not clash with him.

I knew that I failed. I failed my mission, because I could not attack Father and I failed Father, because I could not do my job. I watched the whole Waterfall burn and the villagers are slaughtered down because of my weakness. Some of them looked up me as well and they begged to me for help, to save them. And I just looked down at them with a face of a boy who is not capable of mercy or feelings at all, the face of Uchiha Shin and that night Father made me realize that the only place in this world is with him. I finally embraced my true purpose of my existence; only in my deepest of my body I felt the pain and devastation.

That was the night, when my Mangekyou Sharingan woke up. Not because I killed my best friend, but because I killed a whole village, those who were the closest being my family ever in my life.