Chapter one: The Blind ninja
A small boy, no older than 10 years of age, lay upon the cement roof. He had dark hair which he kept in a small ponytail high on his head. He had small brown eyes that gazed up at the sky. He rested his head in his hands as he watched as the clouds moved slowly across the great azure space. He was quickly jerked from his relaxation as he heard voices shouting angrily in the house next door. He sat up, to see what was going on.
"I want to go, and you won't stop me!" yelled a female, as a door slammed. The boy then saw a girl appear on the roof next to him.
She was about the same age. She was tall, had spiky black hair with a red tinge to it. She wore baggy black pants and a plain purple shirt. Her face hidden from his view, but to the boy, it looked as if she was crying. He could see she was wiping her eyes in silent sorrow. The boy sighed, and decided to see if she needed comfort.
As he hopped over to the next roof, she whipped around to look at him. "Who are you? Did you hear all of that?" She growled, but then softened her voice. "Sorry, I did not mean to be rude…" she apologized. The girl stared at him with blank eyes; they had a silver sheen on the corneas. The boy realized she was blind.
"You are blind?" He asked surprised, and rudely. The girl turned her face away, but kept a soft composure.
"I am, what of it?" She answered, in an almost growl.
"I'm sorry, that was rude of me. I was just surprised…" the boy began.
"It's ok, I get that a lot." She said, almost with a smile. Her sudden change of attitude startled the boy. She was facing him once again, even with her glossy eyes; the boy could see that her eye color was that of deep gold. He found them very pretty.
""What is your name?" she asked him, stepping closer to him.
"Shikamaru Nara, and you are?" he replied.
"Haruka Tatsu" she replied in kind. She kept walking closer to Shikamaru. "Would you mind if I...feel your face? I want to get a mental image of you."Haruka muttered, slightly embarrassed.
Shocked at her request, he reluctantly replied "If you really want to." And she placed her soft hands on his right cheek and ran her finger tips over his face. Shikamaru shuddered at her touch, and found that he was blushing slightly.
"Were you coming up here to comfort me?" She asked, pulling her hand away after a few moments.
"I was hoping to accomplish as much." He replied, and he turned to leave. "Seems you are ok now," Shikamaru got ready to jump back over the railing.
"Wait, are you going to join the Ninja academy?" Haruka asked, almost raising her hand towards him.
"I am, but it's going to be such a drag…" he replied, turning back to face her. Haruka fell silent, and then closed her eyes for a moment.
"I want more than anything to become a ninja, but with my lack of sight, my mother thinks I am incapable." She spoke with a very determined voice.
Shikamaru watched her, not knowing how to ask a blind girl how they would do that. So he decided to just say "I hope you accomplish your dream" in a hopeful support. Haruka just stood there, and he could not determine what she was thinking at all. She held herself tall, like she had full confidence in her dream.
"You doubt that I can, you are just being nice." She whispered. "Just because I am blind, it does not mean I cannot see." She walked up to the edge of the roof, to Shikamaru; it looked as if she was going to fall off. In alarm, he rushed over to her. Haruka jumped from the edge and front flipped over the chasm to another roof with ease. Shikamaru was left stunned on the other roof for a few moments. He watched as Haruka jumped back.
"How can you do that?" He pried in disbelief.
"I was born blind, so I had to come up with other ways to see. I can feel vibrations in the ground," Haruka shifter her feet, that's when Shikamaru realized she was barefooted. "I can feel people's unique chakras, and can tell people apart from them."
"How can you judge distances?" he inquired, his eyes were curious.
"By hearing the echo of sound, much like a bat." She replied smiling. She saw that the boy could imagine how to do it.
"That is pretty cool" he muttered in a relaxed tone. "So, one more question, are you joining the academy?" he questioned.
"If all goes well" she replied, walking back to the door in which she first emerged. "It was nice meeting you Shikamaru. I would be pleased to walk with you to the academy tomorrow, if it's not too much to ask." She waited for his response.
"Why not?" he asked, sounding kind of annoyed that he was going to walk with a girl. Haruka smiled happily, and her face lit up.
"See you around!" And she vanished behind the door. Shikamaru shrugged, and went back to his roof.
XXXX
Haruka dashed into her house, startling her mother who was in the kitchen preparing dinner. "Slow down Haruka dear." She hollered to her now vanished child. Haruka jumped onto her bed and flopped on her back.
"I have to go now, whether they like it or not!" She said aloud to herself. She knew the academy opened tomorrow, so she had to rush to find her things. She gathered her ninja gear that was an assortment of weapons. She could never let her mom find them in her room, so she hid them in the attic of the house. She also kept her most prized possession up there, a great masamune given to her by her great grandfather in secret. She knew it well, and could easily wield it. She focused her fighting style around it. Though blind, she could still do poses, and techniques just like any other person. Haruka's grandfather also taught her some offensive kinjutsu.
The Tatsu clan had originated from the Mist village, and decided to move to Konoha, protect future generations from their blood thirsty antics. They made a pact with Konoha and have lived there since the end of the 3 Ninja World War. It has been 7 years since the Tatsu have resided in Konoha, and there was still little know about them. She was brought he as a newborn, so she didn't even remember the mist village. He grandfather was a very powerful ninja in the Mist village, and feared for his skills in chakra control with a blade.
Haruka hoisted the large blade, and unsheathed it. It was cool to her touch, and sharp as ever. The blade was very unique. When swung, it made a soft whistling sound. It helped Haruka a great deal, for the sound echoed off of everything and made it very easy for her to find her surroundings. As if it was made for a blind swordsman. Her Grandfather said it was called the "Honjo" Masamune. He claimed it was one of the most beautiful swords ever made.
"Haruka, Supper is ready!" Her mom's voice sounded through the floor. Haruka quickly shoved all her belongings under her bed before heading downstairs. The smell of pork stir fry met her nose as she sat down at the dinner table with her parents. Taking up her chopsticks, she muttered "Idatakimasu" before she started to wolf down her meal with intense hunger.
"Easy Haruka, there is always tomorrow" her father said smiling, as he watched his child. Her father was tall, had long silver hair. His eyes were aged, and the color of honey. His face was held in a smile of amusement. His age was undefined, for he looked young, but with his white hair and old eyes, he looked almost like an elder.
"I know" Haruka smiled sheepishly. "But mom's cooking is always so good!" and continued to devour her food at an alarming rate. Her mother just laughed at her remark.
"If you continue to eat at a rate such as that, you will choke dear" her mother interjected. Haruka finally slowed down.
"Mother" she began. Haruka intended to bring up certain subject to converse about. "Why will you not let me become a ninja?" she muttered, hoping to change her mind in a last ditched effort.
"It's too dangerous for someone such as you. You know full well why you cannot" Her mother replied, in a not so nice tone. Haruka's father cleared his throat.
"Yoko, why not let her try? You know she is capable. Though blind, she is more aware of her surroundings than even some ninja I know." Her father began. He was a Jonin for Konoha after all.
"I just don't want to see her get hurt, Suzaku…" Yoko replied, her eyes hidden in thought. "We both know the dangers a ninja must face."
"I'm stronger than you think mother. I never had sight to rely on to begin with. So I will never miss it. I will never have the fear of being unable to see, as a seeing man that stands in darkness would have." Haruka interjected. "I can see more than the naked eye, that's my strength." Haruka stood up. "I'm going for a walk, be back soon." and left her parents to discuss the matters.
Haruka walked the streets, and by the fading warmth of the sun, she knew it was sunset. She knew the area well. The smell of dirt, wood, and cut grass pervaded her nose. She was at the ninja training grounds. By the openness of the area, the projectile weapons part. She placed her hand on the ground, and concentrated. There was somebody in the next area walking around. She could hear their light foot falls. Judging the sound of the footfalls, she determined male. She wandered over to where the person was, curious to know what they were doing. She could now feel their presence. He was about as young as her and training hard. The boy detected her presence and whirled around.
"Don't mind me." She replied casually, wondering what they would do. She could sense he was looking at her.
"Who are you, and what do you want?" he asked, in a low tone. He held several kunai in his hands. He had raven black hair and wore grey shorts and a plain blue shirt. His gaze was unfriendly, and serious.
"It's more polite to introduce yourself before demanding another's name" Haruka teased, but replied before he could correct himself. "Name is Haruka Tatsu."
"Sasuke Uchiha" he relied, in the same low unfriendly tone.
"So what are you doing, Sasuke" Haruka asked, wanting to annoy him. She didn't like his tone at all.
"Are you blind, I'm practicing my Target practice" He replied rudely and threw a kunai and hit the target dead on.
"Actually, I am blind…Sasuke" she smirked. She had the urge to fight him now. She didn't know what caused it, but she could sense Sasuke was a strong ninja already. Even before the academy.
Sasuke looked down, "Oh, sorry." He replied in an apologetic tone.
Haruka just started to laugh. Sasuke just looked away, annoyed.
"So, you joining the academy tomorrow?" she asked him, leaning against a nearby stump.
"Yeah, it's expected of me. I want to make my clan proud!" he replied with an unexpected smile. Haruka smiled herself, though she did not show it. She still wondered if she could pull it off, sneaking off to join the academy. Many plans formed in her mind. Then, Sasuke looked at her, realizing she had not replied yet.
"Oh yeah, so am I!" she finally responded, scratching her head sheepishly. She grinned; she really had to stop daydreaming when she was talking to people.
"How can a blind person become a ninja?" Sasuke asked, thinking she was joking. Haruka placed her hands behind her head and smiled.
"Same way as you, with lots of practice." She giggled. She wanted to "Test" her current sensing powers on Sasuke; she just had to provoke him into a fight with her.
"Yeah, like you can even see anything coming. You'll be dead before you knew what hit you" he smirked, he sounded very confident.
"Want to test that, Uchiha" she growled playfully, emphasizing the "Uchiha" part to annoy him.
"It will be cake!" he laughed, walking away from her. "So, let's see what you can do?"
Haruka could sense her surroundings perfectly through the vibrations in the ground through her bare feet. The wind rustled the leaves of nearby trees. She could feel Sasuke's chakra in front of her. She could see in her own way, the shape of his body, and where his Chakra was strongest. She could even tell where he placed his feet, and how. There was a faint clanking sound of his weapons to further give away his position.
"Yes, let's see" she replied, more to herself than him. It was her test to see if she could become a shinobi, to see if it is possible for a blind child to overcome her weakness, to see if her dream was possible.
Haruka waited for Sasuke to make the first move. He came at her with a simple direct assault. She knew he would attempt to go easy on her, at first. So, to show off, she let him get very close. Then, she moved very quickly to dodge, and as he passed by on her right side, unable to slow down, she slammed him in his exposed back with her elbow. Sasuke stumbled a little, and whirled around. She could sense his chakra changing a bit, due to his surprise. He came at her again, this time with more tactical assault. He attempted to trip her in a whirling kick. She dodged by jumping and placing her hand on his back and flipping over his shoulder. For the next several moments, all she did was dodge. Finally, Sasuke gave up trying to hit her.
"Man, you dodged every one of them!" He managed to mutter through his deep breaths.
"Heh, that's because you were too slow" she giggled, then turned to leave. She had to get back home before her parents started to worry. Sasuke was going to say something, and then stopped himself.
"Later, Sasuke!" she laughed back at him and started to walk home again. She felt like her dream was much closer than she expected. Then, in the distance, she could sense the familiar chakra of her parents running hurriedly. She ran to catch up with them.