Shinigami's Child

Naruto Uzumaki dislikes ghosts. She especially dislikes the ghost of that absurdly cheerful Uchiha boy who refuses to leave her alone. Shisui x femNaruto

xxxxxx

The next day, Naruto was standing at the foot of an old apple tree, as she waited for the nurse to complete Sasuke's early morning check-up. Despite the spring weather, there was a bite to the air, and, since she had dragged herself here at the kami-damned hour of 5AM, the area around the hospital was desolate. Once Shisui's head popped through the second story window to give her a thumb's up, Naruto began climbing.

Her hands unerringly found their way to the best handholds, and easily pulled her lightweight body up the craggy wooden trunk. It wasn't a little-known fact about the blonde girl, that Naruto absolutely loved climbing. Not necessarily the act itself, but being perched up in a high place, looking down at the world and being buffeted by the wind. It gave her a feeling of free-spirited wonder and running adrenaline to know that a second's lost grasp could have her plummeting to the ground.

Naruto didn't bother to suppress her chakra. For one, it was way too difficult for someone with her lackluster control, and for another, the Uchiha's ANBU guards would spot it immediately. She wasn't trying to hide from them anyway; it was only the prejudiced civilian nurses that would toss her out.

When she had reached eye-level with the top of the window, Naruto leaned over, grasped the edge and pulled the ledge open. Then she grasped the trunk tightly with one hand, straddled her knee over the ledge, and stumbled headfirst into the room. Her head contacted the linoleum floor with a distinctly dull-sounding thud.

"Owww," Naruto moaned, sitting up and rubbing her head, "Stupid Uchiha. This is your fault."

"I didn't ask you to come here." The quiet voice was undoubtedly male, but sounded much younger than her irritating new ghost. Naruto looked over to the sound, and felt the strange mixture of pity and jealousy coil up in her stomach.

Sasuke Uchiha looked so small. Pale and haggard, dark rings under his eyes, oily bangs, and only half-again as large as the pillow he reclined against. A faded and broken boy, covered with tiny strips of fresh gauze and cheerful bandages that didn't do anything to fix the deadened look in his eyes. And Naruto shouldn't envy him because he had lost everything, but she still did, because he had an older brother that would sacrifice anything for him.

"And doesn't that just make my jealousy even more irrational?" Naruto mused, "Because I would be terrified to be, in any way, shape, or form, associated with Itachi Uchiha."

Shisui's recounting of the Uchiha Massacre had accomplished his main intention. Naruto was, in fact, in possession of basic decency and empathy, and could acknowledge that Itachi's sacrifice for the village was invaluable. She knew the underlying causes that drove Itachi's action, and yes, she was unmeasurably grateful that the teen prevented a third shinobi war, but still. To think that any shinobi could push down their own heart enough to massacre their entire family, from the most crotchety elder to the most innocent newborn, was horrifying.

Itachi Uchiha was a true hero, and like many heroes of the Leaf, his will of fire blazed so brightly that it consumed everyone around him.

"Are you just going to sit there?" Sasuke spoke again, listlessly watching the blonde.

"Er… no," Naruto replied, scrambling up to her feet, "I have class in a few hours. My name's Naruto Uzumaki."

She got closer to the bed, stuck her hand out, and then withdrew it a few moments later. Sasuke didn't move his gaze away from the floor, and Shisui merely slapped a palm against his forehead. Naruto resisted the urge to sigh. She had absolutely no idea what to do with a traumatized kid.

"What are you doing?" the boy spoke again, when Naruto climbed on top of the bed. She ignored the way he shied away from her, until his body was at the very end of the bed, and merely curled up on the sheets. It was an adult-sized hospital bed, and they were both small kids, so there was plenty of room for her to rest on.

"I'm tired. It's five in the morning," Naruto replied, matter-of-fact. Shisui drifted closer, and studied Sasuke intently, not that the smaller boy was aware of it.

"Itachi used the Tsukuyomi on him," Shisui announced, astonished. Naruto considered telling him that he needn't whisper- no one else could hear him, after all- but decided it was more effort than she wanted to exert at this hour. Shisui's eyes moved towards the wall, and then narrowed. "Offer to get rid of the clock," he instructed.

"Do you want me to get rid of the clock?" Naruto parroted. Her face was turned towards Sasuke, so she could get a brief glimpse of the surprise and gratitude in his eyes.

"I can still hear him," Sasuke said softly, "...Please destroy it."

"Itachi has a very messed-up way of showing his love," the blonde girl thought, as she took a kunai out of the weapon's pouch tied to her thigh. Sasuke grasped it eagerly, and then threw it, viciously and with a better aim than Naruto on even her best days, through the delicate workings of the clock.

There was a loud crash, followed by the unmistakable tinkling of glass falling on the floor, as one of the ANBU Shunshined into the room. The masked shinobi, whose matte grey armor and short hair made it difficult to discern gender, looked directly at her. Despite the painted mask and black eye holes, Naruto was pretty sure the ANBU radiated disapproval.

"I'll be on my way then," Naruto laughed awkwardly, scrambling off her comfortable resting spot, "See you later, Sasuke! I'll bring some real food over tomorrow!"

After watching the blonde girl practically toss her own body through the window, Sasuke reclined back against the pillow. This time, he closed his eyes and let himself drift, however briefly, back into sleep.

xxxxxx

Shisui couldn't wait until they had reached the apartment to start speaking.

"Well, that could have gone much worse," the dark-haired boy exclaimed, sounding pleased, "We won't have a good idea of his mental state until a few more visits have passed, but once it's stable, we can tell him about the Uchiha Massacre. We should look into the village laws too, and see if there's an established precedent for reintegrating missing-nin that have been cleared for their crimes. It's unlikely for one to exist for capital crimes, but…"

Naruto listened to his chattering with a visible grimace, and quickened her pace. He kept up easily, of course, with the advantages of longer legs and natural grace, but losing him hadn't been her aim. Pink powder-washed plaster walls came into view, and the blonde girl broke into a jog.

"Hey, what's the hurry for?" Shisui asked curiously.

"Wait," Naruto muttered, out of the side of her mouth. The early morning chill and dull weather was unlikely to draw others out, but she still looked around warily for potential eavesdroppers. The girl drew out a copper key, and unlocked her apartment door, only relaxing once she was inside.

"You can't talk to me in public," were the first words out of her mouth. "Even if I'm the only person to hear you, there's a risk that I'll unintentionally react. The last thing I need is for people to think that I'm hearing voices in my head."

The ghost boy nodded agreeably, taking a seat on her couch. Though it was more like he bent his body into a sitting form, and hovered imperceptibly over the couch's surface. Naruto had never been able to figure out how the ghosts instinctively manipulated their bodies with respect to furniture.

"I can see why that might be a concern for you," Shisui said, "Does anyone know about this talent of yours?"

She shook her head, and his eyes widened in astonishment. "No one? Not even the Hokage?"

"I kept it a secret from Ojiisan," Naruto confessed, "I didn't intend to. When I was younger, and before I knew about ghosts, I showed him, but…"

"He thought it was an imaginary friend," the Uchiha completed. "How long have you been able to see ghosts?"

"For as long as I can remember," Naruto answered, heading to the kitchen. Shisui drifted after her, and settled down on the counter, while she took out a disposable cup ramen. Adding some water, she put it in the microwave, and set the timer. Then, she arched an eyebrow in his direction. "Not going to criticize my breakfast choice?"

"I'm not that big of a hypocrite," Shisui replied, ruefully, "My Tou-san died in the Third Shinobi War, and my Kaa-san died a few years ago from Kyuubi-related health complications. There are times when an entire meal consisted of granola bars and old cereal. I will recommend a glass of milk and maybe fruit too, though."

"Not a sharing circle, Uchiha," the blonde rebuked, half-heartedly picking her least rotten apple, and taking a bite, "I don't want to get to know you."

"Then what do you want, Naruto?" Shisui peered at her intently. The blonde averted her face, not certain as to how she should respond to his genuine interest. She had never had someone look at her like that before, as though she was a fascinating puzzle that they would love nothing better than to solve. For that matter, other than a handful of people (and Inu-oji), Naruto had never had the experience of having someone look at her, rather than through her.

"I want to become a ninja," Naruto spoke consideringly, the words beginning slowly, but then falling quickly, even hurriedly, from her lips, "I want to learn more about Inu-oji. And go outside of the village! I want to see the world, have adventures, and make friends. I want to learn about where I came from and who my parents were. I want… I want to know why the villagers look at me like that."

"How do the villagers look at you?" the Uchiha prompted.

The Uzumaki's hand closed tightly around the apple, causing rivulets of juice to spill over her hand. "Like I'm not there," she whispered, "Like there's something wrong with me. I want to know why they pretend I'm not there, and why the other children aren't allowed to play with me. I want… is there something wrong with me? Am I defective in some way? Is it obvious to everyone else but me?"

She wasn't aware that tears were pooling in her eyes, until a cold, not watery hand clasped her chin. When it was tipped upwards, the world became blurry behind a thin film of salty water. Blinking rapidly, the tears started to fall down her cheeks. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"No." Clipped, gentle, and entirely confident, Shisui's response caused the tears to fall faster.

"Then why do they hate me?" Naruto asked, plaintively.

"Because the world is full people who are ignorant, fearful, or prejudiced, and often all three," the dark-haired boy responded, "Because even those who know better don't take action, thinking that the problem doesn't affect them. We lived in the same village for years, but it wasn't until I died, that I tried to get to know you, and even then for my own selfish reasons. I'm sorry, Naruto."

They fell to a shared moment of quiet, that was soon broken by the mechanical beep of the microwave. Naruto drew away- now acutely aware of how the ghostly boy was standing right in front of her- and hurriedly took out her cup ramen. It was through years of experience that the huge mouthful she immediately swallowed did not choke her.

Shisui, feeling mildly sheepish over stealing the young girl's personal space, returned to his counter top. He tried to hide his amazement as the relatively tiny blonde inhaled her pork ramen in less than three minutes, and chugged the broth down promptly thereafter. Not a single droplet spilled.

'Now that is impressive,' Shisui thought, marvelling at her speed, 'Man, if she was my partner at the Jounin Food Nights, I'd make Ishori Akimichi eat his stupid challenge.'

When Naruto finished her ramen, she tossed the plastic cup into the trash, and then fixed brilliantly blue eyes on the Uchiha. "You said that people hate me because they're ignorant?"

"I wouldn't go so far as to say that they hate you," Shisui replied, carefully, "Many of them fear the power that you can potentially wield."

Naruto looked panicked. "But I thought I hid it so well!" she said, wringing her hands, "Only Ojii-san knows about Inu-oji, and he thought that I had an imaginary friend!"

"I was referring to another power," Shisui consoled, making a mental note of Naruto's reaction. The blonde girl had seemed comfortable enough with his ghostly form, but she might still be harboring doubts if this was her reaction to the skill being public.

Shisui balanced his hands just a whisper's breadth above the countertop, and leaned forward. "What I am telling you now is an S-ranked village secret, punishable by death. This doesn't bother me, for obvious reasons, but I cannot stress it strongly enough for you to keep silent about this, Naruto. The upper hierarchy would want to know where you got your information, and unless you're willing to admit that it came from a deceased Uchiha, they'll suspect the adults around you. To those adults' misfortune, I'm sure."

Despite her apprehension, Naruto gave him a firm nod. Then, her whisker-cheeks curved downward as she frowned. "Wait, they'll suspect every adult around me? Do they all know this secret? Are the kids the only ones who don't know?"

"The S-rank ban covers your generation," Shisui clarified, "Specifically, the batch of genin that graduated two years ago are the eldest ones to not be told. Unless they make Tokubetsu Jounin; then the information is issued after one year of service. All of the adults, civilian and ninja, know."

"Not much of a secret then," Naruto scowled. Liquid fruit extract pooled around her fingers again, and the Uchiha boy eyed the apple pulp in her hands with no small degree of sympathy. Though he could understand where Naruto's ire had come from. He wouldn't have liked being the subject of a massive secret that the majority of the village, excluding him, knew.

"I think it was intended to keep the younger generation unprejudiced, so that you had a chance to make friends," the Uchiha offered, "Of course, just because parents couldn't explain why they disliked you, didn't mean that they couldn't warn their kids off from playing with the orphan girl. And when kids are told to avoid someone-"

"-they think that that person is bad somehow," Naruto finished, shoulders slumping, "I know."

"This secret may cause you to look at yourself differently," Shisui added slowly, "But I want you to remember that you've always held it. Knowing the truth doesn't change the life you've lived."

Her stomach clenching in worry, Naruto attempted a smile. "Just spit it out, Uchiha."

"Alright. Then, to understand this story, we must begin with the First Principle of Chaka. It can neither be created nor destroyed; rather, it transfers from one medium to another."

xxxxx

When the shade of Sakumo Hatake floated through the door of Apartment 5D, he found a screaming, pint-sized blonde throwing tableware at the wall. That this apartment belonged to the blonde in question was the main reason he didn't immediately turn around and track down Naruto. Sakumo's secondary reason was that Naruto's limited finances led to plastic cups and bowls, so there was no shattered china on the floor. The kitchenette wall was receiving quite a beating though.

Catching the eye of the only other non-living person there, resulted in a sheepish half-shrug. "She's been at this for a while," Shisui Uchiha admitted, "I- er, told her about the Kyuubi?"

Sakumo nodded, and drifted closer to the furious girl. One ghostly hand brushed through her shoulder, and, even through her anger, Naruto automatically cringed away with goosebumps.

"It's not fair," she hiccuped, blue eyes rapidly blinking tears out of her eyes, "I'm going to- I'm going to- Inu-oji!"

Naruto moved to tackle him into a hug, aborted it at the last second, and then sunk to her knees. She wrapped thin arms around her legs and hugged them to her body, muffling her voice through her knees. "It's not fair… It's not my fault! It was never my fault!"

"We know," Shisui said gently, sinking to his knees before her. Cold, clammy hands gripped her shoulders, and then moved to draw her face out. "We know, Naruto. You weren't given a choice, but you ended up sacrificing anyway. It's not your fault. You're a hero."

When Naruto reluctantly looked up, she was faced with the bloody crimson of the Sharingan, and she gave a choked splutter of a laugh. "Like Itachi," she said bitterly, still laughing, "I'm like Itachi."

The girl didn't notice the guilty expression cross her companion's face, but Sakumo did. "Yes," Shisui agreed, carefully putting both arms around her, "You're like Itachi."

Despite the noticeable drain of energy from keeping his arms mostly corporeal, the Uchiha refused to move away from his hug. It was only when his arms started to feel like they were burning, that Shisui drew back. For Naruto's part, it felt like being entrapped in a cage of ice, so cold that it turned quickly from discomfort to pain, but she didn't end it. It kept the her from drowning in hysteria again.

Sakumo moved until he was standing next to the Uchiha, and then mouthed something.

"He wants to know what you're planning to do next," Shisui translated, "Are you going to talk to the Hokage about this?"

Yellow strands of hair flew back and forth. "No! He'll want to know how I figured it out, and I'm not telling him that. If Ojii-san wants to keep secrets from me, then I'll keep secrets from him too!"

The mulish expression on the girl's face dared him to challenge her, but since Naruto's decision meshed well with his plans, Shisui didn't argue.

"You can't research jinchuuriki without tipping him off," he warned instead, "You need to come across the subject indirectly, through another form of study."

Shisui's brow raised at the other man's suggestion. "Sakumo thinks you should research the Uzumaki Clan, and then start studying fuuinjutsu. Bijuu sealing is around the pinnacle of the art, so you may find some mention there."

"The Uzumaki Clan?" Naruto bit her lip. "Is that where my father came from?"

"Maybe?" the dark-haired boy shrugged. "Learning about your parents was one of your goals, wasn't it? We'll look into it, and fuuinjutsu can help you with your shinobi studies. I might be able to help you there too."

"I forgot you were a shinobi," Naruto admitted quietly, "Were you a good one?"

"Well, these aren't just for show, you know," Shisui smirked, and tapped his eyes. "I became a genin at age 7, and I died as a member of ANBU. I think I have a few tricks worth showing."

The Uchiha then nodded toward the older man. "Once we've trained you to read lips, you might be lucky enough to get a lesson or two from Konoha's legendary White Fang."

Sakumo's face was expressionless when Naruto turned pleading blue eyes on him, but he seemed pleased enough when he nodded. At the Hatake's agreement, a smile crossed her face, and Shisui ignored how piqued he felt that his promise of training hadn't elicited such happiness.

"What about your goals?" Naruto asked plaintively.

Shisui waved it off. "It's fine. You need someone in your corner-"

"No, it's not!" That stubborn jut of her lip appeared again, and the Uchiha was amused to note that, after her reluctant smiles, this was the facial expression she used most around him.

"You're helping me, so I'll be helping you too," Naruto said fiercely, "Since I'm a jinchuuriki, who'll be spending time with Sasuke, I'll be getting Akatsuki and Root's attention anyway. Working to get Itachi cleared won't add much more danger to that. If anything, I should do it just to screw with those bastards."

A ghostly hand flew through her head a second later, and Naruto winced.

"Ow! Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to curse!"

xxxxx