A Measure of Darkness
"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep." Reincarnation!OC
— Robert Frost, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
EIGHT
A Measure of Darkness
The Great Bridge — Recapitulation
I allow myself only two days to play the sick boy stuck in the Leaf Hospital. There are more important things other than teetering on the edge of consciousness.
What happened?
My last memory is so... accurate. There's a subtle definition to it, whereas all my older memories are still right but a little fuzzy. It's like a snapshot in my mind by not some cruddy camera but a high-definition, professional camera.
Obito was/is on the verge of death. After treating his stump, I begun to heal the infection in his body. Then Kakashi appeared, dead tired, not looking too worse for wear.
"I—Rin—I'm..."
(I hope that doesn't mean she's dead. Please, gods, Pain, tell me she's not dead. Don't let her body float in the debris of Madara's territory. Don't let Obito turn evil because of her death.)
Then something grabbed us. Now I can recall an ivory hand grabbing the front of Kakashi's shirt. The boy wasn't nearly as dazed as I felt. Everything blurred together and snapped back and it was too much for my head. I definitely passed out.
Great. This summary didn't help at all.
But I wouldn't need a summary if I wasn't so stupid. I couldn't have been at their side, watching the battle. No. I go out of commission because of a stupid illusion I couldn't break. Piece of shit thinks he actually knows what I'm afraid of. He's wrong. It pisses me off to think a guy like him is the reason Obito had to save me and lose an arm.
I need to practice genjutsu. Learn something to defend myself with. Then I'll study up on Weapon Techniques and—I'll just see what happens in the future.
Unlike others, the extent of my injuries are more mental than physical. So I get pain medication and a scan under Mystic Palm and that's it. I'm told I'll be able to leave today, the morning of my third day. My nurses are not the ones I had before, but very quiet and demure women who slip in, ask no questions, and get out.
Once again I am in a solitary room, no bigger than a closet.
I've learned the hospital's layout. The map commoners see is just the barebones. Layers upon layers exist because of chakra in this world, there's about a thousand more ways to die.
(Some Bloodline Limits and Bloodline Selections are absolutely insane. The elemental types are okay, but then there's the mutant humans with the ability to control their bone growth, spit legit acid, gain energy by eating themselves—the list goes on and on and I had to learn how to treat injuries like those.)
I know I'm in one of the classified rooms. IE, whatever happens in the room doesn't exist. This stay won't be on my hospital record, but my private hospital record. Wait.
That stint at Kanegasaki.
Was that visit on my private record, too? Kanka said she made me stay all for her stupid tests, but maybe that wasn't the full story? Only 14 days elapsed into my stay when I moved rooms and visitors were allowed.
—the door cracks open without a knock or forewarning. For a moment, I expect it's someone coming to kill me. I'm staying on a floor with shinobi and their wounds from missions that they were "never on" to begin with.
No, it's a well put-together man. Has a sort of roguish charm, like that of cocky thieves and womanizers. His smile is very languid. Have I seen him before? It's on the tip of my memory. Pale blond hair, blue eyes, weary face. The man wears the typical Leaf uniform with a small notepad in tow.
"Good morning. I was hoping you'd be in the mood for questioning," says the man with probably the best voice ever. It must have been practiced. Maybe he's a singer. There's no way a man just wakes up with a handsome voice. "If not, then surely you've got questions? I'd be obliged to answer them."
Finally something interesting.
A ninja wants to use me. Everything about him screams mind games. If I don't want to be swept off my feet and taken for a fool, I need to win this. At least make this battle a draw.
I make sure I use my best posture as I greet him. The man rests on the side of my bed, one leg bent and one leg resting on the side like some kind of talk show host.
"It's a little early to be here, no?" I point to the clock. "It's not even sunrise yet."
"Oh, trust me, I am aware. My sleep schedule is a mere shadow of what it used to be," replies the man.
This guy is good. Not Karada good. But still unnerving.
"By questioning, you mean about my injuries or the mission?"
"Well, I had hoped we begin with the mission. However, we will cover both topics in due time."
I am not charismatic enough to do this. Karada could lie so easily it seemed like truth. I've always thought too much.
"I can't offer you much about the mission seeing as I wasn't really in it much." I hunch up my shoulders helplessly and force myself to look at the eyes that do not reflect his smile. "We are talking about the same mission, right? The one with bridge and stealth."
"Yes." He chuckles. "Let's begin in reverse chronological order. What is the last thing you remember?"
"Green." Upon his silent reaction, "Not like grass, but of the tent flaps. I know that green when I see it. Do you know why I would've been in there?"
The man tilts his head to side. Too innocently. Oh no.
"How do you know what a Leaf tent looks like? As your words seem to imply you've observed one before."
I can do this. He's probably smug about winning. Well, I've been around smug people all my life. This is my domain.
"My father loves complaining about them, you know. Helps him like a stress relief. But he told me only authorized personnel can enter, not some no-name shinobi. Definitely not me, a medic-in-training. So the one who brought me there must be high up in the chain of command, right?"
Boom.
The man's face turns back into an unreadable mask. "Yes, the ninja is a very important person."
"Ah, okay. Then it was the Yellow Flash."
He turns away, looking at the room, the lack of life.
"What can you recall beyond the tent?" is his question instead asking me about Minato, where I wanted to go.
"Doing my job. As a medic, I was required to heal my injured teammates and that I did."
"Can you describe the injury?"
What's the point of this?
"Severed arm, infected. Required immediate amputation, limb couldn't be saved. Highly possible that even if the other half the limb was retrieved, it would be unsuitable for reattachment. Next were signs of shock, low blood pressure, and low-grade sepsis. Several non-fatal wounds and burns. Need I go on?"
"That's more than enough. Thank you."
"What did that achieve? Were you wondering if I healed him unnecessarily?"
I had heard stories of vicious medics who would heal the comrades in the wrong way, thus killing them.
"It never hurts to have too many perspectives," replies he with a dismissive wave. "And further?"
"I... was kidnapped and tortured via genjutsu too strong for me to break. My teammate rescued me, almost dying and everything, then I healed him, et cetera."
The man deliberately nods. Looks away "thoughtfully". I know what he wants to say and he says it. "I apologize. That must have been very tense. How are you coping?"
Almost. I expected him to ask what I'd seen. Eh.
"Fine," I say.
"You aren't trying to seem strong just for me, eh?" The man smirks and I swear I see a twinkle in his eye. "I am a part-time psychologist, one of the village's best, mind you. By your 'fine', it is plainly obvious that you prefer to bury your emotions. Denial is a very immature, unhealthy response to trauma. We can overcome this. The next you grieve, you won't have to suffer through the pain of denial. You'll be able to grieve healthily and maturely—"
This man... probably does not have any children. He must've been some kind of only child. His children skills are terrible.
"Like I said," I interrupt, "I am fine."
"All right. All right. But admitting there is a problem is the first step to—"
"Any other questions? I know where the secret seal is."
Said seal is in every room, hidden so that a patient may signal for help without alerting the dangerous threat in the room. It's such a thing one must worry about in a world of killers.
The man actually blanches; has the seal been used before on him?
"That's not necessary! Let's move on. I have other questions!"
"Shoot."
"Is there anything the man showed you in the genjutsu?" He speaks slowly, as if to give me time to think if I should respond. I already know what to say.
"Nothing other than my fears."
"Ah. Children your age have very scary fears. It's difficult to see the difference between reality and fiction—"
"None of that stuff," I say. "It's cliche. Just my loved ones dying, nothing more. It's on my mind because of the war, after all."
"...ah, yes. I see."
Much to my relief, the man gathers his notepad and stands.
"It was very nice meeting you. You were very compliant with the questioning. You'd be surprised how rare that happens," he adds with a laugh. "Any further questions?"
"Two. First, who are you?"
The man bows dramatically, curling up elegantly and grinning as if he's in a tooth commercial. "I'm just a common man. Just a hero in blonde. I am the I in out of my mind. Inoichi Yamanaka!"
What's with this flamboyant display? Reminds me of Obito in the Chuunin Exams.
"...to-ry this on for size!"
"Well okay then," I say, not really sure how I should respond.
Inoichi's smile falls. "That's it?"
"I've never heard you before. Sorry?"
The man's depression rolls off him in cold, ferocious waves. I lean away, but can't escape the dark energy.
"I see," Inoichi mumbles. "The price I pay for being in the background."
"Anyway," I stress, "I have a second question. Remember when you asked me about the genjutsu? Well, I saw more..."
The man raises one brow and looks as if he hit the jackpot.
The words just fall out my mouth before I can think.
"The jinchuuriki—the power of human sacrifice, the man said it was an Uzumaki woman. That they would be going after the Nine Tails to extract and use against the village. That the Earth would use my father's Sharingan to control the beast and have it slaughter everyone. And that the woman wasn't Mito Uzumaki. They told me that if the jinchuuriki were to go into labor, the seal would weaken and they would take advantage and take the Tailed Beast.
"So... isn't the jinchuuriki Kushina Uzumaki?" I finish, trying to gaze at Inoichi with the most innocent, clueless face I can make. "Will she be safe? She's about the age of having children. If that beast escapes, my clan will be the most persecuted."
It's not easy acting.
What do you do when a person you know who could hide every single emotion broke his mask?
Because Inoichi's smile slowly fell as I spoke. Just as his depression hit me in waves, so does a minor wave of Killing Intent.
An invisible presence is squeezing my chest and making it cold. If I keep my eyes still, I can see the glint of the fluorescent light hitting the sword blade jutting from my chest.
"Adults should only speak of this," Inoichi monotones. "You should stay in the place of a child and not worry."
"Don't tell me not to. This is my family and village at stake. I don't want any mistakes or a lovesick jinchuuriki murdering hundreds of innocents and giving away our biggest source of power so close to war. I've got every right to know."
But I can't really go about saying rights I took for granted as an American here. I don't know much about laws here yet, but I do know that the Leaf is very particular on how much information civilians get know.
"Why are you in such a rush to grow up...?" Inoichi then shakes his head, blinking, as if not meaning to speak out loud. "You're merely five. I'm in my 20s. I've four times the experience compared to you. So do not worry; the adults will handle this. You can contribute to our aid by keeping your mouth closed and never utter a word of what the man told you. Else I'll be forced to use a special technique to make you forget."
Finally, I don't dare speak back.
Yes, I would love to forget Rin and Obito being tortured.
But if Inoichi sees memories of the entire show in my head... I don't know.
"Good day, Takenaka," Inoichi says brightly, waving, the tension still heavy in the air like humidity. "Do get rest. It's almost a new year, hmm?"
.:
I'm cleared to leave. I asked about seeing Kakashi and Obito, and once the nurse was positive they were my teammates, I get to see Kakashi. Unlike Obito, Kakashi was in a generally okay state. As I'm guided to his room, I search for Obito's chakra and it's not in the hospital.
I didn't kill him, did I?
Don't worry. Do not worry. You'll freak yourself out. It is okay.
(What if he committed suicide because of Rin? What if she's dead? What if I did nothing nothing nothing and Tobi exists?)
The nurse practically throws me into Kakashi's room, where he is reading a thick book in bed. He looks a tiny bit thin in his hospital gown and bandages. Can't imagine how I must look like. The boy has not been sleeping. He doesn't even wear his usual mask, opting for a simple surgical mask.
"Hey," I say, standing at his side and trying to peek at his book while quietly wiping my sweaty hands on his blanket. "How's recovery going?"
"I really hate hospitals," he sighs and pulls away the book. "I can't help but think of how much time I waste sitting and thinking."
"It's more fun when you're not in the classified ward. In the common ward, the real world acknowledges your existence."
"I haven't been in the common ward in years..."
That elicits a laugh from me.
"Um... Kakashi?"
"Mm?"
"I've been questioned about the mission... and I was... just thinking about the full story, you know," I say, hoping he'll read between the lines.
"Ah..."
Kakashi grips the book tight.
"What happened to you? I never knew."
I hunch up my shoulders. "Ah, a man tried to get me to spill Leaf secrets. Didn't really work, though."
Kakashi's eyes carefully watch my appearance. They narrows slightly. Am I that bad at lying? Does he know me too well?
"As for what happened to me... we all agreed we had to get you back and complete the mission. Obito volunteered. Rin and I went to the bridge. The plan was to blow it up as a distraction. Obito went with Pakkun to search for you, using the rose quartz as a guide. I left with Rin for the bridge undetected. We managed our part easily, but we severely underestimated Earth forces. They surrounded us before we could realize. Rin—"
Kakashi has a thousand yard stare. His fists are trembling as he forces the words out his mouth.
"She took a hit for me. I should have been more proactive. We should have been using collaboration techniques, not fighting solo. I was careless and so she saved me."
"Kakashi?"
I shake his shoulder but no dice.
"I managed to get Minato-sensei to help us. Some medics carried Rin away. Then I searched for Obito and you, to make sure you were okay—Obito looked so normal. In a couple hours, he lost his arm and you weren't yourself. Everything went wrong so fast..."
"Kakashi." Now he looks at me. I'm not entirely sure he sees me, though. "'You weren't yourself'—what are you talking about? I was healing Obito. That's my job. I wanted to save him!"
"No, no you were not yourself. I didn't see polite, hardworking Takenaka. I saw an angry and cruel boy. I knew they hurt you. It was just as Obito said."
Is he going crazy? He's making no sense.
"There's no way Obito is up and talking after what he went through three days ago," I say, trying to keep my voice level, rippling my knuckles at a tempo of 80. "I think you need rest."
"Obito told me that years ago. I still remember, Takenaka."
He looks so needy. The world is just seconds away from being pulled under his feet.
"Okay, Kakashi. What was it?"
"It's activated by extreme emotional trauma or stress." Kakashi breathes in quickly. "The Sharingan."
—what?
He's not—He can't be implying—I unlocked the Sharingan?
That can't be.
The nurse interrupts us, calls me a "toxic influence", and bans me from his room. I leave the hospital at sunset, the deepest part where nothing remains of the sun except deep oranges and long shadows. When I arrive home, sense Itachi's chakra, I know I can't meet my family like this. So I jump onto the rooftop and sneak into my room through the secret passageway.
My room's still so messy. My bed is cold yet immaculate. I fall into it. Cover my eyes.
The Sharingan is mine.
How am I supposed to unlock the eyes? I feel just like Sasuke. Am I just forced to go through another trauma and then remember how my eyes are opened? I can't wait that long. Itachi mastered his eyes at eight. I can't keep wasting time like this.
Open sesame.
Abracadabra.
Bippity boppity boo.
Nothing. My chakra is still recovering from being sealed over the few days, as well as the strain I put it through during the mission.
I figure I need an expert's opinion. So I make sure I am presentable and walk downstairs. Itachi is already asleep in his new room. My mom is still awake, cleaning up the home. I make noise as I meet her in the kitchen, to prevent from scaring her.
Mother takes a breath as soon as she spots me. "Oh, Takenaka! You're home! I'm glad to see you're okay."
"I won't leave you behind, Mother." I start helping her clean the counters and sweep the floor. The methodical nature of it all lets me stop thinking and do. It idles my hands and frees my mind.
"I have something to ask you, though."
"I'll answer it to the best of my ability," Mother responds.
"It's really serious. I've already unlocked it, but can't unlock it again, the Sharingan."
I hear Mother's sudden stillness. Soon she's spinning me around to face her, saying, "You... unlocked the Sharingan?"
"Yeah."
A heavy, trembling breath falls from her mouth. A subtle red dyes her face. "Oh, darling. I'm so sorry."
"It's okay... it makes me stronger."
"But so young, though? That is not the power a young boy needs."
"Mother, trust me. I don't act like a child. I don't want to be a child. I am a ninja of the Leaf and of the Uchiha Clan. I am a heir. I must do this."
Somehow it's second nature to refer to myself as an heir when my real origins were anything but.
"You'll eventually figure it out despite my protests, won't you..." Mother pulls back her long hair and fans her face. "The pathway is already established. All you need to do is recreate it. Send chakra through the pathway leading to your eyes."
"Huh..."
My chakra yields to my pull at last. I push the energy through my chakra system. It pools in my brain, makes me light-headed. I spent months learning the chakra system. There are no major branches connecting to the eyes. Yet I feel something... large? expansive? linking my brain and eyes.
It hurts to push the chakra through. The hurt is like a rash I can't scratch. It gets worse and more intense and I can't scratch, can't relieve the pain.
Before long my chakra has a mind of its own. It rushes to the gap, I guess, and threatens to tear down whatever blocking it. That only makes my eyes hurt more.
"You can't fight it," Mother says. "You'll cause irreversible damage. My kind, little brother tried to stop the Sharingan and ended up blind. You have to let the pain overwhelm you. But I am here, Takenaka."
I hold onto her hands tighter.
It's difficult to not control my energy. The pressure gathers behind my eyes. The wall breaks. The pain reaches a climax before settling down to an annoying burn-like sensation. I can sense a thick branch linking my eyes to my chakra network. More energy than I am used to filters through my eyes.
The world is defined. Everything has such a clear contour line. Microprint is no match for me. The individual strands of my mother's hair—some crooked, some adjacent strands are different sizes, the imperfections skin is prone to.
And all of it feeds into my subconscious just as vivid as I had seen.
"That is the Sharingan." Mother looks like she wants to say more. She settles for a tight hand squeeze. "Turning it off is as simple as severing the connection."
"Um, thanks for..."
"Don't thank me. Now... you need to get to bed, little man. Tomorrow I am assuming you want to go back to medical school?"
"Oh. Right."
(I can already hear the work I've missed.)
Back in my room again, I can't get over how well I can see with such little light. I'm like a cat. Ahem. I'm like a lion.
I look in the mirror. Red eyes are unnatural on my face. My huge, young eyes just seem to magnify how unnerving the Eye Technique is. Two tomoe are opened in total, with a matured Sharingan having six tomoe.
I've done it. The eyes are mine. If I could master the eyes, I'm one step closer to becoming a formidable ninja.
How could I sleep when I have the Sharingan just waiting to be mastered?
First's thing first, get acquainted with these babies.
I practice tossing a paper ball. And find tossing a paper ball has become the hardest thing imaginable.
My eyes are feeding my brain a hyper-focused image of ball passing through space. My body is used to 18 plus five years of my plain eyes and moves normally. It's hard to explain. What my eyes see is a slow breakdown while my body moves in present time, creating this disorienting gap.
Paradoxically, the faster I go, the slower I should perceive the world. I remember watching a kids show dealing with just that. I'm sure it had a cat and a fish screwing with a countdown? Anyways, my eyes are viewing the world slowly yet to an outside observer, my eyes should be accelerating quickly.
In contrast, my body moves normally because it moves normally and not on some enhanced plane. The slower I move, the faster the world is perceived.
Let's say I'm driving a real nice sports car. Cruising at the speed of sound. I look out the windows and see that some really large building moves so slowly past me. I can look at cars around me and watch them drive past in slow motion.
Me in a sports car passes by me standing in an intersection surrounded by cars. They all move so fast. I can't track one fast enough.
Well, the scenario works on an exaggerated scale. It's not something overtly visible at normal human speeds.
The first hurdle to my Sharingan mastery is mastering my reaction speed.
The next cool thing about the eyes is that I can see an extremely vague overview of the chakra system. That's already plenty helpful seeing as I've memorized the system's layout and I'll have no problem corresponding ambiguous blur number 44 to a chakra system branch. I just need to make this intuitive. This is the second hurdle.
The third hurdle is the advanced perception. All this sensory information is starting to become a little too much. The only way I can see this not being an issue is by using the eyes more and forcing the body to interact with this crazy world.
I'm dead sure it's through this hurdle that will grant me predictive powers. I so want that. I can't wait to start training that. But I have to start small.
The best hurdle deals with eye's signature ability to copy. This will be my lifeline in medic school. I won't have to spend hours memorizing terms. Just a simple glance! I could mimic advanced surgery techniques (and probably use them once my muscles match what's required). I could copy any technique. I don't really know what technique I want to copy. There's so many.
Then there's the genjutsu aspect of the Sharingan.
I don't have to practice genjutsu techniques so that Kanabi isn't repeated. Yet, though, it's such an easy hack. Genjutsu are kinda cool when not torturing toddlers. I'll look into it.
I have to make my to-do list all over. Med school, Sharingan practice, ninja practice. And with all the freed up time I now have, I'm making sure the eyes are going to mature.
.:
To my surprise, it took me only four months of work to unlock four of six tomoe. My visual prowess only increased by maybe 1.5 and it's enough to throw me off. All new challenges. The third and final stage will be annoying.
The first hurdle, my reaction speed, is practiced via a ping pong match. I get a paper ball and a makeshift paddle and use the wall as player two. Starting out, it wasn't pretty.
My eyes took their time watching the ball complete its arch while my body felt heavy waiting an uncomfortably long period of time before moving. In real time, 800 milliseconds passed. It felt like five seconds—which feels like such a long time just timing myself sitting still.
And to keep challenging myself, I added more paper balls until about eight. They all moved so slowly I was able to decipher the ones closest to hitting the ground but my body was normally too awkward for me to hit it.
The trick, which took me so long to learn, was to speed up my body so that it too no longer moved at its regular speed. Then my eyes saw slow moving paper and limbs and I reached this sync that made life so much easier.
With both parts moving at roughly the same perception, my consciousness altered. No longer was I disoriented. My consciousness would have perceived 800 milliseconds of time without the slow motion. My memory would recall the 800 milliseconds drawn out to 2 plus seconds. My body would be a little sore with how fast I moved it.
It's... weird. No wonder the Hyuuga Clan is the Leaf's strongest clan. Not everyone can master something this complicated.
The second hurdle, by far, is way easier. I just have to remember the chakra system in comparison to the chakra blurs I see. The blurs aren't constantly visible. I have to emit the intent to see chakra and it sort of happens, a bluish haze of light beneath the surface. There are some densely packed blurs that are red flags for major chakra system branches. The core of the body is much like the brain within the chakra system. The Sharingan can pick up on the clockwise and counterclockwise direction of chakra rotation as well. (Handy tidbit for Rasengan training.)
Getting used to the new world before my eyes makes up the third hurdle, the most boring. Just have to keep the eyes on and do normal things until it feels comfortable.
The copy ability is a bit of a struggle as it depends so much on muscles. But remembering homework and vocabulary and junk is easy. Too bad it doesn't extend to learning rules, like the correct medical scrub in technique. I have to put brain power into learning those. Basically, if my eyes don't see a body doing the thing I want to copy, it does not copy and only goes into my memory bank.
The last issue is genjutsu. My only test subjects are animals. They don't have the same brains as we humans, though.
I went to the bookstore and bought The Legend of Saizou Kirigakure, one of the best pulp fiction novels in learning genjutsu.
Genjutsu, the art of illusions, hallucinations, and deceptions, all begins with pushing chakra out the body and into the target's body. It's the least used technique in battle because of its super unsubtle nature. The only hope is to distract the enemy long enough to pull off the technique or place the illusion onto the target while they're not conscious enough to do anything about it.
Saizou proclaimed to the army of ten thousand, "I can make a genjutsu for any man, any woman, any god! It will become their own personal hell!"
The best illusions are the ones that play off of what the person expects. But in battle, a ninja doesn't have the time to psychoanalyze and act. So he or she goes for genjutsu too difficult to cancel and hope for the best.
Before I get into different illusions, I have to figure out a way to even pull them off. Everyone knows to fear our eyes. Nobody willingly makes eye contact when my eyes are red.
Hold on.
Itachi casted a Sharingan genjutsu without eye contact, didn't he? How?
There's something I'm misunderstanding about these eyes.
The first difference about these eyes is the diminished peripheral field. The macula is able to focus on a much larger portion of the world—a pea versus a nickle or quarter. Does Itachi use his advanced range of focus for a genjutsu? But whenever I do Sharingan genjutsu—calling this Sharingen—I need direct eye contact. From the chakra branch powering my eyes, it's all too easy to follow the flow of energy and release it wherever my eye focuses on. The alternative implies Itachi uses all of his visual field in transmitting a genjutsu.
(What even?)
I decide to sketch out my backyard I seldom use in training. (I don't want anyone finding out about my eyes.) I draw, over that, a large coordinate grid. I shade out a good 40 percent of the grid that makes up my peripheral, which then leads to 60 percent of the graph making up my range of genjutsu. All of the intersections are points of direct eye contact.
Let's break this down.
Apparently my genius brother uses these intersections as Sharingen transmission points (the act of throwing chakra to the person and giving them illusions). He doesn't need to directly look at the target for these to go through.
Direct eye contact requires two people, so... Itachi is on the x-axis and his target is on the y-axis. Since the target has to have some kind of direct eye contact within the field regardless of where they are, then I can see Itachi using his increased sight range to transmit the Sharingen along the grid to meet the intersection point.
In short, Itachi is making direct eye contact without actually making direct eye contact.
...nope. As soon as I phrased it like that, I just get more confused.
But in practice, it actually works. I can't really explain it further. It's more of an intuitive thing. The squirrel was looking directly at me, I was looking at the tree above it, it was in my field of keenest sight, and so I sent my chakra out along the field to the intersection point. At this time, it was my 80th trial. Chakra travels faster than sound but slower than light, and so there was a brief delay I had learned to account for. A lot of the Sharingan depends on predictions. I had predicted the squirrel would look at me as soon as I snapped the branch. It moved its body so slowly I could set up the Sharingen. It hit the squirrel successfully. After 10 more tries, I did it again.
These eyes are such a hack. My normal eyes can't transmit genjutsu or create a field. I'd have to do genjutsu like a normal person. Why does that sound so weird?
Ultimately, I have to retrain my eyes with two more tomoe because of the more advanced sight I have. Since I already have an idea of what I'm doing, training goes by without as much frustration.
Seven months post awakening my eyes, they were fully matured Sharingan. By the time I graduated my second year of medical school in March, I'd begun my first few weeks of training the matured Sharingan, equipped with double the perception I had before, clearer chakra blurs, and prediction.
Also in March, I am officially six years old. With a little urging, I am allowed to attend the Ninja Academy.
.:
The compulsory age of schooling is seven. If a child is five or six, they can enter the school as a sort of pre-kindergarten under the Legendary Child Program. Tuition costs way more under the program and the children selected are the best of the best.
I had already finished the Core Curriculum of the Academy when I was four at the most. I've already been through 13 years of school. The only real problem was the advanced math equations (polynomials, differentials, radicals—anything plural in math gives me hives), but besides that, easy. I have the academic and physical aspects covered, but there are more things the Academy teaches that I couldn't learn in a desk.
In January, I attend the January Ninja Academy Legendary Child Examination. It... could have a better name. Kind of disappointed Minato Namikaze didn't name it, but whatever. Being this close to my future, I notice that the Academy of now is pristine. Well... the school I know is made up of so many cracks and blemishes—this was really obvious in the manga. It made the Ninja Academy feel very old. But I see it now, all five buildings and training grounds dozens times taller than me, and it's not perfect but it looks clean. The pipes that wrap around many of the Ninja Academy's wall and roofs aren't the ancient, rainwashed things I'm used to seeing during Naruto's time.
(Team Minato probably stood where I stand once. Happy. Innocent. The world didn't scare them.)
A cold gust of wind practically rips through my thick clothes and I get a move on.
I head to the Legendary Academic Building off the side of the main building by following the signs. Right now the kids are out for the winter break because the Leaf prefers to celebrate a second, lunar new year beginning in February and not the calendar new year. Before me are toddlers my age that I tower a head over. Humming and stepping in line, I use my physical energy to keep warm as the line shortens.
Many children are silent, perhaps worried they'll fail the examination. For me, there's no possibility of failing. There are two options: win just barely or win.
Finally I make it inside the building to warmth. The remaining kids and I are directed to a room, me receiving room A-D, whatever that means.
I sit at the back so that none may copy off me. No one really knows who I am other than my emblem, but as a clan kid, I'm more likely to be prepared. The children near me, though, are clan children. Stunning blondes of Yamanaka, the messy manes of Inuzuka, the long and silky velvets of Hyuuga and more. Their emblems are kind of redundant. This includes me.
Our procter enters the room with a thick, fur hood that makes an Inuzuka bristle. His head is bald and shiny. He dusts dead leaves off his clothes and sighs.
"Greetings, Legendary Children applicants," he says, voice surprisingly friendly despite his eyes shaped in eerie, narrow slits. "I am Enkou, your exam administrator. We will begin with a written exam and migrate to a practical exam. By 5PM today, the top 30 percent of children will be accepted. Remember, even if you do not make it, you are still very good shinobi. Spots are limited, so do your best. Stay calm."
The room's atmosphere is between two extremes: nervousness and pure arrogance. Wonder where I'd be. I don't feel anything right now.
I made it midway of the year four Core Curriculum, I think as Enkou places my test down. I was in college. Well... I wasn't very serious, though.
But a glance at the first page tells it all. It goes from easy to hard, year one to presumably year five.
I feel nerves itching my heart.
"The tests are scored in percentiles, so how many you miss is irrelevant. Only those who out perform their competitors move forward. Any questions?"
I think there's an air of competition. I bite at my pencil's eraser.
"It is now 8:43. You may begin. We will stop at noon for lunch break."
And the room echoes with the sound of scraping pencils.
I breeze through the test in seconds, only meeting difficulties with year three and four math. But skipping those problems and rushing through history, I look up to see it's 10.
I pop my knuckles and resume.
With only math problems left, I spend long, long times solving these problems. I have no idea if the other problems were just really easy or—more likely—I've done everything completely wrong, like I always.
"Pencils stop. Excellent job, children. You deserve a break."
Everything relaxes when we're all in the cafeteria munching on light but warm food. Some clans like Hyuuga and Aburame migrate to themselves. Others like Yamanaka and Nara spread out and socialize.
I sit down at a table with really chatty Yamanaka and civilians. I'm used to the uber smart med school kids, so this'll be a fun learning experience.
"Woah, an Uchiha?" a girl Yamanaka gasps, placing her hand over her mouth. Her blonde pigtails are in perfect condition, just like her expensive jacket and eye shadow highlighting baby blues. "You wanna sit with other people? Must be sick!"
I beam despite her rudeness. "That's right. You've got very pretty nails. I really like that color."
She glances at her nails and to me. "Well... thanks! It's turquoise."
"Why do you got that mask on," asks a Nara boy as indicated on his shoulder emblem, whose hair is crumbled under his beanie. "Eye issues?"
"Nope! It's a secret!" And the comments begin.
"Secret? What for?"
"You're a weird one!"
I change the topic with, "My procter Enkou-sensei was really bald! His head was super duper shiny, too!"
"I had him, too!" shouts a girl I can't see from my position. "Looked kinda scary!"
"My procter was a woman," says another boy from no clan, having shaggy brown hair in a ponytail and tanned skin. "I like her."
"You should marry her," I smile and the table teases him for me.
Eventually I become the center of conversation only after a power struggle with the turquoise Yamanaka—Kaori Yamanaka. In the middle of my story about my mother finding my Body Replacement logs, lunch is over and we're to head to the inside gym for the practical exams.
Along the way, Kaori pokes my back, saying, "How good you think you're gonna do?"
I hum. "Probably better than the written. The math was killer..."
"That test was easy," Kaori scoffs, fiddling with a blonde stray curl. "But... I'm not so good at being sweaty, yanno?"
"But you smell so earthy. Do you plant flowers?"
"Yes, but, well, not that kind of sweaty!" And I think she's embarrassed.
"Gardening is a sport," I tell her. "Just like playing ninja."
A boy in front me turns around and I know it's an Inuzuka from his smell and small fangs to his vicious grin. "Aw, yeah! I'm, like, the best ever, dude!"
"Never tried it out," I shrug. "Parents kept me sheltered."
He winces, small eyes growing smaller. "Dude, you're missing out."
"What's ninja like? We could do it when we all make it in."
The Inuzuka—Ken Inuzuka—goes on and on about ninja. I listen and respond to keep him talking. Eventually Kaori forgets her anger and also quips in a few times about a girl playing, too. Our conversation stops when the next procter shouts:
"Hush up, shrimps! It's time to move them bodies!"
I know that voice.
It's Asuka, barely even changed since I saw her last.
"Asuka-sensei!" I call, waving.
The woman winces and looks wide-eyed at me. "Oh kage, you're a ninja now! Where did the time go?"
Kaori is nudging me, saying, "You know that woman?"
I nod. "She's actually pretty nice!"
"You crazy?" Ken says. "My brother called her every evil youkai in the book."
"We're startin' As to Zs, got it?" Asuka shouts above us. "Pass this obstacle course. Chakra's allowed. If you can pass this course, show me how 'mazing you are, and not cheat the system like a smart alec, you'll move up the percentiles. For this baby, it's weighted slightly more."
Kaori whimpers. I ruffle her hair and she sulks.
Asuka sticks two fingers in her mouth and whistles as loud as a cat's meow. One of those really annoying Siamese ones. "Aburame, Hakuya, you're up!"
I take a moment to appreciate I was born in a clan starting with U. And Kaori looks pretty chill that it's going to take a while for her turn, as she starts chatting all over again.
Ah, it was fun testing my social skills on kids my age, but now I need to focus.
Hakuya has no chance of watching and learning from others. Every movement he makes is in the heat of the moment and with the fear Can someone do this better than I? These strangers? and I like to think Asuka's critical gaze may cut him some slack.
But I guess Hakuya is used to being the first in everything. By the way he smoothly passes the obstacles effortlessly, Hakuya looks way smarter than he may actually be. Despite his heavy-looking trench coat that I think should be slowing him down. Maybe his buzz cut gives him some kind of aerodynamic advantage.
Throughout the entire course, he failed to use chakra.
"Excellent job!" Asuka pens down a time. I estimate five to six minutes. "Next up, Akimichi, Waga!"
Waga passes the course much less gracefully than Hakuya. I really do feel she's the bookish type.
"Oi, Uchiha, c'mere."
I look away to see a group of black haired, black eyed pillars of frost.
I've never been this close to any real Uchiha outside of birthdays and meetings. I really am too sheltered. No wonder my mom forced me to leave by myself.
I lower my smile to a demure curve and join my Uchiha clansmen. "Hello. Nice to see you all."
They fail to look at me like their heir. I don't think... they even know what their heir looks like. Knowing that, I try not to look too classy.
"You're weird," huffs a short Uchiha boy. "You a half-breed."
"Super pure, I promise." I stick out a pinky finger no one takes. "Any reason why you need me?"
"We're ranking each other against the best Hyuuga here," responds a boy with his arms crossed. I can see his muscular physique. "Mune, is his name."
I follow his jerked chin. Standing high and proud, Mune hides his seal of servitude behind a thick fringe. His loose and flowing clothes are off white and makes his turned off Byakugan that much brighter. His eyes are locked on Waga. I feel bad for her.
The rest of Hyuuga almost seem to hide behind him, with degrees of grace and confidence.
"He looks like tough stuff," I agree.
"Yeah. I'm our best bet so far." I give him a questioning look. "What, you never heard of me? You're definitely sheltered, huh? Nitsuke."
And before he can ask my name, I interrupt him. "Not that. I wanted to know why you're the best and how you're gonna best Mune."
Nitsuke allows a cocky smirk to form. "I'm the best Uchiha at ninja. My dad taught me all I needed to know about Uchiha taijutsu. Nobody's beaten me."
Vague, so I encourage him. "How many people have you fought?"
Another boy answers, "Way over a hundred."
"Nitsuke's our best shot."
"Then I depend on you Nitsuke," I say and nod. "Oh... what about the heir?"
Nitsuke scoffs. "Fugaku-sama's heir? Nobody's heard anything about him."
"He's supposed to be six, though. Don't think he's applying to Academy early. Wants to really spend his time being better than us," the shortest boy grumbles, blowing a fly away strand.
"Eh? Takenaka does?"
The boys flinch at my outburst, with Nitsuke leaping on me the fastest. "Takenaka-sama. Are you trying to commit treason?"
"Treason?" I thought it was formality?
"You really don't have much hope of beating the Hyuuga, don'cha?" And Nitsuke sighs. "Forget I talked to you."
And, as Uchiha are good at it, they coldly isolate and ignore me.
My family... thinks both nothing and highly of me. I let out a shaky laugh. They're definitely not going to like what happens today.
"Alright, next are the Ds! Let's get a move on!" Asuka shouts and whistles again.
I hear boys murmur: "I would mind her being my taijutsu teacher..."
Agh, the cringe...
Focus. The course.
Right.
The time I want is something under five minutes. The course is not difficult. It does require good running stamina and decent speed to cover ground. I don't think I'm too fast, so a Body Replacement will help by not having me run. I think about Body Flicker instead, but I've never had the time to practice the latter. This is a bad place to pull off something entirely new.
There are a few strength portions of the test. There is a balance section. Towards the end is a reflex section where pillars with jutting poles at random intervals spin and threaten to knock the ninja out if they're too slow.
There's a vertical jump portion. Every 50 centimeters is a flag of a different color. The highest is 500 centimeters. Knowing how some Genin can leap as high as trees and tall buildings, 500cm is a cake walk. I can aim for it.
Afterwards there's a simple jog to the end. I gauge the distance from the vertical jump to end. A Body Replacement will suffice.
I quickly run my numbers and come out with an estimated 2 to 3 minutes.
I'm giddy when Mune Hyuuga gets called to the course. I glance over and see Nitsuke's jaw is tight.
"Right, Hyuuga, you're off!"
Mune runs fast, long arms dangling behind him. He makes it to the monkey bars and, rather than climb the ladder, leaps onto the first bar and swings easily across, like he's just casually walking.
The next section is trickier. He leaps on the mat, feet landing on the separate mat rectangles, and reaches down in the middle gap where a 20 pound weight is. Crab walking with the weight below his knees is no challenge. At the end, he releases and front flips off the mats, dashing to the balance section.
Man, he's graceful. It's like a rehearsed play. I don't think my family is too happy about that.
As expected, Mune breezes through the balance portion, not even bothering to put his arms up for balance. As he reaches the reflex section, he makes a tiger-like hand seal and the veins around his eyes bulge.
Little surprise the Hyuuga effortlessly beats the reflex section, aside from a graze here and there.
Finally Mune does a vertical jump of 150cm, rolls, and crouches to a stop before Asuka, panting slightly.
Asuka nods as she pens in his score. "Very nice. Very nice, Mune. One of the best yet."
Mune bows and walks back to his Hyuuga crowd who nod proudly.
Kaori lets out a dreamy sigh. "He looked so handsome! Did you see how concentrated he was? His grace? It was so—"
I ignore her, preferring to think.
That had to have been really close to Hakuya's score. The elapsed time was something below five minutes. That weight test and reflex test are the longest sections.
Could I chakra skate across the mat? It'll take time to balance my chakra then move, but if I play my cards right, I'll fly past the hardest part. I definitely can't guarantee I'll do great in the reflex section. The weight doesn't seem heavy. I've picked up heavier—
"Listen to me!"
Kaori shakes me. She's still young. Innocent. I bite back my annoyance. "Yes, Kaori?"
"I can't do the weight part! I—I'm not strong!"
"Can't you skip it?"
"I'll definitely lose points," she says and stomps her feet.
"It's better than looking foolish trying to pick something up you can't carry."
Kaori looks above me in thought. "Yeah... guess so."
More children run the course. Ken Inuzuka actually does really good at the vertical jump. I grin at him and he winks back.
Then it's up to the Uchiha. My family is average, but, like, average among gifted kids and not the general population. So still good but it looks terrible when adults compare Hakuya and Mune to them.
Nitsuke does a pretty good job, though. He's fast and strong, breezing through the strength portions. He slows considerably at the balance and reflex sections. He clips a height of 50cm.
I clap the loudest and he ignores me. He's upset that his score is undoubtedly lower than Mune's.
Another Uchiha goes in place between Nitsuke and I—
"Uchiha, Shisui, ready?"
—what?
It's him. In the flesh.
Baby-faced Shisui smiles at Nitsuke, who humphs, before getting into position. He looks the exact same, aside for his large eyes, round face, shorter and chubbier stature. The boy who wielded Kotoamatsukami—tried to, anyway—and the boy who was like an older brother to Itachi. The boy whose death broke my brother.
I force myself to breathe slowly, to calm down. I've come too far to lose everything to nerves. The surprise of Shisui can wait. Focus.
Shisui zooms faster than Mune does. He leaps off the top ladder step and then swings off the bars at the end. He slows down a lot at the weight section and picks up the pace in balance and reflexes. In the end, Shisui gets 200cm.
I clap loudly again and Shisui locks eyes with me and can't stop a grin.
"Nice kiddo!" Asuka nods. "Right, last Uchiha for today. Oh, great. Uchiha, Takenaka!"
At once, every Uchiha looks at me.
I grin and take my place, calming my thudding heart. I'm at Asuka's side, give her a smirk, and I prepare my chakra.
"Alrighty! Takenaka Uchiha, you're off!"
I wait for the puff of air to leave her lips before flipping through my seals and twisting my chakra.
Come on, we got this in the bag! Let's go!
I immediately leap off the top step and swing across the monkey bars, my arms moving automatically as I prepare my next replacement.
I swing into the air, calculate, and Replace. I blink to get my bearings on this foamy mat and take the weight in both hands, hold it up to my chest, and run down one mat only. Chakra skating will be another day.
—that isn't totally cheating the system, eh, Asuka?
I Replace on the balance beam itself, stick my feet on the thin bar to fight past my dizzy spell, and get a move on. Left, right, left, right. I shoot my arms up and out for balance and to crash them together for one more replacement.
I shake off the faint nausea and staredown the reflex station. I can't use the Sharingan so I just have to try my best. At least my body moves quickly, but.
—poke.
—poke, poke, poke.
Poke.
My stomach took most of the blows. That could have gone way worse than it did.
I focus on the upcoming vertical jump. I focus all the chakra I can to my feet, stop, crouch, and once I've matched my chakra, propel myself up and forwards like a rocket. My chakra strings are flying, attaching themselves to the 500 cm flag. I pull myself towards it.
I grab a green flag, signifying 400 cm.
So the jump is harder than it looks.
As I roll and crouch to break my fall, a part of me is disappointed I didn't get my 500cm goal. I stand and hide my pain, though, as Asuka pens my time without a response.
No cheer?
I still grin at her and head to my classmates, sparing a look at the Hyuuga who have a disappointed look in their eyes.
Then to my family who all bow on cue.
"S-Sorry, Takenaka-sama. We did not know it was you."
"It's our fault for being stupid, Takenaka-sama."
"Forgive us for our tongues," Nitsuke says, bowing the deepest.
Shisui, though, waves. "Hello, Takenaka-sama. You look... not like the royal I thought but, still cool in your way, sir."
Don't fan out. Do not.
I drop all pretense of being a semi-uptight child and relax into the confident pose Karada drilled me. I'm already tall, so I see over most of the children's heads.
"You Uchiha," I begin, "don't really have to call me Takenaka-sama, you know. What a mouthful, eh?"
Black eyes stare back at me.
"Really," I smile. "Takenaka is fine. Or 'that weirdo'. I'll admit, I have been sheltered and some social norms I've learned are too formal, but I'm not stupid." My family share somewhat scared looks among each other. "Honestly! Relax!"
Nitsuke blinks. Then, "Well, Takenaka, you're really weird."
My family stare at horror at Nitsuke. Even he's pale, sweating slightly.
I let the silence extend... "Yup, I agree!"
And the tension breaks awkwardly—
"You're our heir?"
"Maybe he'll grow into it..."
But Shisui hasn't stopped smiling. "I like Takenaka. He's weird."
Takenaka-san. It's almost as golden as Itachi's Tata.
And before I can relax, I feel eyes on me.
I turn to find a rather large group of girls batting their eyes at me.
Oh no.
Kaori is the first to say, "You're royalty! I can't believe I ate lunch with royalty!"
"Me, too!"
"I talked to him!"
The conversation suddenly shifts to my performance before I can recognize how.
"—you looked so handsome!"
"I saw your muscles! Holy cow!"
"Takenaka is very dreamy!"
My smile becomes more forced by the second. It'd be bad to make enemies of so many girls. A part of me finds this all amusing and cool. Most of me feels nothing but sympathy for Sasuke.
"Thank you," I mumble to calm the girls. "You're all very nice girls. I hope we'll be able to be in the same class, learning together."
Those simple sentences make them swoon.
At this rate, I'll have my own Sakura. And she won't kick butt like Sakura. It's Sakura without everything that made her watchable.
I cannot handle a Part One Sakura.
I spend my time trying to escape the ever-growing herd of fangirls until Kaori gets called. As the last syllable of her name is uttered, Kaori's rational mind overtakes her lovesick mind, and she turns green in worry. "Oh no..."
I ruffle her hair again, mainly because of how soft it is and how tropical it smells. "You'll do fine, Kaori. You're six and there's still time to grow. No matter what happens, hold your head up high and walk proud."
Generic advice number 55... though Kaori smiles again and skips up to the beginning of the course.
"Ready, Yamanaka? You're off!"
Kaori is a decent runner who has to use the ladder for the monkey bars. She's very slow, but she makes it across (sparing some running time rubbing her arms). She doesn't attempt the weight section and instead speeds the balance section and does amazing on the reflex section. Her vertical jump is 50cm and her face is red from all the exertion.
I look at Ken Inuzuka and start to clap. Thankfully, he follows.
"Great job, Kaori!"
"Looked pretty good out there, yanno!"
Her face lights up. With three more students after her going and finishing, the practical exam is concluded.
Asuka is rushing us out the door, yelling, "Thank you, Legendary Children! We need a short break to judge, so relax, mingle in the practice hall, and we'll be right back!" And she slams the doors.
Kaori falls to the floor as soon as we reach the waxed floors of the practice hall. "Ah, so cold..."
"Kaori, girls are supposed to look lady-like," I say, sitting on my folded legs next to her.
"The universe can wait five minutes until I stop sweating."
Ken Inuzuka sits next to us as well, though he doesn't say anything.
So I say, "How well do you think you guys did?"
"The written was torture. Ain't never heard of 'convalescent' before today," and Ken shuts his eyes tight. "But the practical was okay. Didn't know no ninjutsu to get by as cool as you."
"Even so, you were awesome," I say honestly.
"What if I don't get in?" Kaori says, propping herself on her elbows to speak. "I need this opportunity. Inoichi-sama said I could learn my clan's techniques if I proved capable."
"I just really wanna puppy," Ken shrugs. "Not just any puppy, the best puppy ever. Like, it's as tall as me already!"
Kaori huffs. Seems that wasn't the response she wanted. "And Takenaka is a sure win."
I see more people planning to join us, non-hostile. "Yes, but, there's a difference between me and you. I've never had a childhood. And you two seem very well-rounded. Be grateful of that, at least," I smile.
"You're Takenaka, right?" says the Aburame, once he's close enough to our trio. "May I sit and speak with you?"
I pat the ground next to me where Hakuya obediently sits.
The next person to sit with us is Shisui.
"I really hate waiting," he murmurs, an excited yet nervous energy about him. "I keep doubting myself, you know."
I start to respond, but Kaori snaps about thinking of others, and Hakuya's quiet Takenaka-san distracts me more.
"How much time do you devote to training?"
I tap my chin and hum loudly in thought. "I'd say... 20 hours? Every single day of the week. Wash, rinse, and repeat for six years!"
Instantly these children stare at me, amazed and somewhat... something deeper.
"Don't pity me," I say, a shot in the dark. "I could have stopped if it became too much."
"Maybe, dude," Ken mumbles, pawing at his messy hair. "But, like, I was expecting maybe five or six hours. That's like more than twice."
"More than thrice," Shisui adds, a frown on his face that shouldn't be there.
Kaori sits on her knees, smoothing her skirt out. "Yeah, but... you probably don't know any better. Like, do you even know the world outside of training?"
"Of course! I have hobbies and pursuits as well!"
"Such as...?"
"Drawing and fishing, for starters."
"Oh!" She narrows her eyes. "Those are strange hobbies, though. Why them?"
I shrug. "Circumstances, I guess?"
Hakuya's deep exhales startles me a little, despite his quiet voice. "Well then. I understand I have much longer to go in order to become someone worthy of your time."
What...?
"Hm?" I put on my best smile, even going as far to close my eyes. "I don't understand your meaning, Hakuya?" I lay my innocence real thick as I practically sing Hakuya-kun.
Hakuya turns to me, his thick, goggle-like sunglasses almost shining with vigor? energy?. "I, Hakuya Aburame, declare you, Takenaka Uchiha, my rival."
"Eh?"
—is my super dignified response.
Seriously, what is with these people? It was fine when all this junk happened to people that mattered, but all I want to accomplish is not being the one to murder my clan and not seeing my clan murdered at all.
"There's no way you're gonna beat Takenaka," Ken states, like it's an irrefutable fact.
"I will try. It will make me a better ninja."
"I don't know who to root for," Shisui comments cheerfully. "The underdog or my future leader?"
"You boys do whatever you like! Just don't you hurt my Takenaka's pretty face!"
I look around, startled how I lost all control of this situation. "I don't really want a rival..." but it goes unheard.
Soon after, we children are rounded up in a big square practice hall's bottom floor, and all the procters line up on the balcony way above us. I recognize Asuka and Enkou quickly.
The head honcho is, thankfully, Asuka—though it's probably because she intimidated them. She steps on the balcony railing and shouts to us, "Congratulations! You all did exceptionally well. Unfortunately, some of you will be forced to leave and come back next year and that's alright. Others will further their education immediately. No one did poor today. It's all a matter of who's the best out of this really good bunch, yanno?"
She pauses to let us process that.
"Well, we'll show you the board of names who made it. But honorable mentions goes to the top written exam scorer, top practical exam scorer, and the top three slots overall."
Asuka takes a gold medal with a white sash from her co-worker. "The top written exam scorer goes to Nahime Mino!" We clap respectfully. Asuka tosses the medal into the crowd behind me.
"Top practical exam scorer goes to Takenaka Uchiha!"
I beam as I catch my gold medal with a red sash. Nearby children congratulate me. My heart feels like it's ready to burst.
Asuka now holds three metals of red and white sashes, bronze, silver, and gold.
"Number third overall goes to: Nahime Mino!"
Oh. This Nahime is better than expected.
"Number second overall goes to: Mune Hyuuga!"
And my family's morale drops. I laugh, anticipating a grudge match.
"Number one overall goes to: Takenaka Uchiha!"
I freeze. Pardon?
Asuka tosses me another medal. My hands shoot up to catch it but—but how did I...
The metal is seized from the air.
Before us, panting, bundled up in layers of wool and scarves like it's negative temperatures outside, is my old teacher. Holding my medal.
"Marui-sensei?"
She meets my gaze with the most serious frown I've ever seen.
"As the Head of Shinobi Education, I, Marui Shimura, forbid Takenaka Uchiha from passing the preliminary Academy Exam!"
.: EIGHT END :.
Look look look, you try interpreting this paragraph:
"Eyes meeting was not something that happened only subconsciously. Expecting no particular trouble, an enemy would let their gaze race around the scene. As long as that optical axis and the optical axis of the [Sharingan] user were in alignment, it was possible to create a situation in which the enemy's gaze would intersect with the [Sharingan] user's, without the enemy's even being aware of it." — Itachi Shinden: Book 2.
What even?
REVIEWS
I'll answer them next chapter; I'm sorry I can't now. (My life is super stressed out.) I do appreciate your comments, and I thank you all the same. Have a slap-tastic day
-18 Mar, 2018