Chapter 10 Part Two:
Matsuri,
I just wanted to let you know that I'll always be there for you, even if you can't see me.
I consider you my little brother. I've always wanted one and I got one when I met you. I'm sorry that I'm leaving you. I never wanted this for you, you know. I hoped that it wouldn't come to this, but I... I tried, and it didn't work... I'm sorry.
There's things you can't know, and it's not that I don't trust you with it. You're very intelligent, and people have had their eyes on you. If I told you...
I just don't want anything happening to my mini me. You're too special to me.
Eventually, I know that you'll find out everything. You're curious and adventurous. Plus you're sneaky enough to look for it, but can you please wait? Wait until you're at least a chuunin?
Remember everything I taught you, it will help you be stronger. Not that you aren't already. You surprise me, Matsuri. Not in a bad way either. Keep doing your best, you'll reach your goals before you know it.
Remember what I told you about that man. Don't fall into his lies, alright? The Hokage has his eyes on you because you're Naruto's friend so you're under a bit of protection as long as you don't willingly agree to anything he says.
I hope you don't hate me. I'll see you on the other side, just make sure it's a long time away. Don't want you here too early.
Take care of Itachi and Sasuke for me. They're both idiots, you know.
Your Nii-san,
Shisui Uchiha
P.S. Don't lose the key, and don't tell anyone about what you find.
Matsuri read through the letter a few more time, feeling the tears spilling down his face with every line.
"I could never hate you, Shisui-nii... Never." Matsuri murmured. After several minutes, Matsuri carefully folded the paper and placed it in his pouch. He would always keep it with him.
Matsuri stood up and wiped the signs of tears off his face. Then, he jumped off the tree branch and made his way back home. It was getting late and even though he wasn't planning on going to the Academy the next day, he felt dead tired.
He wasn't sure if he was ready to open Shisui's box just yet either. Reading the letter had taken all of his strength... and he wasn't sure how well he would hold up after opening it.
And yet... At the same time, Matsuri wanted to open it. He wanted to because it was Shisui's gift to him. His last gift.
"Matsuri-chan, I wasn't expecting to see you out today."
Matsuri stiffened, but made himself jump in surprise as he looked up at the man that appeared from nowhere. Even being as distraught as he was, Shisui had taught him to always be aware of his surroundings. Danzo was definitely downplaying his abilities. Matsuri held back the fear and instead pushed forward his sadness. It would help hid the distrust he felt for this man. He was sure that he had something to do with Shisui's death, he was positive of it. "Ah, Danzo-sama, I-I didn't see you there..." Matsuri said with a sniff. "I was just on m-my way from h-his funeral and needed s-some time alone. I-is there anything you n-needed?"
"No, I was just wondering how you were doing, Matsuri-chan? I know Shisui was very fond of you. You must be devastated. If you ever need anything, feel free to come to me. I trained Shisui personally, and we were close. He was like a son to me." Danzo said, giving Matsuri a fake smile.
"Thank you, Danzo-sama. I-I'll be sure to remember." Matsuri bowed his head slightly so that Danzo wouldn't be able to see the look in his eyes. "I-I should head home... Thank you again, Danzo-sama." Matsuri bowed again and walked away, making sure to keep his posture drooped instead of tense.
"I'll be waiting."
Matsuri pretended that he hadn't heard that last bit and made his way back to his apartment. The closer he got, the more he had to hold himself back from looking for whomever was watching him.
A relieved sigh left Matsuri's lips as he finally caught sight of his apartment complex. Quickly, the blue haired boy made his way up the stairs and hustled into his apartment.
The run in with Danzo had shaken him quite a bit, and he only let himself start trembling once he was in the safety of his four walls. Matsuri reached up to grip the key hanging around his neck. The smooth metal dug into his flesh as his grip tightened. Slowly, Matsuri slid down to the floor, his strength finally leaving him.
Hours later, Matsuri wiped the signs of tears from his face and pushed himself up from the floor. He had no idea what he would do with anything that had happened. His life had been one big tragedy after another. No, he might not feel anything for his parents or clan, but the two people that he had grown so close to and loved with all of his heart, were gone. His sister and now, Shisui.
He didn't know how, but he would continue to get stronger for them.
The key was still gripped tightly into his hand, and Matsuri made his decision. He pulled the chain up and over his head, and headed over to where he'd hidden the box. With trembling fingers, Matsuri slipped it out into the open and knelt in front of it. He took a deep breath, and placed the key into the lock, turning it slightly. The *click* seemed to resound around him, and Matsuri bit his lip slightly, his nervous habit returning.
Before opening the lid, Matsuri cast his senses out slightly, making sure that indeed, no one was around. There wasn't anyone except for the ANBU surrounding the complex, and they weren't really near Matsuri.
Relaxing slightly, Matsuri turned his attention back to the box and flipped the lid open, eyes widening slightly at what he saw inside.
On top, there was a brand new kunai pouch. Gingerly, Matsuri reached for it and pulled it out, studying it closely. He had to blink a few times as his vision grew wavy from the tears that threatened to spill over.
He remembered telling Shisui that he was planning on getting a new one so that he could have his weapons in that instead of with his scroll pouch. Shisui must have gotten it soon after he'd told him that…
Matsuri opened the pouch, noticing that it was too heavy to not have something else inside. He was right. Inside there was more senbon and shuriken. Over the year his supply had gone down from a few lost ones. These... these would never be lost. Matsuri would treasure them for the rest of his life. Like the bow that his sister had given him. It had been broken, but it was still with him.
After closing the pouch, Matsuri placed it next to him, and looked into the box again. The bow immediately caught his eye. It was beautiful. Matsuri took it out, studying it even more carefully than he had the pouch. It was bigger than the one his sister had given him. Better for when he was an adult, but he had the strength for it now, Matsuri was sure. The craftsmanship was above anything Matsuri had ever seen.
Expertly, Matsuri strung the bow. Now there was a slight curve to it. Carefully, Matsuri practiced drawing the string back.
Like he'd suspected, it was made for a teen or grown up, but with practice, Matsuri could handle it. He was training to become a shinobi after all.
Matsuri glanced into the box, and spotted another breathtaking bow. This one was more curved than the first. Made for more power behind the draw. He took it out and strung it as well. It was slightly more difficult to pull back. It would take a lot of practice before it would be right in his hands.
Next, he took out a quiver full of arrows. Like the bows, they were expertly made. Sharp enough to pierce through a thin sheet of metal. Matsuri again had to stop to wipe his face.
"Shisui-nii..." Matsuri sat back, and had to close his eyes. Shisui must have known that he wouldn't be around to see Matsuri grow... These gifts were well thought out, for the far future... Now, more than ever, Matsuri wished that he have been strong enough to help Shisui...
Matsuri sniffed before opening his eyes, gaze falling back to the box. There was still a couple more things in there. Before he reached in, Matsuri unstring the bows. He would take them out to practice sometime soon.
The next thing that he took out was a book. It was called 'The Basics of Fuinjutsu'.
Matsuri raised an eyebrow at it. Shisui had said he'd wanted to teach Matsuri about it. It was useful enough even if all Matsuri ever did learn were the basics. Explosive tags were a shinobi staple. Or so Shisui had told him. In a couple of years, Matsuri would see how true that statement was. As for storage scrolls, Matsuri already knew how useful those were since he practically used them all the time.
There was two scrolls left. One small and a slightly bigger one. Matsuri took the smaller one out. It was a storage scroll and it had a note on it.
'Don't open until your birthday. I'm watching you! -Shisui'
Matsuri couldn't help but giggle a little. He got up and headed towards his bedside table and placed the scroll in the top drawer, before pushing a bit of his chakra into a seal hidden on the underside of the handle. The drawer seemed to disappear, making it look like a simple table. He thought about keeping it in his pouch with him, but decided that it would be too much temptation to open it ahead of time.
Once that was done, Matsuri went back to the box, plopping himself down.
Again, Matsuri reached in and took out the big scroll. At this, Matsuri raised an eyebrow. There was something extremely odd about it…
He opened it, and his eyes widened in shock.
It was a Summoning Contract.
Matsuri stared at it in disbelief. Shisui had left him a Summoning Contract.
The last line of the letter popped into his mind.
"Wait until you're a genin. Don't tell anyone about what you find."
Matsuri sat back on his heels, more than a bit apprehensive about it. Shisui had taught him about them a couple of months back, but in all honesty, Matsuri never thought that he would have one. That Shisui would leave him something like this…
But he did.
Briefly, Matsuri scanned the contract. It was the Crow Summoning Contract. Further on, Matsuri read all the names of everyone that had signed. Every single one was an Uchiha.
The last two were names were familiar.
Shisui Uchiha
Itachi Uchiha
Matsuri's eyes locked onto Shisui's name, and the memory of Shisui talking about Summons ran through his head.
Shisui had told him that to sign a contract, you had to use blood. Name in blood and a fingerprint in blood. You didn't have to try to summon right away, Shisui had told him. Even if he wanted too, Matsuri didn't think he had enough Chakra to summon anything major. It wouldn't be a good idea anyway, not yet at least.
For a moment, Matsuri thought about waiting to sign his name.
Then he bit the corner of his thumb, spread the blood on his pointing finger. He paused, wrote his name and pressed his thumb print next to it at the bottom of the Contract.
OoOoOoOoOo
Matsuri lay spread eagle on his bed, mask pulled down from his face, hair feathered around his head.
By the sunlight that filtered through the window, it was about mid-afternoon. He hadn't had the strength to go to the Academy that day, even though it was two days after Shisui's funeral.
He hadn't eaten anything yet either. Matsuri knew he should, but he just didn't feel hungry. Or like moving.
Briefly, he thought about going out to train. The longer that he thought about it, the more it seemed like a good idea. After about ten minutes of laying in bed, Matsuri resolved to get up and get a bit of a work out. Just as he pushed himself into a sitting position, there was a knock on the door. It was soft, almost hesitant as if whoever it was wasn't sure if they should knock or not.
With that extra incentive, Matsuri swung out of his bed and made his way to the door, pulling his mask up along the way.
When he got to the door, he unlocked the deadbolt and peered through the crack.
"Hi, Matsuri-chan." Sasuke said quietly. Matsuri opened the door wider and studied his friend and fellow classmate.
Sasuke looked sad, even more than he had a couple of days before. And he seemed unsure, like he was expecting Matsuri to tell him to leave.
"Sasuke-kun, what can I do for you?" Matsuri asked, feeling a bit happy to see him. He hadn't known how isolated he'd made himself until just then. "Want to come in?"
Sasuke gave a hesitant smile, and walked in. Matsuri shut the door behind the other boy and lead him to the kitchen. "Want something to eat?"
Sasuke shook his head. He seemed a bit distracted to Matsuri.
"Are you alright, Sasuke-kun?"
For a while, Matsuri didn't think that he was going to get an answer. The silence wasn't awkward, just unsure. "It's just... my father... my mother and everyone is acting funny. Even Itachi-nii... Even before Shisui... Itachi's been away a lot..." Sasuke quieted a second before continuing. "I don't know what to do. I.. I know you miss Shisui, I miss him too... and I don't know what to do..."
Matsuri saw a few tears slip down Sasuke's face. On impulse, Matsuri went over to him and hugged him.
Sasuke started in surprise, before hesitantly hugging Matsuri back.
"It's okay, we'll figure it out." Matsuri stated, knowing that they would. If Sasuke was noticing these things, then it must be bad. The fact that Itachi was acting like Shisui had been... It was scary.
Sasuke nodded.
Suddenly, there was a loud banging at the door, making both Sasuke and Matsuri jump in surprise.
Matsuri shook his head as he went to open the door, already knowing who it was. The blond had been surprisingly quiet for the week, but it seemed he'd had enough of holding back.
"Hey, Matsuri-chan! I know you're sad, and I'm sorry! But I thought since I haven't seen you leave, that you would like something to eat! Oh! Teme! When did you get here?!" Naruto said, more than a bit hyperly. "I brought ramen! Ramen always makes everyone feel better!"
Matsuri couldn't help but giggle, trust Naruto to make everything brighter, even when you don't exactly feel like it.
Even Sasuke's mood was brought up slightly. "Dobe, did you bring tomatoes?"
"Eh?! Why would you want those?!" Naruto asked, extremely surprised.
"I have some in my fridge." Matsuri smiled and took out a couple of them, making sure to rinse them off, before putting them in front of Sasuke as Naruto distributed the ramen.
"Because they're good." Sasuke stated, taking a bite.
Naruto scrunched up his face, and stuck out his tongue. "Yuck."
A/N: Sorry its a month late! Busy schedule, especially after taking up a few HP stories that I hadn't updated in forever. Next chapter for sure will contain the jump to graduation. Might throw in a few flashbacks to show things or might put events dealing with the Uchiha Clan at the beginning of the chapter.
Note: Guest reviews won't be posted right away, I had to turn on the moderate thing since I got a few troll/flame reviews that really bugged me. I'm sorry about it, but I had to.
Question: Is the pacing of the story going too slow?
Thank you for reading/following/favoriting!
Special thanks to the previous chapters reviewers: DarkDust27, suntan140, Silvermane1, StorytellerD132, Nekohana, and Rae Kid! I really appreciate them!
MusicofMadness: I know! I'm sorry! I absolutely hate myself for that but considering Matsuri couldn't have done anything about it, I had to T-T. About the chakra, you will find out eventually xP.
