It wasn't how he expected, there were no pearly gates or a light at the end of the tunnel, the only thing there was was white, all-encompassing white was all that existed, it was suffocating and liberating and dreadful and comforting all at once.
He tried to move but he had no legs, he tried to talk but he had no voice, he tried to feel but he had no body to feel with, he wasn't even sure how he could see given that he was pretty sure he had no eyes.
He knew he should be panicking but he wasn't feeling it, in fact, he wasn't feeling anything, not just physical sensations but emotions as well, it was...hollow, empty, incomplete.
Left with nothing to do he started thinking, that was always a bad habit of his, he got lost in his own mind more often than he'd like to admit, and now more than ever there was a lot to think about.
He remembered his childhood, an orphan, he was told he was dropped off at the orphanage at a young age, what little he managed to dig up pointed to the fact that his mother had been a sex worker who died in a robbery gone wrong a few months after she had him, no father to speak of, a client of his mother was his best guess but he never had the time, resources or disposition to look any deeper.
He was on his own from the very beginning and would be until the end, this he knew very well.
As an orphanage kid in one of the poorer parts of town he never had much, food was in short supply in the best of times and while he always got some in his younger years as soon as he hit 6 and started going to school he was considered one of the older kids and as such was one of the first to be left without when there wasn't enough for everyone.
Being one of the poor kids in school meant that he was an easy target, the matrons had enough problems as it were and didn't bother with the kids' school life, he was short and thin and once he realized nobody would step up to defend him he began to defend himself, he was quick and aggressive and while it did earn him a reputation as a problem child it also made those who thought he was easy pickings wary.
He was pretty smart, he was fairly good with school work but his real smarts stood in the fact that he was cunning, having to do much with little made sure he knew how to play smart and play dirty, even as early as age 8 he was trading homework assignments in exchange for extra food or spare change.
As he grew older he started to get involved in more shady business, his quick wit and aggressive demeanor making him suited to that kind of work, it got him into trouble more than once but as far as he was concerned decent clothes and food were more than worth the occasional beating.
During his teenage years he started to walk more and more with the wrong crowds, selling alcohol and drugs, running errands, and keeping watch for the bigger fish, he never partook, he knew better than that, but the money it made was too good to pass up.
He remembered the night he died, he was 17 and he was tasked with helping transport some drug shipments, he had done it a million times before and had no reason to believe this one was different, just move some boxes, a bit strenuous but nothing impossible.
Things didn't go as planned, he saw some lights and thought it was the cops, he had been lucky to avoid them for the most part, only a few brawls to his name, he was pissed, he had been saving for a while now, he would be kicked out of the orphanage soon and he wanted to get enough money to set himself up, he knew that eventually his luck would run out and he wanted to do something with his life before that day came, he was planning to go to community college, get a degree and hopefully a decent job.
As it turned out that day was today as some idiot, he didn't bother to learn the guy's name, got spooked, and instead of hiding or running he drew a gun and started shooting.
The firefight instantly exploded and he ducked behind one of the crates, another guy crouching next to him, he had been in dangerous situations before but nothing quite as life or death as this, he took a peek and found out it wasn't the police but a gang, that made it worse.
The guy next to him collapsed, blood pooling under him from the bullet wound in his forehead, he cursed, he had never killed before, never wanted to, he was practical but not a murderer.
One of the boxes nearby exploded as the bullets hit it, he looked from the dead guy to the gun he was holding, he reached for it but hesitated, he didn't want to do it, taking a life was farther than he was willing to go, another bullet passing near him said the attackers had no problem taking his.
He took it, it felt heavy in his hand and was hot from the recent usage and the blood of its previous owner, he held it close and made a final debate, he would hate himself for doing so but he hadn't worked so hard, done so much, for so long only to die here.
He was a survivor and he was going to-
The train of thought cut out as he began to rise, his untrained aim shaking as he pointed it at one of the attackers, only for a wet feeling in his chest make him pause, he checked it with his hand and it came out red with blood, his blood.
He collapsed onto the cold floor, it rapidly warming up as his blood coated it, he didn't have time to even react properly as a bullet slammed into a nearby crate, shaking it enough that it fell right over his head and his vision went dark.
"Quite a tale, huh?" A voice spoke and with it, sound came back to him.
He looked around, his body, or at least something close to a body, coming back to him, he saw a silhouette, male by the looks of it, but with no features, it didn't even seem to have dept, looking almost two dimensional.
"What?" He said.
"Still a little confused, I see" The figure said.
"Who are you? Where am I? What's going on?" He said, a sense of urgency returning to him.
"You're dead buddy"
"Dead!? You're crazy! How can I be dead!?"
"From what I just saw from your little trip down memory lane, I'd say just like everybody else"
"And who the hell are you!?" He asked.
"Aggressive, aren't you?" The figure said in amusement. "You can call me Shade"
"Well? Are you gonna tell me where the fuck am I or do you need a fucking written request?"
"That'd be nice" Shade chuckled. "You're in the space between worlds, in your terms you're being reincarnated"
"Wait, so that's it? All that bullshit I went through and now I'll just have to start from scratch!?" He said.
"Afraid so, I know, it's a bitch but what can you do?"
"Fuck!" He said, then he sighed. "Am I at least be from a rich family? I think I deserve that much at least"
"Sure! You can even say they're nobles" Shade said with fake joy.
"At least I don't have to fight to survive anymore, I'm just gonna chill and enjoy all the things those rich fuckers back in school used to mock me with" He said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that" Shade said.
"What!? Why? Do I have to fight my family members for the inheritance or something?"
"Something like that, though not for money"
"Spit it out already, I always hated beating around the bush"
"Does the name Itachi Uchiha ring any bells?"
He paused for a moment, confused, before he said.
"The fuck does Naruto have to with anything!? It's just an anime I watched as a kid!"
"More than you imagine, your 'anime' is very much real and that's where you're headed" Shade said.
"Honestly, this whole situation is crazy enough that I can buy that, but what does Itachi have to-" He paused before coming to a horrifying realization. "No..." He whispered.
"You got it" Shade said cheerfully. "Itachi Uchiha is your own personal boogeyman from now on, you're an Uchiha now, the same age as him"
"But that means...!? You're sending me to the massacre!"
"Not quite, the same age as him remember, there's no guarantee you'll even live long enough for that"
"So what? You're just sending me to my death!?"
"Again, not quite, I have a personal stake in seeing that son of a bitch dead, and you are gonna do it for me"
"And why me?" He said.
"You gotta do what you gotta do" Shade said, his tone serious for the first time in the conversation.
"And you expect me to best Itachi Uchiha by myself!? The guy is one of the greatest prodigies there is! What the hell am I supposed to do against him!?"
"I'm going to help you, train you, you want to survive? To do that in the world you're going to you have to be the biggest badest son of a bitch around, and I'm going to make you just that, all I ask is that you kill Itachi for me, something that will also help you with your survival" Shade extended his shadowy hand. "So? Partners?"
"Do I have a choice?" He asked.
"Not really, no"
"Fuck" He said, grabbing Shade's hand. "Partners"
He saw some of the features in Shade's face define, he was grinning.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Waking up as a baby in a brand new world, especially one that as far as he knew was only part of one of the few luxuries he had as a child, was disconcerting to say the least.
By the time he regained conscience, he was already out of the hospital and back in the clan compound, a dark-haired woman holding him with a smile, Aiko was his mother's name and despite himself, he cried, cried because he never had one, cried because the warm smile she gave him was all he wanted as a child.
Shin Uchiha, that's what his name, his new self, was.
He had no father to speak of, apparently, the man had been a childhood sweetheart of his mother's and after getting her pregnant while dating he had been killed on a mission, Shin didn't much care, he was used to not having one and was still too happy to have a mother to let it bother him.
His mother was a civilian, she had a smaller than average chakra pool for an Uchiha and as such never joined the academy, and though she did awaken her Sharingan at the loss of her lover she had no experience using it, his father, being a mid-tier chunin from what he was told, somewhat negated that but he knew he would never have enough chakra for being a ninjutsu expert.
It was a few weeks after he first awoke that he met Shade again, the shadowy figure came upon his bedroom in the middle of the night, his presence was enough to wake Shin up without a word.
"You seem to be enjoying yourself" Shade's voice sounded in his mind.
He tried to speak but couldn't, his vocal cords not developed enough for proper speech, so he tried to send his thoughts to the figure.
"Where were you?"
"Around" Shade chuckled. "Have you managed to adapt to your circumstances yet?"
"It's still a bit hard to accept it all" Shin said through their link. "Aiko-Mom, is great"
"She is isn't she?" Shade mumbled before he said. "I hope you had your fun because we need to start with your training"
"I'm a few weeks old! How can I even train like this?"
"Your chakra" Shade said. "Due to your...unique circumstances, your chakra is not balanced, you have too much Yin energy"
"So what? I can't make chakra? Because if that's the case I might as well off myself and spare Itachi the trouble"
"You can make chakra just fine, it's just that you will have a greater affinity with the more subtle shinobi arts but have a harder time learning the more brute methods"
"Oh great" Shin said. "So not only do I only have enough chakra to use the most basic of ninjutsu but now I have to out-genjutsu Itachi fucking Uchiha himself! Any more bad news you'd like to share?"
"Are you always this bitchy?" Shade asked.
"Not normally" Shin said. "But I'm still pissed that I died, got a second chance, only to get thrown into a race against time to kill Itachi of the Sharingan, with survival as the prize"
Shade sighed and said.
"This is getting us nowhere, what I was trying to say is that due to your extra Yin energy and adult mind there are a few exercises you can do at this age that should be painful but not hurt your chakra system too much"
"You're right" Shin said. "Sorry, anyway is that really the only way? Tying to compete with Itachi in his strongest field doesn't seem very smart to me"
"We have to play to your strengths" Shade said. "Make no mistake, Itachi is a monster and even with my help calling it an uphill battle is a massive understatement, but if we play this right we just might come out on top, and right now the best we can do is make sure you can at least keep up with him"
Shade spent the rest of the night teaching Shin chakra control exercises he could use, he wasn't kidding when he said they'd be painful but Shin still remembered dying, remembered what he felt at the moment the realization occurred, and he used the memory as fuel to endure the pain.
By the time morning came, Aiko walked into his room to see her baby sweating and with dangerously low chakra reserves but with as close to a smile as he could make.
Time passed quickly, Shin seemed to have an instinctive grasp of the language and learned to talk quickly, he would practice whenever he could, and with time the pain disappeared, though he didn't know if it was because his system was adapting or if he just grew so used to it as to not even notice.
Every few weeks Shade would come back, they'd talk and plan all night long when he did, Shin found that Shade really hated Itachi, the figure refused to say why but Shin got the impression it was personal, something that confused him.
He spent as much time with his mother as he could, he loved her and loved having her there, and she was always smiling and found it amusing how clingy he was but always indulged him.
He rarely went outside, he quickly learned how to walk and went about the house but never left, when his mother did take him outside he stuck with her and they usually went out of the clan compound, where he took the village's sights, marveling at the size of the Hokage monument.
He was 2 years old when he first saw Itachi, the toddler he saw hiding behind his mother's legs, wide dark eyes looking curiously at the world around him, innocent face not betraying the cause of Shin's nightmares whenever he didn't pass out from too much training.
As their mothers spoke he met Itachi's eyes and any doubt he might have had over this child being his would-be killer were crushed, not because anything Itachi did but because as soon as their eyes met he felt that very same dread he had felt as he lay there dying on the floor, a bullet wound on his chest and the world going dark.
Latter he would curse himself for his cowardice, he would swear that he would fight and that he refused to lay down and die, but then he ran, he ran even as his eyes filled with tears and his legs shook, he ran even as a familiar dread overtook him.
He trembled as Shade appeared and tried to talk to him, the words muted to him, even as his mother appeared and shook him, and once he managed to calm down he got up, his determination fueled by raw fear, and he trained harder than he ever had before.
He was a survivor and he was going to get through this.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Soon Shin was old enough to start with taijutsu practice, Shade started appearing during his training, the figure wasn't physical so they couldn't spar but Shade could point out flaws in his stance and help with his katas, it wasn't perfect but Shin was used to making do with what he had.
His mother didn't want him to be a ninja, afraid that she would lose him like she lost his father, and while he didn't want to go against her he didn't have a choice, he needed to be strong, and with the Third Shinobi World War going on at the time, even if it was already finishing up and Konoha was clearly the winner, she couldn't forbid him.
He trained until his muscles ached, until his breath was heavy and sweat dripped off him, until he could barely stand, so exhausted that it was, and when he thought about stoping the thought of what awaited him should he not be strong enough gave him the strength to continue.
Just like Shade said, during a doctor's appointment he was identified to have a Yin affinity, and thanks to his chakra control training he was identified to have potential as a genjutsu expert, he didn't like it as it was too much of a support skill for it to be his main one as far he was concerned but he knew what Itachi could do with genjutsu alone so he wasn't so foolish as to dismiss it as completely useless.
Unfortunately due to his lesser amount of Yang energy his body was weaker and while he could still be a shinobi physical training was much more strenuous and much less effective, that bothered him but he didn't let it stop him and trained twice as hard to compensate.
He knew he would have to show his skill to get the sort of training he would need to keep up with Itachi but he was wary of doing so, both because of Danzo and because chances were he would have to train alongside Itachi, he had promised himself that he wouldn't be a coward like he had been when he first met the little prodigy but he still avoided Itachi whenever possible.
Unfortunately, his mother was only a civilian, and to get the sort of training he needed he would have to impress the clan head, Fugaku Uchiha, Itachi's father, and even Shade agreed that how much he could help Shin was limited and that he would need a proper taijutsu teacher.
Still, he was reluctant and tried exploring other options, his chakra pool wasn't developed enough to learn any jutsu, not even the academy three, yet, and he had yet to awaken his own Sharingan, he knew he would have to do it but truthfully he wasn't looking forward to having to go through that kind of trauma to awaken his dojutsu.
He even pointed out to Shade that he should have it already as he couldn't think of anything more traumatic than dying but apparently the universe wasn't so kind and he would have to unlock it the regular way.
While thinking about it he started thinking about the future, specifically how he would fight, he knew genjutsu would be a big part of his arsenal, so far it was his tool with the most potential even if he didn't know any genjutsu yet, and if he truly mastered the skill, and with the bonus the Sharingan inherently gave to genjutsu?
Well, there was a reason why he was glad to be talented in his boogeyman's strongest skill if only so he could defend himself from it.
But what else could he use? He was learning taijutsu the best he could but trying to compete with a master in the art, especially given that he was inherently weaker at it? That was the definition of a bad idea.
He had a few ideas that could be useful, he knew he would need something powerful as his trump card and ideally something unique so as few people as possible could counter it, but he couldn't try any of them yet.
He shook his head and came back to the main issue, he needed to get stronger fast, and unfortunately, he couldn't see any other way besides facing the source of his fears.
So he decided he would show the results of his work, to go towards his greatest fear so could become strong enough to face it, to look the monster in the eye, and show he would fight.
That night the Kyuubi attacked and Shin learned what a real monster was.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
The village was in shambles, the Kyuubi had caused so much destruction that Shin could barely recognize it as the same village he and his mother walked through not too long ago.
The casualties were massive but luckily for Shin neither he nor his mother got hurt, as civilians, they were escorted to the nearest emergency shelter and kept there until the crisis was over, there was much to repair and much to grieve but Konoha would survive, Shin of all people knew that best.
During one of his trips through the village with his mother he had once seen Kushina, he recognized her but the weight of who she was didn't register to him until she was gone, he knew the Kyuubi attack was coming but with Itachi to worry about he didn't realize it would be this soon.
He should have known, when he heard Sasuke had been born he should have known, the whole clan spread the news, the clan head had a new son and hopefully, he would grow up to be just as prodigious as his older brother was promising to be.
Shin knew, deep down, that there was nothing he could have done, that either they'd think him a foolish child or take him away for knowing too much, should he reveal what he knew and that there was no way he could have taken Obito now, he was 5 and not even with the talent of Itachi Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, and Minato Namikaze combined he could have fought off a man who survived a fight with the yellow flash at age 5.
It was foolish to think he could have done something but seeing the bodies being burned still bothered him, seeing entire buildings reduced to rubble and thousands dead still made his skin itch, Shade said it was a weakness, that he would have to go into a world where such tragedies were commonplace if he wanted to survive, and Shin knew he was right.
It didn't help with the nightmares, however.
After everything was said and done Shin approached the clan head, Fugaku Uchiha was intimidating even when he wasn't trying to be, then again for all he knew the man was furious at him, ambushing him on his way out of the compound and demanding the kind of training the clan heir was receiving certainly took courage.
Still, Fugaku said he wanted to see Shin's performance, to see if he was as good as he was claiming to be, Shade had said that as it stood Shin should be able to at least put up a fight with Itachi's current skill level and that was as good an assessment of his own skill as Shin was going to get for the moment, but then again Itachi hadn't even become an academy student yet and his skills, while prodigious, had yet to explode and push him to be the monster he was.
And so Shin stood across the main family's personal training ground, his mother looking both worried and wanting to give him the tongue lashing of a lifetime as she spoke with Mikoto, the clan head's wife, and Fugaku watched silently from the sides, a frown on his face.
Shin took a deep breath and released it before looking at his opponent, Itachi looked curious and almost naive, if he hadn't been the source of Shin's nightmares ever since he was reborn he would almost look innocent, not the mass murderer he was destined to become.
Shin took his own fighting stance, Shade on the opposite side of the arena from Fugaku giving him a nod and a glare at Itachi before vanishing, Shin had no doubts that he was watching this match closely.
"Begin" Fugaku said.
Shin didn't move, he observed Itachi quietly and the other Uchiha seemed content to do the same, after some time, by a signal that seemed to be unseen by the audience by Shin could swear he heard Shade's voice in his ear whispering 'go', the two dashed at each other.
Itachi was faster but Shin was prepared for that, he managed to react to Itachi's punch fast enough to sidestep it and throw one of his own, Itachi deflected it and moved into a grab but Shin kneed him in the stomach.
Itachi blocked but that left him open for a headbutt, he barely staggered before he went on the attack, a barrage of punches and kicks forced Shin on the defensive, after a while Shin seemed to fall backward and when Itachi moved to capitalize on the opening he was met with a double kick aimed towards his chest.
He grabbed the appendages and threw Shin, who rolled back to his feet but not fast enough to avoid the kick, he blocked the second and prepared to grab the third when Itachi changed tactics and sent a punch towards him.
He dodged and managed to counter with one of his own but Itachi used the blow to build some distance, barely 10 seconds had passed since they first clashed yet they seemed to be completely different people, Itachi was focused with cold intelligence hiding behind his dark eyes while Shin seemed almost hyperaware, a powerful primal survival instinct clear for all to see.
They moved again and this time Itachi landed the fist blow, an elbow to the chest, and transitioned to an uppercut that almost landed before Shin dodged and rammed his own fist in Itachi's stomach with enough force to make him stagger, Shin followed with an uppercut of his own and almost managed to land it before Itachi copied his move to get out of the way.
They danced, a flurry of blows that forced them to keep moving or be overwhelmed, Itachi smiled as they traded blows, not because of the combat but because he felt that someone could finally understand him, Shin frowned instead, forcing himself to go as far as he could and then going farther through sheer will to live.
Shin managed to land a leg sweep that knocked Itachi down and took the wind out of him, Shin was upon him a second later, straddling him and landing blow after blow into the guard he put up to defend his face.
Itachi managed to catch him with his legs a moment later and threw Shin away, he rolled to his feet and saw Itachi was already up, he prepared to dash forward and continue the battle but a single word stopped him.
"Enough!" Fugaku shouted.
"I'm sorry Fugaku-sama" Aiko said.
Fugaku waved her off and said.
"He has the Uchiha fighting spirit"
Shin spat on the floor, noticing that his lip was bloody, a look at Itachi showed his eye was swollen and Shin smiled at that, he was tough alright but he wasn't invincible, he could be beaten, he would be beaten and Shin would survive.
"Shin Uchiha" Fugaku said, looking at him with what looked like approval. "Be here at dawn, you'll be joining our training"
Shin smirked, he could do this.
"Yes, Fugaku-sama"
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
This is my new longer story, I had this idea for a while now but couldn't find many fics with it so I figured I'd write my own, not sure if this will be as long as Megalomania, probably not, but we'll see.
One thing I should mention is that Megalomania was a SI, it was what I'd do in that situation, this is not, this is a completely original character whose views and actions do not always match my own, just to let you guys know.
Also, this isn't a power fantasy, the MC will be strong, he has to at least keep up somewhat with Itachi, but he won't be overpowered, I'm trying to convey the feeling of a race against time, where Itachi is this looming threat and the MC uses his desperation and desire for survival as fuel to force himself to do what it takes, as such the battles will be mostly designed to evoke this feeling, the MC will have to do things he doesn't want to further his goal and those things will impact him, this is a story of the desperate struggle against overwhelming odds and what does it take to survive in a world where strength is everything and morals are optional, this won't be an angst-filled story but it will get pretty dark sometimes.
Anyway, I hope you like it, reviews are appreciated as always, and stay safe.