Chapter 1.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Itachi-san". I said in the clearest voice I could manage at four.
Granted that meeting the heir to the Uchiha leadership was nerve racking, what with every eye in the room watching, but I for one felt quite proud of myself for not screwing up. Itachi on the other hand, did not look impressed in the least; in fact he seemed to not care whether I was there or not. I rose from my greeting and faced him, summoning the brightest smile in my repertoire and hoping it would make a better impression on him. It could have, but if I am completely honest, I have no idea if it did.
His expression did not change, and his expression, though not hostile, was not of an inviting nature either. We looked very much alike; the Uchiha's black eyes and raven hair, and the fierce but delicate factions were present in us both. Anyone unfamiliar with our clan would have thought us siblings instead of far removed cousins.
"The pleasure is mine, Akane-san. Shisui-senpai would not stop talking about your taijutsu skills. It is an honor to finally meet the person behind that praise."
The bow that followed was even deeper than mine, and his overly formal speech and compliments had me blushing like the four year old I was. Not because of the compliment itself, but because it was a four year old like myself who had spoken like that. I was suddenly aware of how far behind him I was, not only skill wise, but also when it came to education and manners. I felt inferior, ignorant, and I did not like it one bit. Shisui must have seen this, because when I failed to answer, he squeezed my shoulder.
"I am no master, Itachi-san. But I will continue to train to make sure, one day I am worthy of that praise".
The need to catch up with him grew with every second, If the heir of the Uchiha out of all clans, was humble enough to compliment others, in spite of his prodigy status, then the least I could do was live up to it. I would call it a friendly rivalry, a motivation of sorts that would help me improve marginally, even if surpassing Itachi was out of the question. I would make my brother and my clan proud; even if it meant constantly comparing myself to genius and being thoroughly disappointed every time, I would still do it.
Itachi didn't seem to be moved by my response and just nodded politely before moving o to speak with other members of the clan. His birthday had been too big an event for his low profile personality, but apparently there were things you couldn't escape when your father was the head of the Uchiha.
Their living room was packed with clan members and some of the Konoha aristocracy. Clan heads from the main families in the village, dignitaries and even civilian authorities had come; not to celebrate Itachi though, no. They had all come seeking an alliance with one of the founding clans of the village. They either wanted to do business, politics or marry a member of their clan into the Uchiha to create alliances among clans. More than once, Shisui had to intervene when someone had mistaken me for a career bride. My brother could sweet talk a country into going to war if he wanted to I swear, and it was that ability of his that prevented any of the guests from being offended by the rejection. I am a hundred percent sure I would have caused more than one inter clan incident had the situation been left in my care.
"You do not seem to be enjoying yourself". I turned to find the birthday boy trying to avoid attention in a dark corner behind me. he wasn't outright hiding, but he wasn't trying to interact with his guests either.
"I believe I could be making myself more useful in a training ground, these people have no interest in me once they realize I am not for sale, and neither do you." Formal talk had always been a hassle to me, it was only part of an act, a mannerism used to fake respect when talking to people who hadn't earned it.
Itachi seemed to notice my aversion to crowds right away, but made no comment on it; probably out of consideration.
"That would make two of us, believe me, Akane-san, when I say these people are not here to see me either."
He was scanning the room from his spot in the corner, and I felt the urge to do the same. No one was paying attention to us, the high society of Konohagakure no Sato was much too concerned with politics and making alliances to notice two kids standing quietly in a corner.
"How would you like to come to one of the training grounds with me, Itachi-san? I feel like our time could be used in better ways than this, and I do not think we will be missed here either."
My brother had disappeared, probably gone home; and the party was quite sober and kind of boring. As expected from a clan head actually. This was not a celebration for Itachi, it was an opportunity for his parents to do politics.
"I would very much like that. But will you not be uncomfortable wearing a kimono, Akane-san?" Said the boy as he guided me out of the living room, and into one of the many hallways of the Uchiha household.
I stood there as Itachi went into his room to get his gear, since it would be improper to be found together in his room. Not that we could do anything remotely sexual at the age of four, but clan people could be extremely conservative like that. In fact, if we were to be seen together too often or for extended periods of time, it was most likely for a marriage contract to be put in place.
"I will be fine, Itachi-san. My brother makes me train in a kimono from time to time to get me used to it. He says that if I were to be attacked, the enemy would not wait for me to change clothes."
We made our way to the back door and out the veranda. We managed to slip by unnoticed by some guests that were smoking in the back yard, and with an ease that seemed almost funny, escaped the crowd gathered in the Uchiha main house. The compound was as lively as ever, the main street still buzzing with the energy of business and the eventual visit from non-Uchiha customers. A few congratulated Itachi on his birthday, mostly tea house owners and dango stools shopkeepers; who also made promises of free food and sweets as a present on that special ocation. Thankfully we made it to the compound's training grounds without attracting too much attention to ourselves.
"Would you rather we practice chakra control, taijutsu or target practice, Akane-san?" His voice pulled me back from my daydreaming. I had been wondering how long would it take for somebody to come looking for us. I for one had only Shisui to worry about, but Itachi had the entire clan to think of; so either someone would come looking within the first half hour or not at all.
"My taijutsu and weapon handling skills are competent; my chakra control on the other hand, is mediocre at best." I answered turning to him.
I wasn't ashamed of my shortcomings, I simply wanted to work hard and stop them from becoming a liability. Even at the tender age of four, two mindsets had been drilled into me: my brother's hard working nature, and the clan's idea of self improvement and greed for power. I had no intention to do anything rash or radical with the power I gained, mind you, but my pride would not allow me to become anything but exceptional.
"I could help you with that if you want to; chakra control is one of my strengths. I have even started working on genjutsu."
Of course he had started practicing his genjutsu already; his status as a prodigy was well founded. He, at four, had the chakra control of a genin twice his age. I nodded once and sat cross legged on the training ground floor, motioning him to do the same.
"I have been attempting to do the leaf exercise, but for some reason I can't maintain it for more than a couple of seconds." I explained, taking a leaf from the ground and sticking it to my forehead.
It stayed there at first, shaking a bit as I frowned in concentration. I only relaxed when after a few seconds, the leaf fell from its place in my forehead and onto my lap. During my pitiful demonstration of chakra control, Itachi sat still and completely silent across me. I didn't dare look up, knowing this must have been such a disgrace in the heir's eyes. An Uchiha that could not master the leaf exercise was as good as a civilian.
"There seems to be something wrong at a medical level, Akane-san. Have you had your first medical examination done yet?" I shook my head no, it was one of the many options I had considered. It was actually the most plausible one, since there was no way I could know if there was something wrong with me.
I suspected my brother did know what was wrong, but didn't tell me to spare my feelings. Shisui had already awakened the sharingan, and made it a habit to use it on me every time I practiced chakra control. Another thing that clued me on the fact that Shisui knew what was wrong was his incredible amount of patience. Every time he gave me different pieces of advice and every time he looked at me with the exact same expression he wore when faced with some particularly difficult challenge.
"I don't think you will ever be able to manage ninjutsu or genjutsu, Akane-san. If there is something wrong with your coils, then I don't see how you could. The fact that you managed to make it this far is impressive. What I would like to know is if your family is aware of this, why have they not informed the elders?"
My mind was racing, Shisui could be the only one who knew if something was wrong with my coils since my grandparents had never awoken the sharingan, in fact they had never been shinobi in the first place. But why hadn't he said anything? Why hadn't he pushed for a medical check to be done on me? this would definitively have affected my shinobi carreer should it get out; I would have been benched before I even got started and I would have been made into a career bride just like my oba-chan wanted.
"My brother wouldn't have wanted to shatter my dreams of becoming a kunoichi, but if anybody knows then that's him."
I sighed and turned to watch the sun set on the west side of Konoha. Would I let this stop me? could I still become a shinobi, even if everything was pointing the other way? Even if my body prevented me from doing so? How would I make it past the medical checkup before entering the academy without the elders being notified? An Uchiha with malfunctioning chakra coils was enough of a disgrace, would they even risk sending me to the academy if there existed the faintest possibility that I would bring shame to the Uchiha name?
"You can still become a kunoichi, you are aware of that, aren't you?" my body didn't move, but I did glance at my companion from the corner of my eye. "I will not tell the elders, and I could put the medic on a slight genjutsu should it come to that. You would have to be able to manage the academy jutsu in order to raise no suspicion though"
I was convinced Itachi must have had a reason for wanting to help me; but right then nothing seemed to come to mind. I would have to tell Shisui about everything of course, I would not be lying to my brother any time soon. I never had and I never would. I also needed him to help me train, wich to be honest was the main reason I didn't want to keep him in the dark; that, and the fact that he probably already knew.
"I will have to tell my brother."
"Tell me what, Akane-chan?"
I nearly jumped out of my skin when Shisui's voice sounded behind me. Itachi on the other hand, did not seem affected in the least by his sudden appearance. Before I could say anything, the boy in front of me started to explain for me.
The two males stared at each other in silence for a while; Shisui seemed to be attempting to make out the heirs reasons for helping me. He seemed to be under the impression that if given enough time, Itachi would betray me. If there was something my brother put before everything else, that was me.
"You do realize my sister will be forced into an arranged marriage should someone find out her chakra system is compromised?" Itachi just nodded and attempted to hold my brother's gaze with a courage I didn't think he was capable of. Shisui was scary when he was this serious. "I will not have her reduced to a glorified housewife, to an object for child bearing if she does not want to. I will do anything in my power to make her wish come true, do I make myself clear?"Once again the Uchiha heir nodded, and assured my brother that he would provide as much support as he could.
But what I never knew and Shisui seemed to already have figured out, was why.
Itachi had clearly been serious when he promised to aid my progress; because the very next morning, as I was going through my stretches, he jumped over the fence and made his way over to the veranda. He took a seat and watched me go through every move, waiting patiently for me to be done. I was not entirely surprised when I managed to spot him, choosing to finish my workout before acknowledging his presence. He didn't seem to be judging my choice of exercise, but simply analyzing it, storing the information for later use.
"I didn't think you would actually come see me at five am this morning. Looks like I underestimated you, Itachi-san." I said when the last set was over and done with.
I walked over to the veranda, where he was sitting; beside him a little tea table had been set, with a teapot was lazily steaming on it. Shisui could have been the only one to set it there, since our grandparents wouldn't be up for another hour.
"I said I would help your brother with overseeing your training, and I neither like avoiding a senpai's request, not I make a habit out of lying; so that is exactly what I intend to do." Answered my new training partner, as he poured us both a cup of green tea.
Even if it was still quite early, I could tell it was going to be a chilly day, the old hand-me-down shinobi sandals my brother had given me were doing little to keep my feet warm; and the chill crawling up my yukata every now and then was getting quite uncomfortable.
"You should probably get different clothes to train in, Akane-san. A yukata is most certainly going to get in your way."
I smiled down at the navy material covering my legs. It was old, in fact you could see yhe years of wear from how much the silver floral pattern had faded. It had been a gift from my grandma, and to her horror, I had loved it so much it would be the only thing I'd wear for the longest time; even to train in. the fabric was smoothed out from use and had stretched in places that made it look oversized if worn for something other than working out.
"Yeah, I know. But it's been with me for so long, I feel kind of bad getting rid of it." I said while patting off some shards of grass before kneeling on Itachi's other side. He handed me a cup before taking his own.
"I can see why, it looks to me as if it used to be quite the garment. Whoever gave it to you must have spent a considerable amount of money on it." I smiled lightly and took a sip out of my cup.
"That's the thing, my oba-chan made it herself."
We didn't speak after that; we finished our tea in silence before making our way to the centre of the yard and started our new training routine. That was the first of a long series of encounters, in which I would put my future in Uchiha Itachi's hands.