It has been a month since the Pain invasion, Izuku has been training his pack vigorously to prepare them for their journey through the Grandline. During the past month, Izuku has been taking increased sailing lessons from Yasopp and Marco. It has been decided that Izuku will pose as captain, Katsuki will be the first mate. Shoto has been taking navigation lessons from the older pirates. Sometimes the older pirates take them out on the ocean to get used to the constant motion.
The end of the school year is just around the corner, and Izuku takes the time tutoring the younger Ninja in Hero Law and Customs to prepare for the finals. He has also introduced the concepts of Haki to the newer arrivals, Kiba, Akamaru, Shino, Choji, Konohamaru, Asuma, Iruka, Genma, Raidou, Minato, Sakumo, Kushina, Nagato, Yahiko, Konan, Fu, and Utataka. He pairs each of the newer arrivals with someone that has already mastered the basics. The results are impressive, most of the new arrivals were combat-ready within two weeks of the training, while the others took the entire month.
Konohamaru was one of the fastest to learn and master both Observation and Armament. He soaked up everything Izuku taught him. He was even one of the faster Shinobi to relearn their Chakra control. Maybe because Naruto already taught the boy how to do the Rasengan before, it was easy for the boy to relearn it without the shadow clone.
Kiba and Shino struggled with Haki, Kiba was better at Arms than he was at Observation. Shino was the opposite; he was able to master Observation Haki in the first two weeks. When it came to Chakra control, Izuku felt bad for the two. Kiba's moves relied on his partnership with Akamaru. Shino's bugs were dying in droves because of the concentration of chakra. So Izuku spent most of the first two weeks with Kiba and Shino figuring out ways to help them. But after Shino was able to master Armament Haki, he noticed his bugs were able to use it, they were stronger than his old hive.
Izuku also worked with Minato, Fu, and Utataka on their transformations. It was easier with them because they watched the other holders transform without going on rampages. Fu was already on good terms with Chomei before the new seal. After her first transformation, she kept the dragonfly-looking wings. Utataka was untrusting of transforming at first, it took him about a week to gain the confidence to transform for the first time. But he was able to get to four tails worth of power before he started going berserk. Minato spent some time getting to know Kurama, it was harder for him because he has faced Kurama when he was tainted. But watching Naruto transform, and watching the fox play with Fenrir, he sensed a feeling of intense longing in him that must have come from Kurama.
Izuku wasn't sure what would happen when Minato transformed for the first time. He flared his fire around Minato to make sure nothing happened, seeing as a God was not meant to have their soul split. But while Kurama was smaller than he should have been, he still had the same number of tails. The power was split between the two, Naruto was able to use Kurama's wind. And Minato was able to use Kurama's fire. His personality changed slightly as well, the half that was in Naruto seemed to be more vocal, loudly boasting, and bantering with the other Gods. Minato's half seemed quieter, happier to silently watch over the others, instead of partaking in the wrestling. They seemed to be two different entities; like they could exist separately. They also seemed to have telepathic capabilities with each other, though Izuku is unsure if that is a new trait from being separated or an effect of the seal. To make sure nothing was actually wrong with the two halves of Kurama, Izuku lets Fuji take control to scan them. Fuji didn't sense anything wrong if Fuji didn't know Kurama before this he would think they have always been separated.
So Izuku kept watch, fascinated with the two functional halves of Kurama. He wrote his theories in his notebook, muttered his thoughts out loud, got a few bumps from Katsuki, but it was all so fascinating, it was like a new God was born. And then Izuku thought they needed to give the other Kurama a name, something to call him.
The next time the two halves of Kurama transformed Izuku brought up his thoughts, "Now that there is two Kuramas, we need to figure out who keeps the name Kurama and who gets another name."
Naruto's Kurama huffs and pouts but he seems to understand the need for another name. Minato's Kurama seems disinterested and puts his head down on his paws. Izuku smiles at the two, "I have thought of a couple of names I think would be perfect. For Kurama sealed in Naruto, I think the name Fujin is perfect, it means the God of Wind. For the Kurama sealed in Minato, I think the name Kojin is perfect, it means the God of Hearth or Fire."
Naruto's Kurama huffs, still pouting, "Kurama has always been our name. We are still the same being, why can't we keep the name?"
Minato's Kurama huffs, "It doesn't matter what you call me."
But Izuku can sense a feeling of sadness from the quieter Fox. He hums, "What about both of you take the names Fujin and Kojin, and keep Kurama as a family name?"
"Family name?" Both foxes blink at him confused.
"Like Naruto's Kurama would be named Fujin Kurama, and Minato's Kurama would be named Kojin Kurama. You both would still be Kurama, think of it like being brothers." Izuku smiles.
Both the foxes look deep in thought for several long moments, until they both nod, "we accept the name change." Fujin decides Kojin nods his agreement. Izuku smiles knowing how hard it must have been to accept that.
"Then it is settled, let's go tell the others." Izuku pushes. The two foxes nod and follow Izuku to the gaggle of holders taking up the training room. Izuku tells the others about the name change feeling the hesitance coming from the Foxes. But as Izuku expected the other Gods were happy to accept the new change and welcome Kojin into their family as they would have with any other member. And while Matatabi, Fenrir, Shukaku, and Chomei pounce on the two and drag them into a wrestling match, they are happy; and that is all that really matters.
During the past month, Iruka and the adults have been learning about the Natives' Quirks and how they can be improved on. Iruka couldn't ignore his urge to teach, so Kakashi made him the assistant teacher to the Underground course. Once Iruka found out that Shinso Ate a Devil Fruit that allows the teen to use something like Chakra, Iruka partnered with Izuku to theory craft and teach Shinso how to access that energy. Once Shinso was able to mold his Chakra, Iruka started to teach him the basic academy Jutsu. But he ran into an issue, whether Shinso's Chakra pool was large like Naruto's or because the source was different, Shinso couldn't use the basic clone technique. Shinso was able to use the body flicker technique, and the substitution technique, which both require more chakra and finer control. So Iruka decided to let Naruto teach him the Shadow Clone. Shinso took about an hour to learn the technique and was able to summon 10 clones of himself.
They spent the month working on Chakra control and teaching Shinso non-elemental Jutsu. Shinso has also been sparring with Lee to learn different styles of fighting, augmenting his hits with Chakra, using his Chakra to increase his speed. Lee helps Shinso develop his own style of Tai-Jutsu. Sasuke, Zoro, and Mihawk teach the group proper swordsmanship. Sasuke teaches Shinso how to channel Chakra into his blade.
After the month of rigorous training Shinso appears to be happier, he includes himself in conversations, hangs out with the pack during their puppy piles, he can even be seen theory crafting with Izuku during their downtime. Kato made Shinso a Hero costume that looks like a cross between Aizawa's and Kakashi's. He uses a scarf similar to Aizawa's, under the scarf is a voice modulator that is capable of changing Shinso's voice to better fool his opponents. He has a small collapsible staff strapped to his lower back, a black flack vest with multiple pockets with a dark grey turtleneck underneath, loose but secured black pants, and sturdy but noise-canceling midcalf boots. On his left thigh, Shinso has a pouch stocked with weighted Kunai. Strapped to Shinso's back are two black finished Wakizashi, while he has a Tanto strapped to his right side.
As Shinso got more comfortable manipulating chakra, Izuku noticed something. Shinso's eyes were changing, with Izuku's enhanced eyesight he was able to pick out details of the eye. While the color remained the same purple, there seemed to be a spiral forming from Shinso's white pupil. While the lines were very faint, they seemed to cut through the purple iris. Izuku took some time to sketch it out perfectly, planning on asking Kakashi if he has seen anything like it before.
After training that night Izuku hangs back, waiting for everyone except Kacchan and Shinso to retire for the night. He waves off the concerned looks the other pack members give him with a smile. He doesn't want to put Shinso under the spotlight until he can get some more information on his eyes. When they are alone Izuku approaches Kakashi and Aizawa, "Hey Kakashi?"
"Hum?" Kakashi hums.
Izuku flips through his notebook and turns the correct page over, "Have you seen anything like this before?"
Kakashi studies the sketch of the eye, feigning nonchalance, but Izuku can see the hardness of the man's eyes that proves he is anything but. After a few moments, he uncovers the Sharingan eye and continues to study the drawing. He hums, "No I have not seen an eye like this. If I were to guess it would be a Dojutsu like the Sharingan." He lifts his eyes off the page and studies Izuku, "Where have you seen this?"
Izuku hums, "Shinso." He points at the teen, forcing Kakashi to study the other teen. "I just noticed it today during training. I was wondering if you have seen it, or if you could help me identify it."
Kakashi hums, "Different Dojutsu are activated differently, with the Sharingan the user channels their Chakra through their eyes to activate it. The Byakugan users channel chakra through their temples causing the veins to bulge around the eyes. Not much is known about the Rinnegan, but it appears to always be activated. There are other Dojutsu but those three are the most well-known." He looks at Shinso and makes eye contact with the teen, "try channeling a small amount of Chakra into your eyes."
Shinso nods and does as told, at first nothing happens. But after a few moments, the white lines become more prominent and slowly start to spin. Izuku studies the interaction as Kakashi's eye starts to cloud over, and he looks to be in a trance-like state. Izuku hums, "Interesting" he opens his notebook and starts to jot down the reaction Kakashi is experiencing. "Tell him to do something."
"Like what?" Shinso asks almost shakily.
"Anything that he wouldn't normally do but doesn't invade his privacy," Izuku suggests.
Shinso nods, "Kakashi stand up." He orders the man sternly. Izuku watches intrigued as Kakashi does as told. "Turn around," Shinso gives another order. Kakashi follows the order immediately. Shinso smiles as he gives another order, "Hop on your left foot three times, turn around, and pat your head with your right hand while rubbing your stomach with your left hand."
Izuku writes down everything that is happening while Kakashi seems to be under some sort of spell. Kakashi follows the orders perfectly. And Izuku hums as he jots down that the subject is able to flawlessly execute complex commands. And while he breaks into a muttering fit about the capabilities, and limitations of Shinso's new power, Shinso commands Kakashi to stop and sit down as he deactivates the Dojutsu.
Izuku immediately starts to question the experience from Kakashi's viewpoint. "When Shinso ordered you to do something, could you fight against it?"
Kakashi hums, "While I knew I was being ordered to do something, I felt like I thought of the idea and decided to do it. I didn't want to fight against the orders."
Izuku's eyes brighten, "really? That's impressive."
Kakashi studies Shinso again, "I only knew that I was being ordered to do something because of the Sharingan. However, even though I knew, I felt no desire to break through the control. That is a very powerful Dojutsu."
Shinso nods not really knowing what to say. Izuku comments, "So if your theory is correct if Shinso was to use this on someone without the Sharingan, they possibly won't know they are being controlled? That the subject would believe it was their idea, and follow the order?"
Kakashi nods, "It is possible."
"I want to study it," Izuku's face almost scares Shinso with how intense it is. Shinso shivers feeling like a Lab Rat. "You'll let me study it right?"
"Uh…" Shinso rubs the back of his neck, "I suppose… I have to train it anyways."
"Good answer," Katsuki mutters under his breath.
Izuku cheers, "I suppose your right, we can figure out if there is a way to break out of it. Like if the subject was hit would that break your control? Is there a range to how effective it is? Can you control multiple people at a time? Is it possible that the devil fruit I gave you merged with your quirk to create it?" Izuku starts to write frantically in his notebook, each question muttered, and possible theories scribbled in the margins.
Katsuki shakes his head, "now you've done it."
Shinso actually looks afraid at the mad scientist look from Izuku and decides this is not something he wants to work on right now. So he channels Chakra in his eyes and calls, "Izuku?" The teen looks curiously at Shinso for a few long moments. Izuku's eyes start to glaze over as he can't look away from Shinso's eyes.
Shinso smiles as he has Izuku under his control, "Close your notebook, stand up, and leave the training room."
Izuku snaps his book closed, stands up, and starts to walk out of the training room. Shinso decides to give him another order, "Izuku stop." Izuku pauses mid-step waiting for another order. "Take Katsuki with you." Izuku's tail lashes out and grips onto Katsuki's arm pulling slightly to coax the teen to follow him. Shinso waves to the two adults as he follows the two teens out of the training room. Once they are in the hallway, Shinso orders Izuku to go to his room. Izuku silently pulls Katsuki with him, walking obediently to his room. He waits outside the door for another order, Shinso decides to cancel the Dojutsu, not used to the strain.
Izuku shakes his head as Shinso's control leaves him before he can start muttering his experience and asking questions. Shinso glares at him, "Good Night, Midoriya."
"But…" Izuku pouts.
"Tomorrow," Shinso smiles. "We can work on it tomorrow. The strain from controlling Kakashi and then you are too much. I'm not used to it."
Izuku's pout fades as he rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, "Sorry about that, I got a little excited."
"A little?" Shinso stares in disbelief.
Izuku looks almost guilty, "I'm sorry, but it's so interesting." Then he smiles blindingly at Shinso, "be prepared for tomorrow. Good night, Shinso!"
Shinso startles for a moment, still not used to those genuine smiles being aimed at him. But he returns the smile, flashing a small one of his own, "I look forward to it, Good night, Izuku." He turns to walk down the hall to his suite. Since they moved to the underground class, they also moved to a new building. The suites in this building are more like small apartments and are meant to be shared with your Soulmates. Shinso set up his new room, feeling a little sad that he wouldn't be sharing his suite with Denki anymore. He misses the teen's bright energy. And while at first Shinso didn't care that he shared a suite with anyone, that changed when Kaminari started to hang out with Izuku and his pack. During the first few days of Kaminari's friendship with the others, and meeting Kato, Kaminari was a bundle of frazzled energy. Shinso found it amusing, watching the teen stutter and stumble every time he encountered the genius Support student. At the end of the day, Kaminari would gush to Shinso about how special, smart, and awesome his soulmate was. And Shinso felt included, Kaminari would ask for his advice, would talk to him like they have been friends for years.
There was a time where Shinso believed he wouldn't have a soulmate. When his quirk came in, he didn't get his mark. He was one of the few people in history to have a quirk and be markless. But he thought maybe that was for the best, if he didn't have a mark he couldn't be rejected. Everyone hated him, he has a villainous quirk. There was always a high possibility if he ever received a soulmate, they would immediately reject him. And he couldn't blame them, after all, if his parents were willing to sell Shinso to a research facility to be experimented on, how could he trust a stranger that has the most power to destroy him with his heart. While Shinso despaired that he would never have the chance to complete his soul, he coped and moved on. He pushed those feelings down, who was he to question the universe. If he was not meant to love or be loved, then to save himself some heartache he accepted it.
A month ago, shortly after he ate his devil fruit, he felt a burning sensation on his upper left shoulder. It didn't make sense to him, the shape, the colors, none of them looked familiar. He couldn't find himself in the mark either, the mark appeared to be a pale purple-white, red-outlined six-point star? Flower? With purple spirals cutting through it. The longer he stands there staring at the mark, the spirals seem to rotate and spin lazily. He looks in the mirror, his eyes the same tired purple they have always been. White spirals start at his pupil and cut through the Iris to end at opposite sides of his eye. And the longer he looks at his eyes, a thought comes to his mind. Is it possible his mark is the opposite of his eyes? Is the white shape supposed to be an eye? And maybe his soulmate has white eyes or is very close to white. And maybe the purple spiral is supposed to be his eye color. But that's a reach, isn't it? He only knows of one white-eyed person. What about the Star? Or flower? He has never seen anything like them before. The red color sort of reminds him of Sasuke's Sharingan. But what about the Shape, and the light purple inside?
He thinks about the only white-eyed teen he knows Neji, the teen that helped him when he ate his devil fruit. Neji used his eyes to figure out how the devil fruit unlocked his spiritual energies. And Shinso felt the energy flood his system, but he didn't know how to use it. But under Neji's and Iruka's careful guidance he was able to successfully mold and access the chakra. And every time Shinso was able to move the energy inside himself, a small almost unnoticeable smile would grace Neji's face.
He doesn't notice the small smile that graces his own features as he remembers his encounters with the pale-eyed teen. The gentle way Neji fed his own chakra into specific points on his body to help the chakra move smoothly. And Shinso was so new to all of this, soft touches, friendly smiles, that he almost missed the touch of curiosity he could feel in the other's chakra as it mixed and led Shinso's chakra through his body.
And while the touch should have been invasive and uncomfortable, it wasn't entirely, it was almost intimate and caressive. And Shinso was confused with his reaction, nothing in his past could convince Shinso anything good came from touching. In the past, when people touched him, it was usually followed by pain, whether from being beaten to being pumped full of drugs and experimented on. The few times it wasn't followed by pain, the person would try to get Shinso to use his quirk on people. When he would refuse, they would always do it anyways and blame him for using his quirk on them. When he tried to tell his teachers they wouldn't believe him. His middle school counselor ordered him to be muzzled so he wouldn't be tempted to use his quirk on "innocent students."
Over time, his adoptive families would have him muzzled unless he was eating or sleeping. The only reason they felt safe with him unmuzzled while he was sleeping was that he couldn't get out of his room. The door locked from the outside, and the windows were barred and sealed shut so there was no way to escape.
He wasn't expecting much to change when he got to U.A. though he didn't have to wear the muzzle because his adoptive family was convinced that the Shinso wouldn't dare to use his quirk on anyone in the school with so many heroes around. So he pretended he was quirkless when he failed to get into the hero course. He was content to stay in general studies. Well, that was until the reports from USJ came out, and he couldn't help but think he could have helped. His quirk could have forced the main villain to give himself up. He could have saved Izuku from having his chest caved in. So he hardened his resolve for the sports festival, he wanted to prove to not only himself, but everyone who doubted him; that he could be a hero.
And even though he lost, was beaten fairly by Midoriya, the cheering wasn't for the hero student. The cheering was for Shinso. People wanted his quirk; people thought his quirk was useful to stop villains. Pro heroes commented that U.A. was foolish for letting such a promising hero fall through the cracks. And Midoriya didn't seem upset that the audience was cheering for Shinso, instead, he had an almost knowing grin on his face. Like he knew the entire time that Shinso was worthy to be a hero, that he was proud everyone was starting to see what Izuku has always known. And Shinso didn't know what to think about that, as far as he knew at the time, he has never met Midoriya before their match.
And while he accepted the fact that he was moving to the underground course, would be training with the school's top hero candidates, he wasn't sure what that entailed. He couldn't believe there would be so many people that were outcasted because their powers were dangerous, better fit for a villain. But their drive to be heroes, was even stronger than Shinso's own because at one point in his life he gave up, they never did. They persevere through the hateful, sneered comments of monsters, beasts, villains. They trained harder than anything Shinso has ever seen. They taught him Haki, had him work with the Ninja to get a grip on his devil fruit. Anything he wanted to learn, he was able to learn either from Izuku, the ninja, or if they couldn't teach him; they found people that would.
He was taught to use multiple weapons, Aizawa helped him learn to control a capture weapon. Izuku tried to teach him footwork, and the basics of Swordsmanship. But while Izuku is a great swordsman, he was taught a different style from Hawks that is better suited for him. So Izuku got Zoro, and Mihawk, to teach him different styles of swordsmanship. Mihawk taught him how to use greatswords. And Zoro taught him dual-wielding, three-sword style, and flying blade attacks. Shinso soaked up everything that was taught to him, but the three-sword style was not a good fit for him. Everyone taught him multiple styles of H2H combat. Izuku and Katsuki taught him how to use Haki, effectively in battle. Then the Ninja all helped him in one area or another. Lee taught him how to use his Chakra to strengthen his hits, taught him how to use his Chakra to increase his speed, taught him Lee's strong fist style. Sasuke taught him how to channel Chakra into his sword to increase the power of the strikes. Naruto taught him how to do the Rasengan, how to rotate and contain his chakra outside his body. TenTen taught him different ninja tools like Exploding seals, Kunai, storage seals. And perhaps the best feeling was, no one hesitated to answer his questions. No signs of distrust, or guards coming up, no wariness to respond to his inquiries.
And today during training he could feel Izuku's piercing gaze on him. Izuku spent most of the training session intently studying him. And Shinso feared, that maybe Izuku was starting to regret having Shinso train with them. Shinso was improving far faster than he thought was possible under the careful guidance of the others. Maybe Izuku didn't like how fast he was improving. While Shinso knows he is letting old trauma affect his thinking, he can't help but think, maybe Izuku only wanted to be his friend because Shinso was weaker than them. And these thoughts hurt him as he tries to rationalize with himself, that Izuku is better than that. But then again, it wouldn't be the first time someone used him, what proof does Shinso have that Izuku isn't the same. And Shinso was afraid to ask, he didn't want to know if he was being used. He didn't want to know if Izuku was going to throw him away after he was done with him. Except, deep down he did want to know. He wanted to be able to prepare for it, harden his heart so it wouldn't hurt so much when it happened.
So, he stayed behind after training, because Izuku smiled at him. Izuku asked him to stay behind so they can talk about something. And something hardened in Shinso's heart as he thought this was it. He couldn't be mad at Izuku, because Izuku never said they were friends. All Izuku promised was to make him into a hero. It is Shinso's fault for thinking that there was more, that he was accepted. And while Izuku mentioned his Pack, he never specifically told Shinso he was part of it. In his spiraling thoughts, he missed the concerned look that flashed in Izuku's eyes.
But he leads Shinso to Kakashi and Aizawa, and Shinso can't hear what is being said over the sound of his own heart in his ears. But Izuku shows the two adults his notebook, Kakashi stares and studies him intently. And Kakashi told him to channel Chakra to his eyes, and he is confused but still remembers how to move his chakra internally and direct it where to go. As the Chakra settles in his eyes, he can feel his consciousness latch onto Kakashi's, similar to the way his quirk works. Shockingly, Izuku tells him to order Kakashi around, so he does. He makes him do movements, sits, stands, turns around, jumps on one foot while rubbing his belly and patting his head. And it is impressive that Kakashi follows all his orders.
When he let go of Kakashi's mind, Izuku started to question the older man. The excitement in his eyes as Kakashi told Izuku his experiences. And Shinso is confused and startled by the childlike wonder that shines in Izuku's eyes as he begs Shinso to let him study it. What else could Shinso do; but let him. Then Izuku starts to mutter, overwhelming Shinso with questions he doesn't have the answers to. And Kakashi didn't get mad that Shinso took control of his mind, so Shinso figured Izuku probably wouldn't mind it either. So he taps into the feeling of taking control over Kakashi and uses it to force Izuku to go to his room.
He could have let Izuku go after they left the training room, but he was scared. He didn't want to see a look of fear or hatred coming from the other teen. So he kept his control until Izuku got to his room, only then did he let him go. Before Izuku can say anything, Shinso glares at him and tells him goodnight. He doesn't want to hear Izuku call him a freak or get upset that Shinso took control over his mind. He doesn't want to lose Izuku. And Izuku surprised him again, apologizing for being excited about Shinso's new power. Izuku's eyes sparkled like a kid in a candy store, gushing that Shinso's new ability is interesting. And his eyes, and smile were promising as he agreed to hold off his questions until tomorrow. Shinso was reminded of his first day in the Underground Course, the excited, thrilling, dangerous, and slightly feral look Izuku gave him then.
And maybe Shinso was overreacting, he knows Izuku is blunt. Izuku doesn't hold anything back. If he didn't want Shinso around he would never offer to study his new ability. And if it is because of Shinso's new ability, that Izuku keeps him around so he can study it… well that gives Shinso more time to prove he's worth being friends with.
The next day Izuku tells the others to meet in the training room, instead of going to the classroom. Sanji makes the students a well-balanced breakfast to prepare them for the day's training. Izuku and Katsuki finish their meals quickly and head to the training hall before everyone else is finished eating. Shinso finishes his food just after the other two, making his way to the training room just after the other two.
Izuku smiles warmly at Shinso, "Good morning, Hitoshi!"
Shinso waves nonchalantly, "Morning, Izuku."
Izuku doesn't mind Shinso's standoffishness, he just smiles even brighter. "I have a few messages to relay to the others. Then after that let's go somewhere quieter so we can practice with your eyes." Izuku hums, "I also think it is a good idea to have Neji and Sasuke with us. They would be able to tell us more about what is happening and monitor that you are not using too much chakra and risk going blind."
Shinso nods, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the other two knowing about his eyes. Izuku seems to pick this feeling up and questions Shinso, "What's wrong Hitoshi?"
Shinso shakes his head, feeling ashamed, "it's nothing."
Izuku flashes him worried and concerned eyes. "Hitoshi," Izuku calls firmly but still gentle. Shinso looks down but still refuses to tell Izuku what is wrong. Izuku sighs, "I don't like it when my pack is upset."
Shinso's eyes widen, "I'm pack?"
Izuku picks up the disbelief, wounded, the hopeful tone in Shinso's voice. A growl rumbles in his chest, at the thought that Shinso didn't believe that Izuku would care. They don't have time before everyone else shows up for Izuku to dig too deep into Shinso's thoughts, so he settles for confirming that they are pack, "of course."
Apparently, that is all Shinso needed because his lip quivers like he is going to cry. He looks down in guilt, "what if they hate me?" Is asked just barely over a whisper. But Izuku hears it, and he has never wanted to destroy something so bad before.
"Why would they hate you?" Izuku pushes.
Shinso looks at him like he is judging the teen's intelligence, "because now all I have to do is look at someone and I can control their minds. People hated me when they thought talking to me was dangerous. Now that I don't even need to talk to take control of someone, no one is going to even look at me."
Izuku hums, "is that all?"
Shinso glares, but Katsuki cuts him off, "since you came to the underground class, has anyone hesitated to answer you when you asked questions? Has anyone called you a villain, or refused to talk to you? Has anyone made you feel unwanted here?"
Shinso looks down in thought, trying to recall any time in the last month that he has felt unwanted. He comes up blank as he glares at the floor. Izuku puts a hand on his shoulder, "Nothing has changed except how you can control people's minds. No one here is scared of you because we trust you. Even if you did take over our minds, it wouldn't be like you would force us to commit a crime. Like last night, you took over my mind to send me to bed. You made Kakashi hop around for a few moments. There is nothing we need to worry about if you take over our minds."
Katsuki huffs, "every single one of us is hated because of what we were born as. When my quirk came in, no one except the Nerd thought I could be a hero. Sure I have a powerful, flashy quirk; but it's destructive, loud, dangerous. I have been told since I was four that I was suited to be a villain. My own mother hated me, called me a villain. She tried to kill me because she didn't want to be responsible for bringing a villain into the world."
"When Fuji woke up, he was possessive over Kacchan, Ace, and Luffy. I would growl at unknown people for even coming too close to them. I couldn't control my instincts, and all the new scents were overwhelming. I was called a beast, a monster, the older kids would try to cut off my ears and tail, hoping that would fix me." Izuku states, "Luffy and Ace were viewed as dangerous because their quirks never shut off. Luffy and Ace are from the Grandline, their fathers are the most wanted criminals in the Grandline. They were afraid we would hate them because of that. Luffy thought his soulmate would reject him because his dad is a criminal. Naruto, Gaara, Fu, Nii, Rin, Utataka, Han, and Roshi were all hated because of something sealed inside them. People called them demons; they were afraid they would destroy everything in their paths. I don't know much about what the others went through with their villages, but Naruto and Gaara were beaten, multiple attempts have been made to kill them, they were ostracized. Naruto has been on his own, no family, no friends, since he was three. Itachi was forced to kill his entire clan so he could save his brother. Sasuke spent his life alone consumed by rage wanting nothing more than to kill his own brother because of a lie. Itachi was ordered to betray the village, making it seem he wanted nothing more than power. Neji is a slave to his own family, just because he is not the heir. His uncle, the clan head, and his father's twin brother forced Neji's dad to take the blame for something the clan head did. Neji watched his father walk to his death, knowing he could do nothing to stop it. Neji felt the effects of the slave seal when he tried to ask the clan head for a reason why. Why did little 4-year-old Neji need to lose his father? Kakashi watched his father commit suicide, watched his best friend die in front of him, His teammate used him to kill herself." Izuku sighs, "I didn't mean to imply that your trials have been any worse or less traumatic than our own, all I'm saying is everyone in this room, everyone in my pack, understands exactly what you are going through. We know how it feels to be hated for something we can't control or hated for something we were forced to do."
Shinso clenches his fist to his sides, to think he has gone through life jaded and pissed off, because of some relatively harmless teasing. His family may have abandoned him, but at least they didn't try to kill him as a child. He doesn't have a demon sealed inside him, he never had to watch his family, or friends die. And while his family hated him, he was never a slave. And by the sounds of it or the implications from Izuku, Neji is probably branded or marked in some way. "I was markless," He blurts out, because really besides the blame game, the name-calling, the avoidance; that was the biggest sign from the universe that he was unwanted.
"Was?" Izuku tilts his head in confusion.
"What was that Eyebags?" Katsuki questions in disbelief.
"I always thought I was meant to be alone, even the universe decided I didn't deserve a soulmate. And even though I felt something was missing that I would never be complete, I was ok with it. I would have rather been markless than living with the fear of being rejected." Shinso hangs his head.
"When did you get your mark?" Izuku pushes quietly.
"About a month ago," Shinso answers, "a couple of days after I ate my devil fruit."
"How do you feel receiving a mark?" Izuku asks.
Shinso hums, "at first I was terrified, I thought the universe was playing a joke on me. I mean I was fine being markless, unwanted. But the universe decided to dangle something in my face that I secretly always wanted but thought I would never have. The universe gave someone I don't know to easiest way to destroy me. So I avoided thinking about it, pretended it didn't exist."
"What changed?" Izuku questions because the look on Shinso's face isn't from fear or rage. No, he has a small smile, fond, secret, special. Shinso's hand twitches slightly, reaching to place over a spot on his shoulder. And Izuku wonders if Shinso has an idea of who it could be. Izuku's protective instincts threaten to make an appearance, just because the universe finally decided Shinso deserves a Soulmate; doesn't mean Izuku is going to risk letting some random stranger hurt his pack.
Shinso's eyes soften as he looks at the rest of the pack making their way into the training room, "I'm still scared, and confused, but strangely I'm excited to find out who completes me. When my mark first showed up, I was confused, I couldn't find myself in the mark. None of the colors or shapes meant anything to me, nothing looked familiar or displayed my quirk. Last night changed that."
"Oh? You have a spiral?" Izuku asks.
"The spirals are the color of my eyes, cutting through a pale purple, red outlined six point star." Shinso has a slight tilt to his voice, and Izuku flashes a look to Katsuki to see if he is just imagining it. But Katsuki's face is the perfect picture of shock, and Izuku is extremely curious about Shinso's mark. But the others are getting closer and Izuku thinks this is a conversation best held in private.
Izuku smiles at Shinso, "I'm glad, Hitoshi. If you want, we can continue talking about this later."
Shinso nods, "Yeah, I would like that." He hums in thought for a moment, "if you think Neji and Sasuke can help with my new ability, then I don't mind them knowing about it."
Izuku nods in agreement, smiling slightly as the rest of his Pack gathers around them. Shinso steps back in a show of respect, giving the floor to Izuku and Katsuki. Izuku clears his throat, "As you are all aware, finals are next week. That being said, most of our training time will be for studying, to prevent burn out we will only be doing light physical training."
"Do you know what the practical is going to be?" Kaminari asks a little afraid.
Izuku hums, "I am not sure, there are not many teachers that know the existence of the course, fewer that know the origins of those placed in this class. I don't have anything concrete, but I think the adult ninja are going to test the wielders. Aizawa, Hawks, All Might, and Nezu are probably going to test us that have quirks. All I can say for certain is teamwork is definitely going to be tested. I also believe strategies, and execution will be important. There is always a way to pass the exams, and I believe they will make the groups in a way that is fair and allows the team to showcase their skills."
Kaminari hums, "So like a more intense Mid-Term finals?"
Izuku hums, "that is the most logical approach to the exams."
Izuku lets the teens mutter among themselves for a few moments before he clears his throat again, "after the Finals, we will be spending 3 months in the Grandline."
"Will we all be going?" Naruto asks almost excitedly.
"Yes, Shanks is in the Grandline right now getting us a ship made. Our cover will be a pirate crew. We have a mission to make it through the East blue and the first half of the Grandline before school starts up again. There are certain people we need to save and convince them to come here to help us." Izuku informs.
"What will our roles be, only a few of us have gone to the Grandline." Luffy inquires.
Izuku smirks, "I'm captain, Kacchan is First Mate, Shoto is the Navigator, Kato is the Shipwright. Law's crew will meet us at the start of the Grandline, and until we get a doctor Law, and I will take care of any injuries we receive. Neji, Sasuke, and Itachi will be the lookouts. Sanji will be the chef. Ashido, Kaminari, Ace, and Luffy will be the main gunners. Zoro and Shinso will be the swordsmen. Everyone else will be combatants. Some of us have been in the Grandline before, Myself, Kacchan, Ace, Luffy, Sanji, and Robin already have bounties on our heads. In total, our crew is worth at least 3,600,000,000. When we start making splashes the Marines are not going to ignore us for long."
Katsuki cuts through the murmurs with a sigh, "the East Blue is the weakest sea, so we will have no problems taking care of any threats that come for us. But every up-and-coming crew is going to try to take us out, just to see if they can. If anything it would be annoying. Some of us have really destructive powers if we are attacked while on the ship we could be at a disadvantage. Unless Shanks makes sure the ship can hold under the force of my explosions, or the Nerd's strength or our transformations, we lose a lot of our fighting power. Granted we still have other fighting styles to fall back on, not to mention the Nerd, and Fu can both fly if they need to get us to land safely."
Izuku nods along, "These are the roles we have for now; more may come up. And everyone will start training in other positions. If something happened to Shoto, there needs to be a backup that can take over the navigation. If something happens to me and Law, we need to make sure everyone knows at least basic first aid. Also, Shanks informed us the Ship is going to be massive, it needs to be able to carry all of us and everyone we are going to pick up. For those of us that have been to the Grandline Shanks said it's slightly larger than the Marine Ship we commandeered for Whitebeard. So everyone needs to be proficient in rigging. Every single one of us is just as important as the next person. The only real title that holds any weight is the captain, but that is just for formalities. It will be no different to how we are doing things now, except on the open ocean."
"What about the adults?" Naruto hesitates.
Izuku smiles fondly at the teen, "most of the adults are joining the revolutionaries. Minato, Kushina, Sakumo, Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko are going to join Shank's crew. Kakashi, Aizawa, and Iruka will be joining our crew. Whitebeard and Shanks are going to meet us before Fishman Island, basically, we will be joining their fleet then. We will meet up with the revolutionaries and if the Islands are fully operational by the time, we get back we will all be coming back. If not, we will be limited to no more than 15 extra people to come with us." Izuku smirks dangerously, "Do not forget, we will be pirates. While I won't condone stealing from innocent islands, I will allow pillaging from other crews and the Marines; if they dare to come after us."
"What if they attack us? We are supposed to be heroes." Shinso questions.
Izuku stares at Shinso, "how do I put this, the Grandline is run by the Calamity. As heroes, we are supposed to bring the villains to justice, but the Calamity has full control over who goes to jail. Realistically people are going to die, The Marines and other pirates have devil fruits, if we are fighting on the open ocean, they could drown. If we encounter anyone, we will not be aiming to kill. Aim to disable, or disarm, only use lethal force if your life is on the line."
Ace clears his throat, "We shouldn't need to worry about anyone that strong until the Grandline at the earliest. The only concerns we should have are the admirals and the warlords. I doubt the emperors would be in the first half of the Grandline. And while we may encounter them in the new world, we will have Shanks, and Whitebeard to deal with them."
"Ace is right," Izuku sighs. "I understand most of you are apprehensive of killing but remember we cannot keep prisoners on our ship, and we can't turn them into the Marines. While we are heroes, we are also going to be Pirates, in the Grandline we will be viewed as criminals."
Tokoyami, Shoji, and Shinso nod solemnly, "we understand."
Izuku smiles sadly, "Hopefully, we won't encounter anyone. Let's make one thing clear, I will not hesitate to protect what is mine. If I have to kill someone to make sure my pack lives, well I've done it before."
Gasps are heard from the people that didn't experience The War of the Best. Luffy and Shoto have haunted looks on their faces as they remember the war that almost took Ace from them. Ace looks guilty remembering the pain he put Shoto, Luffy, Katsuki, and Izuku through.
Katsuki glares at the judgmental looks they receive, "they killed Ace."
Confusion radiates through the group, Izuku sighs, "The first time we went to the Grandline, we landed in the middle of a war. Marco was on the execution platform; the Whitebeard Pirates were facing down the entire forces of the Marines. I remembered Marco from my visions, and I couldn't leave his survival to chance. We fought with Whitebeard. Someone from Luffy and Ace's past recognized them and called for their deaths because of their fathers. Ace's father was the late Pirate King, after the Pirate king died the Marines killed every pregnant woman and newborn child they could find. A Marine saved Ace and brought him to his home island. The boy met Luffy there, Luffy is the Son of the Leader of the Revolutionary Army. When they were five, the government found out they were hiding on an island, and they burned the island to the ground hoping to smoke out the two five year old's. Shanks was nearby and saved them, they hit a storm and ended up on Dagobah beach where I ate my Devil Fruit and saved them. The marine that Saved Ace from the purge, ended up selling them out to the marines, he was the one who recognized them and told the world that they had the devil's blood and needed to be brought to justice. We accomplished our mission, we saved Marco, we were retreating. I needed to go back and unparalyze Mihawk. While I was returning, I felt a wave of uncontrolled, panicked conqueror's Haki, and then Kacchan's lashing out to suppress it. I felt Ace's life fade to nothing. So I used my speed and strength and jumped from the other side of the battlefield and dropped Mihawk behind me. I unleashed all my flames, surrounding Ace and the rest of my pack. Akainu was going to kill all of them as they grieved and cried for Ace. I don't feel guilty for killing Akainu, I had to protect my pack. We couldn't retreat with Ace so injured, and Shanks and Aizawa weren't there yet. So I dealt with the threat efficiently and defended until Shanks got there with his crew."
Shinso steps up, "I think I understand. You only killed because it was necessary. You did what you had to do to survive and make sure everyone made it home safely. I think if I was in your position, I would have made the same choice."
Izuku studies the teen for a long moment, "Thank you, Toshi."
Katsuki clears his throat, "any more questions?"
"What about our families, wouldn't they want us to come home for the break?" Kirishima asks.
"I don't know exactly what Nezu told your families, but he told me this morning everyone was approved to go on this mission." Izuku states.
"How soon after the exams are we leaving?" Shinso asks.
Izuku hums, "The last update I got from Shanks, he said the ship was almost done. That was yesterday, he told me he would contact me when the Ship was done. I'd prepare to leave the day after the exams at the earliest, the latest would probably be a couple of days after the exams."
"Any longer, and we won't have time to accomplish everything we need to do," Katsuki informs.
"Does anyone have any more questions?" Izuku looks around at his pack. Everyone has thoughtful looks on their faces, but no one looks outright confused. "If any come up, do not hesitate to ask. For now, we are going to lightly train for a few hours. Then we will continue studying for the written exam." Everyone nods, and starts to pair off, Izuku stops them, "Neji, Sasuke, and Shinso you're with me."
The three nod and follow Izuku to a secluded area, "What are we working on today?" Neji asks.
Izuku hums, "I need both of you to activate your Dojutsu." The two ninja raise questioning eyebrows, but still do as told. Izuku smiles, "Shinso, activate your eyes."
Shinso focuses the Chakra through his eyes, the spirals in his eyes thicken and start to swirl lazily. He avoids making eye contact with the two because he doesn't want to control them. Izuku hums, "Last night Shinso's eyes changed. I took Shinso to see Kakashi and we tested them out. It seems Shinso is able to control a person's mind by making eye contact. This only happens if the eyes are activated."
Neji nods, "So what do you need us for?"
Izuku smiles, "Kakashi said he knew he was being controlled but didn't have the desire to break out of the control. I was wondering if that was because of the Sharingan. Also, I have asked Itachi what started his blindness. Itachi informed me it was because the Chakra burns the Tenketsu points behind the eyes. I wanted to make sure Shinso isn't at risk of burning out his eyes. If he is, I want to know if there is a way to fix it."
Sasuke's eyes spin lazily, "so you want to take control of my mind and see if I can break out of it with the Sharingan?"
"Yes," Izuku nods.
"And If I can't?" Sasuke questions.
Shinso hums, "I made Kakashi stand up, turn around, then hop on one leg and rub his tummy while patting his head."
Sasuke's face is interesting, "you're serious?"
Shinso nods, "I wanted to see if the mind control could handle multiple orders or complex motions."
Sasuke's face relaxes, "I see."
Izuku can still feel apprehension coming from the teen. He chuckles, "It was only Me, Kacchan, Shinso, Kakashi, and Aizawa in here last night. If it makes you feel more comfortable, we can go outside, or to a different room."
Sasuke nods, "I wouldn't mind moving to a more private area."
Izuku smiles, "There is a room I had Shanks built for the holders to meditate in. We can go there." Sasuke, and Neji nod and follow Izuku to the door off the side of the training room. Izuku waves off the curious looks from the others in the pack. He unlocks the door and opens it, the room is twice the size of an average bedroom, but it was made to hold the form of a fully transformed God. The floors are padded to give the holder a comfortable spot to meditate in. The door locks from the inside, and once the door closes the sounds from the others disappear completely. This is to make sure the holder doesn't get disturbed and breaks focus. "Will this work?"
Sasuke nods, "What do I have to do?"
Shinso lifts his gaze off the floor, ignoring Izuku telling Neji to monitor the chakra leaving his eyes. He makes eye contact with the anxiously spinning Sharingan. He watches as Sasuke's eyes start to cloud over, and the spinning Sharingan eyes slow down to a lazy speed. Shinso smiles as he feels his mind connect with Sasuke's. Once his connection is secured, he nods, signaling to Izuku he is successful. "What should I order him to do?"
"Everything you had Kakashi do." Izuku pulls out his notebook, opening it to a blank page and ready to record the experience.
Shinso nods he tells Sasuke to sit down, there is a short pause, but Sasuke sits down. Shinso smiles, "Stand up." Again there is a short pause, but Sasuke follows the order. "Turn around three times then stop." Sasuke does as told, no pause this time. "Hop on your left foot twice, switch to your right foot, rub your belly and pat your head."
Sasuke does as told, with no signs of trying to break out. Izuku hums, "Have him activate the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Shinso hesitates for a moment but decides Izuku wouldn't be asking if he didn't have a way to stop anything from going bad. "Activate your Mangekyo Sharingan."
The response is sluggish, but the eyes morph to the next stage of the Sharingan. Shinso doesn't have enough time to process the unique 6 point star he sees as he feels Sasuke trying to pull him into his mind. He fights for control over Sasuke, but he fails as his eyes cloud over and his vision is taken over by a red sky. Sasuke stands in front of him, "Welcome to my Tsukuyomi. I didn't mean for you to be pulled in here."
"How do we get out?" Shinso asks.
Sasuke shrugs, "I have no idea, I can't deactivate the Mangekyo. And you no longer have control over my thoughts so you can't order me to."
"So we are stuck here?" Shinso worries his bottom lip.
"I'm sure Izuku or Neji will get us out." Sasuke sits on the illusionary floor.
"So what do we do now?" Shinso asks.
Sasuke shrugs, "Dunno. Time is different here. Three days in here is three seconds out there."
Shinso nods and sits on the floor across from Sasuke, "So, what did you feel when I took control over your mind?"
Sasuke looks over at the teen, "With the Sharingan, I knew you were controlling my mind. I tried to fight it, I tried to pull back and break the connection. But then I felt like I truly wanted to do what you ordered."
"So the same as Kakashi," Shinso hums, "we didn't get Kakashi to activate his Mangekyo Sharingan. But I guess Izuku wanted to see what would happen. He probably thought you would break out when it activated."
Shinso can see an almost pout on Sasuke's face, "you have a truly terrifying ability. The power of suggestion is so strong I couldn't refuse the orders." The pout fully forms, "I don't like it."
Shinso looks down guiltily, "I'm sorry."
Sasuke looks at him seriously, "It's ok, training is important." He smirks at Shinso's wide eyes, "I'm not afraid of you if that is what you are worried about." He sighs, "I just hate not being in control of myself."
"Something happened?" Shinso asks, receiving a glare from the other teen.
Sasuke studies Shinso for intent but he can only sense curiosity, and lingering guilt. "I guess you could say that. One night, when I was seven, I was training out in the woods, outside the clan compound. I was so focused on training I didn't realize it started to get dark out. When I realized how late it was, I ran home, it was quiet. But it was dark out, so I thought maybe it was later than it actually was, so I snuck into the compound and froze as all I could see lining the streets were the bloody bodies of my clan. I rushed to get home, Itachi would know what to do. But he appeared before me in the middle of the road and dragged me into a Genjutsu. For seventy-two hours I witnessed my brother slaughter the clan."
Shinso's eyes are wide in shock, "Itachi killed your clan?"
Sasuke nods, and Shinso is about to rage because Sasuke seems so uncaring, but Sasuke's face scrunches up, "for so long I hated him, I wanted to kill him. Sold my body to a missing Ninja for power. But Izuku shook my entire world, told me Itachi was innocent. And part of me wanted to believe it, the seven-year-old that still wanted his brother's approval, wanted to believe it. I didn't know at the time of the massacre that Itachi was forced to kill the clan, or they would kill me. So Itachi killed the clan, trying to keep me safe."
"Who threatened you?" Shinso asks eyes hard and protective. He now understands what Izuku was saying earlier, everyone here has gone through some terrible things in their pasts. And Shinso is not alone in his trauma anymore.
"Danzo is a man that has more power than the leader of the village. The Hokage didn't know of the order, Danzo forged the mission scroll. And when Itachi questioned it, Danzo threatened to send his root soldiers to carry out the mission, but that wouldn't guarantee my survival. So Itachi took the mission, then when he reported to the Hokage that the mission was complete. The Hokage sent him away to infiltrate the Akatsuki to track their movements and tell the Hokage if they were making moves against Naruto." Sasuke looks so close to breaking as he folds his knees to his chest and buries his face in his arms.
"Is he dead?" Shinso whispers.
Sasuke lifts his face out of his arms, "Who? Danzo?" Shinso nods, Sasuke shakes his head, "we didn't have time when we were in the Elemental Nations to kill him. Plus Izuku told me I wasn't strong enough to face him yet. Danzo took the eyes of my clan, at least 10 eyes are implanted in his body."
"Danzo killed your clan for your eyes?" Shinso's voice drops in his rage.
Sasuke nods, "yeah."
"That's fucked up." Shinso states.
Sasuke chuckles sadly, "Man, you're alright."
Shinso smiles, "I'm sorry I took control of your mind. I didn't mean for you to relive your trauma. And I can understand if you never want to make eye contact with me after this. I won't hold it against you."
Sasuke shakes his head, "as I said before it's fine. While it wasn't a pleasant experience, I trust you. And there are not many mind control techniques or illusions that are able to overpower the Sharingan. It would be best to see if I can build an immunity to it."
Shinso looks up in shock, "you trust me?"
Sasuke shrugs, "I have no reason not to. Izuku told us about your mind control power. And how it is activated. He didn't want us to be caught off guard. We are ninja, naturally suspicious of everything. I think Izuku wanted to prevent any feuds or disputes during training. But even though you asked questions and we answered you never once brainwashed us. So I have no reason to distrust you."
"I see," Shinso whispers.
There is a small almost unnoticeable blush on Sasuke's face, "I guess, if you want to train with your eyes, I'll be your sparring partner. But… uh… can we train in private, at least until I can stop the memories. I don't want to break down in front of everyone."
Shinso nods, "that is agreeable. Thank you, Sasuke."
Sasuke looks away, "so what's your story?"
Shinso blushes, "promise not to laugh?" Sasuke nods, Shinso sighs, "when I was five my brainwashing quirk came in. I couldn't control it and every time someone answered one of my questions, I would take control of them. People started to be afraid of me, started to say I was a villain. That I would never be able to be a hero. Kids in school refused to talk to me, and whenever they got caught doing something bad, I was blamed. They would tell the teachers I used my quirk on them and told them to do that bad thing. Eventually, I was muzzled in middle school, so I couldn't ask questions and use my quirk. But I wanted to be a hero, so I tried to get into the Hero Couse here at U.A. But the exam is not suited for mental quirks. A hunk of metal doesn't have a brain to control, and I didn't want to be disqualified for brainwashing someone else to get me points. I tried to fight the robots unarmed and basically quirkless, and I should have been crushed to death. But a green blur came out of nowhere and grabbed me and brought me to safety. He healed my injuries, made sure I was in a safe spot, and took off toward another group of students that were struggling."
"Izuku? Right?" Sasuke asks for clarification.
Shinso nods with a smile on his face, "yea. I ended up failing the exam, but I was able to get into the General Studies class. And while it wasn't my first choice, there was still hope. The sports festival gives all the students a chance to show off their skills. So I tried to train and get stronger, but no one wanted to spar with me. Then the U.S.J. incident happened; villains attacked one of the heroics classes. Their teacher almost died, a student was critically injured, but because of the teen's quirk he made a fast recovery."
"Izuku?" Sasuke sighs.
"By my understanding, as he was healing the teacher, Katsuki was holding down one of the villains. The boss told a brainless monster to kill the kid. Another hero showed up on the scene, moved Katsuki out of the way. But the monster's target was Izuku. Izuku used his tails to bat everyone away and took a crushing punch to his chest, the damage caused his chest to cave in. If it wasn't for Fuji if anyone else got hit they would have died immediately. I couldn't help but think if I was in the hero class, I could have done something. I could have brainwashed the main villain to turn himself in. So I vowed I would do whatever it took to join the hero class. The sports festival was the only opportunity that I had to prove I could be a hero. I was not expecting to be eliminated in the first round of the finals. I went up against Izuku and he was the only person to ever break out of my mind control. I heard he was a monster, the beast of class 1-A, ruthless, vicious, and dangerous. I didn't want to face him physically, but after he broke out of my hold, he only used enough strength to push me out of the ring. And after the match, he smiled at me, asked me why I want to be a hero. The crowd was cheering for me, and Izuku wasn't mad about it, he just had a small smile on his face. Every time I saw him, he would smile and wave at me. I wanted to go closer, but I held back; I couldn't believe he was genuine. Then Kamino Ward happened."
"What happened there?" Sasuke asks intrigued.
"The Same villains from The U.S.J. Incident attacked a training camp. They kidnapped Katsuki and Ace. While there were a lot of injuries, there was only one critical student. Izuku was shot, poisoned, and still kept trying to fight to save his friends. He was in a coma for a day or two, then he worked with the heroes to save his Pack. I saw him flying in the air, swoop down, and latch onto Katsuki to get him to safety. Ace must have already been rescued before the news teams got there. Then we were moved into the dorms, and I was placed in a room with Denki, in the hero building. I would go to the training room at night, Luffy and Kirishima would spar, and I would take notes on their fighting styles, I tried to use them, but their moves were not made for my body. Then I was sitting in the cafeteria by myself, looking over my notes, and Aizawa plopped down in front of me. I thought I was going to be expelled. But instead, he asked if I wanted to get stronger and when I nodded, he told me to follow him. I did and ended up in the underground course. I was only able to get strong because Izuku believed in me."
Sasuke looks deep in thought for a few moments before turning lazily spinning Sharingan eyes to Shinso, "for the record, I don't believe any power is intentionally evil. It's about what someone does with that power that makes them evil. The fact that all you want to do was use your quirk to stop villains from hurting people, proves you can be a hero."
Shinso's breath hitches as he chokes down the emotions that want to bubble up, "Thank you, Sasuke."
The room starts to break down, the blood-red sky starts to pixilate to white. The walls crumble, and the floor looks to be breaking apart around them. Shinso looks at Sasuke, eyes flashing in concern, "what's happening?"
Sasuke shrugs, "I can't feel the chakra that powers my Sharingan anymore. I think Neji closed the Tenketsu points behind the eye. This is the residual chakra leaving the illusion."
Shinso studies Sasuke, and he notices the teens Sharingan eyes are deactivated. No longer red, Sasuke's eyes are their normal onyx color. Shinso nods, "that's good." And as the last of the color leaves the illusion he smiles softly, whispering so softly he doubts Sasuke could hear him, "Thank you, Sasuke."
The next thing Shinso see's is a pair of worried green eyes, Izuku's lips are moving, but it takes Shinso a moment to register the sounds as words. "Toshi...you, ok? What happened?"
Shinso releases a breath and cuts the chakra to his eyes, "I think we trapped each other."
Sasuke nods, "My Mangekyo took control of Shinso's mind control and pulled him into my Tsukuyomi. And I couldn't turn off my Sharingan to break out of the illusion, because Shinso didn't order me to. And since Shinso was in my illusion he didn't have power over my thoughts, he couldn't order me to turn off the Sharingan."
Izuku studies them for several moments, scanning them for any signs of injuries, physical or mental, he is not sure. But he is worried, and maybe 6 seconds away from panicking. "Are you both ok? Any injuries? Headaches? Fatigue?"
Sasuke and Shinso shake their heads, "No just feeling the strain of holding someone for so long. Other than that I think I am ok." Sasuke agrees with a nod.
Izuku visibly relaxes, breathes out a shaky breath, "I didn't know that would happen, I'm sorry I put you through that."
Shinso waves off the apologies, "Izuku, it's fine. It's better than this happened now than in the middle of a battle. I need to know if I can stop taking control of someone if I don't want to. If we are in a fight and my eyes are activated, I don't want to control my allies, if I make eye contact with them."
Izuku looks like he wants to apologize a few more times, but he shakes his head forcing his thoughts to analyze Shinso's new power. "I think the Ninja Fruit merged with your Quirk. I wonder if you can still take control of someone when they answer your questions."
"Do you really think it is possible for a devil fruit to merge with a quirk?" Shinso asks.
"Yes, I think it is possible. I guess we won't know unless you try to take over someone when they answer you." Izuku answers.
Shinso didn't feel the buzzing he usually gets when his questions are answered. It seems like Izuku may be right and his devil fruit merged with his quirk. But what does this mean? "I already tried; I couldn't feel the quirk anymore."
"Hum," Izuku hums fingers tapping his chin in thought, "Neji what did you see when Shinso used his eyes?"
Neji deactivates his Byakugan, "His Chakra leaves his eyes like strings, they connected and changed to match Sasuke's chakra signature. From there he was able to burrow into Sasuke's mind. But then when Shinso ordered Sasuke to activate the next stage of his Sharingan. The Mangekyo sort of copied it and started to feed on Shinso's chakra. So instead of pushing into Shinso's mind, Sasuke pulled Shinso into his mind."
"That is interesting," Izuku hums. "Neji, would it be possible to train the Chakra to latch onto someone without eye contact?"
Neji hums, "I suppose. It would take a lot of practice. But it should only require learning to sense and direct the chakra that comes from the eyes, to travel independent of the line of sight. Right now the Chakra moves in a straight line depending on where you are looking."
Izuku hums, "It's something to think about. If people figure out that all you need is eye contact, then villains would go to great lengths to avoid it. For now, we can get Kato to make a visor like Aizawa's."
Shinso looks down, that is something he hasn't thought of yet. Eventually, his powers will come out, be studied, analyzed, and put out to everyone who knows how to read. But Aizawa has an eye-based power, and his goggles make it so no one on the field knows where he is looking or when he blinks. "I would also like to test the range of my eyes."
Izuku hums, "I'll have Kato make the visor before we leave for the Grandline, then you can test your eyes on me to make sure the visor doesn't restrict your Chakra. If everything works out, you'll have plenty of training targets in the Grandline." Izuku finishes with a smirk.
Shinso nods, "can we keep my eyes between us for now?" he blushes as the four other teens' eyes are on him, "it's just I can't control it yet. I know you said no one would hate me…but" he trails off helplessly.
Izuku supposes it is going to take more than Izuku telling Shinso that anyone here wouldn't think any less of him because of his eyes. So he nods carefully, "of course, we will test the Visor out tomorrow. I'll talk to Kato when we are done here."
Shinso nods gratefully, "Thank you, Izuku."
Izuku waves off the gratitude with a smile, "did you still want help with what we were talking about earlier?"
Shinso blushes as he thinks about talking about his mark. He thinks about the talk in Sasuke's illusion, he remembers looking at the other teen's eyes. Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan is eerily similar to the 6 point start on his shoulder. But then wouldn't Shinso's mark be red with purple spirals? No, there must be more to it than that. "Is it possible to have more than one?"
Izuku hums, "I have heard of people having more than one, but I have never seen it." Izuku answers honestly.
Shinso perks up at the first half of Izuku's reply, but then the second half sparks doubt and makes him hunch in on himself. "I thought I knew what it meant. Can you help me?"
"Here? Now?" Izuku asks shocked.
Shinso bites his lip and hesitates, what is he thinking? It's one thing to let Izuku look at his mark, but why is he considering letting the others look at it. Still, he nods, and fiddles with the hem of his shirt. He hesitates is he really gonna go through with this? It's crazy to consider not one but two people have the power to destroy him. But his mind goes back to what Izuku said, Sasuke is alone; has been alone since he was a child. Neji is a slave to his own family. He thinks back to Sasuke's Tsukuyomi, Sasuke wasn't mad, didn't hate him for using his new ability on him.
He freezes when a firm hand lands on his right shoulder, "You don't have to do this." Izuku's voice is clear and non-judgmental.
Shinso shakes, "I've been told my entire life that I would be a villain. Me being markless proved no one in the universe would want me. And that was ok, I was fine with that, no one had the power to destroy me. But now," He pauses for a moment so he can get his feelings in order, he tries to get the shaking to stop, "now the universe decided I am worth having a match, that maybe there is someone out there that shares it. That maybe someone can complete me; and I'm scared."
It's silent in the room as the four teens process this information. Izuku pulls Shinso toward him in a comforting hug, allowing the slightly taller teen to bury his face in Izuku's shoulder for a moment. Izuku shakes in rage, he wants to hunt down every single person that made Hitoshi feel lesser. Instead, he buries the protective rage and lights his fingers on fire, and trails them up and down Shinso's back, "it's ok to be scared. It's terrifying to let yourself be exposed like that. And none of us think lesser of you for being scared. And I understand if you need time, or if you change your mind about wanting my help. Regardless I'm here for you, Hitoshi."
"We all are," Katsuki declares boldly. Sasuke and Neji both nod their agreement.
Izuku feels Shinso starting to relax slightly, and he feels a small smile spread on his shoulder. Shinso lifts his head after a few moments, "Thank you." He takes a few breaths to settle himself, "I'm scared, terrified… but also strangely excited to have a match. And I need help making sense of it."
Izuku nods and lets Shinso retreat a bit, "I'll try my best to help you."
Shinso takes that as his cue, and he decides to just go with it. He grips the bottom of his shirt; his knuckles turn white from the strength of his grip. He wars with himself, because if he shows the mark, then it's real; he can no longer pretend it doesn't exist. But there is something in him that begs for completion, begs, and screams at him to be acknowledged. And that thing screams louder than the fear whispering to him 'completion is not worth being destroyed.' So he hardens his resolve, loosens his grip on his shirt, and takes another deep breath.
It seems like it happens in slow motion, but soon enough his arm is exposed. Shirt held in his other hand, loosely. Shinso's eyes remain on the floor, not daring to look up for some unknown reason. He hears a gasp, maybe more, but he can't bring himself to look up.
Izuku watches Shinso removing his shirt, he can see the still too tense shoulders on his newest packmate. Shinso is slow almost methodical as he removes the shirt, like taking a band-aid off in the least painful way. There is a sense of dissociation as Shinso holds his shirt in his other hand and looks at the ground. A gasp is heard, sad, disbelieving, with a touch of something, possibly hope. Izuku looks up at the sound. Sasuke's eyes are activated to his Mangekyo Sharingan, his face morphed in shock, eyes wide as he stares at the mark, memorizing it, studying it. A whimper is heard, pulling Izuku's attention to the other male in the room. Neji's eyes are also activated, and Izuku is confused. Neji's and Sasuke's hearts are beating erratically, their breaths are shaky. And their mouths open and close repeatedly, not able to produce any complex sounds other than half-formed words. And Izuku can't make sense out of their reactions.
While Izuku is trying to make sense of the emotions he feels, Sasuke reaches out with a shaky hand. And before Izuku can register what Sasuke is going to do, Sasuke brushes the mark with Gentle and curious fingers. Izuku studies Shinso's frame, where he was tense before, the tension is rapidly fading from the teen's shoulders. Neji takes a step closer to the teen, letting Sasuke touch the mark and commit it to memory. When Sasuke has his full, Neji copies him, he places gentle, shaky fingers on the mark. Shinso gasps almost silently but Izuku hears it. And then it clicks, slower than Izuku is willing to admit, Shinso has two soulmates. Two people who can hurt him or cherish him deeper than anyone else is capable of.
Shinso's eyes leave the floor as Neji traces the delicate mark. His eyes are painfully wide and openly vulnerable as he studies the pale-eyed teen. Sasuke hovers behind Neji his expression morphed into a complicated display of emotions. Sasuke's Mangekyo has downgraded to his Sharingan as his eyes flit between the two other teens.
The silence must get to Shinso because a wounded sound leaves his throat. And Sasuke breaks out of his shocked stare, protective instincts flaring. To think he has not one, but two soulmates, one of which he was almost responsible for their death. It's surprising, to say the least, but not unheard of. He has read in old clan texts of other Uchiha having multiple soulmates. Uchiha loves more deeply, more completely, that their love is sometimes too much for one soulmate. Their love is meant to be shared, and Sasuke having two soulmates to cherish, protect, and care for fills him with a sense of being whole. So hearing one of his soulmates sound so wounded, so hurt, look so vulnerable, makes Sasuke want to burn down everything and everyone that has ever hurt him.
"Hitoshi," Sasuke calls softly but firm enough to be heard, Shinso switches his gaze from Neji to Sasuke. Sasuke's breath hitches as those vulnerable, teary eyes are forever burned into his Sharingan, he clears his throat, "No Uchiha would ever reject a bond. We love too deeply to ever consider that a possibility. Whatever form of love our bond takes; I commit to it fully."
Shinso's eyes widen slightly at the bold declaration. He studies the other teen looking for any sign of deceit. Shockingly, he doesn't find any, either Sasuke really means what he says; or he is a really good liar. His eyes flit to Izuku, surely the healer would be able to tell if Sasuke is lying. Izuku shakes his head slowly, his eyes wide with the absolute truth he feels coming from the Uchiha.
Neji clears his throat and looks at the ground when all eyes fall on him, he gulps, "being a member of the branch family, it was always my duty to reject my soulmate if they were not approved by my uncle. I am little more than a slave to my clan, and if my uncle wishes for me to reject my fated, I will have no choice but to obey." Neji looks at the ground guiltily, as Izuku growls angrily. Neji is not sure who that growl is aimed at, but it would be his fault regardless of if his clan head forces him to. There is a tiny almost unnoticeable smile on Neji's face, "I have never been able to want anything for myself. So when my mark appeared I never wanted to know who they were. I was happy just knowing if things were different, I would have someone who would love a caged bird." There are small tears building up in his eyes, "I would have rather died than reject my soulmate. But I wouldn't even be given a choice in that."
"Why not?" Katsuki growls out, not too sure if he wants to be angry or protective.
Neji looks at the explosive teen apparently deciding on whether or not to tell them. He nods his head to himself and slowly lifts his hands to undo the headband around his forehead. As the headband comes off his hair covers the slave seal, and he tilts his head to the ground. "When Lady Hinata turned three, I was forced to get the slave seal. The slave seal represents 'a bird in a cage'… it is the symbol of being tied down to an inescapable fate." He lifts his head up to show the seal which looks like an X with a hook on each side. "I was four when this seal was carved into my forehead. Since the day she turned three, I've only been allowed to live to serve and protect the Main Family. For most this slave seal is the absolute fear of death given to the branch family." Neji shakes his head, "I'm too strong for the Main Family to kill me, they would rather me marry Lady Hinata to make sure the new heir is powerful. If I refused to reject my soulmate, Hiashi would use the seal to basically make me nothing more than an obedient slave with no thoughts or feelings of my own. While I would be a functional soldier, I would be nothing more than a puppet."
Sasuke's eyes morph back into his Mangekyo Sharingan, as his eyes study and memorize the seal. All the small intricate lines blended so close to together it would be impossible for the unenhanced eye to notice. "Can't you remove the seal, Izuku? You removed mine."
Izuku hums, "I did not remove your seal in a traditional sense. All I did was destroy the piece of Orochimaru's soul that was burrowed in it. Without his soul in the seal it unraveled. Neji's seal doesn't have a foreign soul in it for me to destroy."
Sasuke nods remembering the feeling of slime leaving his neck, that must have been the feeling of Orochimaru's soul Izuku was removing from him. He hums as he tries to think of another way to rid the seal, "We have 3 of the best seal masters ever born in the Elemental Nations. Isn't there something we can do? Can't we go to them? Surely, they would be able to remove it. If not, they should be able to break the connection it has."
Shinso breaks his eyes away from Neji, and fixes his gaze at Sasuke, "It's worth a shot. Worst they could tell us is it is not possible to remove."
Sasuke nods, then look at Neji as the other teen hasn't said anything since telling of the seal, "What do you think Neji?" Neji turns his wide pale eyes to the Uchiha, clearly only responding to his name. Sasuke smiles at the teen, "we are thinking of talking to Minato, Kushina, and Jiraiya about your seal and if they can remove it."
"Oh…" Neji breathes out, he looks at the floor again, "the only way we know how to remove it is through the wearer's death." He pauses for a moment, "but if anyone can remove it… it would be them."
Shinso moves to crowd Neji, he pulls him into a loose hold allowing Neji to put his head on his shoulder. "We will do anything we can to make sure your seal is gone."
Sasuke steps closer too, "You're damn right we will. Like I would allow my soulmate to be a slave. Fuck that!"
Neji chuckles wetly, "Stubborn Uchiha."
Sasuke smirks, "You're damn right I am!"
Shinso chuckles softly at the banter, "So what do you say Neji? Do you accept us as your soulmates?"
Neji shivers slightly, "I want to… if you'll have me." He whispers softly.
Sasuke's smirk morphs into a pout, "I thought I made myself clear that I have no intention of rejecting my Soulmates."
Shinso chuckles at Sasuke's pout, "I also have no intentions of rejecting either of you."
Neji slumps relieved in Shinso's hold, trusting the other teen with his weight. "As long as I still have my own thoughts, I will always accept you," he declares softly.
While Shinso and Sasuke were comforting Neji, Izuku turns on his headset and calls for Kakashi, knowing either Kakashi or Aizawa always have their headsets on. Aizawa answers on the other end, "What is it, Problem Child?" Izuku can hear the barely suppressed worry coming from his brother.
Izuku smiles softly, "Can either you or Kakashi grab Minato, Kushina, and Jiraiya and bring them to the God Meditation room."
"Is everything alright?" Aizawa asks hesitantly.
"It's not business to tell anyone, but no one is injured. I just need to ask them a sealing question." Izuku states reassuringly.
"Alright, Problem Child. I'll tell them to head your way." Aizawa sighs.
"Thank you, Aniki," Izuku responds cheekily.
Aizawa grumbles something that sounds like 'you're lucky I tolerate you,' but with the slight distortion in the headsets, Izuku is not 100 percent sure. Izuku laughs as Aizawa cuts the line after his grumbling.
"What's funny?" Shinso asks.
Izuku takes a moment to settle himself, "Shota is a softie." Is all he offers. "Minato, Kushina, and Jiraiya will be here shortly."
"So soon?" Neji tenses.
Izuku softens his face, "I thought it would be best to see if they can do it now. I figured it would be more comfortable letting as few people know as possible."
Neji relaxes, "Thank you, Izuku."
Izuku smiles warmly, "anytime, Neji." Izuku hums, "Do you want me and Kacchan to leave when they get here?"
Neji seems to think this over, and shakes his head, "If anything goes wrong you can heal." And even though most of his face is still buried in Shinso's shoulder, he blushes, "I'd like it if you stayed."
"Alright then, we'll stay." Izuku smiles reassuringly. He pulls Kacchan to sit with him on the floor to give the soulmates some time for themselves, he leans against Kacchan's side, "I knew about the seal, I just didn't know how bad it was. I could have helped him sooner."
Katsuki rubs his heated hand in between Izuku's wings, "what matters is we are getting him the help now."
Izuku slumps, "I know Kacchan. I just hate when the pack is upset. I wanted to hurt the entire main family."
Katsuki growls protectively in his throat, "me too, Nerd."
A knock on the door signals the arrival of the Shinobi Izuku requested. He stands to unlock the door, Kakashi steps in with Minato, Kushina, and Jiraiya. Aizawa hovers outside the threshold. Izuku looks at Neji for his reaction. Neji gives him a small nod, Izuku waves Aizawa in, knowing how much of a worrywart his older brother can be when people he cares about are in trouble.
"So what's going on?" Kakashi drawls.
Izuku fills in the adults about the Slave Seal, anger, and venom in his voice at the thought of that being used against his packmate. He tells them what the seal is capable of doing, ignoring the gasp from Kushina as she studies the seal on Neji's forehead.
"Oh my," the woman gasps. As she takes a moment to study the seal, Izuku can feel anger rising in her.
Minato feels it too, "what's wrong, Kushina?"
"This seal is a very old Uzumaki prison seal," Kushina informs.
"Prison Seal?" Izuku parrots
Kushina looks at the group guiltily, "Yes typically used for prisoners of war, and petty criminals. Whirlpool Village was very small, we couldn't always house all our prisoners in a building. So we placed compliance seals on them, they could still use their chakra but if they stepped out of line, attacked, or tried to break free the seal would activate causing excruciating pain. Most of the time the seal was enough to deter the prisoners from trying anything. It was the only way we could keep the prisoners housed, a family would take them in they would do low-wage work for the family, and when their sentence was up the seal came off. They were allowed to either go back to where they came from or be hired by the family at a livable wage. This seal was never meant to be permanent." She looks at Neji an apology in her eyes, "Where did they get this seal? It has not been used since my father took leadership of Whirlpool."
Neji swallows the knowledge of the origins of the seal bitterly, "I am not sure, to be honest. All I know is all the branch members have been cursed with this seal. It was given approval from the council because it was meant to seal the Byakugan when a branch member died."
"Why wasn't it given to the main family as well?" Minato ponders out loud, surely the Main Family is just as targeted as the branch family.
"The Branch Family exists to lay our lives down in service and protection to the main family. By the time the enemies figure out that they killed a Branch member, the unsealed would have had time to escape unharmed." Neji recites as his father once told him, "Once Lady Hinata turned three, my life was forfeit to her. Hiashi even told me to be prepared to reject my soulmate, if Hinata's wasn't good enough."
Kushina wipes tears from her eyes and chokes down a sob. She takes a few moments to settle her emotions, her mind switching to her skill in Sealing Jutsu. Her area of expertise in sealing is in its creation, but deconstructing a seal is just as easy to her. She studies the seal, finds out how it ticks, what has been altered. To her surprise, the foundation of the seal is strictly Uzumaki. Chances are the Hyuga sealers couldn't figure out how to completely dismantle the seal so they could recode it. All the Hyuga did was add another small simple destruction seal on top of it. The destruction seal is meant to be powered unconsciously by the host's chakra. Once the body stops providing chakra the seal self-destructs, destroying the target's chakra pathways. Kushina hums, "I can get rid of the slave seal, pretty easily. However, the destruction seal is tied into it. I am unsure if the destruction seal will activate if I remove the slave seal. If it does best-case scenario would be, you would never be able to use chakra again."
"What's the worst-case scenario?" Sasuke asks a touch of fear making his voice shake.
"Death," Minato answers sternly.
Sasuke and Shinso both tighten their grips on Neji, "Is there anything we can do?" Shinso asks desperation clear in his voice.
Kushina hums with a small smile, "I have a few theories to try out, but I need to gather my supplies. It would also be ideal to try them out on a non-living vessel."
Minato hums, "if we filter our Chakra, we could then store it in slow-release storage scrolls. Then we copy the slave seal and destruction seal on the scrolls."
Kushina's eyes widen, "Then when the seals run out of chakra the destruction seal would believe it is dead and activate! We can figure out exactly what gets destroyed, and how to counter it."
Minato smirks at the excitement radiating off his wife, when Aizawa informed them Izuku had a sealing question, Minato grabbed his sealing kit with enthusiasm. "Luckily, I brought my kit with me."
Kushina smiles cheekily, "So did I."
Jiraiya rolls his eyes, while he is considered the best Seal Master currently living; he was never as good as Minato and Kushina when they work together. He watches as Minato empties out his sealing storage scroll, laying everything out. Blank parchment, self-made infused chakra ink, regular ink, his top-of-the-line calligraphy set; made by the best Uzumaki artisans in the field. This is a kit any seal master would kill to have.
Minato and Kushina start drawing out basic sealing scrolls, Jiraiya stops counting when they have made ten. Kushina draws a small seal on the palm of her hand. It's a small simple seal originally used to mimic healing chakra. The best healers filter their Chakra and use blank chakra to heal injuries without the risk of the patient rejecting the chakra. The Uzumaki clan as a whole have trouble filtering their chakra, so natural healers were exceedingly rare among the Uzumaki. Instead, they came up with a small seal that would purify their chakra removing all impurities and personal signatures.
Minato, hailing from the Namikaze clan, does not have this issue. While Minato's reserves are nothing to scoff at, they are nowhere near as dense as an Uzumaki's all but unlimited reserves. So instead of drawing the small seal on his palm he sets himself to meditate and focuses internally on separating his chakra. One of his hands holds a storage scroll, while the other is fixed in a half ram hand sign. After several moments of channeling pure chakra into the scroll, Minato opens his eyes and inspects the scroll. Deeming the scroll acceptable, Minato starts to draw the slave seal on top of the storage scroll.
They repeat the process until all the scrolls have been filled up with pure chakra. Kushina gets to work trying many different methods on disabling the seal without the storage scroll being destroyed. The first one goes up in smoke and Kushina hums and jots her notes down. Minato tries his hand at a couple of theories he has in mind. While he is known for repurposing seals, like the Second's flying thunder god technique, he can create, layer, and bridge seals together to give them multiple functions.
Take Naruto's eight trigrams seal, which was used to seal Kurama into the newborn for example. Minato started with a four-point containment seal to seal Kurama's Chakra. He layered a two-point binding seal on top of the four-point to strengthen the seal while binding Kurama to his host. Then he bridged another seal with a separate purpose on the seal. This additional two-point seal's purpose was to slowly purify Kurama's Chakra and make it easier for Naruto to assimilate the beast's chakra into his own.
Jiraiya observes the sealing chaos for nearly an hour before a cheer breaks the silence. Jiraiya looks to the source of the disruption, spotting Kushina with a massive, accomplished grin on her face. "I think I have found one that will work."
"You think?" Sasuke parrots slightly afraid.
Kushina hums, "yes, the scroll is completely intact without the seal destroying the residual chakra. It is impossible to know for sure how painful this will be without testing it on a living being. But I can promise complete removal, and survival when it is removed."
Neji's breath hitches, "I can handle pain." Neji tries to sound bold, but he falls a little flat as uncertainty clogs his throat.
Kushina smiles at the teen, "Would you like me to work on removing the seal?"
"Please," Neji is not ashamed to admit he begged.
Kushina nods, "Minato please place a silencing seal on the door, we do not want any distractions." Minato moves to follow his wife's instructions. Kushina turns her attention to the slave seal on Neji's forehead. "Are you ready?"
"Yes," Neji confidently states.
Kushina hums and gets to work deconstructing the seal layer by layer. As the first layer disappears Neji is shaking slightly, but the pain is manageable so far. Small whimpers and groans leave his throat on the second and third layers. Neji doesn't know how much time has passed as he starts screaming in agony. Shinso and Sasuke are directed to hold Neji down to keep the teen from moving too much and disrupting the removal process. Kushina hurries through the last couple of layers to dismantle the destruction seal, guilt from causing so much pain ripping through her. But she pushes it down, the faster she deconstructs the seal the better Neji will feel. By the time the last of the deconstruction seal is removed, Neji has screamed himself into silence.
This next part is simple, being Uzumaki royalty she is automatically keyed into the prisoner seal's foundation. All she needs to do is override the chakra in the seal and it will disintegrate harmlessly. She places her fingers gently on the X marring Neji's forehead. With her dominant hand, she forms the half Ram seal and channels the dormant royal chakra she was born with. She glows a slight golden color as she builds up the Chakra inside her. She guides the Royal Chakra through her body, into Neji's seal. She performs the one-handed release signs that have been drilled into her as the heir to the Uzumaki clan. After several minutes of blurred hand seals Kushina whispers, "Kai."
For a few agonizingly long seconds that feel like hours, nothing happens. The witnesses to the removal all wait holding their breaths for any sign that the release worked. Then with a crackle of golden Chakra, the seal starts to disintegrate in a show of glitter. Kushina sits back on her heels, releasing a shaky exhausted breath, with a wide grin on her face, "you are free now."
Neji is tired, throat raw from his screaming. He feels light, free in a way he only has vague memories of. He hopes he conveys his gratitude with his facial expressions because he can't get his throat to produce any sounds. And as his exhaustion takes over, he feels a sensation of warmth and peace envelop him.
After Kushina leans back Izuku flares his healing over the teen, running mostly diagnostics and soothing the ripped raw throat. After Neji is healed he refuses to pull back his flames, instead, he keeps them caressing the teen like a blanket. He slumps to the ground, leaning against Kacchan and the wall. Neji is pack, and he doesn't plan on leaving until the teen wakes up.
***Time skip, Couple of hours***
Neji doesn't remember falling asleep, but he blinks his eyes open in confusion. He is laying down on a semi-comfortable bed, a comforting warmth wrapped around him. He tries to test his field of motion because one of the last things he remembers is excruciating pain. So logically he should be injured, but without disturbing whatever is wrapped around him he tilts his head to the side. Sasuke is sleeping bent over the bed, so his head is pillowed in his arms. Neji reaches out to stroke the teen's hair, curious to find out if his hair is as soft as it looks. Before he can convince himself that this is a bad idea, Neji reaches out and combs his fingers through the teen's hair, lightly scratching his skull. Sasuke surprisingly doesn't jolt awake, doesn't smack him away, and doesn't tense up. Instead, Sasuke pushes his head firmer into Neji's curious fingers. Neji smiles, when Sasuke is like this, he is like one of the stray cats Neji has seen taking over the abandoned Uchiha compound.
Something squeezes Neji's other hand, he pauses in his careful exploration of Sasuke's hair. He turns his head slowly to investigate. The shock of seeing Shinso sleeping similarly to Sasuke fades quickly. A small fond smile graces his lips as he takes in Shinso's sleeping form. The teen is breathing slowly, his hair plastered to the side of his face moving slightly with every slow steady breath. There is a small tuff of hair brushing up against Shinso's nose, causing the teen to crinkle his face in annoyance at the sensation. Neji wants to move the piece of hair but remembers one of his hands is still petting Sasuke, and the other is being firmly held by Shinso. Neji squeezes Shinso's hand slightly in a delayed response to the hand squeeze he received.
Neji watches as Shinso's eyes blink open rapidly, and he can tell the other teen is just as confused as he is shocked to see Neji smiling softly at him. Shinso's face dusts with a tint of pink on pale skin as he turns his head away slightly. Even though Shinso is clearly embarrassed he doesn't break eye contact with Neji. His eyes and voice filled with relief and concern as he whispers, "how are you feeling?" Shinso is almost too quiet for Neji to hear him, but with the silence in the room, it is clear what Shinso asked.
"I feel better than I have in years," Neji answers just as softly with a smile.
Shinso's shoulders relax in relief, "That's good. I'm glad." He blushes slightly, "Do you need anything? Water?" Shinso doesn't wait for an answer, he reaches behind him to the small table and grabs a bottle of water Kakashi left for Neji.
Neji accepts the bottle of water gracefully, Sasuke grumbles his discontent of not being petted in his sleep. Neji smiles softly, "Thank you, Hitoshi."
Shinso nods, blush intensifying at hearing his given name leave Neji's lips. To save himself from any more embarrassing blushes, Shinso buries his head in his arms on the bed. Neji lets the teen escape, resuming his petting on his other soulmate. Sasuke happily grumbles his acceptance at the continued touch.
Neji doesn't realize each blink lingers closed, as his breathing evens out, and he is overcome with a sense of peace. Shinso cracks an eye open when Neji's breathing goes soft and slow, he smiles softly as Neji goes into true sleep.
The next time Neji wakes up, it's to the sensation of something brushing the loose hair out of his face. He can hear soft murmuring around him, but his sleep fogged brain can't really make out what is said. He blinks his eyes open, curious to know who is running their fingers through his hair.
Sasuke mindlessly brushes the hair out of Neji's face. He pushes the hair off the teen's forehead, fingers lightly dragging across the unmarked skin. The smile that adorns Sasuke's face is full of soft relief, and disbelief. He doesn't realize Neji has opened his eyes, so the sound that escapes his recovering soulmate startles him.
"Is it gone?" Hope, uncertainty, and a small amount of disbelief makes Neji's voice quiver in emotions.
Sasuke's small smile morphs into a wide blinding grin as he makes eye contact with Neji. His other hand produces a mirror from some unknown location and holds it out to Neji. Neji takes the offered reflective surface hesitantly, or reverently, definitely shakily as his fingers tremble and threaten to let go of the device. Sasuke steadies Neji's hand with his own and angles the mirror towards Neji's face. Neji is forced to break eye contact with Sasuke, and he looks at the reflection in the mirror. It takes a few moments for his brain to process what he is seeing. Tears escape his eyes as he registers the clear, unmarked forehead is truly his own. He can't believe it is real, for all that the pain from it being removed is cemented in his bones, it seems more like an impossible dream. "It's really gone?" he asks no one in particular, "am I truly free?"
Sasuke nods, voice hidden in his throat at the sheer emotions coming from his soulmate. His fingers stroke Neji's cheek as the teen still studies his own unmarked skin. Sasuke used to think all of the Hyuga clan were full of stuck-up, emotionless, snobs. But with his Sharingan capturing Neji's joyful, relieved tears he thinks maybe the Hyuga clan portrayed themselves this way so no one can see their pain. Sasuke is relieved to see Neji's stoic mask breaking, and he thinks the honest display of emotions makes Neji seem real, natural, beautiful even.
Movement behind Sasuke breaks him out of his studious gaze, he turns his head slightly to see who has disturbed his pining. Shinso rubs the sleep out of his eyes, sleep still clinging to his mind. Shinso smiles warmly at the other two teens until he notices Neji's tear-streaked face. "What's wrong, Neji?" Shinso's concern steals his warm smile.
Neji smiles softly and wiped the tears off his cheeks, "nothing is wrong, Toshi. I'm just overwhelmed."
"By good feelings, I hope," Shinso pries still not letting go of his concern.
Neji's smile widens, his eyes crinkle slightly, "the best feelings."
Shinso relaxes, "That's good."
Without them noticing Kushina, Minato, Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Aizawa reenter the room. Feeling guilty about interrupting the trio, Kushina clears her throat, "Glad to see you awake, Neji-San."
Neji turns wide pale eyes toward the female, once his shock wears away, he smiles a barely noticeable smile, "Thank you, Lady Kushina."
Kushina blushes and waves off the gratitude, "None of that, please just call me Kushina."
Neji nods, "Thank you, Kushina-San." He tries to stand up to bow formally, but with Sasuke leaning on him it is impossible to find the will to move.
Kushina witnesses the young Uchiha doing his version of clinging to the bedded teen. She flashes a smirk at the teen, causing Sasuke to blush violently and turn his head away with a wordless grunt. Kushina chuckles and resists the urge to pinch the Uchiha's cheeks. Mikoto Uchiha was her best friend, they were like sisters. Kushina remembers when Mikoto introduced Sasuke to her as a baby, asked her to be the boy's aunt. They both prayed that her unborn son and Sasuke would be great friends like their mothers. She is angry that her friend didn't take her advice to leave Fugaku before he got her killed. Itachi approached her guilt, and sadness making the Uchiha's body tense as he told her what he was forced to do. Kushina has never hated anyone or anything as strongly as she did after Itachi broke down in her arms pleading for forgiveness. Itachi's grief was evident by the way he allowed her to pull him to her chest. He shook with emotions, quietly trembling as he repeated over and over again how was sorry. She whispered to the Uchiha that she would make Danzo pay, for threatening her nephews. After Itachi calmed down they moved on to slightly lighter topics. She knew he was banished, forced to go undercover for the Hokage, but she wanted to know about his travels. He told her even though he wasn't able to take Sasuke with him, he watched over his younger brother as Mikoto and Kushina would have wanted.
After checking to make sure Neji is feeling no side effects from the removal of his seal, she bows and drags Minato out of the room. As she turns around a coughing clearing of a throat causes her to pause. She tilts her head toward the source of the sound.
Shinso looks down, a light blush on his cheeks, as he bows slightly, "Thank you, for helping Neji."
Kushina lets go of her husband's wrist and walks purposely toward the bowed teen. She puts a hand on the boy's shoulder and pushes him slightly. The teen looks at her with wide, awed eyes as he straightens himself. Kushina smiles at the teen, "No need to thank me, Hun. I only did what my skills allowed me to do."
Shinso's blush deeps, "can you teach me?"
It is Kushina's turn to turn wide eyes at the teen, "you want to learn sealing?"
Shinso nods, "yes."
Kushina takes a moment to consider her choices, on one hand, she would be teaching a stranger Uzumaki sealing techniques. In the wrong hands, the seals could be devastating, not only to the seal master but everyone around them. Not to mention most Uzumaki seals need their dense chakra to successfully create. On the other hand, the sealing arts are dying. She can count on one hand how many shinobi are officially recognized as Seal Masters. "Sealing is mostly a dead art. Not many Shinobi use sealing because it is not as proficient as the other Shinobi arts. The Uzumaki were the only clan that really specialized in sealing. There is 10 levels of standard Sealing mastery you would need to accomplish before you are recognized as a seal master. After that, there are an additional 5 levels of Uzumaki Sealing to be recognized as a Seal Master among the Uzumaki. There is a lot of theory, symbolism, and variables to understand as well."
Shinso nods with determination flaring in his eyes, "I am not as strong as the others, but I want to help. I want to learn everything I can to ensure the safety of my important people."
Kushina hums as Minato smiles, "I will put together a beginner's kit for you. You are quite a bit older than others who want to start sealing. Most of the 1-3 levels are about symbols and perfecting your writing. The theory of Sealing Jutsu isn't really mentioned until after level 3."
Shinso nods, "I understand."
Minato nods, "When you are finished level 3, we will test you, if you are successful, I'll take you on as a student."
Shinso stares wide-eyed at the man, "I won't let you down." He bows, "Thank you, Minato-Sensei."
"Meet me tomorrow after your training, that will give me enough time to prepare." Minato orders before he turns around to leave the room.
Shinso bows one final time, only raising his head when the door closes, and the adults have left. Izuku and Katsuki left before the adults came in, Izuku whispered his goodbyes and informed Shinso he will check on them later. Shinso feels excitement bubble up in him, his want to learn sealing was impulsive. But he has to admit now that it has sunk in a bit, after Kushina's short explanation, that he is thrilled to learn something that will help the pack. So far in his training, he has been copying other people's moves and fighting styles. Aizawa's capture weapon, Zoro's sword style, Lee's strong fist, and even the other ninja's Jutsus. He has nothing of his own, but if he can master Sealing, even if it doesn't fit offensively, he will still be useful.
