"What would be left of our tragedies if an insect were to present us his?"

~ Emile M. Cioran ~

I was 8 years old when I unlocked my Sharingan.

The day had started much the same as any other, I'd gotten up, gotten dressed, and gone off to school. It had been two years since I'd started attending and already my teachers were on my case about "graduating early." Something about the combination of my perfect scores and emotional maturity? Too bad for them that I had no interest in rushing through my childhood, second go around or not.

Oh, they tried to push it, but my response was just to push back.

It took some time, but they eventually got the message when I started leaving exactly 30% of all my test questions blank. That way my grades fell to the middle of the class...but there'd be no doubt that it was by choice. I think it helped that I already had a betrothal contract, so the paperwork to force my graduation would have to pass through two clans; and the Aburame weren't likely to go against my wishes. Not when graduating alongside Shino significantly increased my survival rate (I think they just liked me coming around to visit, and knew I'd be too busy as a genin to do that as often.)

So yeah, 8 years old and still in the academy, living through a day identical to any other.

Until I got my Sharingan.

Fun fact; for the longest time I didn't think I had the clan's doujutsu. It's genetically unlikely to appear in females, for one thing, for another it's supposed to activate from extreme emotions and mine...hadn't? I mean, what's more extreme than realizing everything and everyone you ever knew was gone; you'd have to do puberty again; or maybe not (cause that cute kid holding you? Yeah, he's destined to dye the streets red.)

In short?

Nothing.

Nothing was more emotional than learning your world was basically over before it began. If those emotions from when I was three, and had finally realized what the name Uchiha Naori meant for me, didn't activate the Sharingan, then I ventured the hypotheses that nothing would. I was wrong (obviously), but...not completely?

I'm sure this is where you're expecting to hear my tale of woe. Maybe I was kidnapped, tortured for my future knowledge? Or perhaps it was an escaped convict intent on gaining revenge, using me as the bargaining chip? Oh! It could be something threatening the safety of my brothers?! My parents? Shisui?

Wrong.

It was nothing so dramatic. Just a simple observation. A simple thought. Which led to another, and another, and another, building to this slow realization and…

Click

My vision bled red.

In retrospect, I probably terrified poor Sasuke who was walking home with me. But I couldn't bring myself to care caught as I was between the weird elation and confusion I felt at my suddenly monochromatic vision.

It began as follows:

Itachi's birthday is tomorrow, I wonder what he wants?

"Ne, Sasu-nii, d'ya think Itachi'd be happy with a pillow shaped like a dango?"

"...Naori, you're being weird again."

"Nah, it'll have a face and everything! I can make one each year, that way it can be a collection, the Big Dango Family!"

Sasuke just shot me an exasperated look, "Onii-san's turning fourteen, Naori. I don't think he wants your stupid plushies."

"They're not stupid, you are-wait. Did you just say fourteen?!"

Fourteen. Why does that number seem important?

"Hn? He's thirteen today so he'll be fourteen tomorrow?"

...Itachi doesn't turn fourteen. Not in the village. He's already part of the Akatsuki by then.

"A-are you s-sure?" I stuttered coming to a stop in the middle of the street, my thoughts racing a million miles an hour. 'He'll be fourteen?!"

He's joined Akatsuki by then. Been allowed to join them because of what he did in Konoha. Because of the massacre...the massacre that Itachi pulls off when he's thirteen. Does this mean? Is today the day? But, no, Shisui's still alive. Could I be getting my ages wrong? But Sasuke and I turn nine in a month...I know the massacre happened before he turned nine…

"Hn." Sasuke muttered, snapping me from my reverie, "I'm sure." My gaze just connected with his, and a single thought passed through my head;

Did I somehow prevent the massacre?

And with this thought a feeling of overwhelming relief flooded my system. Relief chased by Joy and wrapped in pure, unadulterated Happiness. I was giddy, beyond giddy, the happiest I had been in-

Red.

My entire vision bled red; red, white, and black, all other colors dissipating into the nether. I froze, terrified of what was happening to the world around me. I'd heard of being stricken blind before, but never of being stricken color blind.

I heard a gasp and turned to take in the grey-scale view of my brother, mouth agape and pointing at me. "Sh-sh-sharingan! Naori, you, you, that's the Sharingan!"

...what?

I spun around to face a storefront window, and gasped at my reflection. For sure enough, there I stood, in faded grey, with eyes that bled the color of the morning sun. A single-black-tomoe swimming lazily in each iris.

...what?!

"W-we, we have to go home!" Sasuke shouted pulling on my long sleeved, high collar, Uchiha shirt. "We have to tell Otou-san, or Okaa-san, or someone." I just allowed myself to be dragged off. Completely frozen by this new, depressing, view of the world.

...WHAT?!

Uchiha Itachi liked to think he was a good person. Sure he was a shinobi, an ANBU, with all that entailed. But, at his core, he was an honest, kind hearted, loving kid. He didn't long for battle, he didn't promote violence, he was loyal to his Kage, loyal to his village, loyal to his family, and even (when they deserved it) loyal to his clan. He spent his time off fostering his relationship with his siblings, and hanging out with his best friend.

He was shinobi, he was Itachi, but he was also just a kid.

And, just like any kid, he had his weaknesses.

"Aniki!" Sasuke screamed, sprinting up to him in the middle of the clan compound, "you have to help Naori she-" before Sasuke had even finished speaking Itachi's chakra had spiked, Sharingan flickering to life.

Naori? Has something happened?! Hokage-sama has been pleased with the clan's progress, though, and Father wouldn't risk this fragile peace we've found. Could it be.. .? No. Naori is of no threat to the village, he would have no reason to…(unless he knows?) but she's just a child. Still too young to re-

"-niki, ANIKI!" Sasuke shouted, snapping Itachi out of his reverie, "Naori's fine. She just needs your help. She activated her Sharingan," Itachi's eyebrows shot up in surprise, "but that was an hour ago, and she's getting tired, but she doesn't know how toturnitoff." Anger and desperation colored Sasuke's voice, and at Itachi's nod of comprehension his little brother sagged in relief. The weight of responsibility finally releasing him.

"Hn. Come otouto, let's stop our sister from doing something stupid." The 'again' was left unsaid.

Uchiha Itachi liked to think he was a good person. A good shinobi. But he was also just a kid, and like any kid he had his weaknesses. His greatest being a little girl with his Mother's face, Father's hair, and devil's luck.

Oh, Itachi loved his siblings. He loved them with his entire being; in a world of darkness they were his light, his hope. He loved them more than he loved himself, more than he loved his village, and that was saying something. But he could love them and still see them, still know them.

Sasuke was easy, Sasuke for all his attempts to hide, was an open book. He longed for his father's affection, and brother's time. He was equal parts jealous and exasperated with his sister's stubborn genius. He was the apple of their mother's eye and true boon to the clan. Even if the rest of them were blind to his potential, blind to the truth that Itachi saw every day. Sasuke, for all that he is a carefree child (perhaps because he got to be a carefree child) was a genius-in-the-making. A shinobi to surpass Itachi, a shinobi to surpass them all.

On this he'd stake his life.

Naori, however, Naori was a different story entirely. Naori didn't hide, didn't pretend, she was unapologetically herself, and that made her far harder to read. But read her he did. And what Itachi saw, what he noticed (and please Kami-sama, may he be the only person who noticed) terrified him.

For Naori was something far more deadly than a shinobi, far more hated than a pacifist. Naori, his little sister, the girl who could make his father swing between rage and pride, could make his mother burst out in laughter and Sasuke shriek like a little girl, his little sister who would meet his gaze undaunted and hug him as he reeked with the blood of his enemies, because "welcome home 'tachi-nii!" Naori, that precious, precious child...was a radical.

And this world did not bear change well.

It wasn't obvious. Itachi was perceptive enough to pick up on it, but equally smart enough to note that (thank the gods) it wasn't obvious. Naori wasn't the type of person to force her opinions on someone. She had opinions, she had many opinions, and woe be it on the fool who tried to challenge her opinions. But if you left her alone? If you just lived your life? Well, Itachi hadn't even realized she considered murder unconscionable until that day their father tried to get her to kill a rabbit...and Naori knew he was an assassin. (And yet, everyday, a smile, a hug, and a, "welcome home 'tachi-nii!")

While she didn't push her opinions on people, however, that didn't change how dangerous her opinions were.

Murder is wrong.

Children shouldn't be made to fight.

People should be given a public trial.

They were subtle, little clues dropped here-and-there that Itachi hoarded like a jealous collector, eager to understand his siblings. But as the pieces grew…

Information shouldn't be guarded.

Civilians should have access to computers.

Education should be free.

...as the puzzle slowly came together…

Missions should be public record.

Shinobi should be allowed to retire.

The hospital should be paid for by the state.

...as it all came together, Itachi's blood ran cold.

The police should be open to civilian recruits.

She'd never said it, (thank the gods for small mercies) she was smart enough to likely never say it.

There should be a special position just for overseeing the implementation of laws.

But Itachi could read between the lines, could see the world Naori believed in.

They should vote on whether or not to pass those laws.

No, 'belief' implied there was was the possibility of doubt. There was no doubt in Naori, in this world she saw. As far as she was concerned it simply was. It was a God-given right, intrinsic to every being by virtue of them simply being born. It was a beautiful world, it was a wondrous thought, but it was radical.

Because, this world? This Utopia? For all that Naori never said it, it was alarmingly obvious. With every action, with every thought, his little sister was all but screaming;

We should do away with the Shinobi system!

And that, that right there is the reason that Itachi can't leave her alone. Can't trust her to her own devices as he does Sasuke. Can't comfortably sit back and watch the world she'll build, because Itachi has seen first hand how the village responds to such thoughts. Itachi is the person called to deal with such people.

Sasuke may be his little brother, may be the song in his heart. Threatening Sasuke would likely bring Itachi to heel, but Sasuke would have an entire village to back him. He was a weakness, but a weakness that Itachi could trust others to protect. Naori, however, Naori was a weakness that he could trust to no one.

Least of all, because, in the deepest parts of his heart, in those hidden crevices in his mind, Naori's opinions? Naori's thoughts? They'd long since taken root.

Naori was a radical.

Not because she had radical thoughts, not because she took radical actions, but because her thoughts made sense, because she'd spur others to act. She didn't just see change, she begot change. In fact, Itachi would be wiling to say that Naori was change. If Sasuke had all the makings of the greatest shinobi the Uchiha had ever seen, Naori had the makings of the greatest mind the Uchiha had ever seen.

The world may look at Itachi and see genius, but the world could not see the forest for the trees. Genius was not in perfection, it was not in recreation, and it was not in erudition. Genius was in two little children, with gaped-tooth smiles, scoffing at the idea of "impossible." No, the world may call Itachi a genius, but he knew he paled in comparison to his siblings.

Just as he knew that this very fact would bring them naught but strife. And so it was up to him to make sure they lived long-enough to reach their potential.

Even if Naori insisted on sabotaging him at every turn.

"Still red," I shot out as I heard the front door open. Assuming, considering the time of day, that it was Sasuke returning with some random clan adult.

"What is red, imouto?"

"Itachi-nii!" A smile lit up my face. If anyone could fix this, it'd be him. "Welcome home, 'tachi-nii!" I called rushing to give him a hug. After all, if you could get free Itachi hugs, wouldn't you claim them whenever you could?

Or, I tried to give him a hug, I may have tripped on my way over-my depth perception was laughably off-and Itachi may have caught me and lifted me until I was eye level.

And let me tell you, it was weird seeing my brother in Grey Scale. Even more so when Itachi activated his own Sharingan. You think those things are impressive? Try seeing them in a world where red was the only available color!

I wonder if Itachi is seeing me in grey scale too. Does the Sharingan make you colorblind? Is that why Tsukiyomi was always monochromatic?!

"Ne, 'tachi-nii, are you colorblind too?"

I mean, I've heard of 'seeing red' but this is ridiculous!

"...no, Naori. You'll grow out of that with time. Your vision will improve."

"What? How?"

A sigh. "Father told me it was the way of the Uchiha, to constantly strive for perfection. But something tells me you won't accept that answer."

My deadpan must have been answer enough because my older brother just sighed before launching into a much more detailed response. "I can't be certain, as I've never had time to investigate myself, but I believe it's a consequence of how a Sharingan works on the biological level."

"...what?"

"You have only awakened your first tomoe, at this level you'll be able to track movement better and see through most visual-cue genjutsu." As if to emphasize this Itachi shot his hand forward, and I watched as time seemed to slow, as everything seemed to crawl to a stop, as Itachi's hand came closer and closer; and how I couldn'tdoanything!

Poke

"Itachi-nii!" I screamed, rubbing my forehead where my brother had just managed to flick me; regardless of my new eyes having seen it coming a mile away.

"The red coloration is a consequence of your single tomoe acting as a cone in your eye, one which only accepts red-wavelengths. As your Sharingan matures the rest of the visible spectrum becomes open to you, extending even into the the ultraviolet spectrum. Allowing you to view chakra that's been released into the atmosphere."

I nodded, slowly, curious.

"The change in perception is what makes Uchiha such formidable genjutsu masters. If there is a visual component to a genjutsu it will be immediately apparent to even the most immature of Sharingan."

"...cause genjutsu affects the mind?" Sasuke questioned, looking up at our brother in adoration.

"Hn." Itachi called, smiling softly at us. "Exactly, otouto. It would bypass your vision and relay the image directly to your brain. When your world bleeds from red to their overlay the genjutsu is laughably easy to discern. There are other factors, of course, but this is the simplest explanation for the Sharingan's genjutsu prowess."

That, makes so much sense. I wonder how many people know about this? Did Kakashi know to teach Sasuke? Did Madara know to teach Obito? Itachi obviously knows, but who would he have told? And it's not like Obito or Sasuke would have cared about the biology behind their eye.

Kakashi might have...but didn't Obito's Sharingan have two tomoe when he gave it up? Actually, when he unlocked it! So he wouldn't have noticed...and Sasuke would have attributed the color change to Itachi's Mangekyo when he first awakened. And he had two tomoe in at least one eye during his battle with Haku.

...did this info die with Itachi?

"What's the second tomoe for?" I shot out, eager to milk my brother for all his knowledge. "If the first can see through genjutsu?"

"The second tomoe allows for colors from red to green to be observed. But, practically, it works much like a camera shutter. Allowing for near-perfect (visual) recall of an event. In conjunction with the third tomoe it allows for the Uchiha to copy nearly all ninjutsu."

"The third?" Sasuke asked, and I shot him a smile, glad I wasn't the only one enthralled. Or I would have shot him a smile, if I hadn't started to sway in place.

"Hn." Itachi murmured, brow creasing, "let's help Naori to deactivate her Sharingan first, her chakra stores aren't large enough to maintain the doujutsu for long."

"I'm f-fine," I muttered, far more interested in this gold-mine of knowledge than the chill that was slowly making its way through my limbs. "Keep explaining, Itachi-nii."

Itachi shot me an unimpressed look before marching me to our family living room, and seating me on the couch. I think he sent Sasuke off to do something, too, because my brother was conveniently absent when Itachi decided it was finally time to pry.

"What happened Imouto?"

I shrugged.

"This isn't a joking matter, Naori. The Sharingan only activates in cases of extreme emotional upheaval. If you're in danger then I need-"

"-I'm fine!" I rushed to convince him, "I promise, Itachi-nii! Nothing bad was happening, I wasn't scared or mad, no one attacked us. I really don't get why my Sharingan activated, I was only thinking about-err-stuff."

...because that won't attract his attention At. All.

"Hn? Thinking about what, Ri-chan?" My brother murmured, softening his voice and falling back on a childish nickname to soften me up. And, damn him for it, it was working. "You can trust me, Ri."

That voice is cheating! How the hell am I supposed to lie in the face of that cuteness?!

"Urk." I shifted my eyes from his face, and launched into an...edited version, of my thoughts. "I was thinking about your birthday, nii-san."

Itachi flinched and I rushed to stop his spiral of thoughts.

"Good things! They were all good things, I promise, nii-san. I wasn't sad, or mad, I was just thinking about my family, and all the birthdays you'll be there for, and how lucky we all are to have each other. And I was just...happy?" I scrunched up my nose in thought, "but that doesn't make sense, right? Doesn't the Sharingan activate from guilt?"

"Hn. It is unheard of, but not impossible. The Sharingan reacts to extreme emotional changes. This tends to manifest as negative emotions; anger, pain, guilt, fear, but there is no reason to assume it may not respond to more positive emotions; happiness, joy, serenity, hope…" I watched as Itachi got lost in his own thoughts, eyes growing distant.

I wonder who he's thinking about.

"This...this could prove to be problematic," my brother finally murmured, having returned to me from the depths of his thoughts.

"Hn?"

"The Sharingan is often activated by extreme negative emotion," my brother muttered, "it is, thus, easily deactivated by calming oneself down. In your case, however, the same path cannot be followed."

"Why not? Can't I just take deep breaths or something?"

"Ri, your Sharingan activated because you were happy. Thus, in order to deactivate it your happiness must likewise diminish."

"So? I just need to think sad thoughts, right?"

A puppy dying. The slow extinction of bees. The idea that I'm alone in a universe not my own.

I tried to force the emotions through my haze of optimism.

The inevitability of death. The fear that I may he trapped in a cycle of rebirth. The short life-span of most insects.

Tried desperately to grasp onto that one idea, that one thought, that would open the floodgates.

Itachi as a nuke-nin. Sasuke as a nuke-nin. Shisui bleeding to death in a river.

Tried to force the tears out of my eyes.

Pikachu saying goodbye to Ash. Groot at the end of Guardians. All of Doctor Who.

And to my suprise,

The fact that I'll never know-

It worked.

-how One Piece ends.

"I-is i-it w-working," I sobbed, tears streaming down my face. "I-ita-chi-nii," a breath, "i-is it b-b-better?!"

"Hn." My brother grunted, a smile in is voice. "Why don't you tell me, imouto? Is your world still red?"

Taking a break from my pity party to look around I was surprised to note that, no, it actually wasn't. Everything had returned to normal, the floors were back to being brown; my shirt was blue, that flower vase was purple. I'd barely begun to calm down from my cry when a thought entered my head.

"Ne, Nii-san, is it always like this? Will I have to be happy and then sad everytime? Isn't there an easier way?"

"Hn. Can you not feel the chakra receding from your eyes, imouto? Follow the path they're carving, like a wave amongst the ocean. Surge along the path to activate your eyes, and then recede to deactivate."

I followed Itachi's instructions, pushing my chakra down the path that still tingled with residual heat. Push; my sight bled red. Pull; color returned. Push; Itachi moved in slow motion. Pull; he was immediately in my face. Push; the world started to sway. Pull; Itachi opened his mouth. Push; I-

"Stop."

-crumpled onto the couch, exhausted.

Itachi just sighed and reached to smooth my hair out of my face. "Silly imouto," he murmured, as I stubbornly clung to consciousness. "It's okay Ri, you've earned your rest."

"Hn." I muttered, deactivating my Sharingan one final time.

Pull; I close my eyes.

And sleep.