Part 4: Izuna Uchiha

"Izuna, IZUNA!"

"Yes, brother?!" The younger Uchiha ran outside to see what his older brother was so excited about.

"Hahaha! You need to awaken your Sharingan, I can feel it, its power! Izu, this Sharingan is only the beginning of my new strength!"

"How do I awaken my Sharingan brother?" Izuna asked curiously, with obvious excitement in his voice.

"This may be hard for you Izuna, but you need to turn against a friend."

"Huh? So you are not friends with Hashirama anymore brother?"

"No, he and I are different now, I can't chase my dream with him as my friend. He will only hold me back."

"Oh…"

Madara grabbed his brother's shoulders, "listen to me, you know your friend Kurowa?"

"…uh"

"Are you listening Izu? Kurowa Uchiha, you can't be friends with him anymore. Cut your ties with him and you will awaken your Sharingan."

"Yeah, but… how do I do that Madara?"

"Tch… doesn't matter how!" Madara growled then realised he was scaring Izuna. He took a deep breath and toned his voice down and smiled gently. "Just do it for me and you will get stronger, I promise you."

"Oh okay big brother, I will try."

Izuna's POV

I have to get stronger for nii-san! Izuna thought to himself. He was nervous, as the second eldest brother ran off to find his friend. He had been to his friend's place many times, but today time seemed to have slowed down. He was running the same pace as always but it seemed to take longer today. When he finally made it he rapped on the front door, he dreaded who would open it. Izuna was relieved to see it was Kurowa's mother. "Hey Izuna, did you need something?"

The young Uchiha gulped, "Do you know where Kurowa is?"

"Oh he's not here, he's out training, sorry, but you'll have to go look for him."

"Thanks!" That was all Izuna needed, he knew exactly where his friend trained. He hurried over and found him.

"Kurowa!"

"Oh, hey Izuna! Huh?" Izuna had whipped out a kunai to his friend's throat.

"W-what are you doing?!" Kurowa asked in a nervous surprise.

"I can't be friends with you anymore! So stay away from me!" He forced on his best glare.

"Izuna, stop fooling around, you could kill me with that!"

"I am serious!" He growled childishly, the kunai bit Kurowa's skin and blood began to trickle along the blade. Why is it not working? His hand holding the kunai began to shake as he gripped the blade handle so hard his knuckles were going white.

"Knock it off, you are being weird!" He backhanded Izuna's face and hand in one swoop. "And plus that hurt! I am not the enemy here!" In defeat and annoyance that his plan didn't work, Izuna ran off back home. The young Uchiha tried to think of another way to break his bond. 'Why couldn't I do it? I won't be strong like big brother if I can't break my bond with a friend! Madara will be angry at me, who knows what he will do if I can't follow him! Tch!'

"Hey wait-! Where are you going? Izunaaa!" Kurowa called out after his friend, utterly confused by the encounter.

"Back off!" Izuna turned and yelled, and whipped out a kunai again for extra emphasis.

"What's going on with you?"

"...

I need to get stronger," with that said Izuna dashed off again.

Izuna reached home shortly, panting hard from sprinting all the way there and back. He took off his shoes and placed them by the door before he entered quietly. Izuna didn't want to let Madara know he was home yet, to avoid discussing his sorry failure. He walked into the kitchen to fetch some food to eat, then sat down at the dining table to contemplate his next move to awaken his Sharingan.

'Who else should I cut my ties with? Renji? Jun? If I set a trap, a non-lethal one, I can just leave him t–'

His thoughts were then interrupted by a loud coughing fit coming from his parent's bedroom and Madara rushing into the kitchen to grab a cup of water.

"Oi, Izuna you're home! Come help, father's ill." The older Uchiha called in passing.

"Uh, yes!" Izuna rushed to his feet and followed his brother to his father. He entered the bedroom to see his father coughing blood into a towel. Madara knelt beside Tajima and offered him the water.

"Father?! Is that blood?" Izuna gasped.

Cough "I am fine" Cough "Do not worry about me. If I am to die in battle because of this, you too are to protect each other at all costs… do you hear me, Madara? Izuna?" Tajima replied. His voice sounded sore and husky.

"Yes, father." The boys both replied in unison.

"Good. Remember to keep you friends close and your enemies closer and do not let your brother's deaths be in vain." He added as calmly as his inflamed throat would allow. Both sons nodded.

"Let's go Izu, we'll let father rest."

The brothers left quietly and closed the door behind them.

"Madara?"

"Yeah?"

"I feel like sparring for bit," Izuna said eagerly.

Madara chuckled softly, "sure, why not. Bukijutsu?"

"No, just plain old taijutsu."

The brother's headed out to their training courtyard behind their house, slipping on their shoes to protect their feet from the gravel. They stood about three paces apart facing each other and on

Madara's signal they started.

Izuna went in hard and fast taking his older brother by surprise. The younger punched and kicked high. Madara found himself forced to block Izuna's attacks straight up. However, the older Uchiha quickly adjusted to his younger brother's fast pace and returned the blows.

"Izuna, if you slow down a bit, your aim will be more precise," Madara commented during the sparring session.

"… I can't slow down."

"Why not?"

"You're not strong enough."

"Hey, what's this all of a sudden?"

"You admitted weakness against that Senju brother! You need to become stronger than him! And also if we are to survive without father!"

"Haha! We will become much stronger together, I will make sure of that."

"Can you promise that brother?"

"Che, Izu, don't worry. Now that I have the Sharingan, I won't be beaten easily!"

Ssw Madara activated his Sharingan, revealing a single tomoe on each scarlet iris.

I can see his movements better than before. "Izuna, come at me with everything you have got, I need to train these eyes!"

"Eh? But you just said not to…"

"Don't think, just do!"

"Right!"

The younger brother slowed down to a more sustainable pace to focus on his accuracy. Madara saw and countered every surprise move Izuna could think to pull on him. Good, this is excellent. The older Uchiha thought. I can easily win against Izuna now if I wanted to…

Madara ended the sparring session with a distraction and a surprise blow in Izuna's blind spot.

"Gah!" The younger brother fell to the ground, ending the sparring match. Huff, huff. "Those eyes are amazing brother! I can't wait to unlock my Sharingan."

Huff, huff. Zzw Madara deactivated his Sharingan. "Once you want to defend the Uchiha as much as I do, you will." The older brother held out a hand to pull his sibling up.

"If it means I become strong like you Madara!" The younger brother smiled, sitting up and taking his brother's hand. I see, next time for sure. I won't let big brother down!

Izuna fought alongside Tajima later in the next battle. After the death of his three younger brothers, Tajima was watching a closer eye on Izuna. His friend Kurowa had managed to find him on the battlefield and was trying to talk to Izuna during their fights.

"Hey Izuna, are you still mad at me?" Kurowa called between blows.

No response.

"Hey I don't know what I have done wrong but, I am still your friend!" He pleaded harder.

The young Uchiha tried hard to block out his friend and focus on his battles. He was facing a pair of twins about his age. One wields a katana while the other preferred throwing kunai and shuriken.

"Izuuunaaaa! Talk to me!" He parried off blows from the twin wielding the katana.

"I don't know what's going on between you two, but focus on the fight at hand Izuna! I cannot have you die on me too!" Tajima growled, then coughed.

On that note, Izuna gritted his teeth. He could not be seen wavering in front of his father. Izuna slashed as hard as he could down on his opponent's katana until they faltered and used that opening to slash down on the boy's side. "GAAHHH!" The tip of his blade scratching Kurowa's hand too who dropped his blade. Izuna finished the twin off with a stab in the heart. The remaining twin faulted. He was clutching his shuriken hard between his white knuckles. Yelling he ditched them at Izuna, who slashed them away. The ones he missed only caught the young Uchiha's clothes.

Izuna dashed at the boy and stabbed the second twin in the stomach. When the boy fell he retracted his blade and glared at Kurowa, who stared back in disbelief. He was clutching his bloodied hand tightly. Little did Izuna realise that his eyes were red with a newly awakened Sharingan with a single tomoe.

"I am leaving you behind to get stronger on my own with my brother Kurowa! I don't need friends like you anymore!"

The Sharingan faded as quickly as it had appeared. Kurowa barely spoke to his friend after that, it seemed Izuna wasn't going to listen to reason anymore.

Eventually, Tajima fell in battle as his illness became worse and prevented him from fighting as efficiently as he used to. Upon his death, Madara and Izuna buried him beside their brothers. Their mother cried heavily like they had never seen before. The younger brother felt another wave of deep dread during his father's wake and this time felt a stronger change of chakra behind his eyes.

"You did it Izuna!" Madara gasped in surprise. He had turned to face his younger brother to tell him it was time to leave his father's grave.

"Yeah…" Izuna replied absentmindedly.

"What's the matter?" The older Uchiha asked, slightly confused.

The younger dully replied. "I didn't realise how much sadness I would feel for it."

"Oh… It's all for the better to becoming stronger. You'll grow used to it driving you."

Madara leant over and gave his brother a hug, which Izuna eagerly returned.

"…"

"Boys, there is something I need to say." Their mother did not handle Tajima's death well at all.

"Yes, mother?" The Uchiha brothers replied in unison but remained holding each other.

"Now your father's gone I will be staying your aunt. You can come live with us if you wish or claim our house, I leave the choice up to you." With that, their mother left. The boys quietly followed behind until their paths diverged. Their mother headed towards their aunt's and they headed back to the house.