Chapter 9: Two Bright Suns

Koichi Uchiha sat on his apartment couch. Writing up his report on his last mission before handing it to the Hokage. He was surprised to hear about Kagome and Naruto getting a C-rank mission which turned out to be a B-rank. Kagome and Naruto told him, Hana, and Iruka about the whole thing. He was amazed to hear that Kagome was able to fight a jounin level ninja. A missing-nin none the less. He was also proud of Naruto as well. But he couldn't help feel pity towards Zabuza and Haku. From what the Kagome and Naruto spoke of them, they were shinobi that no longer wanted to obey the rules of the village. He was glad that Naruto was finding his own 'ninja way' as he put it. Afterall, there are some ninjas here that don't want to be seen as a weapon. Koichi Uchiha happens to be one of them. Perhaps Hana is right about the two of them. They will change the shinobi world when searching for strength. True strength.

When they first ask him to train them, he was surprised. To his point of view, they were a pair of kids who wanted to take the easy way to getting strong. Now that he realized it, they were trying to get stronger together in their own way. In a way, he was like a jounin sensei. He only wished he was their sensei. But Kakashi Hatake has that job. He was glad that he trained with them while he still had them. Not to mention that the two were able to impress Kakashi Hatake with their skills. He wondered who their masters will be in the near future.

Koichi didn't like Naruto at first. Some might think it was strange of him or hard to believe. The main reason was because he's an jinchūriki, a human who holds the nine tailed kitsune inside of him. The creature who was responsible for the death for most of his comrades. But Hana Higurashi changed his opinion of the little blond boy.

Flashback:

"Why are you taking care of that kid, Hana-chan?" Koichi asked with hatred in his voice.

"I made a promise." Hana said as she was making a bowl of salad for dinner while the kids were out in the woods playing.

"He is a monster, Hana-chan! He has the beast sealed inside, the one who killed our comrades! Doesn't that mean anythin-" Koichi began to say before he was interrupted.

SLAP!

"Take that back, Koichi!" Hana yelled with anger in her tone. Koichi stared at her with shock on his face.

"To you, you see Naruto-kun as a monster." Hana said, "But what I see is an innocent boy who doesn't have parents and no family. He's kept in the dark about them. The village treats him as the village scapegoat. That's a cruel way to treat a child."

"But why take care of him, Hana-chan?" Koichi asked. Hana's glare soon turned to a soft smile.

"He's like a little spot of sunshine. Actually, he and Kagome are like two bright suns. They brighten up my lonely life." Hana said, "I can see that they have something."

"Something?" Koichi asked, his brow arched.

"I can't really explain it. But it's like a light that burns brightly in any situation. Sort of like hope and determination combined. You can mostly see it in their eyes." Hana said.

Flashback Ends:

Koichi was speechless at the time. He couldn't remember a time when Hana would stick up for someone and speak highly of them. He knew that Hana had a soft spot for children, no matter who they are or where they came from. Kagome seemed to be the same as Hana. Kagome was always worried about Naruto's wellbeing. He remembered the time when Kagome was trying to look for Naruto after he was chased by some civilian boys. He regretted that he didn't get there sooner at the time.

Flashback:

Koichi was walking through the streets on the way back to the clan. It was later after Hana had slapped him across the cheek. He couldn't understand why Hana would take care of that child. It made no sense to him.

"Uncle Koichi!" A female voice shouted. Koichi looked over his shoulder and saw little Kagome running towards him. She looked very concerned and worried.

"Kagome-chan, what's wrong?" Koichi asked as he knelt to her eye level and placed his hand on her shoulder. She was breathing heavily and sweating a little bit as she bended at the waist while she placed her hands on her knees.

"It's Naruto-kun! There were some kids who started to pick on Naruto-kun and I tried to defend him. But then they called Naruto-kun weak and he said something right back at them. They got angry and started chasing us! We split up halfway. I waited at our secret spot. We would always meet up by our secret spot whenever these kind of situations happen and he hasn't shown up yet. I'm getting worried." Kagome said.

"Don't worry, I'll find him." Koichi said as he stood back up.

"Let me go with you!" Kagome said, grabbing onto his flak jacket. Koichi looked down at Kagome and noticed that the look in her sapphire eyes. He had a feeling that she was going to continue to beg him to let her go with him. He sighed and crouched down.

"Hop on then." Koichi said. Then Kagome jumped onto his back and placed her arms around his neck. He didn't know why he was searching for the blond haired boy. But he had to do it for Hana and Kagome.


"Uncle Koichi, he's down there." Kagome said, pointing down to his left. As he got closer, he heard the sounds of someone grunting. He quickly landed to the spot where he heard the noise. Then he froze at what he saw: three teenage boys circling Naruto while kicking him. Naruto was coughing up blood and there were bruises on his face while he was laying down on his stomach. The boys were laughing evilly as they kicked him. Koichi felt his blood boil as the boys continued to beat up Naruto.

"You're such a weakling, you demon." One of the boys said. Naruto turned his head to the side and glared at the boy.

"I'll be the greatest and strongest ninja ever! You'll see!" Naruto said with determination. Koichi saw a spark in Naruto's blue eyes. Those eyes looked familiar to him. They looked like the same ones as the one of his deceased comrades.

"Well, we'll see if you can survive this!" The boy said, ready to kick Naruto once more.

"NARUTO!" Kagome screamed as she ran towards him. At the last second, Naruto disappeared from their circle.

"Hey, where did he go?" The boy asked, confused while looking all around him.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't report you to the Hokage." Koichi said in an angry tone. Kagome turned to her right and saw Koichi holding an unconscious Naruto in his arms. He was glaring at the three teenage boys. They started to squirm underneath his gaze, which read 'excruciating pain', 'torture', or 'guaranteed death'. Then they gulped when his eyes harden at them.

"Come near this boy again and you won't like the consequences." Koichi said. Then the boys ran off as quick as possible as if the hounds of Hell were after them. Once they left, Koichi looked down at the beaten blonde boy in his arms. He endured the beating of three boys who were older and bigger than him. He could have apologized for insulting them, but the boys probably would continue to beat him even if he did. A pull on his flak jacket brought him out of his thoughts. He looked down and saw Kagome looking at him with concern in her eyes.

"Uncle Koichi, we have to get back to our mom to get him treated!" Kagome said.

"Hai." Koichi said as he nodded.


"Koichi, what are yo-Naruto!" Hana began to say until she saw Naruto unconscious and beat up state.

"He was beaten up from three teenagers." Koichi said, giving a brief explanation.

"Bring him in quickly!" Hana said she lead him to Naruto's bedroom. He carefully placed Naruto on his bed while Hana and Kagome went to go and get the herbs for Naruto's injuries. He gazed at the small little boy laying down in the bed. He could clearly see the bruises on his arms and legs and a black eye on the left eye.

He stood outside the door, watching Hana and Kagome tend to his injuries. For some strange reason, he couldn't help pity the boy. His real parents were dead and the village continued to treat him with such cruelty. Then he remembered what Hana had said to him before he came and rescued him from the boys. He saw what she had seen. Hope and determination. That was something he hadn't seen before. He believed that Naruto had inherited the same dream as his father.

Flashback Ends

It took about a week until Naruto was fully recovered from his fight with those teenage boys. Koichi really wished he gotten there sooner or Naruto wouldn't have suffered all those injuries. He apologized to Naruto about not getting there in time. Naruto had said there was no need of apology. He said that he was grateful for showing up just in time. Koichi gave a small smile at that time.

When he fully recovered from the fight, Koichi came up with a great idea to make it up to him. Something that Naruto had never experienced while living in the village. It took some convincing when he had asked Hana about it. She agreed to it after some intense thinking.

Flashback:

"Uncle Koichi!" Kagome and Naruto said when they spotted Koichi appear in the backyard.

"What are you doing here?" Kagome asked as she and Naruto ran up to him.

"I actually wanted to take you guys to a festival." Koichi said.

"A festival?" Kagome and Naruto asked at the same time.

"Hai." Koichi said, nodded.

"But there's no festival going on in the village, uncle Koichi." Kagome said.

"Hai, but we're going outside of the village to see it." Koichi said.

"Really?!" Naruto exclaimed, excitedly.

"Hai." Koichi said.

"But won't we get caught?" Kagome asked.

"Don't worry, we won't." Koichi said, giving them a wink.


"I win again!" Kagome said, pumping her fists in the air.

"I can't believe I lost to a girl, my sister no less." Naruto said with a pout. Koichi and Kagome started to laugh at his expression.

"Don't worry, you'll win the next time, Naruto-kun." Koichi said, ruffling his blond hair.

"But you said that last time, uncle Koichi!" Naruto said in a whiny tone.

"Oh, I did?" Koichi asked while nervously scratched the back of his head.

"How about this one, Naruto-kun?" Kagome asked, pointing to another game stand.

"You're on, Kagome-chan!" Naruto said with confidence in his tone.

Flashback Ends:

Naruto manage to win one game, which made him happy. He noticed that he and Kagome had such bright and natural smiles. Somehow they were able to make him smile as well. He rarely smiled after he married his wife and the lose of their baby. He was depressed for about a week. Fortunately, Hana was the one who brought him out of his depression. He knew that if his child was raised in the Uchiha clan, the child would just become an emotionless killer. The child wouldn't be able to have a happy childhood and would have train so hard in order to impress the elders. But the child would be forced to learn Sharingan. He didn't want his child to be put through that. Koichi had already experienced that. He decided to train the two determined ninjas a couple days after the festival. He could clearly see the excitement in their eyes when he agreed to. They sparkled with such joy in their blue eyes. He was envious of Kagome and Naruto, they were able to have a somewhat happy childhood. He was always worried about those two when they pushed themselves in their training. But Kagome always made him worry. There are often times that Kagome felt like a daughter to him...if only it were true.

A knock at the door broke him from his thoughts. He got off his couch and walked over to the door. He was surprised who he meet at the door. Kakashi Hatake and the Sandaime standing side by side outside of his apartment.

"Koichi Uchiha." Kakashi said.

"Hai?" Koichi asked, blinked.

"Hokage-sama and I want to talk to you about something." Kakashi said.

"About what?" Koichi asked, his brow arched. It felt suspicious of the two who had shown up at his doorstep.

"Kagome Higurashi." Kakashi said. Koichi stiffened at the name that left Kakashi's covered lips. He had a feeling that Kakashi would find out about her powers sooner or later. He promised Kagome that he wouldn't tell anyone, but...he couldn't disobey his Hokage or Kagome's jounin sensei. He sighed, looking away from Kakashi and the Hokage.

"Alright, come in." Koichi said as he opened the door more and let Kakashi and the Sandaime inside his apartment. Then he closed the door and went into the kitchen to make some tea. The two sat down at his kitchen table. He started to brew the tea that Hana had made for him recently. He was always thankful towards Hana. To him, she was like a little sister to him. Not to mention that Kagome and Naruto were like his own kids.

"Whatever is being said in this room, stays in this room. Understand?" Koichi asked in a stern tone.

"I understand." Sarutobi said with a nod.

"Hai." Kakashi said with a nod. He and the Sandaime knew that Koichi was protecting Kagome of her privacy. Afterall, she was like a student to him.

"So what do you want to know?" Koichi said as he walked over with the pot of tea and three tea cups in his hands. He poured the tea into the cups and gently slid one to Sarutobi and one to Kakashi. Then he sat down and pulled the last cup towards him.

"I witnessed Kagome using a powerful fire jutsu during the bell test. But it was in the color of bluish green. Did you teach her that jutsu?" Kakashi asked.

"No, she created that jutsu on her own." Koichi said.

"She created it?" Sarutobi asked, curious.

"Hai, almost all of her jutsus were created by her." Koichi said before taking a sip of his tea.

"Amazing." Sarutobi said.

"Hai, I was also amazed when I saw a few of them." Koichi said, putting his cup down.

"What about the weapons that she has? Did she find them somewhere?" Kakashi asked.

"Her summons gave her those weapons." Koichi said.

"Her summons?" Sarutobi asked.

"Kitsunes." Koichi said.

"Kitsunes?!" Kakashi and Sarutobi exclaimed.

"Hai." Koichi said, "I actually met one of them once."

"You did?" Sarutobi asked as Kakashi took a sip from the tea.

"I was shocked too when I first met him. Lord Shippo was his name. I thought he was human. But his pointy ears and the four furry tails behind him gave it away that he wasn't human." Koichi said, looking down at his tea. Sarutobi took a sip of his tea.

"I wonder where she even obtained the summoning contract." Sarutobi said after taking his tea.

"Probably when she was out hunting." Kakashi said.

"Hunting?" Sarutobi asked, confused. He didn't know that Kagome knew how to hunt.

"Apparently, Kagome has snuck out of the village a few times to get some meat to be put on the table." Kakashi said, taking another sip of his tea.

"WHAT?!" Sarutobi exclaimed. First she breaks into the Hokage tower, now she leaves the village to go hunting. What else did she do? He felt a migraine coming.

"It was because of that insensitive butcher." Koichi said, bitterly.

"You knew about it?" Kakashi asked, shocked.

"I often went with her." Koichi said, "But I still don't know how she obtained that contract."

"What about that eye technique she has?" Kakashi asked, changing the subject.

"Mikomegan." Koichi said, "Eye of the Priestess Technique."

"Eye of the Priestess?" Sarutobi asked, his brow arched. He had heard of priestesses and their importance in history. They were able to fight against demons and heal the sick and injured. But there hasn't been a priestess around here in centuries. Why would one appear now?

"Hai, it's like the combination advancement of the Sharingan and the Byakugan. It allows her to use any nature transformation her opponent is using once she sense his aura. She'll be able to see anyone's true form if they disguise themselves. She will advance in strength and speed as well. It protects her from any genjutsu, too." Koichi said. Sarutobi took a sip of his tea before he spoke.

"That's quite a powerful kekkei genkei." Sarutobi said, "But how did she obtain it?"

"I'm afraid that I don't know that, Sandaime-sama. Kagome only told me what the Mikomegan was and what it can do." Koichi said, taking another sip of his tea.

"Thanks to Kagome, I also found my own summons." Koichi said with a closed eye smile.

"What kind do you have?" Kakashi asked, curious.

"Tengus." Koichi said.

"Tengus?" Sarutobi asked, curious.

"Hai, they're powerful warriors. Honorable and knowledgeable I might add." Koichi said.

"Tengus. As in crow yōkai?" Kakashi asked, his brow arched.

"Hai." Koichi said, smiling softly, "Because of them, I realized that not all yōkais are evil. Some are honorable and strong. Sometimes they are kind as well."

"It was because of her summons?" Sarutobi asked.

"Hai. I realized that yōkai have the same emotions as us, humans. They can love, fear, hate, and grieve. They fight to protect their loved ones and some fight for power. Of course I freaked out when I saw Kirara transform once." Koichi said.

"You knew that Kirara could transform?" Kakashi asked, shocked. How come Kagome didn't tell him about Kirara?

"It happened when Kagome and Naruto were very little. I found out one afternoon when I went searching for Kagome and Naruto in the forest. I spotted something big and furry up ahead. When I got there, I saw Kagome and Naruto curled up next to a big cat that was almost the size of a bear with two tails. I was about to reach for my kunai at the time when the cat looked up at me, I noticed that she was just staring at me and then she lay her head down next to the kids and placed her two tails near them. Then I realized that she wasn't going to harm Kagome and Naruto. It was like she was protecting them. I soon realized it was Kirara." Koichi said.

"How did you know it was her?" Sarutobi asked.

"Her red eyes, her two tails, and the black diamond on her forehead gave her away." Koichi said, "But how she was protecting them was what made me recognize her."

"Do you think Kirara will be a threat towards others, Koichi?" Sarutobi asked. He now knew that Kirara is yōkai, he wanted to know if Kirara will be a threat to the village. The last thing the village needed was to be afraid of another yōkai living in the village.

"Only if you try to harm her loved ones." Koichi said, "As I had said before, yōkai will do anything to protect their loved ones."

"I see." Sarutobi said.


Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.

-Mahatma Gandhi