Disclaimer: The only things that I own is this story's plot and any OCs that appear throughout the story. The characters of Naruto belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I make absolutely no money.
Remembrances of Flames - Chapter Three
~-{R.o.F}-~
"H-hello. U-um, would you like to eat lunch together?"
Tenten blinked widely as she gazed up from her lunch box. Her head tilted to the side as her brain worked, trying to remember the boy's name. He fidgeted a bit under her scrutinizing gaze and he bit his bottom lip when her eyebrows furrowed and her eyes narrowed.
His name was... It was Jun, wasn't it? Yeah, that was his name. Jun Uchiha. The girls in class who weren't always harping on about that Neji kid was always harping on about Jun—it was always either one or the other. The girls in their class were divided on which of the two boys were better: Neji's fangirls thought that the boy's aloofness and superiority in taijutsu was the greatest while Jun's fangirl's preferred his friendliness and talent in genjutsu.
Tenten...would rather not deal with either one of them. Granted, she would rather deal with Jun over Neji...but Jun's fangirls were a bit more vicious than Neji's, surprisingly. It was kind of like a 50-50 deal in the way that she wasn't annoyed by the boy himself but his groupies that followed.
"U-um...!"
Tenten snapped out of her thoughts, blinking widely again. She couldn't just tell him to leave—that would be rude—and her grandfather taught her manners. Instead, she nodded silently and scooted over to make room. He sent her a beaming smile, plopped down next to the girl and whipped out his own lunch box. She watched him for a few seconds, waiting for some girl to jump out and attack her and, when none did, she broke apart her chopsticks, muttered a small "Itadakimasu" and popped the first bite into her mouth.
"Y-you're Tenten, right?" His voice was small, hesitant, and Tenten nodded her head in affirmation. "Well, I'm, uh, Jun Uchiha. It's nice to meet you."
An awkward silence followed his statement and Tenten had to suppress the grimace that threatened to overtake her face. He must've been bad at introductions or something. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, watching curiously at how his lips would move slightly or how his eyebrows would furrow or how his head would shake slightly, as if refusing some internal thoughts. She figured he was trying to find something to say.
Tenten shrugged slightly, turning her thoughts to how she needed to find some more fish to practice medical ninjutsu on later that afternoon. She couldn't keep going to the pet store because she was running out of allowance (and the cashier kept looking at her funny). That meant she'd have to catch them on her own from somewhere...
"You're...really good at shurikenjutsu." A pause. "How did you get so good at it?"
She shrugged lightly before responding, "I don't know." Her eyebrows knitted together. "I just aim at the targets and they usually land in the middle."
"Oh." Before the awkwardness could settle, he spoke again, "I see you sometimes...practicing medical ninjutsu. Do...you have trouble with it?"
Her head snapped up at his words. How was he able to see her practicing? Granted, she stopped practicing in her room due to the resulting smell of dead fish but she made sure that she was in a relatively private area (somewhere next to the river that ran through Konoha but no one hardly ever came that way, only a few dark-haired people now and again). Not because she was embarrassed of her dreams—she'd tell anyone willing to listen she wanted to be like Lady Tsunade, the greatest kunoichi in the shinobi world—but, at the same time, Tenten didn't quite like the scrutiny of others on her while she was training.
...Especially after witnessing that Neji put down kid with the thick eyebrows. Rock Lee, she recalled his name was. Neji was particularly brutal with him and, even though he never smiled, Tenten just knew Neji liked tearing down whatever confidence Lee had managed to build up. Lee was a good one, though, as he never seemed to be fazed by Neji's words.
"How do you know that?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Do you... Do you stalk me?"
He recoiled back, cheeks burning brightly at her accusation. "N-no! I just... My cousin and I were coming back from training one day and I saw you near the river next to our compound!" He looked down at his half-eaten lunch, missing the alarmed look on Tenten's face. "You were concentrating really hard and, then, I remembered that you said you wanted to be like Lady Tsunade and she's the greatest medic-nin in the nations so I... I just assumed..."
The only thought that ran through her head was that...someone actually listened to her when she spoke about her dreams? It honestly felt as if she were talking to thin air when it came to her classmates. Everyone seemed to be so absorbed with something else or themselves that it almost made it seem that no one realized she was even there...
Like she almost didn't exist...
"Tenten-san? Did... Did I say something wrong?"
"Huh? N-no!" She took a small breath before smiling. "Y-you didn't say anything wrong." She paused. "Jun-kun. You didn't say anything wrong, Jun-kun. Can I call you that? Jun-kun, I mean." She didn't really know why she kept repeating his name like that (It was probably so she wouldn't forget it again, to be honest). Was she giddy that someone had paid attention to her? Which was kind of weird because she thought that she didn't really care that much but—
He stared at her for a long moment before that beaming smile surfaced onto his face. "Y-yeah! You can call me that and...and could I call you, Ten-chan? Maybe?"
A little too girly for her tastes but...
She nodded regardless. "Yeah, Jun-kun and Ten-chan. Friends?"
Jun made a soft noise of happiness and his cheeks pinked. "Yeah, friends. Thank you for being my first girl friend, Ten-chan!"
...
And, suddenly, the hairs on the back of her neck were starting to stand on end...
Tenten would probably have to be careful around Jun's fangirls in her class. She had the distinct feeling that they weren't going to be very fond of her in the coming years...
~-{R.o.F}-~
"Momma~!"
The Uchiha housewife felt a smile form as she saw her little boy emerge from the congregation of children and guardians. He smacked into her—albeit a lot less roughly as he did with his cousin—and hugged her around the waist tightly before pulling back to stare up at her with gleaming eyes. Nene gave his spiky hair a tender pat, noting minutely that it was in need of a trim, lest he wanted it to snag while he was training.
"—id you hear me, Momma?" Jun said in excitement. "I said I made a new friend today."
"Oh?" That was good. She was worried that her baby would never have any friends other than his cousin. "Where is he?"
Jun's face twisted into one of confusion. "He?" He blinked at her before covering his mouth with both hands to hide his giggling. "My new friend's not a boy, Momma. Ten-chan's a girl!"
"Oh, that's nice." Wait. "What?"
Before she could respond any further, Jun turned away and pulled someone from the crowd. Nene watched, completely flabbergasted, as a small girl around Jun's height appeared next to his side, her hand clasped snugly in Jun's and eyes steadily on the ground.
"Momma, this is Tenten! She lets me call her Ten-chan, though!" Jun announced happily.
"It's, um, nice to meet you, ma'am." The small girl, Tenten, bowed deeply. "I-I hope you don't mind me being friends with Jun-kun."
"Oh!" Jun smiled even brighter (if that was even possible). "She's my first girl friend, too!"
Nene felt herself choking on spit as her little boy's words registered in her brain and she missed the glare Tenten gave her baby and the confused expression he gave her in return.
Girlfriend!? Her mind shrieked over the sound of her heart shattering into a million pieces.
Her baby was too young to have a girlfriend! No, she would not allow such happenings while she was alive and kicking! Jun may have liked this...Tenten (Nene ignored the way her mind spat out the little girl's name, as if it were a poison) but he would soon realize that having a girlfriend wasn't as great as it seemed! Girls were still supposed to have cooties so sweet boys like Jun wouldn't be tempted to interact with them until they were much, much older!
She couldn't accept this! No! Nene would not accept this! She—
"Momma?"
Nene recovered instantaneously (no doubt, thanks to her years as a ninja) as she realized Jun was watching, waiting for her words of appraisal. She donned her amiable countenance, smiling prettily down at the girl. "It's nice to meet you too, Ten-chan. I hope my little boy hasn't been too much of a bother."
"N-no, not at all!" The girl said quickly, shaking her head to further the notion. "He's been really nice to me so..."
"Well, that's very nice." She said as energetically as she possibly could while snagging Jun's free hand and using it to tug the boy to her side. "I'm glad to have met you, Ten-chan but Jun is late for an appointment with someone else."
"I am?"
"Yes, you are." Nene affirmed, tugging him a little closer to her side and away from the young girl as she smiled brightly. "We really must be going, Ten-chan. Jun will see you tomorrow."
Preferably not. Her mind spat out as her smile twitched at the corners.
"O-oh, okay." The little girl's voice was quiet as she waved her hand and Nene felt bad...until her sweet Jun had to say something.
"Ah! Don't worry, Ten-chan! I'll make lots of food for us to eat together tomorrow! Okay?" Jun didn't resist as the Uchiha housewife dragged him along behind her. "Okay? Bye~!"
"U-uh, okay?" The girl sounded slightly confused but happy nonetheless. "Tomorrow, then...! Bye, Jun-kun!"
It took all Nene had to swallow the sobs of despair as she hoped Mikoto would accept a playdate offer between little Sasuke and her little Jun.
~-{R.o.F}-~
Jun fidgeted slightly as he nibbled on the onigiri Mikoto-san had given him.
He didn't really understand.
His momma had said that he had somewhere to be but she had never told him about it. Then, they hadn't even gone anywhere that day! Plus, she wouldn't let him in the kitchen to make stuff for him and Ten-chan so he had to wait until really late that night to make some stuff. Thanks to Ike-nii, he was able to without burning any of his food—or the house.
(Father sort of helped too. He stumbled into the kitchen while Jun had on the burner, got a glass of water and stumbled back to his room to sleep—all without saying anything or telling Momma!)
Now, he was over Mikoto-san's house, sitting with Sasuke and he didn't really know what to say. He wasn't very good with talking to people except his momma and Shishi and now Ten-chan and sorta his father but everyone else was so hard.
What was there to talk about?
Ike-nii, what should I say!? His eyes kept darting over to the other quiet boy. I don't know what to do...!
[[Calm down, Jun.]] Ike reassuring voice said softly. [[Talk about...school. Tell him about your studies and stuff like that.]]
O-okay. If you say so. Jun took in a breath before smiling. "U-um, s-so when do you start at the Academy, Sasuke-kun?"
The raven-haired boy blinked. "Next year, I think." His eyebrows furrowed. "I haven't started clan training yet so I hope I don't fall behind." His face fell somewhat. "Father is always too busy with Nii-san these days..."
Jun made a sound of curiosity. "You haven't started yet? My father started training me when I was two." He twiddled his thumbs as he looked down into his lap. "But, not too often. Shishi-nii—erm, my cousin Shisui—helps me train a lot."
Sasuke gasped softly in amazement before his lips turned down into a pout. "No fair...! Nii-san barely even spends time with me...!" His head dropped and Ike swore he saw a little cloud of depression form over the raven-haired boy's head.
[[Huh. That's a new one. You barely even said anything and he's already depressed.]] Ike snickered but quickly turned it into a cough at the upset look marring Jun's face. [[Aw, don't make that face, Jun!]]
But, Ike-nii! I don't want to make him sad!
[[Then just...try to relate to him, I guess?]]
Huh?
[[Look, just say...]]
Jun nodded slightly as he listened to his intangible friend's words. After a few short seconds, Jun stood from his perch while wiping his hands off on his pants. He placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and, when the boy looked up, he tried to give him the most reassuring smile he could muster.
"Well, Shishi-nii goes off a lot and there are times when I don't see him for weeks. When that happens, I try to learn a new move or get better at one I already know so, when he comes home, he'll be proud of me!"
"W-wha—"
"So, maybe I can show you something that I've been learning in the Academy. Okay?" Jun grinned brightly. "When your big brother comes home, you'll be able to show him something really cool!"
Sasuke remained silent for a few moments, his eyes wide for some reason. Jun was a bit scared that he'd said something bad and that Ike-nii was wrong but then Sasuke's face turned a little pink and a smile eventually covered his face. He hopped up from his seat, hands balled up into fists and a look of determination evident in his eyes.
"Y-yeah!" He pumped his fists. "I'll learn something awesome and then Nii-san will have to pay attention to me...!"
Jun hummed in agreement but stopped as Ike-nii's voice chimed in, [[I hate to burst your little bubble but what exactly are you going to show him? You're terrible at taijutsu and everything you are good at requires chakra.]]
The chestnut-haired boy squeaked a little and covered his mouth with both hands, though it went unnoticed by Sasuke, who was too wrapped up in his own little fantasy that consisted of thoughts of Itachi lavishing him with praise. Jun grimaced lightly, letting his hands fall a little as he whispered out, "What do I do...!?"
[[Now, now, Jun. Don't panic. Just show him something that'll get his mind off his brother not being home often.]] Ike drawled and Jun nodded as he thought of the perfect thing.
"Okay, Sasuke-kun." Jun took a few steps back as his hands pressed together into the tiger seal. "This is what I've been working on to show Shishi-nii."
His eyes closed as he summoned up a bit of chakra, letting the energy coarse through him before expelling it all at once. There was a loud 'poof' and...
It was hard to describe how his body felt—like something was pulling him, sucking him in and spitting him out. He squeaked as he skidded on the ground and bumped into something solid and he coughed a bit as he waved away the smoke his attempted jutsu produced.
"Muh? Were you trying to Body Flicker, Jun?"
The chestnut-haired boy balked at the familiar voice. His head snapped upwards, eyes widening as he took in his cousin's crossed arms and cocked eyebrow. Jun was stuck between feeling elated, embarrassed, shocked or ashamed.
He settled for feeling a mixture of all four and sheepishly bleated out, "Shishi-nii?"
"Nii-san!? When did you get back!?" Sasuke's voice was a little high-pitched and Jun didn't have to look to see that Sasuke's brother was there too.
He really couldn't look anywhere else even if he tried. To see Shishi-nii looking down at him with such a look of...disappointment made tears threaten to well up in his eyes. He never wanted him to look at him like that...!
"Really, Jun. I thought you knew better than that." He sighed theatrically while shaking his head. "Using chakra without supervision? I can't—
A whimper fell from Jun's lips as his hand clutched at his heart. "I-I...I only wanted you to be p-proud of me, Shishi-nii." He sniffed loudly, wiping at his eyes with his shirt sleeve. "Y-you're hardly ever around anymore so...so..." His lips pursed as he tried to stop the sobs that threatened to burst from his mouth. "I j-just wanted t-to ma-ake you h-h-happy...!"
"A-ah—" Shisui recoiled back violently, guilt gnawing at his heart at the pitiful sight. "J-Jun...!"
"Hey! Don't yell at him, Shisui-san!" Sasuke said angrily as he stooped down next to Jun to comfort him. "He was only trying to make you happy!" Sasuke gave Jun's head a tender pat as he said in what he thought was a hushed voice, "Don't cry, Jun-kun! Shisui's just a big meanie..!" He sent the elder Uchiha a glare.
Shisui yelped indignantly. "H-hey! I'm only trying to keep him safe!" He turned towards the silent Itachi. "C'mon, Itachi! Help me out here!"
Itachi watched him for a few moments before he slowly shook his head. "I didn't expect you to be such a big meanie, Shisui. He didn't hurt anyone and we were nearby the whole time." He ignored the curly-haired shinobi's sound of agitation as he kneeled down next to Jun. "Don't worry, Jun. People like him are heartless." Itachi narrowed his eyes. "Shame on you, Shisui. Shame. On. You."
"W-what the—" Shisui waved his hands around in a panic as he broke down. "Wait! I'm not a bad guy!" He quickly dragged Jun into a tight hug as tears streamed down his cheeks. "Don't cry, Jun! Shishi-nii's sorry! He didn't mean to hurt your feelings! Shishi-nii's so proud of you!"
Jun sniffled, his large eyes gleaming with uncertainty. "R-really...?"
Shisui's cheeks flushed as he nodded rapidly. "Y-yeah! I was just a little upset because you could've hurt yourself, Jun." He rubbed his cheek against his little cousin's. "B-but it made Shishi-nii really happy to see you do that!"
"A-are you s-s-sure?"
"Yeah!" He grinned as he ruffled Jun's hair. "So don't cry, okay? Wipe away those tears and give me a smile."
The chestnut-haired boy nodded. He gave his cousin the biggest smile he could summon before pressing his face into Shisui's chest.
"A-ah, Jun! Don't blow your nose on my shirt!"
~-{R.o.F}-~
Sometimes, Ike hated himself.
He was horrid.
Disgusting.
Vile.
Evil.
It was difficult watching the two of them, Jun and Shisui. To see the love between them like that. To see them interacting so happily and familial with each other, as if nothing was wrong in the world. As if they had forever to act like that.
As if the village wasn't planning on killing all with the Uchiha surname.
...
Shisui had been little more than a plot device in his world, yet everyone he knew that watched the series had loved him. Ike wondered why.
Now he knew.
There were times when Shisui would look so tired, as if he had the entire weight of the world on his shoulders, but would plaster such a cheerful, energetic smile on his face whenever Jun was around.
His eyes would light up when Nene gave him lunches and gentle pats on the head.
His lips would curve into crooked, almost forced smiles whenever Shinobu would congratulate him for successful clan missions.
His face would darken at the mention of his deceased mother and father.
Shisui was a human. He was a person that existed and he had feelings, mannerisms, fears and hopes. He was human.
And he was willing to risk it all for a village who didn't even trust the family he belonged to.
Shisui had been such an unappreciated character—person, Ike reaffirmed—and, to see this man willing to give his all like that, made Ike's respect for Shisui magnify by infinity.
It made him sick sometimes.
He had the knowledge. He knew what was going to happen.
But he was a coward.
His voice would catch whenever Shisui would disappear for weeks at a time and Jun would ponder where his beloved "Shishi-nii" had gone. Ike would always wait with bated breath, to hear that one sentence that would mark the downfall of the Uchiha.
"Shisui Uchiha is dead."
He didn't want to have to think about how he'd been lying to Jun since the day that he was born. Ike didn't want to think about how when Shisui dies, Jun and Nene and Shinobu would be following right after him.
Ike didn't want to hear those words; they marked the end of everything he'd grown to know over the past six years.
Then, he would be back in the darkness and Jun would be there with him.
He didn't want that.
...But, it would be his own fault for being so scared.
...
Sometimes, Ike hated himself.
.
Author's Note: Ha! I finally updated this. It took months and months but I've finally done it~! *insert evil cackle* Ahem.
I thought Jun having Tenten as a little friend was a cute idea. She's one of those unappreciated characters who deserve some love. She's also Jun's first "girl friend"—the space between the two words is very important in telling the difference. Lol. I hope it's evident but Jun can't interact well with others without Ike's intervention; that'll most likely be a problem that'll need to be addressed in the story.
I'm having trouble deciding if Shisui should live or die. Both scenarios present interesting outcomes... I guess we'll eventually find out.
Ah, I hope the honorifics aren't annoying as I sort of just added them out of nowhere. They only really show up Jun's POV and I used them to convey as sort of...childishness to his character—like, even though he's housing the spirit of a twenty five year old in his head, he's still a little kid at heart and refers to certain people with pet names and such. If it's bothersome, I'll go back and edit them out :)
Well, I'll see you guys the next time I update. Unfortunately, I don't know when that'll be but I thank you guys for the reviews and the follows and faves~! It warms my heart when I get them~!