Izumi is frustrating. Highly frustrating. As much as I love our training sessions (and dread them, it's kind of a love-hate sort of thing) which have evolved into MUCH more than simple Shurikenjutsu practice, even if that is the primary focus she tends to focus on the application of skills in battle. A good focus, yes. Something I appreciate, yes. Something that improves my technique, no.

I've noticed Izumi, Itachi, and Sasuke all use a different way of throwing than the one they teach at the academy. Sasuke, not as much, but his stance is different. Honestly, Sasuke's stance seems to actually harm his chances of throwing accurately, yet he does it anyway. At the same time, it seems to improve the ability of Izumi and Itachi. Is it just experience, or is there something I am missing?

"Why do you throw like that?" I ask Sasuke who has crashed today's training session. The training sessions are by no means scheduled. Like at all. Izumi is the one to usually decides the time and duration. But to be fair, as genin, her schedule is chaotic at best. She seems to randomly select that she needs to blow off steam or sees me and then drags me to an Uchiha training ground for training/sadistically beating me up but doing so constructively.

"Like what?" Sasuke asks, confused, and I facepalm. He doesn't realize the way he throws is not standard. We're taught in the academy (so far, at least) to keep our upper arm straight, our body perpendicular to the target (which helps make us a smaller target for energy fire), and only move our lower arm with the last spin coming from the wrist. The Uchihas I've seen all seem to throw this technique entirely out the window. They sometimes throw from the whole arm or just below, but mostly, their arm remains a completely still other than the slightest twitch. At first, I thought they weren't moving their arm at all, but then I realized they were moving their wrists. Other than 'looking cool,' this doesn't seem to help like at all, so why do they do it, and how are their throws so strong?

"So you noticed? Wow, I wasn't sure you would!" Izumi says, widening her eyes, but to be home at, I don't see how anyone could NOT NOTICE maybe a mix of my ACU and awareness is showing.

"Well, why do you guys throw all weird, Senpai?" I ask, folding my arms over my chest. Sasuke has the excuse of not knowing, and Izumi doesn't. It's the kind of cute how every now and then. Sasuke notices me being dragged through the compound (where he apparently spends at least 98% of his time outside of the academy in) and follows along like a loss duckling on the excuse of either heading to the training ground too or looking for Itachi.

"Well, most people can't do it, but Uchiha's generally have perfect aim." Izumi warns as if to discourage me, but I am not. I am one of the most advanced in is shuriken throwing in my gear, where I've almost caught up to Sasuke, if not actually caught up to, much to his shock and horror.

Shuriken Proficiency Level 76

Ability to throw and use shuriken. Shuriken range approximately 15 m. Speed and strength behind the throw increase per level. Accuracy on stationary targets is 1% per level. Current ability, throwing accuracy 76%.

"Well, is there a reason?" I prod further, and maybe I may be pushing it a bit if this is some sort of clan technique. However, I feel comfortable enough with Izumi to to do so and even Sasuke for all his grumbling whenever I beat him at something like I really shouldn't be here since it's a UCHIHA training ground but never has he actually told me to leave. If I go too far, I think Izumi will tell me.

"Simple! It's much more precise, and once you get your chakra control down can be much stronger and faster." Izumi says, adopting her teaching voice, and I focus my senses even if I can't use chakra to enhance it the best I can, feeling the flicker of Izumi's chakra in her palm… no, not palm fingertips as she holds her shurikens in a feather-light grip. With a flick of a wrist, hand and fingers, the metal star flies through the air cutting deeply into the tree.

"Wow! I didn't know you and Nii-chan were using chakra!" Sasuke says, and I wonder if the story Sasuke did… if not, he might become an even bigger Shurikenjutsu menace than initially intended. I have to fight the urge not to try it myself. I've completely mastered the leaf-sticking exercise, and so I could probably do it really well with a bit of practice, but I'm too afraid of my eyes showing. I remind myself mentally (but unhelpfully) that I had channeled chakra in public before I knew about my eyes, and everything was fine with no one noticing. But I can't and won't take the risk.

"I'm sure Itachi-Kun will teach you once you start using chakra Sasuke-chan." Izumi reassures the younger clan member.

"Could… could you show me how?" I ask Izumi, who seems to be thinking.

"To be honest, Sayori-chan, it's really hard. It's why it isn't standard outside of the Uchiha clan. I don't think it would be the best use of your time." Izumi says apologetically, and I bite my lower lip. I've gotten really good with this, and I'm only going to get better. However, from Izumi's point of view, it is reasonable. She isn't doing it to be mean. Yet I can't help but feel disappointed. I pick up a kunai throwing straight, not responding.

Kunai Throwing Proficiency Level has risenX1

Kunai Proficiency Level 63

Ability to throw and use kunai. Kunai range approximately 40m. Speed and strength behind the throw increase per level. Accuracy on stationary targets is 1% per level. Current ability, throwing accuracy 63%.

I mentally pull up my overall in the skill.

Shurikenjutsu Proficiency Level 50

Ability to use throwing weapons effectively. Speed at which you can throw weapons and the strength behind the throw increases per level by 0.2%. Increase in speed to level up shurikenjutsu related skills increases 1% per level. Current ability level up speed 150 %, weapons speed and strength increase 10%.

"I think she can do it…" A hesitant voice says, and I turn to my side, seeing the seven-year-old Uchiha looking at me. Sasuke is… huh, I knew he was ok with me (he probably is also really bored since as large as the Uchiha clan is, there are no kids exactly his age), but I didn't think he'd have that much… confidence in me on the matter. "You hold it like this, see?" Sasuke then says, moving over to me and showing me how he holds his shuriken with his fingers on the tips of the star. "You need to be careful not to hold too tight, or it can go flying into your hand. That once happened to me, and Kaachan freaked out!" Sasuke tells me as he continues to tell me about how to know if you are holding it too tight or not.

Izumi smiled from the background, occasionally correcting Sasuke. A part of me had a feeling that Sasuke would never let me live it down and that he had been the one to teach me, but a bigger part of me ignored that, instead feeling quite touched. A world capable of great evil must also be capable of great good. The little 'lesson' lasted a few minutes before Izumi declared a 'dancing match,' which made my bruises from the last one ache. After the whole training session, though, I couldn't immensely help myself. As we make our way through the compound, people look at me, some friendly, some suspicious, but less suspicious with each time I visit. I wave to a few who look bewildered by my presence. Finally, I made my move.

"Hey, Sasuke?" I say, momentarily forgetting the honorific as we head toward the compound gates. I decide now or never and charge towards him, and the young Uchiha takes a defensive stance which I quickly get around, engulfing him in a hug instead. "Thanks." I say and then release him running off before he can say anything though I am mildly aware of Izumi's laughing.

POV Raido

It's almost the end of my shift. I feel the urge to impatiently tap my foot but resist. That's not very ANBU-like, after all. So I instead decide to catch up on the most entertaining lives of the Uchiha clan.

It isn't just me who does this. Sure there were sometimes strange or unexplained things about the Uchiha, but mostly they were just ordinary people. Well ordinary for shinobi anyway.

Many of the guys speculated as to exactly why we, ANBU, were monitoring them. But the speculation didn't go very far. It was a dangerous thing to do, yet all ANBU were faced with the cold hard reality of just how little the village trusted the Uchiha.

Six years. That's how long the monitoring system has been active. Never once have they not been under the microscope in all that time, not since their new compound was made. During that time, you get to know them. As large as the clan is, most of the Anbu could tell you precisely who each Uchiha is, their birthday, their favourite food, and their favourite colour. Some are more entertaining to watch than others. There is a house-wife named Shimi who had the most beautiful voice and would sing in her yard while doing chores. There is a pair of Uchiha who are like something out of make-out paradise, constantly greeting each other with passionate kisses and having some… interesting personal activities at home. There is an old man who writes a letter every day to his dead wife and folds it into an origami flower and adds it to a bouquet, as he had done when she was away on missions and has done since she died thirty years ago on a mission (his house was more garden the home now). There is a little girl who was the favourite of the numerous cats in the compound who follow her around jumping all over her.

They are just people, and it sometimes felt violating to spy on them like this. Some even had cameras in some of the houses! But I shouldn't complain too much. At least they weren't my family. I turn to the side, eyeing weasel. It must be terrible spying on loved ones like this.

It wasn't like the Uchiha clan didn't know how little the higher-ups and general population trusted them either. The moment anyone not in the Uchiha clan stepped foot in the compound, the world seemed to slow down, even the youngest children instinctually clamming up and behaving in a much more sedated fashion. Or usually…

Honestly, that girl… she has a talent for being in the exact wrong place, CONSTANTLY. No one goes to the Uchiha compound without a mission, or if you are, in fact, an Uchiha, but Sayori? An orphan seemingly determined to throw the entire village, no world off its axis does.

She's not there every day, but she is there often enough for her to be now mentioned by name in reports to the Hokage and higher-ups rather than just an 'unknown civilian child.'

It's not as though there has never been an academy student following Uchiha children home. (It was a common occurrence with fangirling and occasionally fanboy stalkers.) However, THEY were never allowed in the gate, let alone waving at passer-byes like this was a perfectly normal thing to do.

The first time it was reported, she seemed to be with an older woman, perhaps helping her with some task. An isolated orphan child wouldn't understand the deep-rooted distrust yet, only the admiration in the academy. (A strange phenomenon, civilians, love Uchiha academy students and avoid all the others) So it was written off as a one-time thing, but then a young genin Uchiha dragged her in, and did so again, and again. By then, ALL anbu had now been given a small file on her. (Saved me the trouble of finding a reason to ask for it). Ultimately, she was seen as a phenomenon, unexplainable to science.

"Isn't that your brother Weasel?" I say, blinking to make sure I am seeing right as a tomato-red-faced little Uchiha boy tries to recover from being hugged by the strange orphan girl. The most peculiar part was that the girl was seemingly normal, intelligent but normal. If anything, I would expect her roommate (a young poison user I found out and decided to give a helping hand, there are, after all, so few of us in the leaf) would be causing more ripples. But no, it was the strange girl, with strange eyes, from who knows where originally.