"But… it doesn't make sense." I stared at my own two hands. "How does it bounce like that?"
"You just have to give it a certain kind of spin." Itachi shrugged. "And you did it."
"Yes, but-" I scrunched my face. It just doesn't work like that!
"Itachi, you've broke the baby's mind." That snapped me right out of my confusion as I turned to glare at the git.
I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from snapping out a sarcastic remark as I reminded myself of who I was talking to.
Uchiha Shisui, Genin of Konohagakure, Lv.?
This was the guy that was teaching me, Itachi, and Izumi. Still absolutely a kid by my standards, though he had a head and a half of height over me. But it wouldn't do well to have him decide that it wasn't worth it to freely teach his techniques to us just because I couldn't well enough shut up.
The thing I was referring to was… well.
Ricochet (active), Lv.1
The ability to ricochet a projectile off of walls, objects, people, and even other projectiles mid-flight in order to create unexpected trajectories.
Yet another description that didn't tell me much. I needed to look into that. Maybe a way to turn on detailed tooltips?
[No Questions Available]
Okay.
But still! This little skill was something that seemed to defy all conventional logic. I guess it was a classic staple of anime, but still. Regular gun bullets ricocheting was an occasional unpredictable side-effect of the fact that you were firing something featherlight at speeds breaking the sound barrier.
Thrown weapons just did not do that.
And yet. '[Ricochet]' I thought to myself.
I watched with a scowl as the kunai left my hand, impacted the bark, and rather than sinking inside the X in the tree that was marked as the point I needed to use to ricochet off into the target, it bounced and landed… not on target. Nowhere near that.
But bounce it did, in a physics defying fashion.
"Wow! You're already getting the hang of it, Tomo-chan!" I turned to stare at Izumi, who looked elated. All of her shuriken (I preferred kunai, if only because they were heavier) had failed to bounce off of the bark and had instead sunken in.
"Sure…" I trailed off. It felt weird that I just knew how to put the "correct" spin, or correct enough to bounce it off, even if it was not good enough to actually land a hit on anything. All because the system had said as much, and now I could just ingrain into myself the muscle memory whenever I went [Ricochet]. "Is it good?"
"I'd say so, given that it only took you half an hour. Most people don't even bother getting good enough at shuriken to get it going, and you're a goblin-sized thing!" the older Uchiha joked. "What are they feeding you kids, nowadays?"
I blinked, before huffing. "It's not going to help me much as it is though." Especially not given that the quest demanded that I hit a bullseye, something that both Shisui and Itachi seemed to be able to do with absolute consistency.
"Well, you just have to keep at it. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it quickly enough." he ruffled my hair.
I just frowned, and resumed trying.
Surely there was some trick I could employ, some conscious action, some spin on the technique that I was missing? I just had to keep looking.
"Ah, I got it!" Izumi cried. I whirled around to look at her- and noticed that not only she had managed to get her shuriken to do the proper ricochet, but also hit her target… near the center enough that I was sure that it counted.
More than that, I noticed that her eyes were ablaze with a red, spinning pinwheel.
I-
what?
Both I and Itachi stared stunned at her, as she cheered. A moment after, however, I saw her stumble on her own feet, and before I could move, Shisui was catching her as she passed out.
What?
The explaination came after a moment from Shisui himself. "Ah, she must've awakened her Sharingan somehow. I'll admit I didn't expect that. I'm going to need to have a word with her mother, since using our kekkei genkai without supervision is dangerous… I guess she must've copied the way Itachi was practicing."
"Just like that?" I squeaked out. I knew the Sharingan meant perfect memory whenever it was activated and a bunch of other bullshit, but. It just. Let her do things exactly like Itachi did?
He smiled at me, though it was a smile with no mirth behind it. "It's certainly a great boon to a shinobi. You've been making good progress as well too, Tomo-chan- up until she used her Sharingan, you were doing better than she was. You should be proud of that."
I flinched at that, for a moment, before taking a deep breath. I already knew the Sharingan was bullshit. Logically, that was a given. And if Izumi gets better than me because she has it… well, it's no one's fault. Certainly not hers. "Fine. I'll just have to get better. I think you might want to bring Izumi back to her mother, Shisui-san?"
Shurikenjutsu was the ONE thing I was good at, I was not going to be beaten by Izumi!
[Reputation Alert!]
Your reputation with Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui has increased due to not becoming jealous from the Sharingan!
I truly have no clue if I've been spending too much time around Uchiha people and so I get the reputation alerts only from them, or their standards for friendship are just that low.
...then again, all the non-Uchiha people I've had a conversation with are either dead, abandoned me, or are the Hokage.
That's depressing.
My shoulders began burning as I kept throwing kunai at the target. It was no longer a matter of whether they would ricochet- apparently obtaining the skill at all meant that I could do it 100% of the time as long as I willed it, but it did mean that it instead was a matter of causing them to ricochet in the right direction.
One particularly bad throw saw it bounce back towards me in a ghastly repeat of the first time I tried one such similar exercise- albeit, this time I was both fast enough to do so and held enough speed in my body to raise my forearm in a clumsy block.
-4HP!
…it still meant I hit myself in the arm. Not hard enough to pierce deep, and the kunai were blunted enough that it didn't sink deep, but it was still enough for me to start bleeding. I unrolled the gauze that I carried for such occasions and began bandaging myself when I was reminded that despite the fact that two Uchiha left, one had remained.
"Why are you training this hard?" Itachi asked, head tilted and expression blank, eyes only filled with a slight curiosity.
I paused, as I felt my limbs shake slightly from exertion. "I mean, I could ask you the same."
He frowned, but relented. "I want the fighting to stop."
"That sounds difficult to achieve. People always want to fight one another. You would have to force everyone to submit to you through power in order to get them to stop." I replied. He shook his head.
"Fighting is all they know, which is why they do so." He countered. "People in Konoha know how to live in peace, for example."
"That's just because they have a common enemy to fight against." I sighed, before mentally kicking myself a little. Was I really arguing philosophy with a 5 year old? "It's a good dream to strive for, though. I hope you're right."
"Do you like fighting, Tomo-san?"
I scoffed. "No. If I could spend my life in peace, I would do so in a heartbeat. But the world you dream of doesn't exist yet, Itachi-san."
"Then why do you want to get good at it?" He said, and I knew that he got me there. I chewed my cheek a little.
"I guess it's nowhere near as grand a dream as yours is, Itachi-san. I don't really have big, world-shaking intentions." I closed my eyes-
Being so weak and feeble that I accidently killed myself
Being put under a genjutsu strong enough to erase my own will
Getting crushed to death by the nine tails' paw
The power of the Sharingan that both Izumi and so many of the villains shared, able to close the gap on my specialty in an instant
[Karma]
Number of deaths: 2
The sensation of being ripped from everything you know and then that everything being deleted from your mind-
-and opened them again. "I guess I just... want to become independent. I want to be strong enough that no one else can do things to me that I don't want them to, or take away what is mine. I'm sorry if you expected better, Itachi-san. I guess I'm a bit selfish."
His eyes narrowed for a moment, before widening in understanding. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, and yet I found myself astounded at how quickly he saw through me.
"You fight because you're afraid." He said bluntly. I shrugged a little.
"Everyone does. Almost no one likes fighting, but the only way to win is when your enemy loses."
His eyes, already wide, shone with a strange glint- as though his very perception was expanded by my words. Which, given that he was a five year old kid, might as well have been the case.
There was an awkward moment in which we stared at each other.
"Then I guess I will fight to build a world in which no one has to be afraid anymore."
At that, a genuine smile crept on my face. "That's more of a dream I can get behind, Itachi-san."
His lips twitched up just a little bit. After a moment, the hint of a smile he had turned into more of a complacent smirk.
"Hey, what's so funny?!"
"Nothing, Tomo-san. Say, would you like me to set up the targets in a way that will better help you? Shisui and I have only recently begun at a difficulty this advanced. I would have said nothing because you seemed content to keep struggling, but I thought I would offer the help."
.
.
.
"ITACHI YOU SON OF A-"
Despite what Itachi claimed, it still took me the better part of the morning, two [Ricochet] level ups, and becoming [Fatigued] before I got it. And even then, I was not able to repeat it immediately afterwards like so many of the things that I have learned how to do in this world, which further led me to believe that what happened was an honest fluke.
[Quest Complete!]
Shurikenjutsu Training with Itachi
As your growth with Shurikenjutsu hits a plateau, you find that there are better ways to train your ability. Itachi Uchiha might be able to show you how to enhance your training beyond simple target practice. Hit a bullseye with the [Ricochet] skill.
Time Limit: 1 day
Reward: Improved Relationship with Itachi and Shisui Uchiha, ?, 100Exp
[Processing '?' reward…]
Dismissing that last window was impossible, as it would always sit at the very edge of my vision. I could ignore it, though. It seemed like it wouldn't be done for a while.
But the rest of the stuff was cool. More Exp is always welcome, especially given how stingy the game had been with it up until this point.
What, do you not want to see a level 100 toddler?
Itachi's more than double my level, I don't see you stopping him any.
But now, I'd come home to a conked out Izumi, a Hazuki-san fussing over her daughter and worrying about the fact that she'd have to report to the clan head, and no Inabi for me to bother.
Which meant that it was time for me to get "naughty".
…not like that ew
Leaf Sticking Exercise, Lv.13
This simple, yet fundamental skill. First of all, it seemed to level up much faster than the rest- which led me to wonder if a task being more specific than another one would lead to it growing faster. Or was it because rather than an actual skill, it was a way to track my Chakra Control growth?
Anyways- my hopes of it improving with any sort of speed were dashed, as I could not do it much due to Hazuki's rules set in place, and it barely gave me 1% CC after the first ten levels. Sure, it was a very specific, baseline exercise, and it levelled somewhat quickly, but still. If it did anything like Shurikenjutsu training, then I was going to have to get very weird if I wanted to level it past like, say, 30.
As for what I meant when I referred to Hazuki's rules…
Hazuki-san had pretty much been babying me ever since the Kyubi's attack and my subsequent abandonment. I think that caring about me and Izumi gave the woman something to focus on after losing her husband, which was why I allowed her.
And given that she was among the amount of people that Knew, she said, and I quote "Some light training is fine at your age, Tomo-chan, but it's not healthy for a young girl such as yourself to only have death on her mind. You should try to enjoy being a child too, while you can."
…and of course, here I was, disobeying her because death truly was the only thing I could think about nowadays. Just, not mine. Most of the time, anyways.
Anyways, that meant not much ninja training that wasn't games or such similar activities. When I asked about Taijutsu, she simply claimed that with my current physique, it might do more harm than good for me to start trying it out.
And with Izumi apparently having had the Sharingan, which activates only under trauma if I recall correctly… yeah, this woman's getting grey hair soon.
But it meant that I was stuck with nothing about chakra that she could teach me, and thus I could only try to recall from canon. And considering I sincerely doubted that I could conjure a Rasengan at the ripe old age of 4 with no prior training with just some water balloons and I could not manage to get walking on walls down (I'd tried), leaves it was.
…or at least, I thought that was the case right up until today. As I walked into my room with a few leaves stuck to my forehead, I was flashed momentarily by a text appearing in front of me, right as I could feel a breeze and a swirl of leaves exiting my room.
['?' reward processed.]
Creepy. But if whoever was here wanted to attack me, then they would have already, and I bore a slightly unhealthy curiosity for whatever the game threw at me.
I picked up and opened the scroll.
Fuma Clan Scroll – Fledgeling
This scroll, stolen by Fuma Michio when he fled from the Fuma Clan with his expecting wife, contains beginner Jutsu from the Fuma Clan: [Fuma Art: Miniature Mandala], [Fuma Art: Blade Projection], and [Fuma Seal Art: Versatile Weight]. Additionally, it contains the [Fuma Clan Taijutsu] skill.
Learning all the techniques inside up to Lv.10 grants you the Fuma Clan Fledgeling title.
My blood ran cold when I saw the contents of the scroll, before fury began flowing through my limbs.
"Is this it?" I hissed. "You disappear for three months, leaving me alone after I'd just lost my mother, not even bothering to appear long enough to sign the kami-damned adoption papers, and suddenly you have the audacity to break into my room, and- and- not even a letter?! A fucking scroll of techniques, to keep your worthless clan alive?! COWARD!" I screamed.
…
…
…
But I received no answers. Not from him, anyways.
"Tomo-chan?" I whirled around, my face twisted in a snarl, before I realized who I was facing.
"Hazuki-san." I quickly straightened, trying my best to banish the anger. The woman, looking like an older and sterner version of Izumi, albeit with black hair instead of Izumi's brown, sighed.
"I see that you have disobeyed my commands about no chakra in the house. And what did I tell you to call me?"
"…obaa-san. I'm sorry." She walked up, parting the hair in front of my face as she smiled kindly. It was getting a bit long for my tastes.
"What happened?" she asked. "Though we've had… more than our fair share of differences, your uncle told me that he was here to see you. I allowed him in, though I'm wondering if that had not been a mistake."
I scoffed, my face scrunching up in distaste. "If he was here to see me, he certainly made it a point to not let me see him in return." That, and I'm almost sure this whole thing had only happened because I'd done the quest with Itachi. "He just wanted to drop off a stupid scroll."
"Tomo-chan…" she reached out, wrapping her arms around me, kneeling in front of the floor. I grit my teeth.
"I don't get it." I hissed through clenched teeth. "He left. He hurt me- he wasn't even man enough to care for his brother's s-" I choked up as I almost forgot that I was a girl, in this life. Yet another thing that had been taken from me. "daughter, when I needed him. Then why does he get to just waltz in like some sort of estranged ghost, just to haunt me at his own leisure?! Just because he wants to me to learn some stupid technique?!"
Hazuki began rubbing soothing circles on my back, and some tears began flowing, though I was trying my best not to cry. After a moment, she pulled back, staring me straight in the eye.
"Tomo-chan." she sighed. "Though I do not condone that man's actions in any way, I will not lie to you and say that he has not done you a kindness today." I reeled back, staring at her in betrayal. "Hush for a moment, let me explain.
"Though you may not like it or not, techniques are an important part of our life as shinobi. And though us Uchiha are advantaged in that regard" my mind ran back to the moment Izumi just… copied Itachi's throw into a bullseye "and I'm more than willing to teach some of what I know, it doesn't change the fact that those techniques are your birthright, Tomo. I will not force you to add them to your repertoire if you do not wish to, but know this; knowledge is power, and as shinobi, you will want as much power as you can manage to obtain for yourself." Her eyes flashed into a deep crimson, with a triple set of creepy yet pretty pinwheels spinning inside them.
"You do not want to have refused to have done the best you can, only to have it come back and bite you." She whispered, and in that moment, I knew that those words came from experience.
I looked down at the scroll.
Fuma Clan Scroll – Fledgeling
This scroll, stolen by Fuma Michio when he fled from the Fuma Clan with his expecting wife, contains beginner Jutsu from the Fuma Clan: [Fuma Art: Miniature Mandala], [Fuma Art: Blade Projection], and [Fuma Seal Art: Versatile Weight]. Additionally, it contains the [Fuma Clan Taijutsu] skill.
Learning all the techniques inside up to Lv.10 grants you the Fuma Clan Fledgeling title.
Do you wish to begin learning?
ACCEPT/DECLINE
New Jutsu Acquired due to external actions!
Fuma Art: Miniature Mandala, Lv. 0
New Jutsu Acquired due to external actions!
Fuma Art: Blade Projection, Lv. N/A
WARNING: Kenjutsu Skill Level requirement: 15
New Jutsu Acquired due to external actions!
Fuma Seal Art: Versatile Weight, Lv. N/A
WARNING: Calligraphy Skill Level requirement: 15
New Skill Acquired due to external actions!
Fuma Clan Taijutsu, Lv. 0
…as always, the [Game] finds a way to rain on my parade.
In that moment, Hazuki booped my nose, and her eyes were back to normal. "And that means not overexerting yourself when your obaa-san tells you not to. Alright?"
I blinked, before huffing. "Fine."
"I will arrange for you some sort of training, if you promise to not do this anymore, alright? Izumi's already given my poor heart a scare today, and I don't think I could handle to see you accidently hurt yourself too." She smiled sadly. "You are both growing up far too quick for your own good."
"Mom? I thought you left to check-" I heard a voice blearily say before a weight crashed into me, Hazuki's hug preventing me from moving as another weight crashed into me.
I was now sandwiched between the two lookalikes. Izumi was the most preciously supportive kid.
And though I'd resolved to wait for it, since I didn't know if it was worth it for me to try and alter things in that direction…
With a mental sigh, I accepted the [Jubjub's Massacre] quest. I'll probably have to check the details of it later.
I couldn't not at least try after the love I was being shown, right?
I'm back from the dead, baby, right in time for the new year!
Sorry for the hiatus. I've caught the 2020 virus and between that and the university, I just really couldn't keep up.
This chapter is yet another three-parter! If you want to support me and read more of what happens ahead, please support The Nick Of Name on the place of patrons!
Drink Water, Stay Awesome, Nick out :)