Kyoto, Saturday afternoon
_Oi…oi… - Satoru shook Kira by the shoulder - wake up, we are here.
She blinked repeatedly, trying to clear her vision after apparently falling asleep on Satoru's shoulder.
_Sorry - the word came out naturally. She had never fallen asleep in public before.
_There is something at the corner of your mouth - he pointed, she quickly touched it, there was nothing - joking!
She glared at him. The urge of wanting to punch him in the face rose.
_Hahahaha, sorry I couldn't help myself - he wiped tears off the corner of his eyes due to laughing, and held his hand out for her - Let's go, sleeping beauty.
She slapped his hand away and stood up by herself.
As soon as they exited the train station, a black car was waiting.
_Come on in - he opened the car door like it was his, waiting for her to get in. She climbed onto the left seat, leaving the right seat for him. He instructed the driver to return to the Gojo's estate in Uji.
Satoru pressed a button, closing the window between the driver and the back of the car.
_It's sound proof so it's safe back here - he winked.
She understood but didn't say anything. She just quietly observed the passing scenery outside the window.
_Japan is so different now - she spoke up after a while - Back then, everything was primitive. Lands and trees were the vast majority, with only a few houses. Humans rarely live past 40 years old. There was an elder in the Usuba family who lived until she was almost 60 years old and everyone considered it a miracle. People died early as curses were everywhere. There were so many of them that their breath stained the sky black. You could not tell if it was day or night. Food was scarce. Water was limited. And above all, Ryomen Sukuna.
Kira shook her head and shivered as she remembered the past. Satoru silently listened to her stories.
_Now, humans live so comfortably. Food, water, transportation, heater, everything is convenient. I can understand why people don't want to remember those days. They want to erase every trace of that horrible time we once lived in. The Uchiha clan and I are the evidence, remnants of the past, and reminders of an ugly period.
Dead silence once again covered the air.
_Sorry - she broke the silence, scratching the back of her head - I did not mean to say everything out loud like that.
Satoru shook his head but did not say anything, which made her feel somewhat ashamed. She sounded like she was complaining. Would Satoru think that she was weak and emotional? The elders had always been so rough on her regarding showing emotions.
"Emotions are weakness, they will kill you in battles."
Why did she even care what Satoru thought about her anyway? She never cared about anyone or their thoughts.
While Kira was immersed in her thoughts, her expressions of sadness did not escape Satoru's observations. He felt a little jolt in his heart, it did not sit well with him to see her in such anguish. He did not know why. He never cared about anyone or their feelings.
The car finally stopped at the Gojo residence in Uji. It was a huge traditional house that Kira recognized right away.
_Ah…this was Madara's estate - she frowned - how could it be here? The Uchiha ruin where I got my katana and glasses was not around this area.
_Well - Satoru explained - the Uchiha ruin that you talk about is in the northern part of Central Kyoto. Based on my knowledge, this residence was moved here to help with reservations. We tried to avoid tourist-heavy areas.
_Ah - she nodded and headed inside like it was her home. It felt nice to know something from her time still existed. She recognized most of the estate as she had been here a few times. She recognized the room where she would hang out while her parents were in meetings with Madara.
_Kira, where are you, come out come out… - a series of black and white images ran through her head, a boy was playing hide and seek with her, in this very same building, 1000 years ago. Could it be the same boy from her dream earlier on the train? What was that boy's name again?
_What's wrong? - he approached her, looking concerned. She was wondering why.
"Don't overthink" - she told herself.
_Nothing, just the heat - she made up a quick but reliable reason - I want to go to the library.
_It's this way now - Satoru pointed her in a different direction - there was a reconstruction, so most books were moved down to a vault with temperature and lighting control, to protect them from degradation.
_Ah…good, let's go then, you lead the way - she followed him toward the direction pointed. They descended to the basement where all the books and documents were stored. He punched in the code and they were in the Uchiha library - wow, these books are very well preserved. Oh wow, I remember reading this book. Wow, this is my notes, oh wowo….
Satoru froze for a second, this was his first time seeing this side of her. She looked innocent and worry-free. Her smile was genuine. She became a different person who never had to shoulder humankind's burden. He understood, of course, he understood after knowing who she really was. The name Uchiha said everything.
After she confirmed her identity, he spent hours and hours that night researching everything he could find about the Uchiha clan. There were some records but not much about her. But from what he could tell, the Uchiha clan died as the ultimate sacrifice for her to come back. The Gojo clan was close to them and was tasked with a final mission of scattering some stuff. She died when she was 18 years old. She had a brother named Uchiha Itachi, and her parents were Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto. She was the only descendant of the Uchiha clan who inherited the Eyes of Death and Souls. The only other person who possessed the Eyes was the clan founder, Otsutsuki Indra. There were not many records within the Gojo clan's documents about the power of the Eyes. There was also no clue regarding the tattoo.
That night, he felt a tug in his heart after learning about her clan's history. He would probably rather die than to wake up and remain the only person from a completely different world.
Earlier in the car ride, he was glad when she decided to open up to him. He felt proud, how many people had she opened her heart to before? But he messed it up badly by remaining silent. He should have said something but he was afraid he might insult her. After all, he was never in her shoes.
_Did not know that you would be this happy - he smiled softly, did not want to ruin this moment for her.
_Of course, I feel at home - she smiled brightly, her smile blinded Satoru even though he had his sunglasses on - Can I stay here for a while?
_Of course. I will go upstairs, call me if you need anything.
She spent many hours in the basement, reading through as many books as she could. Some she read before, some she had never had the chance to. Most were documents about the jujutsu technique from her clan and the other clans. She tried to look for clues of what Madara meant about how to break the seal. But she could not find much.
"Wait, the seal…. I never told Satoru about that, how did he know about the 9-tailed fox tattoo?" - then she screamed his name.
Thud thud thud..Hurry footsteps reached the basement.
_What happens? - he looked at her furious face.
_You used your eyes on me. How the fuck do you know about my tattoo on my back? - fires ignited from her glares, Satoru knew he messed up, feeling death was coming near. He ran.
_I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I did not mean to look! - she was chasing him around the estate. Screams and laughter exploded, breaking the usual quiet atmosphere. The staff was so surprised at the lively scene and their stoic, cold master. They had not seen Master Satoru this happy in a while.
When she was about to catch up, he jumped and floated in the air. He faked crying and begged on his knee - I'm sorry, I will do anything for you.
_Come down here. If I don't kill you today, I can't look at my ancestor faces anymore. Come down here! Right now, Satoru - Kira spitted fires. She could not believe how sneaky he was and that he had the guts to look under her clothes. The more she thought about it, the more shameful and angry she became.
_Then I will take responsibility for you. Would that be enough?
"Heh?" - that was not something she expected coming out of him.
Note: Hi all, thank you for reading my story. I hope you enjoy it and please feel free to leave a comment/note to say hi! :)