Pov: Elder Ichiro Uchiha.
...?
"Excuse me?" I ask again.
"You have been reassigned temporarily to a less dangerous mission, you are not young enough anymore to bounce back from those injuries Elder Ichiro" Another Elder pats my shoulder.
"But- that Uchiha? Why him? Can I not do something more productive?" I wince.
I cannot spend all my free time on a brat I don't even know.
"It's a nothing mission, it has been posted up by the Uchiha for the Uchiha for quite some time, many people have taken it and none have succeeded. Do nothing and relax and no one will care" The Elder tells me and walks away, I unclench the scroll and release a breath of annoyance.
Lazy Uchiha.
Two words that should never be mixed and yet here we are.
Haaa- fine, if I have been given the mission I will at least attempt to complete it.
-One month later-
Pov: Takumi Uchiha.
"Hey. Aren't you meant to train someone this month?" Rin asks me.
"I have" I lower my book and turn to her.
"Already? We are only a few days into the month...?" She tilts her head.
"Yes, but the coward gave up thirty minutes into the training. My side of the deal is complete" I reply.
"What happened?" She grows curious.
"He wanted to conquer his fears and hone his taijutsu. He felt it inappropriate that I had gathered over fifty spiders and hid them around his training ground" I smile.
"Takumi! You can't force people to train in the environment of their fears! How you would you like it if I did that?" She argues.
"If you can find one of my fears I would be happy to snuff it out" I respond.
"Everyone has their fears" Rin raises an eyebrow.
The fears I have currently are unable to be shared, psychological complexities about never seeing an entirely separate world ever again.
"Everyone does. But mine are intangible, hard to grasp" I note.
"Like, ghosts?" She replies.
...
Hn.
"Ghosts was a good guess, I am less scared of them however and more wary of their nature. In fact, Ghosts are the one things I hate most" I frown as I recall my death.
Thousands of those undead and unwilling to move on, pathetic excuses of once living creatures- haunting my soul and dragging it down with their cursed screams.
I would have ascended as more than mortal if I awakened to my cruelty, if I had just been granted the time to develop my strength- not been bedridden by those I bested long ago.
I would have been able to love those I never got to truly love- share that dance! Sing those songs! Entertain my empire with my presence for once!
I could have had it all if it wasn't for those incompetent and ruthless-
"Okay- clam down... I can see that ghosts anger you very much..." Rin taps my shoulder and I release my breath, as my grip loosens in a wave of calm.
"My apologies, I have been put into a bad mood. I will excuse myself" I stand and pat myself off before walking away.
"Rest well Takumi- I will return the book by the end of the week!" Rin calls out as I leave.
*Step* *Step* *Step*
I cannot believe I let my anger slip for a moment.
I really am getting lazy.
*Swish*
A girl nearly bumps into me but I swiftly evade her.
...
*Swish*
That same girl attempts to fumble forward and catch me but I turn around and step back.
"What do you want?" I rudely ask.
*Cough*
She retracts her hand and straightens herself up, caught in the act of trying to bump into me she doesn't mention it at all and speaks to me in a sweet tone.
"Oh- hey there... Takumi, haven't seen you since the academy, how are things?" She closes her eyes and smiles.
?
"Fine. I do not recall you" I respond.
I made an effort to not recall the sensei's name and now a random child from the academy assumes I remember her? Rude.
"Oh. I uh... well..." She stumbles on her words and thinks intensely for a moment.
"Enough. You are not my type, tell the Elder his latest stunt has failed once more" I click my tongue and wave her away.
"Wait- what is your type?" She asks as if begging for anything.
"My type?" I wistfully look up.
"Yes- please, I need something to not fail the mission... please help me out Takumi..!" She bows.
"No" I reply coldly.
"Wait- I will clean up Obito's yard for a week" She offers.
Ohoh? She knows that I care for my own building and also has intelligence on my weak spot for my friends- and the yard he constantly forgets to upkeep for his grandmother.
"Very well, that will suffice" I nod.
She pumps her fist and pulls out a notebook.
"Tall enough to make everyone look up at her no matter what, short black and curly hair that rests just above her shoulders. Round glasses that sit delicately on her nose and slightly pull your gaze towards her beautiful grey eyes with a shining golden spark lying within. A face one cannot describe as her beauty is beyond words, thinner than one should be and quite pale. A light green or white dress that has a half jacket like top with black flowers designed and sewed into it and a necklace that holds a drop of my own blood within the glass vial. A green ring made from such a rare material that a name is still being brainstormed for it. The bottom half of her dress somehow has a coffee spill on it every time you look at it but that spill never does take away from her beauty" I explain to the best of my ability.
...
..
.
"Right... I think I got it..." She finishes writing down and then performs some hand signs.
*Swish* *Woosh* *Puff!*
A cloud of smoke obscures her momentarily before revealing a lady quite fair in front of me.
"So, will this work?" She wiggles her eyebrows as if winning.
"No" I coldly retort.
*Poof!*
"What! Come on! You said that was your type!" She groans out in annoyance.
"Firstly. Your imagination lacks the ability to comprehend her beauty. Secondly. I am not so incompetent as to fall for only looks, I prefer someone smart enough to know they have failed" I tell her as I copy her movements and perform the same jutsu.
*Swish* *Swash* *Puff!*
Smoke obscures me and I lower my new face down to meet hers, bending my back gracefully and smiling warmly.
"This, is my type. Do not attempt to sway me with inferior products" I warn her in the voice I remember clear as day.
I just wish I heard it more.
?
I tilt my head as the girl turns completely red, blushing so hard that she fails to make any movement at all.
"Are you ill?" I ask and lower my gaze in concern.
*Thwap*
Her back slaps against the ground and I tilt my head as she burns her gaze into my form.
*Pooof!*
I dispel the technique and return to my normal self.
"Yeah, you have high standards" She mutters as if in a dream.
"Of course. Only one can cause me to fall, it would be rude to fall for subpar looks and personalities" I shake my head in shame of the thought.
"But why... blood? What's up with that?" She gets up and tries to hide her blush, terribly so.
"Blood? You mean the necklace. It is the perfect wedding gift, the only droplet of blood I will ever allow to see the world from that point on, it means that none shall harm me as long as she keeps it safe" I nod sagely.
A shame I don't have a droplet of her blood anymore.
...
She probably has someone else's by now.
My excitement drips down into a cold territory and I walk away from the red girl.
"Wait-..." She shouts but I lack the care to reply anymore.
My emotions are all over the place, of course she has moved on. Everyone has, I am the only one clinging to the past.
I am only one of two who know my secret of another life, and the old fool never spills secrets.
And it is not like I can ever get back to my home, it would be impossible.
What a sad prospect.
I kick a stone absentmindedly as I walk home.
Pov: Fugaku Uchiha.
"How is it?" The Hokage asks.
...
"It's good. Detailed, tells me what I need to know and leaves open a lot of suggestions for improvement- I can expect to improve an Uchiha's taijutsu expertise a year. Though I doubt it is worth much in comparison to his skills in work" I sigh.
"As expected, disappointing that this is all we can get from him but hopefully like everything else in the world he will change" The Hokage breathes out the smoke from his pipe into the sunset that lowers before us.
Yes. Hopefully.
But these taijutsu examinations are too little, the Uchiha needs strength more than ever and one of the most talented individuals I have seen grow is lazing around and reading all day.
"Are you doing it too? Looking at all the failed missions he could have joined?" I ask.
The many dead that didn't return.
Those injured that could have been saved.
"Thinking about what could have gone right is a bad mindset to entertain" He answers.
"So you have" I look at him in his eyes.
"Yes..." He nods slowly.
...
"And so we must use him as a resource wisely" The Hokage speaks up.
"Once a year? Is that all he can give?" I look down in annoyance.
"You heard the boy" He replies.
"But- he has yet to unveil his sharingan, surely something can wake him up to reality? Something can get to him. Make him see what needs to happen?" I ask earnestly for advice, I am at my wits end with the boy.
"Does he want to see however? Ignorance is bliss after all" The Hokage notes.
"And so what does one do to ensure he looks? What can attract his gaze?" I mutter.
"We have both tried our best, your clan still attempts to drag him into the battlefield and keeps failing" He talks about our clan specific mission.
"He got over his grandfathers death within a day, I don't think the threat of anyone close dying is enough to pull him" I brainstorm.
"He adapts to threats against him quite quickly as well, too weak and he will embarrass the attacker, too strong and he may just die in that mission" He tells me.
"He is certainly not respected enough to grow from his training sessions, no one seems to want to train with him at all- and if they do they quit quite quickly. My fault entirely as I spread his nickname as an attempt to embarrass him into working" I sigh.
"I do believe our hands are tied for now" The Hokage inhales his pipe and exhales smoke.
Yes. Unfortunately.
...
"But his skills are continuing to grow and it would be a shame to leave the child be..." A new voice lingers behind us and we both turn around.
"Elder Danzo" I greet.
"Danzo" The Hokage replies.
"You want to attempt to train him? Wake him up?" The Hokage asks and before I can refuse on the clans behalf Danzo responds.
"No, that child is destined for areas outside of my expertise. I merely have a suggestion for you both" Danzo chuckles lightly.
"And what might that be?" I ask with hesitation lingering in my tone.
"If the child is directly telling us that simple methods will not work, I suggest a more drastic approach. Get inside his head and gain the information we need to wake him up" Danzo looks at me.
Mental ninjutsu? The Yamanaka clan could potentially uncover some secrets.
"What information could he hold?" The Hokage wonders.
"Not information that makes him lazy, but rather what fears and motivations lie underneath- you saw the flame within him, we just need to find what fuels it" Danzo smiles.
I see, that could work. But who could delve into that child's mind without losing his trust?
"The Yamanaka clan head perhaps could help us here" Danzo offers.
"No. I will not pull him from his mission- and I cannot let the Yamanaka clan be aware of entering an allies, no- a child's mind without consent. This operation is unavailable to us" The Hokage shuts it down.
...
"Kyo Yamanaka" Danzo says.
"She will be executed tomorrow Danzo, I am not letting a criminal into a child's mind. This problem is not so urgent" The Hokage replies.
"The clan will not know, we will tell Kyo that she will be released upon doing this task and then remove her after it is done. She specializes in mental investigations and was only imprisoned due to monetary crimes- she needed money and dealt in illegal methods, but she is still loyal to the leaf. In fact, she would be more loyal given a second chance" Danzo nods in return.
"She stole over seventeen S-rank missions worth of money Danzo. She did not need that much money, and her 'specialization' was a forbidden jutsu, the Yamanaka clan would not like us using such a method" He retorts.
...
"The question is- is it worth it? I have offered a methods to help you, are you willing to take it? What worth would Takumi bring to the table" Danzo tells us.
He is too talented to let simmer.
"Takumi is quite the child, he reminds me of many geniuses in their youth- but he will grow up and help the village later in life, for now he must learn the natural consequences of 'resting' while everyone else suffers" The Hokage tells Danzo bluntly.
I look at Danzo and notice his mouth curve upwards, my mind races in thought.
Consequences of a genius lazing about?
Scorn. Hate.
Sakumo Hatake died under less speculation and scorn- if the village found out that the Lazy Uchiha was as talented as we know him too be...
...
... I can already see the outrage and concern- The Hyuga clicking their tongues at my failure to keep my clan in check.
We will be famed no matter what Takumi does, If I fail or succeed it will not matter.
Either Takumi is hailed as another genius in the clan, or our name is dragged through the mud.
And what's worse? The deal he struck.
Like a subtle poison killing his public image, more ninja will notice the success rate of his dangerous missions and certainly so if he goes on a team one.
Perhaps Danzo wanted this outcome instead- that scheming Elder is always up to something.
I am already hearing complaints from the second ninja Takumi trained and I will have to hear about it every month- and know that his skills are being put to waste.
His friends may die and those who survive will only hate him- his loved ones will leave him to rot when this war is over and he was not there to help.
He is cruel- to himself more than anyone else.
Resting is only causing harm- to the Uchiha, to himself and to the Village and its moral.
I don't know what Danzo wants from this, but seeing both options I believe it is urgent enough to warrant this risk.
I would rather the Yamanaka be disappointed in us for a year or so rather than let Takumi fall like so.
"Kyo is it? I think I would like to speak to them before we decide" I raise my head after coming to a conclusion.
Thanks for reading :)