18 His Resolve

Heyo!

Here is the next chap, hope you enjoy it :)

[3034 words]

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Chapter 15

His Resolve

''Kill him''

The moment he said those words, I sucked in a cold breath and just digested his words. I knew sooner or later I would be killing someone, but, now I was at that moment, all I could feel was hesitation. Just looking at the prisoner's eyes, I could feel the myriad of emotions the man was going through: Fear of death, humiliation at being ended by a child, rage at his situation and regret.

The man was a human like me, he had a life as well, so what right did I have to end it? What right did I have to take his life? I could feel my hands shaking in reluctance and a tinge of fear. The guilt was already weighing upon me. It was heavy, too heavy for someone like me. However, if I didn't do this, I would never reach my goal and I would never be able to protect anything with the way I am acting. The enemy won't hesitate to take what's mine, so I would have to adopt the same attitude, hesitation would only put what I want to protect and put my goals at risk.

''But before I do it, may I ask a question?'' I asked, my voice a bit shaky from the inevitable event.

''You may'' Ryuuji responded stoically.

''Do we have any right to take a life? To take a life to protect what's ours?'' I asked full of doubt as I looked at the apathetic man standing in front of me.

''Do well to remember this, we are not shinigami, we have no right to kill for our selfish goals, whether it is to protect our family or it is to further our goals, all of it selfish compared to the act of killing. However, that is what Shinobi must become, we must be selfish to protect what is ours. The enemy won't wait for you, they will kill without hesitation, so we must do the same'' He said, looking deeply into my eyes as if to convey the horrors I would face in the future.

''I see...then if this path is unavoidable, then I may as well make my enemies death a painless one to somewhat lessen my guilt'' I respond, my tone filled with resolve as I stop the shaking of my hands.

I took out my storage scroll and summoned the katana. The image of a five year old holding an abnormally long katana should normally look comical, however, the minute the prisoner saw the sword, his fear overwhelmed the multitude of emotions he was feeling and he began shaking, trying to claw his body away from me. I looked at the scampering shinobi and sighed, I then stepped into the decrepit jail cell and just looked into the man's eyes.

''I understand your fear, however, I will at least make your death as peaceful as possible so don't worry'' I said as I entered an Iai-goshi stance. The man's body felt limp on the floor stained with blood and feces and just looked at me with resignation and gratitude at my promise.

''Goodbye...Entei:Irori'' I say as I slightly pull out my blade from its sheath and put it back in its place. Only a trail of black embers appeared as the man slowly fell limply with no light in his eyes, the only sign of damage on his body was a small cauterized line around his neck.

I felt lightheaded at my actions, my vomit rising from my stomach causing me to crouch to the floor to regain my bearings. The guilt of killing a man whether he be good or bad was heavy, it was something I didn't want to bear. I just wanted to run away from it all if I had to continue having to carry more of this guilt.

I just looked at my hands as I crouched to the floor, my grandfather's words ringing in my head. He had much more guilt than me, yet, he was able to live his life fully bearing the weight of it with a smile on his face, laughing with me. I had to throw away my naive and weak attitude. If I ran away from my sins I would disappoint Masa-jii and I would never live proudly like he wished. I wanted to bear this weight like him, I wanted to smile and laugh like him fully understanding the burden I have to bear for my actions.

Taking a deep breath, I resolved myself once again. I can't hesitate anymore, this was the only moment of hesitation that would be allowed to me. If I act like this again, I'll die, it was as simple as that. I stood up and faced Ryuuji.

''Ryuuji-sensei, I'm ready now'' I informed him with a serene smile.

''I see…'' He paused while looking at me trying to ascertain my mental state. Seeing that I was back to normal, he continued.

''Well then, let's move onto your next lesson'' He said, his usual stoic temperament faltering a bit for some reason.

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{Ryuuji's POV}

''Kill him'' It was the same order I was given at his age, however cruel it may seem, it is the most effective method at numbing one's hesitation to killing. The bigger problem came after the kill, this method would numb one's hesitation, however, it can change one's morals to killing. Many Uchiha's morals have been scewed by this, therefore, it is the teacher's responsibility to right their morals.

I have faith in Masahiro's upbringing, there aren't many Uchiha's as well natured as he is and his teaching ingrains morals from a young age, it was clear from how he taught his daughter, who rose to be a popular jonin. However, Masahiro has a bad habit of teaching as a swordsman rather than a shinobi, this wouldn't normally be a problem for normal shinobi, however, it was obvious he had taught my successor with this attitude. As the future head, he would have to learn many cruel tactics to ensure the survival of the Uchiha's and any further hesitation during our teaching sessions would hinder his progress.

When I ordered him to kill the man, I was relieved at his reaction. I would rather not raise a ruthless killer and I didn't want to raise a coward. He gave the correct amount of fear and hesitation that displayed he had the mentality to survive as a shinobi and continue to have a good mental state.

His next words reaffirmed my impression of him as a good successor.

''Do we have any right to take a life? To take a life to protect what's ours?'' his question, although certainly surprisingly for a child his age, it was what I wanted from him. I didn't want a mindless puppet, someone who questions actions and tries to arrive at their own answer was a much better option.

I gave him the answer that I had arrived at in my younger years that gave me my resolve. It seemed that my answer was satisfactory to him as he took out his sword and talked to the prisoner. Although, giving pity to the enemy was a risky variable as a shinobi, one had to retain a unique mental trait if they wanted to remain sane, so I allowed it thinking any death would do for the prisoner. However, his next actions had me baffled.

He took out an overly long sword from his scroll and proceeded to enter a stance I have seen Masahiro enter multiple times. He was holding his grandfather's sword, an heirloom if I remembered correctly. Then a moment later, then I heard his words.

''Goodbye...Entei:Irori'' The beauty in his technique left me mesmerized, I couldn't even see his movements with my normal eyesight, the only indication that he had executed the technique was the unique trail of black embers and the slowly forming ring around his neck. It was the most beautiful execution I had seen in my life. There was no damage on his body, no pain and no negative emotions left in the room. He had given the man the most peaceful execution one could give and the boy only had a serene smile on his face that seemed to ooze tranquility, although it seemed to falter at the mans death. He had me thinking if I were to die on a battlefield, I would like to die by his hands.

That man, Masahiro, had raised a monster. I already knew he was extremely talented but seeing his skill with the sword upfront truly showed me a realm of swordsmanship I haven't seen before, even from Masahiro. It looks like teaching his boy will be much more enjoyable than I expected.

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{A year later}

After my first lesson with him, a grueling year quickly went by. Whether it be politics, war strategies, business, he had taught me everything about being a clan head and apparently there was more to come, however, at the same time I had gained a lot of practical experience of being shinobi. At times, my will nearly broke multiple times, I just resolved myself again and moved on with the weight. Ryuuji had taught a condensed version of what I would be doing in the future, espionage, toture techniques, infiltration, intel gathering and poison and assisnation techniques. I had to gain a resistance to such techniques early on in my life as he planned to put me on the fast track in my shinobi career, so he gave me a more...practical demonstration with the torture and posion.

However, he always made sure my mentality was in the right place before beginning with any of that. Although I've somewhat been numbed to such seeing and experiencing such things, my dislike for it hasn't disappeared. My only moment of respite was when I was with Sakaki or Mikoto who gave me much needed social interactions.

Speaking of Mikoto, ever since she's begun her studies, her whole demeanor has completely changed. She was much more polite and well-mannered than before, but, whenever she was with me she did seem to relax a lot more. Although it was a surprise to see the energetic girl change so much, I eventually got used to it and used her old behaviour as teasing material.

Now that a year has passed, I am finally six years old now meaning that I was finally able to escape the hell that Ryuuji calls training, as the academy was finally beginning. I doubt I was staying long with how Ryuuji was rushing things but any social interactions was better than none. This was also the reason why I was currently having tea with Ryuuji as he wanted to confirm the course I was going to take in the future for my career.

We were currently sitting in front of one another, with a table separating us as we sipped on tea in silence. I've gotten used to Ryuuji's stoic face and was able to ascertain the emotions he wanted to convey to me easily now, though it still was awkward seeing no emotions on his face.

''As you understand, we will discuss your future before your entry into the academy'' he said as he elegantly sipped on tea in a seiza position.

''Hai, sensei'' I responded causing him to place his cup on the table to prepare himself to speak.

''First, due to the fact we need to rush your education, your attendance of the academy will be shortened to two years. You will need to make as many connections as possible within this time period as there will be a large influx of clan successor's this year, try your best to be friends with the Hyuga twins as our relationship isn't as stable as I would like…'' He explained with eloquence not stopping at any word.

''After that, depending on who you acquire as a genin teacher, we will determine how many years you stay as a Genin. If he is someone you can learn plenty from then we will extend your learning period to two years and if it isn't anyone useful, then at the closest opportunity join the next Chunin exam. The Jonin I hope you get is Sakumo Hatake as he is also renowned for his swordsmanship so his experience may assist you in the development of your iaijutsu. During this time period, I will also begin your suspended ninjutsu training as your jutsu repertoire is quite small…''

''As I understood from Masahiro, you wanted to join the Anbu to prove your loyalty to the village. Your idea would be ideal for us, however, the hokage still has some reluctance to Uchiha's joining the anbu. We tried numerous times ever since we have started to open the police force and the hokage has rejected most candidates, so don't be too surprised if you are rejected…''

''Recently though, another anbu branch has opened under the leadership of Danzo Shimura, if he approaches you, do not under any circumstances agree to any of his proposals. He has attempted to recruit us multiple times, however, due to his...questionable methods at keeping shinobi loyal we can not risk loss of our kekkai genkai to Danzo. Our actions have built up a bad relationship with Danzo, so try your best to steer clear of him...''

''Everything after depends on how fast you can reach Jonin level and get enough achievements to merit giving you that rank, this is mostly what I have planned, I have kept in mind your own plans from what your grandfather has informed me so I hope you have no problems with the plan'' He asked.

''None whatsoever, sensei'' I responded.

After my response, the room was once again filled with silence, only the sipping noises of us drinking tea coming out. Seeing it as my opportunity, I asked him about the plans that they put into motion around two years ago.

''Sensei, how is the redistribution of our forces going?'' I asked.

''Ah yes, I've been meaning to inform you of our recent developments. At first, our movements did bring a rather large amount of suspicion, however, our change was beneficial to the village so no questions were asked. Integrating other shinobi into the police force has put us away from the spotlight from the villagers and with our genin's taking up more d-rank tasks than normal shinobi, overall, our reputation is seeing a progressive increase which has allowed us much more breathing room, however, our reputation still hasn't reached to a point where we are in the clear yet. Adding to the fact that the our Genin's attitude has been hard to curb as of late, we are getting mixed reactions…'' He informed me.

''The relocation of our shinobi has been taken well for the most part as most divisions have been sorely understaffed ever since the war. We aren't going to take any further actions as what we have done has been satisfactory and the new Anbu branch has been keeping an eye on us…'' He finished.

''I see...thank you for informing me sensei, I hope you continue to be successful in the future, for the sake of my sanity when I start leading the clan'' I playfully replied.

''Be prepared for the paperwork'' Ryuuji joked, chuckling a bit in the process, making me a bit surprised at his expressiveness.

''I've been wondering sensei, why haven't you been using the jutsu the second hokage invented that Masa-jii told me about?'' I asked, being a bit vague as to avoid suspicion.

''Which one? He made multiple jutsus, just counting them makes my head spin'' He asked.

''The shadow clone jutsu, Masa-jii said I don't have the chakra and the mental fortitude to handle it yet so I haven't been able to use it yet, why don't you use it to multitask'' I asked my brows raising in confusion as Ryuuji normally wasn't so inefficient.

''To be honest...I forgot'' His deadpan face while saying those words made me burst into laughter, making me hold my stomach trying to catch my breath.

''Arata, each laugh will equal an extra thirty minutes of training, so be wise with what you do with your mouth'' He warned irritatedly.

''Wait, wait, calm down, at least give me some credit for my suggestion, I saved you from hours of work'' I hurriedly said, trying to save myself.

''That is true...I'll rescind your punishment then'' he said in a contemplating look, making me sigh in relief. Not wanting to get any more punishments, I quickly make my exit.

''Well then sensei, looks like it's time to leave, I hope you have a nice day, goodbye'' I said rushing out the room, but, before I could leave Ryuuji stopped me.

''Arata, wait a moment...do try to enjoy yourself at the academy, having so many responsibilities at such a young age has put too much stress on you whether you notice it or not. Try to relax for the period of time you are in there'' seeing him express so much concern for me was a first, but I wasn't complaining as it was a nice experience that I've forgotten about ever since Masa-jii passed.

''Thank you for your concern, I'll try my best to relax'' I said with a thankful nod, causing him to give a nod that was urging me to leave the room.

''Goodnight, Ryuuji-sensei''

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Irori- Sunken hearth

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I want to get your opinions on which moveset you like more. I made one Japanese one based on Japanese gods and another using english.

Jap ver:

Raitei: Raijin no sōsō- Thunder god's performance (Large aoe attack)

Reitei: Raiden- Domain

Reitei: Narukami- Pure offensive

Reitei: Ikazuchi- Ranged attack

Reitei: Shinsoku- Godspeed (evasive move)

Eng ver:

Fulminations wake- large aoe attack

Distant thunder- Ranged attack

Levin's departure- Evasive move

Fulgurant draw- Domain

Narukami- Pure offensive (had to keep this one in as I've already written it in one of the chaps, if needed I can change it)