Nine-Tails Attack

A/N: Powerstones and Reviews help a lot. Keep supporting. More chapters on the way. Double releases if we get a few new reviews. Will be getting to the academy shortly.

A year had passed, marking the end of the Third Great Ninja War. Iwagakure and Konohagakure signed an armistice, preventing the war from going on any longer. Konoha had the upper hand, so many were disappointed in the Third Hokage for not finishing the job. As a result, the Third Hokage stepped down, and a Fourth Hokage, Minato, was appointed. The election of Minato as the Fourth Hokage enraged the clan. Uncle Fugaku's name wasn't even in the discussion for Hokage. Prejudice, they called it.

Eiji had made significant progress in his shurikenjutsu and his physical prowess. He was now able to hit six targets that were in close proximity to each other and three targets that were scattered in random directions. He had also introduced Itachi to Shisui, so the three had been training together ever since, with Itachi and Shisui becoming especially close.

Regarding his physical ability, Eiji was now able to do 25 pushups, 10 pullups, 40 squats, 30 situps, and an 800-meter run. He had more than doubled his max number of reps. On the chakra side of things, Eiji felt that he had plateaued; the leaf training exercise was no longer a challenge, and he no longer developed from doing it.

Coming home from yet another day of grueling training, Eiji decided to take a different route this time to do a bit of sightseeing. He hadn't trained with either Itachi or Shisui that day. Itachi was busy looking after his younger brother while his parents were out, and Shisui had a mission.

'Things have been getting boring recently. I would ask Uncle Fugaku for a manual on how to further improve my chakra control, but he's been incredibly busy lately. I guess I'll just have to wait things out. AW! I really want to learn to use the Sharingan's genjutsu, but with my lack of chakra control, it's impossible!'

Eiji was walking by a playground full of kids his age, when a large shadow loomed over him and the kids. Glancing up, Eiji noticed something so terrible it made him do a double take. A massive boulder was flying right above him, towards the playground.

"Run! Get out of the way!" Eiji howled at the kids; however, the kids remained paralyzed, staring at their demise. Eiji knew he wouldn't be able to destroy the boulder, but his heart wouldn't allow him to stay still. Throwing away all reasoning, Eiji lunged at the boulder that was now passing him by, activated his Sharingan, and kicked it as hard as he could.

Eiji had mastered the Beginner's Fist, so his kicks had good form, making them more powerful. With a crash, the boulder had now changed trajectory, its course slightly shifting to the right. Eiji still wasn't sure if it would hit the children or not.

'Don't hit! Please don't hit them!'

Smash!

The boulder crashed into the ground, but thankfully the children looked fine. As Eiji hopped the fence and ran closer to the kids, he noticed that some were crying and one was trying to push the boulder.

Inspecting the boulder closer, Eiji noticed there was blood leaking from under it.

'No. This is wrong.'

Pushing the boulder further, Eiji confirmed that there was indeed a body crushed under it. He couldn't believe what he was witnessing. His actions had led to the death of a child. No longer able to withhold his disgust, Eiji began to vomit all over the floor.

Saliva dripping from his mouth, Eiji instructed the children to not look and stay close by. Eiji exerted all his strength, pushing the rest of the boulder off the body underneath, ignoring the gruesome sight. He could feel his stomach churning. Suppressing his emotions, he lifted up the boy, intending to bury him, but this was interrupted when he heard a roar in the distance. Spinning back, Eiji's heart sank to his stomach.

'What on earth…'

The sheer size of the creature made it feel like it was extremely close by. Eiji's body went into a state of paralysis, the corpse slipping from his hands, landing on the floor with a thud. His whole body began to tremble in terror, a cold sweat soaking his back.

This was the first time Eiji had been in a situation where death was certain. There was no escaping a beast of that magnitude. It was only a matter of time before the village was completely destroyed. Detecting he was beginning to panic and the fight-or-flight response was clouding his reasoning ability, he turned away from the beast and began to take deep breaths, regaining self-control.

'My job is to get these children to safety. I can't stay around here long, or the chances of getting hit by debris increase. I guess that means I can't afford to give this child a proper burial...'

Digging a hole in the playground sandpit large enough for the child's body to fit in, Eiji placed the body inside, not fully burying it so that it could be easily located later on.

'I'll only submerge it enough to cover the terrible state it's in. I need it to get a proper burial and not be found by some kid who dug too deep in the sandpit.'

Wishing the body a farewell and allowing the dead child's friends to mourn him for a little while, the group began heading towards the outskirts of the village, where shinobi were usually standing post. The trip to the outskirts was a struggle because Eiji had broken his right leg but hadn't recognized it.

'I have to limp. The pain in my leg is too sharp to ignore. I can't stop here though! I need to get these children to safety! I'll get it checked out when things calm down.'

The group finally arrived on the outskirts of the village but was horrified at what they saw. They weren't the only victims of the large beast; in fact, there were hundreds of people gathered by the inside of the village walls.

"This way!" a Jounin yelled at the group, directing them to an open spot by the wall. The children Eiji was with followed the Jounin's orders, but Eiji turned back.

'I've got to go back and check on my mother and my younger sister. I can't sit around here cozy while they are in danger! Father gave me the important mission of taking care of the family if he was ever to pass away. I can't falter on my promises.'

"Hey! Where are you going?! Come back here! HEY! UCHIHA BOY!" the Jounin called towards Eiji, but to no avail. Eiji was aware that the Jounin couldn't stop him if he left, as the Jounin had a duty to protect those that were at the walls.

Giving up on trying to make Eiji return, the Jounin bit his lip and returned to his duties. Eiji sprinted home as fast as his small body could. He was quite a distance away from the Uchiha residence, so he could only pray and hope nothing happened to his family until he got there. Upon arrival, Eiji noticed that his Uncle Fugaku and the military police had secured the area, making sure the Uchiha clan had minimal damage inflicted on it.

"Eiji. Your mother's been worried. Hurry home. I've already assigned an officer there," Fugaku informed him.

Eiji felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Once he finally reached home, Eiji learned that it was just as his uncle had said. Both his mother and his few-months-old younger sister were doing fine.

The incident ended with the Nine-Tails being sealed and the death of the Fourth Hokage, causing the Third Hokage to be reinstated. What truly boiled Eiji's blood was the blame the Uchiha clan received for the incident. He viewed it as an insult to all those from the Uchiha clan who died for the village and, most importantly, an insult to his father.

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