Shadows In a New World

The last thing Itachi remembered was the warmth of his brother's forehead against his fingers, a gentle smile on his face as he uttered his final words. "Sorry, Sasuke... There won't be a next time." Then, darkness enveloped him, and he surrendered to the void.

But death, it seemed, had other plans for the prodigy of the Uchiha clan.

Consciousness returned to Itachi in a rush of sensations. The first thing he noticed was the acrid smell of smoke and the metallic tang of blood. His eyes snapped open, revealing not the peaceful afterlife he had expected, but a dimly lit cavern with rough-hewn walls.

Disoriented, Itachi pushed himself up from the cold stone floor. His body felt lighter, younger - a stark contrast to the illness-ridden form he had inhabited in his final moments. He glanced down at his hands, noting with surprise that they appeared to belong to his teenage self.

"What kind of jutsu is this?" he murmured, his analytical mind already working to understand his situation.

A scream echoed through the cavern, snapping Itachi to attention. His shinobi instincts kicked in, and he moved silently towards the source of the sound. As he rounded a corner, he came face to face with a scene of chaos.

A group of people, dressed in unique dresses unlike anything from his world, were engaged in combat with monstrous creatures. The beasts were unlike any summoned animals Itachi had ever encountered - misshapen, grotesque things that seemed to defy natural law.

One of the humans, a young man wielding a sword that glowed with an otherworldly light, shouted to his companions. "Fall back! We can't handle an A-rank dungeon with just our team!"

Dungeon? A-rank? The terms were unfamiliar to Itachi, but the danger was clear. As he watched, one of the monsters lunged at a woman who had fallen behind. Without thinking, Itachi's hands flew through familiar signs.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

A massive sphere of flame erupted from Itachi's mouth, engulfing the creature and reducing it to ashes in seconds. The group of fighters turned to him in shock, their eyes wide with disbelief.

"What the... Who are you?" the sword-wielder demanded, his stance wary but grateful.

Before Itachi could respond, the cavern began to shake violently. Cracks appeared in the ceiling, and chunks of rock began to rain down around them.

"The dungeon's collapsing!" someone yelled. "We need to get out now!"

In the chaos that followed, Itachi found himself swept along with the group as they made a mad dash for the exit. His mind raced, trying to make sense of his surroundings. This didn't feel like any genjutsu he had ever experienced. The sensations were too real, too vivid.

As they burst out of the cavern into blinding sunlight, Itachi's vision swam. The strain of using his chakra, combined with the shock of his situation, proved too much for his newly awakened body. As darkness crept into the edges of his vision, he saw concerned faces peering down at him.

"Hey, kid! Stay with us!"

But Itachi couldn't fight the encroaching unconsciousness. He slipped away, his last thought a determination to unravel this mystery when he awoke.

The steady beep of a heart monitor greeted Itachi as he regained consciousness. He opened his eyes slowly, taking in the sterile white walls and the smell of disinfectant. A hospital room, but unlike any he had seen in Konoha.

"Ah, you're awake," a gentle voice said. A nurse in a crisp uniform approached his bedside, checking his vitals. "How are you feeling?"

Itachi remained silent, his dark eyes scanning the room. Everything from the electronic equipment to the nurse's attire spoke of a level of technology far beyond what he was accustomed to. This further confirmed his growing suspicion: he was no longer in his own world.

"Can you tell me your name?" the nurse prompted when he didn't respond.

After a moment's hesitation, he answered, "Itachi. Itachi Uchiha."

"Seems like a Japanese name. well none of my business "The nurse thought and nodded, making a note on her clipboard. "Well, Itachi, you gave the White Tiger Guild quite a scare. They brought you in two days ago after you collapsed outside a dungeon. The doctors couldn't find anything physically wrong with you, but your brain activity was off the charts."

Itachi absorbed this information silently. White Tiger Guild. Dungeon. These terms again. He needed more information.

"Where am I?" he asked, his voice calm despite his inner turmoil.

The nurse looked at him oddly. "You're in Seoul National University Hospital."

Seoul. Another unfamiliar name. Itachi's mind raced, considering his options. He needed to gather more information before revealing his ignorance.

"I see," he said noncommittally. "And the date?"

The nurse's brow furrowed with concern as she told him. The year she mentioned was far beyond anything Itachi had known in his world. This was no genjutsu. Somehow, impossibly, he had been transported not just to another world, but to another time.

"I'll let the doctor know you're awake," the nurse said, moving towards the door. "Oh, and there are some people from the Hunter's Association who want to speak with you when you're feeling up to it. Something about your extraordinary abilities during the dungeon raid."

As the door closed behind her, Itachi closed his eyes, his brilliant mind already formulating plans. He was in an unknown world, with unfamiliar rules and power structures. But he was Itachi Uchiha, prodigy of the Uchiha clan and master of adaptation. He would unravel the mysteries of this new world, and find his place within it.

Little did Itachi know, his arrival had coincided with an unprecedented event in this world's recent history. Just the day before he appeared in the dungeon, reports had begun to circulate about a strange occurrence: the simultaneous appearance of two dungeons in a single location, a phenomenon that had never been recorded before. This "double dungeon" incident would soon rock the Hunter community to its core, setting in motion a chain of events that would irrevocably alter the course of this world's future.

As Itachi lay in his hospital bed, plotting his next move, the wheels of fate had already begun to turn. His presence in this world of Hunters and monsters was no mere coincidence, and soon, he would find himself at the center of a storm that would shake the very foundations of reality.

But for now, in the quiet of his hospital room, Itachi Uchiha prepared himself for whatever challenges this new world might bring. After all, he had faced death itself and emerged on the other side. What was one more world to conquer?

Itachi is 17 Y/O BTW!