Chapter 1 - The Beginning

Konohagakure - 26th Year of Founding, Early Spring

Within the gentle spring winds, new leaves bloom and emerge.

10 years have elapsed since the First Shinobi War ended in an armistice treaty, and the Five Great Shinobi nations are left in ruin.

Multiple Kage lay dead upon the battlefield, amongst thousands of others. The survivors left to pick back together the pieces of their nations and deal with the devastation caused by years of bloodshed.

Many Clans and lineages dating back hundreds of years now lay extinguished upon the battlefield. Untold numbers were left scarred, wounded or broken by the horrors of war.

Starvation was rampant; the economy was left in tatters. And within the chaos, numerous power struggles ensue, bringing further torment and suffering upon the discontented populace, while corruption and factionalism grew within each nation.

Over the ensuing years, some nations would begin the healing process, while other nations' wounds would instead begin to fester and soon the disparity between the nations had become a problem too great to ignore.

While an unsteady peace would remain on the surface, beneath the surface, the Five Great Shinobi nations wage proxy wars over resources and influence in the small nations, resulting in numerous skirmishes and battles breaking out continuously in the shadows.

  ∞

A steady trickle of rain echoed throughout the quiet night, the stern visage of the three Hokages looming ever watchful over the village.

Nestled deep within the verdant forests and winding streams of the Land of Fire stood Konohagakure, one of the Five Great Shinobi nations, home to tens of thousands of inhabitants, Shinobi and civilian alike.

The Village Hidden in the Leaves was established deep within the heartland of the Land of Fire at the base of a large cliff face which loomed over the village's forests, intersecting rivers, sprawling buildings and clan compounds which were protected by the vast towering walls enveloping the village.

The Uchiha Compound consisted of vast swathes of land befitting one of the two founding clans of the village, and their compound was almost a village in itself, being home to over two thousand Uchiha clansmen, and a myriad of houses, mansions, shops, training grounds, gardens, and plazas whose architecture was reminiscent of the Warring States period, all decorated with the Uchiha crest which had been splashed upon every wall, building, gate & shrine.

Amidst the starry sky was a luminous crescent moon, its ethereal glow bathing the village in an incandescent light, which was shrouded in darkness if not for a scarce few lights emanating from the village.

On the slightly worn out paths, overgrown with weeds, located on the far outskirts of the Uchiha compound on the crest of a hill overlooking the Nakano Shrine, there lay the large dilapidated manse of the former Uchiha patriarch whose lights remained illuminated.

∞

Inside one of its many rooms lay a pregnant woman giving birth, her delicate face was contorted in pain and her dishevelled raven coloured hair was sweat soaked and lay strewn across the floor while her dark almond-shaped eyes were soaked with tears, she wore a white robe stained with sweat and blood which clung to her figure.

"Tsukihi, you're almost there. Just a little more, and you will be holding your baby in your arms." The clan midwife reassured, while opposite her the husband squeezed his wife's hand consoling as he gazed down at her exhausted form, his deep dark eyes were filled with apprehension and concern, as he nervously trailed a hand through his shoulder-length black hair that had a blue tint to it.

The pregnant woman tried to respond, but instead let out a scream of anguish which echoed through the house as she weakly closed her eyes in exhaustion as a pained sob spilled out of her throat.

The experienced midwife began offering encouragement and support with renewed fervour as she sensed the child's imminent arrival, while the husband tried to distract his wife from her painful contractions.

This continued for some time until finally the pregnancy reached its crescendo, when suddenly the pregnant woman's eyes widened like saucers, and unconsciously her grip began tightening around her husband's forearm as her nails began to dig into his skin, drawing blood while he comforted her.

"Almost there."

"Yes, yes, keep pushing."

"I can see the head. Keep pushing."

"Almost there."

"It hurts, It hurts, It hurts!"

Uwaah... Uwaahh…

The baby's wails reverberated around the room, and the midwife cut the umbilical cord and wrapped the child in a towel before passing the newborn to the mother.

Tsukihi carefully cradled the child in her arms as she got her first good look at her son. After all the years of trying to have a child, it was surreal to finally hold her little boy in her arms and the more she looked at him; she thought he was… perfect. Pudgy little cheeks with a cute red blush, a tuft of inky black hair.

"He looks just like his mother." the husband said fondly.

"But he has his father's colouring." She said, while trailing her fingers over the small tuft of hair.

"That he does." he replied with a smile.

"Have you decided on a name for him?" the exhausted but jubilant woman inquired as she met her husband's gaze.

The husband's eyes looked ponderous as he gazed down at his son. His eyes lightened up with hidden joy when the baby began to giggle and after deep contemplation he replied, "Izuna"

Her eyes widened in shock. "Your father's name… Are you serious? Aren't you afraid that would further incite the clan suspicions?"

He clenched his jaw in anger as his eyes narrowed. "I care not for the whimpering of those weak-minded fools, they have grown fat and weak, fear of the Senju has clouded their minds and Madara's shadow still yet lingers over the clan."

"And you would seek to remind them?" she asks him incredulously.

He stared fondly at his son playing with his finger curiously and turned his gaze to his wife and replied, "Yes."

∞

Konohagakure - 31st Year of Founding, Late Summer

5 years later

Uchiha Clan Grounds, Naka River

Izuna deftly traversed the pebbled riverbank of the Naka river as he made his way downstream, heading towards one of the many forested areas within the outskirts of the village.

Channelling Chakra into his feet, he dashed across the river's flowing surface in a sprint towards the other bank, smiling to himself as he had managed to cross the stream this time without falling into its cold depths.

A few months ago he had made a practice of it when he had begun to learn water walking, the river's fast-flowing current posed a suitable challenge, and he found the added threat of being forced to do shuriken practice while cold and sopping wet a wonderful motivator.

As he approached the secluded grove that he used for shuriken practice, his gaze darted around observing the wooden targets, which were stationed around the cluster of trees in various spots for target practice. Each target had been fashioned in a circle around the size of a head with two black circles drawn on it.

Izuna withdrew eight kunai from the holster on his thigh and tucked them between his fingers, four in each hand, and made his way to the centre of the grove. His eyes once again darted around, observing the targets, before mentally picking eight.

The young Uchiha launched himself into the air and, as his body overturned pirouetting in the air, his hands shot out, scattering the kunai in eight directions.

Thk! Thk! Thk! The sound echoed around him as he landed lightly on his feet.

His gaze wandered to the eight targets he had chosen, and he pouted when he realised that only seven of the kunai had pierced the centre of their target, while the last one was instead lodged into the bark of the tree beneath the target.

Izuna was about to retrieve a kunai from a target when he was met with an uneasy feeling and quickly used the tree to launch himself away and fell into a defensive stance; he pulled a kunai out of his holster and held it in the reverse grip that his father had taught him.

"Who is there? Show yourself!"

Izuna called out, as he observed his surroundings, trying to discern the reason for his ill feeling, until he heard a small whistle of wind as a kunai flashed before his eyes.

And only by a narrow margain did Izuna avoid having his face impaled by a kuani, as he managed to tilt his head away at the last second, causing the kunai to graze against his cheek, before imbedding itself in the tree behind him with a dull thud.

Izuna raised an off-hand to his cheek and saw the tips of his fingers were dyed in blood. There was no discoloration or smell, so it's unlikely it was the kunai was poisoned, he half-observed, half-hoped, as his eyes continued scouring the treeline.

He had chosen this area to train precisely because he knew no one visited this area, so it's unlikely they were simply passing through, but what would that mean? Was it an intruder? Or another clansman trying to scare him?

His pondering was abruptly halted when a large quantity of projectiles consisting of a mixture of kunai and shuriken appeared whizzing dangerously towards him from two directions in a pincer move.

Izuna's hand darted to the holster on his thigh, as he filled his hands with kunai and scattered them towards the incoming projectiles, causing them to clash in the air and veer off in different directions, the dull thud of shuriken and kunai embedding themselves into trees and clattering of those that fell to the ground echoed through the uneasy silence of the forest.

His stomach sank as he realised his situation. This did not seem like a mere prank. This person was trying to kill him. He began trying to think of a possible escape route and analyse his situation. The assailant had been watching him and had only struck when his guard was down before lulling him into a false sense of security. That would mean their next move would be…

But before Izuna could finish his thoughts on instinct, he pivoted around and raised the kunai in his hand to deflect a hidden projectile that had been aimed at his blind spot. If he had been a second later, it would've pierced his nape.

Izuna stood there vigilantly, not risking a breakout attempt in case there were other shinobi or potential traps set. He stayed in his defensive position without moving a muscle for minutes as he waited with bated breath for an onslaught of projectiles that never came.

The stalemet was broken, when an overwhelming killing intent made his breath catch in his throat, as Izuna was forced to his knee's, choking on air, his blood running cold.

Izuna felt an intense burst of pain throbbing within his head, which was followed by his senses being bombarded by witnessing countless gruesome scenes of his death, indistinguishable from reality.

Only a few seconds passed, but to Izuna it felt like an eternity, and his eyes going hollow, after witnessing himself and those he loved be brutally dismembered, burnt alive, decapitated and other gruesome ends.

It wasn't until Izuna managed to use every ounce of will power, to bite down hard upon his tongue, filling his mouth with the tangy metaltic taste of his own blood, that the suffocating invisible pressure that moments ago had rendered him paralayased, disappated, leaving him with a profound sense of emptiness as tried to rise to his feet.

Only immeditaly after Izuna felt a sharp stabbing pain, pulsating behind his retina's, like molten liquid, causing him to clutch his eyes, as he felt himself close to passing out from the pain, until the sensation began to slowly fade away, the flickering crimson light within his dark orbs dissipating.

The attacker observed this scene while silently leaning against a tree, with his arms crossed, until his expressionless face was momentarliy stirred, his eyes widening in suprise, before clicking his tongue in irritation.

Izuna pale faced and filled with dizziness, unsteadily rose to his feet, his unfocused gaze scouring the treeline, until he saw a scattering of leaves, and within an instant, a towering figure appeared, looming over his small stature.

His eyes widened in panic, as before he could react, the man's fist lashed out mercilessly into his stomach, sending sprawling into the dirt, as his body painfully skidded across the ground, until his back impacted against a tree, causing tears to spill from his eyes, as he choked for air, gasping painfully.

Through the agonising pain, Izuna came to a sickening realisation, earlier the man was merely tormenting, but when he attacked seriously, he couldn't lift a finger to stop him, the gap between him and his opponent was simply heaven and earth.

Izuna's only hope was to catch him off guard in a last-ditch attempt, but that only worked if he let down his guard. But that was simply wishful thinking. Shinobi were not fools, and those who were met early graves. Even then, he couldn't give up.

Izuna tried to get his breathing under control, as he continued making long painful gasps for air before his breathing stabilised, but was left with a strong feeling of dizziness as he heard the man's footsteps slowly begin drawing closer.

He tried forcing himself to his feet, gritting his teeth against the pain emanating from his back from where he had collided with the tree, while his stomach, on the other hand, felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to it.

His situation was dire, as he only had a few kunai in his holster, and a few fake paper bombs his mother had pranked him with a few days ago, but he hoped it would be sufficient enough to wound him or distract him long enough, so he could escape.

When the man was in range, a determined look appeared on Izuna's face as he flung the fake paper bombs at the ground, while his other hand sneakily flung a few hidden kunai at the man, hoping he would be distracted by the supposed threat of the paper bombs.

Only instead of the sound of it piercing flesh, Izuna heard the sound of clashing metal, as his attacked deflected the kunai with a single shuriken before lazily catching the remaining kunai between two of his fingers.

"Oh how scary, you truly are Setsuna's son." the man said in a mocking tone, as he let out a small chuckle.

Izuna's look of defiance morphed into one of shock, when his gaze moved from the kunai to the speaker's face. There was no doubt about it, that fair-skin, long black hair and black eyes, this man was an Uchiha.

"What do you want?" Izuna demanded, regarding the man with suspicion. Given his father's relationship with most of the other clansmen, he didn't expect it to be anything good.

The Uchiha were a large clan, and he had not had much interaction with them due to his father's isolated and aloof nature, it was only on rare occasions that he had interacted with other members of the clan, and even then it was usually with civilian members or a few of his father's followers.

Izuna did not possess the sharingan, so he was not qualified to attend the clan meetings at the Nakano Shrine alongside his father on the rare occasions he deigned to attend them.

Giving the man a second look, he took note of his clothes. The man wore a blue high-collared, long sleeve mantle that split down the lower half and blue pants with a sword mounted on his left hip by a white belt.

A Kenjutsu user, most likely right handed and given his appearance, he assumed he was perhaps in his mid thirties and the quality of his clothing was excellent, so either his family was affluent or he was a very talented shinobi.

Was he an elder of the clan, perhaps? His father had made sure he would have no contact with them and on the rare occasions they were mentioned, it was when he overheard his father when he got in one of his fits of rage.

"Oh, not going to ask my name?" he asked in a surprised tone that did not match his calculating gaze, which seemed to bore into his very soul.

"I care not for your name, state your purpose, and leave me in peace." Most genin, let alone a child, would have been wounded if not killed by such attacks. This man was an unknown variable and dangerous. He did not want to spend a second longer in his presence.

"And if my purpose is your life?" he replied, looming over him as his hand hovered over the hilt of his sword.

"Then so be it." Izuna had expected as much, but he had still clung to the small hope of escaping, but alas… it was not to be.

Izuna had died once already, so what was dying a mere second time, he only regretted not being able to pay back his mother and father, for the care and attention they gave him, or experience more in this life.

Struggle was futile, so he closed his eyes distracting himself, as he recalled the fond memories he had spent with his parent's, until the silence was distrupted when he heard the rasp of the sword exiting his sheeth, causing Izuna to smile, calmly waiting for the blow that would end his life... but it never came.

Izuna opened his eyes, gazing up at the man in confusion, as he regarded him with a questioning stare.

The man calmly continued to stare at him searchingly, until the corner of his lips twitched ever so slightly, and he broke the silence. "I knew I wasn't wrong about you, boy."

  Izuna look of confusion only deepened, as he regarded the man with a scathing look.

The Uchiha scratched his head akwardly, before continuing.  "When your father attends the monthly clan meetings, all he can drone on and on about is his genius son, and I'll admit it did pique my curiosity. Setsuna is many things, but I don't take him for a liar. So imagine my surprise when he said that you would be participating in this year's coming of age ceremony, a mere five-year-old boy. So I decided to test you before the ceremony and take the measure of you myself, and see if your father's words were all talk."

"Well, are you done taking the measure of me?" Izuna asked, his voice filled with venom, loathing evident by the scrunched up look of disgust present upon his face.

"Not quite, but I will be at the ceremony tomorrow and I have a feeling you won't disappoint me." the man replied, before disappearing in a flash.

Izuna fell to his knees, blankly staring at the spot where the man had stood, seeming entranced for some time as he broke into silent contemplations, until suddenly after a while had passed he raised a hand to his face as he broke down into loud uncontrollable laughter.