Shinn’s story began the same as any other child shinobi. His family was an average nuclear one. He had a father named Souzen, mother named Saya, a sister named Sumeragi and a twin brother named Seishi. Like most Uchiha they were a military family, and like most military families they pushed their children to follow in the footsteps of the parents. In this case, it was paramount to the survival of their clan that they did so. You see, they grew up in an Uchihan stronghold, stationed in the desert as a clan hideout. The Uchiha had hoped to build an army. Though many of the pureblood Uchiha frowned upon those with diluted blood, they even allowed those with “tainted” blood to join them in their isolated reservation so that they could bolster their numbers. Branch families, such as the Akechi clan, Date Clan, and Yukimura clan, were allowed sanctuary and a spot on the Uchihan Council within the stronghold for this very reason. Following the trends that plagued their clans’ histories, they were very much the enemy of the shinobi universe. The ocular power that gave the Uchiha god-like abilities were greatly revered, while also being greatly feared, hated and envied.
“The Eyes That Saw the Truth.” As Shinn grew up within the sanctuary, the phrase seemed to echo through the walls. It was a belief that the Uchiha carried with them. A symbol of the clan’s pride and a symbol of their determination. They were taught that they were bred to be great, and failure simply wasn’t an option. Their loyalty to the clan was said to be unparalleled, each man and woman acting for the greater good of the family rather than just themselves. These were the traits that were instilled in Shinn, before they sent him on his first sabbatical.
At the age of 13, Shinn was sent to Sunagakure as an exchange student, his purpose to learn more about the Sunan way of life. By understanding the teachings of the other villages, the Uchiha sought to carve out their own place in the shinobi world. They sought to understand and use this knowledge as power… the power to obtain allies, the power to destroy their enemies. This was the purpose of their sabbaticals… their pilgrimage. Sumeragi, Shinn’s elder sister had left for another country, being trained in general shinobi arts and already considered a leader at the young age of 17. Seishi, aged 13, was sent to another Uchihan compound, where he would learn to become an ANBU for another nation. Seishi possessed a strong sense of determination and fierce loyalty to the clan. He was considered a prodigy, who would do what he had to for the clan. He was to learn the ways of subversion and espionage, blending in with the way of life of another nation so that he could learn their secrets. That was Seishi’s focus…
Shinn’s goal was far more simply and far less important. Out of the children, Shinn was considered rather “run of the mill.” Nothing special but an inquisitive mind and a decent shinobi. Shinn was tasked with learning inside of Sunagakure’s medical field. It was a task that Shinn himself took with open arms. After all, he found the medical profession to be a bit more his speed. A discipline that actually taught to think with a clear mind, and encouraged more of a laid back atmosphere… a stark contrast from the militaristic family he was accustomed to. His time away from his home was much like a vacation. In fact, his experience in Sunagakure wasn’t much to talk about. He kind of just blended in. Academy school crushes and rivals, pseudo-high school dramas about nothing, and even the occasional fit of impulsion where he acted out rebelliously. He was like another kid… well… another young shinobi kid. Eventually, the child worked his way through the medical system, assisting fully fledged Medics as a trainee until he was able to treat patients on his own. His specialty was field medicine, minimizing causalities on the field by assisting the injured while their wounds were still fresh and devoid of infection.
It wasn’t until he reached the age of 15, where he returned to the stronghold as a fully fledged Medic that life changed. Things had changed. Sure, he had kept in contact with his parents and siblings, but they failed to mention the state of affairs. It seemed that the Uchiha were preparing for war. Every so often, thugs or merc bands seemed to poach on their lands before getting wiped out but these seemed to be different. It was an actual threat, and the young shinobi were forced into action. It seemed that Uchiha from a different nation sought to destroy the stronghold for some unspecified reason. This type of blood on blood crime, even if from another nation, was considered a crime of the highest offense. These people would be branded rebels… traitors to the Uchiha clan and sentenced to death on the battlefield or by execution. It was simply the way things were done. However, Shinn’s role in the mayhem would be limited to the back lines. He was to heal the injured, and protect the tower that symbolized their clan’s independence.
”Fall back behind the castle walls. We’ll protect you,” Shinn screamed, opening the gates and letting the injured in by the droves.
”Keep up the wall gentlemen and we’ll make it out alive.” It was easy to say. It was easy to believe but it reality was much different. The streets were littered with dead bodies, the Sand that flew coarsely through the air had turned into dry soot from the flames that burned through the small Uchihan town. This was war.
”Anyone see anything? Who or what is attacking us?” The boy commented, hoping to get a rise or answer out of someone. Of course, there wasn’t much to be said. No one seemed to know anything other than which part of their body was singed by the powerful waves of fire or contorted by the clunks of debris from their homes becoming a battleground. No one said anything that Shinn himself didn’t already know.
”Traitors. Our own people!”
It was the only answer that he heard as he went through, fixing their wounds. That is… until he reached one person… His own father, Souzen.
”Chichi-ue! Your arm?! Where’s mom?” Shinn asked frantically, grabbing hold of the wounded man’s arm and forcing the healing chakra into it.
”Quiet down and listen. I need you to listen,” his father whispered, moving his son’s hand away from him, raising his head to meet his boy’s ears as he whispered something rather disconcerting to anyone that could hear.
”I couldn’t get to your mom but they’ve breached the frontlines. You have to go find her. Trust no one. We have been compromised. It’s a Genjutsu. And a powerful one. I’ve seen it. It’s only a cou--” Before he could finish, the man’s grip on his son’s hand became rather forceful. Shinn could feel the chakra radiating throughout the man’s body as Souzen’s Sharingan suddenly activated in defiance of the inevitable.
”But Da-d?” Souzen shoved his son out of the way, a blade being plunged directly into his torso.
”Dad? Why?!” He asked, watching as the men that he had just patched up rise from their injuries, readying themselves to attack Souzen and his son.
”Leave now. No hesitation!” He screamed, a runic tattoo appearing across his hand, blasting the wall behind him and covering his son’s retreat.
”Your mother! Now! Before it is too late…”
And then Shinn jumped…
Looking behind him, he saw it…
An explosion that took out the base level of the Uchihan Sanctuary’s tower…
It was gone and so was his father…
Now it was up to him to act. He had to find his mother then he had to find his siblings, and alert them of the situation. While Souzen went down in battle and more than likely expected the same of the rest of his family, Shinn hoped to escape. It was time to retreat. It was time to leave their homes. They had lost, and it was time for this bunch of Uchiha to realize that and get out while they still could. After all, regrouping before launching a counter attack was a respectable tactic, despite how prideful the Uchiha were.
”I know where she’d go. At a time like this, there is only one place…” Shinn said to himself, racing back to his home, using the dark smoke clouds from the flames as cover on his way. Moving toward his residence of 12 years, the boy noticed guards standing directly at the front door. Normally, he’d eliminate them before rushing in but he heard them talking, and hesitated just long enough for them to finish their conversation.
”I can’t believe Saya-sama agreed to this. It’s unbelievable.”
”…”
”Saya-sama is going to die in there. I’m surprised you haven’t shown more emotion. I know it has to be done but… Man… She’s yo—“
”Quiet. She understands now. She understands that this must be done and I accept her decision. I just hope we can be done before the cavalry gets here,” the man spoke stoically, the familiar voice devoid of emotion echoing throughout Shinn’s head as he heard the man speak. Part of him knew who it was, part of him ignored the possibility but it was pure impulse that had won out. The boy flew through handseals as a Great Dragon erupted from the flames, spewing balls of fire as Shinn bull rushed his way into his home.
”Arggghhhh!” One guard died, the other barely managed to block some of the attack, the force of the jutsu knocking him out of the way before Shinn made his way inside.
”An attack?!”
Luckily for Shinn, the attack drew some allies his way. All of them allowing Shinn to move into the house without much of an issue. However, as he arrived in the house, he noticed something was off. There were no signs of forced entry, and everything was how it normally was. Nothing out of place, despite the carnage on the outside…
”Why?” Why was any of this going on? Why was Saya directly involved, and why did his fellow clansmen attack his father shortly after they had been patched up? Shinn was just a kid. Conspiracies, betrayal, bloodlust and war, Shinn understood none of it. He simply believed that people would take care of one another, work in the best interests of each other, and live in relative harmony with one another. Conflicts and disputes were to be expected, but never something of this magnitude. Not in Shinn’s eyes, and definitely not between clansmen. But Shinn’s eyes had been clouded by the peaceful times, shielded by a veil of naiveté and immaturity. The manor was relatively empty, aside from the few guards scattered about that Shinn snuck past on his way to the underground shelter.
”They don’t seem to know about me yet. Perhaps, they succeeded outside. Maybe I’ll have back up or at least the time I’ll need to save mom… and figure all this shit out.”
What he saw when he reached the shelter, reminded him more of a cellar. His eyes flinched in pain as tears ran them with acknowledgement from these unknown assailants that he was too little, too late.
”Ah Shinn. You are moments too late. We are just finished up here,” the man spoke, wiping his hands of the blackened ink that matched the ink on his mother stomach.
”What is THIS?!” He screamed in defiance, his emotions running high while his thoughts were all over the place. Why now? Why his mom? Why did this stranger know his name? What was going on? Why did his family have to get caught up in this? Was there really no other way for this man to accomplish his own goals?
Just why?
”This is a ritual chamber. Your mother just sacrificed her life for yours… for all of the Uchiha. You should be proud…” Words that fell on deaf, confused ears. Shinn simply stared and moved in the direction of his mother as she lay flat on some type of ceremonial alter. The boy’s hands touched her cold skin as not even a single breath of air passed through the woman’s mouth. She had been sacrificed. But for what? Turning back toward the man, Shinn finally caught a glimpse of the cause of all this. Two people, a man and a woman, stood in front of him with odd masks to cover up their faces, but small holes around the eyes to show that they clearly possessed the Sharingan.
”I can see it on your face. So much anger but so many questions. You really are as they say… the thinking type…” He seemed to mock Shinn in the most polite voice possible. If not for the words than Shinn wouldn’t have been able to tell at all…
But then again…
”Don’t you want to know why?”
”Why? Why? ‘Don’t I want to know why?’ Why? Why? whY? WHY? WHYYY? WWHHYYYY? WhY?
Suddenly, the boy’s eyes felt like they were on fire. Chakra felt like it wanted to burst out of his eyes as every bone in his body felt like it wanted to writhe in pain but couldn’t… No. The boy’s mind had been shut off. Both of his parents had passed, his clan was under attack and the home that he had grew up in had been tainted by the presence of the people in front of him.
The crying seemed to stop. The boy stood to his feet.
”My mother is gone. My father is gone. My home is gone.” Was all he said as his eyes suddenly blackened completely.
”I don’t care WHY!” Black flames burst from the ground, engulfing the entire room with it. The masked man flew backward in retreat, taking the masked woman with him. As they retreated from the shelter, Shinn pursued, the abnormal Sharingan directing the black flames toward his targets as they fled.
”Coward.” He spoke softly, uncharacteristically stalking his prey as the end of the manor’s basement was in sight. Nothing seemed to matter anymore. Nothing but killing the people that took his parents away from him.
”All of that fuss but no problem destroying his childhood home. We really should talk,” the man spoke again, mocking the enraged child in front of him. Now that they were outside, the masked man chose this moment to stand his ground. After all, he seemed to want to protect the woman with him, a fact that Shinn took notice of.
”Because your mother made me swear to protect her children, to protect the future of the Uchiha. But you are making it so hard for me,” the masked man spoke, grinning behind his mask as he folded his arms in a mockingly manner.
Slowly, Shinn began to unsheathe his blade, preparing himself for the worst possible situation. He wanted revenge, and he wanted it by any means necessary. Even if it meant his life, Shinn wanted to die with what he considered to be the “respect” of his family. He wanted to avenge them because, to him, that would honor them in some way. It was an odd feeling for him; especially for him.
”He won’t listen. I know him. He won’t listen to reason. Just let me take care of him,” the voice spoke, a figure appearing out of the thin air and tossing his mask aside.
”He’s my brother, after all. He’s my responsibility.”
It was like looking into a mirror. This was the first time Shinn had laid eyes on his brother in years, and now his eyes saw the figure of a blasphemer… of a traitor.
”Seishi? SEISHI?!” The boy screamed, the confusing emotions driving him further into despair as he watched his brother cover the escape of the very same people that had murdered their mother. There were questions that he had. Questions that he wanted answered. But the only emotion that he could seem to bring forward was anger… anger and confusion. He could only manage to scream his brother’s name before he pressed forward, katana in hand, ready to take the first step toward what he would devote his life toward.
”WHY?!” The boy screamed, his blade clashing with the traditional bladed Uchihan gunbai of his brother’s.
”Because this is about more than you and I. This about the uniting the Uchiha and taking back our birthright. Our mother, Saya understood this more than anyone but it seems that you take after father.” Another clash from the blades.
”It’s unfortunate but this is the only way. The only way!” Another clash. The blades smacked into one another as the two brother’s clashed, the mood of the skirmish suddenly reflected in the weather as water poured from the sky.
”So you’d betray your own family? Your own flesh and blood… for that?” The Sharingan of the two brothers went into overdrive, both spinning and recording the actions of its respective opponents. Their battle waged throughout the city, the screams of the brethren in the backdrop of what was a sanctuary to them.
”No! They betrayed us! Labeling us some band of misfit clans and secluding us to this area as if we didn’t belong in the outside world. No! We should stand as Kings… The Leaders of the shinobi world as our ancestor was. There is no such thing as pureblood Uchiha. We are all Uchiha, being shackled by these clan boundaries that divide us… have us fight and destroy one another… brothers clashing just like this!” The Gunbai swung wildly, moving with surprising quickness while Shinn struggled to follow its attacks. The gigantic fan forced Shinn into a defense position, fending off wide arching attacks while keeping him from making it inside his brother’s defense. It was easy to see why it was his weapon of choice.
”All of this destruction… for that?” he asked, rushing forward with his blade behind him as he filled it with lightning chakra. The sound when he crashed it into the war fan sounded as if a “thousand birds” had begun to sing, and with each slash the sound radiated through the area. It filled the ears of the denizens of the city, perhaps even filling them with some small form of hope… hope that a miracle was lying in wait to save their small village.
”YES! It is the only thing that matters!” With a strong strike from the gunbai, Shinn’s blade shattered into pieces.
”And just like the ‘great’ Souzen, you’d rather die a coward than join us in Exodus! Than join the true Uchiha!” The bladed fan charged forward, striking through its prey. The sheer force of the weapon sent the young Uchihian boy flying against the wall of an already broken home. Shinn’s back crashed through the wall, causing what was left of the small home to crumble.
”My mother is dead… My father is dead… My brother is dead to me… When will this stop? When will this senseless suffering end? Why am I a coward for wishing such a dream? I can’t die. Not until I find the answer. I can’t stop. Not until I avenge my family. I won’t stop. Not until I restore the Akechi clan from the atrocities that my brother has committed with that man… I am an Akechi. My words, my beliefs are my life. It isn’t over yet.” The words seemed to echo through his mind as he said them to himself. The body of limp child, laying underneath crumbled rubble felt a violent jolt of chakra, the malevolent chakra forming around him as the rubble that crushed his body suddenly disintegrated around him. Rising from the ashes of the building, Shinn’s broken and contorted body could be seen in the middle, an enormous monster of chakra seemingly guiding the boy forward.
Even from a distance, the masked man and his female associate could see malevolent spirit coming to life.
”This level of chakra. Can it be?!”
”This isn’t Seishi’s chakra… It’s… We have to go back.”
Shinn’s eyes glowed red, bursting with chakra as he slowly walked forward, the dark chakra even sending shivers down the back of the treacherous Seishi.
”What is this? I’ve never heard of something so powerful. What the hell?” In fear, he wielded his gunbai, fanning the flames of violent chakra and launching them toward his brother to no avail. The ribs of the monster simply protected Shinn as he walked forward, completely unfazed by his brother’s attacks. He had become an unstoppable juggernaut, each step shaking the Earth around him, the cracks pulsating with the malevolent chakra that emanated from the boy.
”This is… No…NO!” The boy screamed, the normally stoic demeanor of an adult suddenly degenerating into that of a youth in terror of the monster that stalked him.
Running wasn’t even an option…
Seishi knew it…
And Shinn… his corrupted form… his possessed body could only utter one word, filled with the despair and corruption that he felt in his heart…
”DIE.” The Juggernaut grabbed hold of his brother, squeezing his the life out of the twin that he held in his grasp. Again, he snarled as the beast had snarled.
”DIE!” Suddenly, the fist of the juggernaut drove the boy into the ground, a deep hole left in its wake as Shinn suddenly fainted, the chakra around him disappearing as the man who had started this reappeared on the scene…
”You may not want to see him like this… either of them,” he spoke, kneeling over the hole that Shinn had drove his brother into, staring at the mangled mess that he left behind.
”His level of control over Susanoo was different than I’ve ever seen. That wasn’t normal. That was a berserker.”
”I need to. I need to see what I caused,” she spoke, her voice relatively somber as she walked glanced over the man’s shoulder to see what the “berserker” had left in his wake.
”I can still save one brother. I have to.”
”Eh… that’s not in the plan. But I know you and you won’t take no for an answer. I mean, you’ll have to lie to him.” Behind the mask was a face, perplexed by the woman’s decision but also understanding of it. Not just that but Shinn seemed to hold a particular power that would prove useful in the future. The man had become somewhat of an enigma, gathering enough power to start a war without a reason that most people couldn’t fathom.
****Two Years Later ****
”So how does it feel?” The woman asked, grinning as she walked behind an adult Shinn.
”I mean, to be out on your own without being babied by your big sister. Must be different, right? It’s a ‘Brave New World.’ Or something like that, hehe.”
”It feels different. I was in a coma for a year, and now I’m blind. Of course, it feels different.” Shinn replied, a small red cane in his hand, tapping the ground in front of him so that he could assess the terrain around him.
”Plus, it’s been about the same with you around. Sumeragi isn’t babying be but good ol’ Kei still makes sure I drink my milk in the morning. I mean, I’m blind. I don’t have brittle bones or anything,” he chuckled, trucking along in the sands of the Wind Country as he raced to reach his destination after a year in the making.
”Well… You don’t have brittle bones because I shove milk down that throat of yours and we are getting the eyesight problem fixed somewhere in this Kami-forsaken desert right? So looks like I’m two for two in taking care of your ass. Buy me something nice.”
”We made every stop on the horizon to get here, under the guise of training. After all that ‘training,’ I think you’ve been paid enough.”
”O C’mon Shinn. Like you didn’t have as much fun as I did. And you got to show everyone how cool blind people are. Even if they aren’t Hashigaki.”
This went on for hours…
Until they reached Sunagakure anyways…
Feel free to welcome back a newbie but an oldie…
