Chapter 5

The Curse of Hatred

The Sage of Six Paths brought the power of chakra to the world. Through his wisdom and insight, he brought disparate groups of people to join together in peace and harmony. He believed that chakra should be used to truly understand one another.

Two sons were born to the Sage. Asura and Indra. Asura inherited the power of the Sage’s body and Indra inherited the power of the Sage’s eyes. Together, the two sons lived in understanding and love; however, they both sought to earn their father’s approval and so found themselves often in competition.

Indra often won these competitions through his pure hearted love for his father and brother. He truly understood what it meant to be one with his chakra and pursue understanding among all. His purity of heart would be his downfall. For Asura knew that Indra's devotion to others would cause him to pursue the strength to protect those whom he loved. Asura spoke honeyed words into the Sage's ears and convinced the sage that Indra desired power above all.

And so when the Sage chosen to name a successor it was...

The words upon the stone grew blurry near the end until all I could see was smooth stone. I sighed, "So that's how it is." The stone would remain unreadable until I had unlocked greater stages of my sharingan. My brother was literally using cliffhangers to a story to try and motivate me to gain power, "Fuck you, Itachi."

I exited the secret room and made certain to put the tatami mat back in place. I yawned. It was getting late and I needed to get some rest before the morrow. Tomorrow, as my first day of freedom, would be a busy day indeed. I took a long look at the altar as it burned. I would not be here to tend it. No one would be. The thought made me sad. For generations, a priest had overlooked the fires to the three goddesses. Perhaps one day, those flames would rise constant again, but, for now, it was the flame inside myself that I had to nurture.

I awoke the next morning to the sound of my alarm going off at sunrise as I had set it. I quickly turned the object off. I paused. It was bizarre to me the odd combination of technology this world possessed. There was electricity and primitive computers, but no cars or planes. It seemed that the ability to use chakra had limited growth in those areas; and yet, there was a television downstairs in the kitchen. I racked Sasuke’s memories for anytime it had been turned on. I found I could not find a single memory of watching tv aside from that of my previous life. Strange.

I frowned. Another thing lost. I would never get to see the final season of Stranger Things. I snorted. It seemed such a trivial circumstance to grieve over but I found I did.

I shook my head and focused on more important matters.

The night had been uncomfortable, nightmares plaguing my sleep, but I would not let lack of sleep deter my plans for the day. With a scowl, though my bed was comfortable and I was loathe to leave it, I threw my covers back and made my way down to the kitchen. I pondered for a moment the insanity that was leaving an eight year old child to survive on their own. Surely there should have been a caretaker or someone to keep watch over me.

But there was no one. I frowned. It is no wonder canon Sasuke ended up as disturbed as he had. While he had eventually come around, to live so completely alone at such an early age was truly barbaric.

There really was no other word for it. I paused. Was the lack of a caretaker because this was how this world is as a result of fiction? Or was this truly common in this world? Like, did Sarutobi not assign anyone because Kishimoto, when making this world, didn't bother to fill in that detail? Or was it truly just not something the old man considered? Bizarre. I doubted I would ever have an answer for such a thing, but for now I was grateful for my previous knowledge as I finished cooking a small breakfast.

Soon, after a shower and getting dressed, I found myself standing on the edge of the lake pier. Sure, in the future I would have a more holistic training schedule, but I could not contain my giddiness. I had briefly used chakra the night before to light the altar and while it was true I was Sasuke and had done this before, there was still something absolutely exciting about using chakra on this level. I closed my eyes and began to form the hand signs.

Horse.

A well of chakra began to pool in my tenketsu that were laced throughout my lungs. The tenketsu expanded, causing my chakra to enlarge and grow into a mighty reservoir of energy.

Serpent.

The chakra began to move upwards, slithering through my chakra paths and making their way to my throat.

Ram.

The chakra increased in speed, gaining potency, rushing forward through the chakra points in my throat.

Monkey.

The chakra began to take shape, looping and weaving through the points in my neck, it would form into a mighty ball of energy.

Boar.

More power. More urgency.

Horse.

More chakra. Running through my jawline to my lips with power and strength.

Tiger.

Release and transform! Convert the energy that was flowing through my body and out my mouth into a ravenous element. Let it devour everything in it's path.

"KATON: GREAT FIREBALL JUTSU!

A giant ball of flame rushed from my lips to hover over the lake. An ember glow burned away the top layer of the water and caused a thick steam to rise. I breathed heavily and a large smile rested on my face. I yelled out to no one, "That was awesome!!"

Heh. Sure, this world might have killer demons, brothers who were not mentally okay, shark people with giant spirit energy eating swords, and a snake pedophile who wanted my body, but I just shot a fucking fireball out of my mouth! This place was epic. I could feel my mouth watering at the thought of all I would eventually be capable of. It was tantalizing.

I cracked my neck and looked out at the water. Something was...different. I wracked my memories and found the answer. Previously, when Sasuke had performed the Great Fireball Jutsu, it had dropped his chakra a great deal and left him with about a fourth of his chakra supply; however, as I took stock of my reserve, I found I had a little more than half. I'd easily be able to perform the jutsu another two times before exhausting my reserves. I wondered what the causes were for this change. The likely answer was that, with the merge, I had more spiritual energy than merely Sasuke alone. While the body was still weak considering it's age, my added maturity and intelligence likely contributed to an increased chakra capacity. It wouldn't be anything reality changing, but still, a nice boon.

"Alright! Since I have more energy, time to get started!" I pulled a small scroll from my bag and noted which exercise to begin first. I would have to be careful in my workouts. There was no one here to guide me or look after me if I was to overly exert myself, but thankfully, a few of the scroll in my burgeoning library detailed optimal workouts for a young Uchiha and how to avoid overworking myself. There was also included a surprising dietary plan which I supposed I would have to follow. I wasn't an Akimichi after all.

Well, time to get started.

The next two days passed by quickly. I woke each morning and exercised with intense stretches, runs around the compound, and practicing the fireball jutsu. I found that I loved the feel of fire chakra. It was warm and comforting even as it threatened to ravage everything around it. I returned each evening to my bed completely exhausted. I had never found much joy in physical exercise in my previous life, choosing instead to focus my mind. Or at least that's what I used to tell myself. The truth was, I had simply been lazy. I didn't enjoy the feeling of working out so I didn't; I would not have that luxury here in this life. Thankfully, it seemed that the whole idea of a runner's high did actually exist and my new body was built for it. The more I trained, the more alive I felt. On occasion, I would feed chakra to my eyes and the heady sensation of the sharingan would cause laughter to bubble in my chest. It was a joy to simply live!

And then it was Monday morning. I slowly packed my schoolbooks and shinobi supplies in my pack alongside a lunch for the day. I could barely contain my excitement. Today would be the day I truly met so many people I had only read about. Today, I would meet Naruto.

There was a knock on my door. I tilted my head. I suppose it made sense that someone would be by to see if I needed help or would be headed to the academy. I flipped the top over my pack and slung it over my shoulder. Time to see who the Hokage had sent.

I opened the door to reveal a figure Sasuke knew well from his memories though obviously I had never met him myself. A large scar over his cheeks and nose drew your attention when you looked at Iruka Umino. He wore a Chuunin vest and brown hair was tied back into a pony tail. He carried himself with an easy demeanor that stood in contrast to the concern in his eyes, but what stood out to me the most was simply how young he was.

Staring at him now, he couldn’t have been much more than 19. I felt almost physically ill. This young man, barely into adulthood, had seen death and fought in battle. And he would be teaching me to do the same. Hell, some of my students in my previous life had been the age he was now. It was disconcerting.

“Good morning, Sasuke,” Iruka spoke first and I could tell he was a mixture of worried and nervous by how he observed me. He gave me a sad smile, “The Hokage wanted me to stop by check on you. I’d be happy to walk you to class if you feel up to coming today, but no pressure if you don’t. You’re welcome to take all the time you need.”

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The sympathy and pity in Iruka’s eyes caused a surge of anger in my gut. How dare he act like I was some sort of child? How dare he treat me like I could not take care of myself? I felt the urge to snap at the man and tell him to fuck off, but paused.

Why did I feel this way? The young man was just trying to help. I felt annoyance bubble again and I realized what it was. Sure, it irked my pride, but my body was still that of an eight year old kid lacking self control. I was still Sasuke. And previous Sasuke likely would have said something blunt and merely followed along. My natural instinct was to protect my pride.

I mentally shook my head. Having two memories in my head and the body of an eight year old who was still growing was going to suck. Hopefully as I got older I would feel more and more like one person.

“Ah,” I offered after a moment of silence and offered weakly, “Thank you for stopping by. I should be ready to go.”

The Chuunin gave a weak nod and I followed him out the door. We walked in an uncomfortable silence and I could tell there were several times Iruka almost gathered enough courage to speak up. Even in spite of my earlier annoyance I did feel somewhat touched by his actions. At the end of the day, Iruka truly cared about his students.

“Sasuke, how ar-“

“Iruka-Sensei,” I cut him off and gave a soft smile, “You don’t have to say anything. It’s nice just to have someone to walk with.”

The awkwardness seemed to fall from his face and he gave a genuine smile and nod, “Alright then.”

It didn’t not take long to get to the academy. Memories of Itachi or my father leaving me at the entrance flooded my mind and I stopped. Iruka turned towards me with a concerned look on his face and I held up a hand. I took slow deep breaths and gathered myself before nodding, “Sorry, I’m ready now.”

Iruka gave another concerned look but turned after a moment, “I have to get with the other Chuunin and prep for the day, but if you need anything, anything at all, Sasuke, just ask.”

I tilted my head at him. The concern in his voice…it had been the same as Inoichi’s. I felt a small warmth in my stomach. Despite everything that had happened, I was still a citizen of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. I still had people who would stay alongside me. I still had comrades.

I gave Iruka a smile, “Thanks Sensei. I mean it.”

He nodded and turned. Before he could disappear, I quickly activated my sharingan and observed as he disappeared in a swirl of leaves. I smirked as the red bled from my eyes. First copy success.

I mulled over what I had learned as I began making my way into the academy. The shunshin was an odd jutsu. Though it appeared to be teleportation, it was really just a jutsu that caused the user to move at a ridiculously high speed; however, there were significant drawbacks I saw. To use the technique, you had to decide upon the location prior to forming the tiger hand sign and project your chakra to that location. Your body would then “catch up” to the location you had projected your chakra at an insane speed. So if someone managed to catch you in stride as it were, it could cause serious damage to your chakra network. I could see why this would be a dangerous technique to use in combat and why Hiraishin and true teleportation techniques were on such another level. It was the body flicker without the drawbacks.

I shook my head. I could test the technique out later when I got home. For now, I made my way to class.

Whispers dogged my steps. I could hear the soft voices of other children as I walked past. By the look in their eyes I could tell, they were talking about me. The rational part of my mind tried to excuse it. Of course the children would be curious. They would start rumors. The less rational part wanted them to just disappear. My family was gone and suddenly I’m an animal in a freak show to gawk at? Fuck off.

I took a deep breath. I got the feeling I would be doing that a lot today. Focus. It’s not their fault or yours, Sasuke. It just is. I stopped. Sasuke. I think that is the first time I’ve referred to myself by that name like as self-talk. It felt…right. I am Sasuke Uchiha.

I smirked and continued walking to the classroom. As I opened the door, my eyes examined the room. Many people were already here. I could see Sakura seated with Ino in one of the front rows. I guess they hadn’t started to fight over me yet. Hopefully, they never would if I had anything to say about it. The thought of having to deal with their affections made me shiver internally. The part of me that was an eight year old boy was disgusted at the thought of them fawning over me and the part of me that was an adult found such affections from children equally disturbing. Heh. Nice to see two parts of myself acting as one.

Apart from Sakura and Ino, I could see Shino seated near one of the back corners and Hinata in one of the middle ones. There was a smattering of other children that, though I knew the name of, did not bother to note. Perhaps it was a bit callous, but in the grand scheme of things they likely wouldn't matter. I took a seat alone near the back of the classroom. It would allow me to exit if I had need and, well, I wanted to observe as the others arrived.

Time passed and I pulled out my notebook and textbooks. The smell and feel of a classroom, as odd as it was, felt familiar to me. I had spend much of my twenties in such a location after all, whether it was behind a desk or at the lectern. It was comforting and I had a small smile on my face as I prepped.

My prepwork was interrupted, however, by a loud yell as I turned to see a young boy with a small dog seated upon his head.

"Safe!" Kiba yelled as he rushed to find a seat. I smirked at the other boy's antics. It seemed he had been worried about showing up late. A reasonable concern considering my younger self's knowledge of Kiba. The boy's tardiness was legendary. For him to be early this day was quite the occurrence. It was odd to see him in real life though and not just in memories of a cartoon or younger Sasuke's mind. It was bizarre to see these cartoon figures given flesh and blood. I leaned back in my chair and pondered. I could not treat these people as caricatures. They were people with their own hopes and dreams. They were real. If I treated this world expecting everyone to act a certain way, I would get myself killed.

Several others trickled in and I found myself amused as Chouji pulled Shikamaru in; the Nara clan member was practically half asleep as he made his way to his desk. As a professor I would have found his antics beyond disrespectful, but, as a student, I merely chuckled to myself. It was amusing.

"Alright everyone, let's get the day started!" Iruka's voice pulled my attention to the front of the classroom. I frowned. Naruto wasn't here yet. Oh well, I supposed it wasn't abnormal for him to be tardy. He would likely show up later in some sort of large and disruptive manner.

Iruka started class with a review of the previous week's lectures, for which I was grateful. Thankfully, it was over content I was fairly familiar with from my textbooks; however, I still took notes. I had been nothing if not a diligent student in my previous life and I was not going to let my GPA slide...even if such didn't exist here in this life. Iruka was an excellent teacher, even as he lectured, he managed to make the content interesting for eight year olds. I applauded his skillset.

Soon, it was time for physical training. Iruka set us to running around the training ground and I soon found myself at the front of the group, behind only Kiba. I smirked and pushed myself a little bit faster, feeling the burn in my legs. Kiba looked back at me as I gained on him and he gave growl, "Eat my dust, Uchiha!"

I laughed grateful that Kiba was keen to treat me as a rival. Either he was emotionally immature or simply didn't know about the massacre, but it seemed he simply wanted to beat me. I was fine with this.

I pushed myself and felt my lungs expand as I breathed. I pushed chakra to my legs and felt myself begin to speed up. Kiba also seemed to begin to push himself and soon we were neck and neck at the front of the pack. I laughed as we ran. Endorphins rushed through my brain as the air sped us by. I gave a grin to the Inuzuka who responded with a shake of his head and growl as he pushed himself. I felt myself begin to slip behind him. His speed and endurance was better than mine.

My sharingan activated, observing how he used the flow of chakra to enhance his body. He was less efficient with his chakra than I was, but the flow was more forceful. If I had to say, he had less chakra, but was using more of it in this instance. I wanted to win, but I was hesitant to push myself so.

"How does my dust taste, Sasuke?" Kiba laughed.

Fuck it.

I let more chakra flow through my body and felt myself fly forward at pace with Kiba, "I don't know! How does mine?" I laughed and took the lead. I could hear the boy behind me growl in anger, but for the rest of the run he was unable to catch up to me. As we came to an end, I heard him huffing and puffing, "Man, what did you do over your vacation? You never used to be that fast."

My vacation. I felt a twinge of pain in my chest. I suppose that was a word for it. No matter.

"Eh you still have more endurance!" I smirked back at him, "Only person who probably has more in class is Naruto."

Kiba gave me an odd look and asked in a confused voice,

"Who is Naruto?"

....

Fuck.