#// sasuke was never a complete prodigy

[every-sasuke-uchiha]

[ccwritesninja]

The Truth- Itachi

A/N: This is my first time posting something I've written for Naruto. Please let me know what you guys think!! Shoutout to @tired-biscuit for inspiring me at all times. She's a Kiba girly, and her work is fantastic!!

Read on Ao3

The woods were quiet as you walked through the trees. Peaceful. 

You wanted to sink into the landscape, to sit among the moss-covered rocks and hide deep among the brush. Unfortunately, your captain refused to let you.

Itachi Uchiha trailed behind you, following like a dog at your heels. “You attacked the client.”

“I subdued the client. There’s a difference.”

“I’m not sure the Hokage will see it that way.”

He seemed so unbothered. His indifferent demeanor only served to stoke the fire of your anger. 

You whirled around to face him. “He was selling children!” 

Itachi frowned. He continued to study you with those dark red eyes. “I’m aware of that.”

You fought the urge to reach up and snatch him by his smooth, black ponytail. You wondered how severe the punishment for breaking your captain’s nose would be. It would feel so satisfying to land one hit, to wipe that idiotic, blank look off his face.

“You should have held back,” he continued. “We could have handled things differently. The political implications-”

“The longer we waited, the longer those children would have suffered. I ended it.”

Itachi pinched the bridge of his nose. It was the first sign of emotion he had shown since the incident, and the fact that he was expressing annoyance sent you over the edge.

“What if that was Sasuke?!”

He blinked up at you. His eyes took on a different look then, sharp and glinting. You were sure you had angered him, but you didn’t care. 

“You have no idea what they’ve been through!”

“But you do.”

He said it so softly, you almost wondered if it was really Itachi you were speaking to. The clipped, clinical tone had disappeared from his voice. It startled you enough that you physically took a step back. 

“It’s not a judgement,” he assured you. “I understand your reaction.”

“You do?”

“I know you didn’t want what happened to you to happen to them.”

Your breath caught in your throat. How had he read you so easily?

Itachi pursed his lips thoughtfully, and slid his hands into the pockets of his tac pants. He stared out into the forest for a few quiet moments, before turning back to you. 

“You were acting on my orders.”

“What?”

“I asked you to subdue the client once we discovered the nature of his business. Put it in your mission report.”

You nodded weakly, stunned that he was willing to take the fall for your behavior. You had known when you attacked the man that it could have consequences for the Hidden Leaf, and you were more than willing to face them. 

Itachi was attempting to protect you, though you weren’t sure why.

Up until now, you had known your captain as a quiet, reserved prodigy. He completed missions with clinical-like precision and didn’t leave room for mistakes. At times, he even came off as harsh and emotionless.

It appeared that there was more to Itachi than you had ever expected. You would never have guessed that he would be willing to lie for you, to put his own leadership at risk of being questioned because of a choice you made.

Before you could stop it, a tear slipped down your cheek. Itachi studied you for a moment. The tomoe of his sharingan spinning lazily in a sea of red. You began to turn away, suddenly self-conscious under the heat of his gaze.

He reached out, fingers hovering inches away from your cheek. You froze on instinct, eyeing him warily, but after a moment, you didn’t pull away.

His calloused thumb brushed across your skin, gently sweeping away the tear. 

He pulled away quickly after that, clearing his throat. “I will leave you to your solace.”

But as he walked away, you found yourself wishing he would stay. The simple gesture had been comforting in a way you hadn’t expected. You hadn’t realized how badly you needed it until he touched you.

You watched his black hair disappear into the trees and wondered what had gotten into you. Were you falling for your captain?

—

Six Years Later

I can’t die here.

The moment you thought the words, you began to doubt your own resolve. All the determination in the world couldn’t save you from severe blood loss.

Sweat was dripping down your brow and sliding down your dirt-streaked cheeks. Your fingers were clenching so tightly around the handle of your kunai that you were afraid you would break it.

This mission had been a disaster from the moment it started. Intel from ROOT reported that your squad was going after one S-rank criminal. When you found the target, he turned out to be leading an entire group of rogue Hidden Rain shinobi. Things went downhill from there.

You were currently bleeding out as you hid behind a tree, slashed through from what had to be three different blades. Your team managed to take out most of their party, but the original target and the last of his men were somewhere in the woods, hunting you.

You tucked a paper bomb into your flak vest, knowing that if the enemy happened upon you, you could still take them out and finish the mission. 

Panic suddenly filled your chest at the thought. What would happen to Sasuke if you died on this mission? There would be no one left to care for him. He would be completely alone.

A twig snapping to your left caused your head to whip around. A hulking, blue-skinned figure peered down at you. He was dressed in a billowing dark robe embroidered with red clouds, and he carried an enormous, bandage-wrapped sword on his back. Even stranger were the deep slits on his cheeks, almost like gills on a fish. 

He was so bizarre looking that you wondered if you were already dead. Was he some strange creature here to lead you into the afterlife?

“Hey, Itachi,” he called. “This one’s still alive.”

Itachi?

“Another Rain ninja?”

You tried to sit up, but only ended up slumping back against the rough bark of the tree. Another figure appeared next to the blue man. You stared at him, stunned, and decided that, yes, you were probably already dead. 

Itachi Uchiha was looming over you, wearing an outfit identical to the other man’s. Though you hadn’t seen him in years, you would never forget his face, or the feel of his lips against yours. He didn’t seem to share your recognition. He stared down at you, his face devoid of all emotion.

“This one’s from the Hidden Leaf. Do you recognize her?”

“No.”

All you could do was blink up at him, still dazed from your injuries and completely mystified.

“Hm. Think we should put her out of her misery?”

“I wouldn’t bother. She doesn’t look like she’ll last very long anyway.”

He turned away, looking bored, and the strange man followed with a shrug.

You let your head fall back as they began to trudge off into the trees, and wondered what was happening. Did this mean that the Hidden Rain ninja were dead as well? Had Itachi and that strange man killed them?

You lifted a hand to your injured side, sucking in a sharp breath as hot, wet blood oozed through your fingers. Even if your enemies were gone, you doubted you would survive your wounds much longer. Itachi, or the ghost of him that you had conjured in your mind, had been right. 

The kunai slipped from your fingers and fell to the dirt with a soft thump.

“Sasuke,” you whispered softly. “I’m sorry.”

A hand suddenly clamped over your mouth. Your eyes widened, but before you could make any move to fight, the kunai you had dropped was placed at your throat.

“Be very still,” someone murmured in your ear. 

You went rigid. The voice was male, calm, and somehow, familiar. Your quickening breath puffed against the hand at your lips, but you did as your captor instructed.

After a few moments, once he was sure the others were far enough away, the man pulled his hand away. You turned, slowly, only to come face to face with a pair of crimson eyes. 

“Itachi?” you choked. Hadn’t you just watched him walk away?

He stared at you, heart pounding, unsure of what to say. Your eyes held a mixture of shock and fear. To you, he was still the killer that had massacred almost everyone in his clan.

What could he say to you, to convince you that he wasn’t an enemy?

Luckily, he didn’t have to think about it too much. Seconds after his name left your lips, your eyes were rolling back into your head. You fell forward, slumping against his chest, out cold. 

—

You were hallucinating. 

That was how terrible the pain was. A dreadful burn traveled across your lacerated abdomen, and you could feel the warmth of blood still seeping through the thick fabric of your vest and shirt.

A choked gasp escaped from your lips as you shifted. Even the tiniest movement of your body had you curling in on yourself, wincing.

“Shh,” a voice soothed. “Try not to move.”

A warm hand came up to smooth down your bloody hair. You blinked, gazing up through the haze to see a familiar pair of crimson eyes. They were clouded with worry. 

A weak laugh bubbled up from your lips. “Itachi.”

A few strands of his black hair were hanging over your face as he peered down at you. You had the sudden urge to reach up and thread one of them between your fingers, but you were too weak to manage the movement.

Itachi was your biggest regret. He was the wound that would never heal, the unanswered question that turned over and over in your mind when you couldn’t sleep. It made sense that your brain would conjure him up on your deathbed.

As much as you tried to hate him, you could never bring yourself to. Your love for him now was just as strong as it had been before he massacred the Uchiha clan and left Sasuke behind. You weren’t sure what that said about your character, but you supposed it didn’t matter anymore.

“Sasuke,” you gasped, eyes suddenly going wide. “I have to…I can’t…”

“Shh,” Itachi murmured again. “You will make it back to Sasuke.”

His voice was so soft, so soothing. He sounded sure of his words, and in that moment, you realized just how desperately you missed him. Itachi always held such quiet determination for the things that were important to him. He was patient. Steady.

It was the reason you had fallen for him, after all. Itachi didn’t do grand gestures or showy displays of affection. His love was far more subtle, quiet and gentle, but exactly what you needed.

 “I promise you will make it home.”

You nodded sleepily as you stared up at him, trying to fight through the fog of exhaustion washing over you. Itachi’s face began to blur before you, and soon, you couldn’t keep your eyes open any longer. You slipped into unconsciousness, his name still hovering on your lips.

Once he was sure you were under his genjutsu, he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to your forehead. You would sleep peacefully now, and he wouldn’t have to worry about you startling if you woke up and found him healing you. He was certain you hadn’t thought he was real earlier, otherwise your reaction would have been a lot different. 

He had gotten lucky. You had always been fairly perceptive when it came to his illusions. If you hadn’t lost so much blood, it would have been a lot more difficult to weave one that could affect you.

He set to work, pulling your bloody vest from your body and tossing it onto the floor. He would go through it later and hide all your weapons, just in case you got the jump on him and decided to grab for one.

Then he rolled up your shirt, peeling the blood-crusted fabric from where it had stuck to your wounds. He sucked in a sharp breath. The cuts were deep and still bleeding. He had to stop the hemorrhaging, or it was going to kill you.

Itachi was no medical ninja, but he had seen them heal before, and he could perform the basics. He prayed it would be enough.

When it was over, he sat beside you, gently stroking a hand over your hair. A storm had rolled in shortly after he finished healing you.

Rain was steadily falling across the tin roof, beating out a soothing rhythm. Despite the warmth of the fire he started, there was still a chill inside the cabin. 

You shivered on your bedroll, and Itachi grabbed his cloak from where it had been hanging on a broken chair. He spread it over your body like a blanket, hoping it would keep you warm enough. He ached to lay down beside you and wrap his arms around your body, like he used to do on missions when you were younger.

He was closer to you now than he had been in years, and, somehow, that made the longing worse. 

Yes, he had watched you from afar over the years, but this was much different. He liked to keep an eye on you and Sasuke, whenever he could manage to sneak back into the village. 

If he couldn’t make it there in person, he sent a summons. One of his crows would perch in the Uchiha compound and watch the two of you, always keeping a safe distance.

The last time he checked in, his crow had perched in the windowsill and peered into the kitchen, watching as you ate dinner together.

—

“How are your lessons with Kakashi-sensei going?”

“They’re fine, I guess.”

“You guess?”

“Half the time he just sits there reading his dumb book.”

Itachi couldn’t help but smile as he watched through the crow’s eyes. He remembered Kakashi’s penchant for erotic literature when he had been his ANBU captain. He was sure you did too.

“A book?” You asked hesitantly. “What does this book look like?”

“Uh, it’s orange. It’s got a red circle with a slash through it on the cover.”

Your lips tightened into a thin line. “I think I’m going to have a little talk with Kakashi-sensei.”

“I’m sure he’d love that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“He thinks you’re hot.”

The crow watched, head tilted, as you nearly choked on a clump of rice. 

“Excuse me?!”

“What?” Sasuke asked haughtily. “I’m not stupid. I see the way he looks at you whenever you pick me up. I don’t know why he doesn’t just ask you out.”

You snorted. “Because that man wouldn’t know intimacy if it hit him in the face.”

“If you went out with him, maybe he would finally teach me something useful.”

“You’d whore me out to your sensei for new jutsu?”

“Well, you’re not teaching me anything…”

“You little brat!” You tossed one of your chopsticks across the table. Sasuke batted it away easily. “You’re doing all the dishes tonight!”

Despite your threat, you and Sasuke ended up doing the dishes together, like usual.

The two of you hovered in front of the sink, him washing and you drying in casual silence.

“Hey, I’ve been thinking,” you told him, as he handed you a dripping plate.“I know I’ve been running a lot of missions lately, but I’m off for the next couple of days. I could teach you a water jutsu.”

His dark eyes brightened. “Really?”

“Yeah. You know, as long as you agree not to trade my virtue for anything Kakashi can teach you.”

“Tch. I’ll think about it. Besides, I doubt you have a virtue anymore.”

You tossed your rag at his head. He rolled his eyes and ripped it off, just as your hand came down to ruffle his hair.

—

Itachi had dismissed the crow with a pang in his chest, no longer able to bear the brutal ache the sight left him with.

Sometimes, he would stay longer, and watch far past the time Sasuke had gone to bed. His crow would perch on a tree outside your window, peering in as you laid there, tossing and turning in your bed. 

Some nights he would watch you bury your face in your pillow and cry.

The pressure of taking care of Sasuke alone weighed on you. Itachi knew it did. You were so young, probably too young to raise a twelve year old boy with the world’s biggest chip on his shoulder. And yet you had taken the challenge without hesitation.

Itachi knew the reason. He knew that you didn’t want Sasuke to grow up the way you did, alone and scared, vulnerable to be harmed by the people who were supposed to be taking care of you.

You had sacrificed a prominent career and any semblance of a social life, all to raise his baby brother and attempt to fix the carnage he had left in his wake.

You hated him. Itachi was sure of that, and he didn’t blame you for it. He knew he would never be able to repay everything you had done for him, for Sasuke. 

That was why, when he and Kisame had stumbled across your squad, he couldn’t just leave you to die. They were dispatching the enemy ninja anyway, as a favor for Pain.

He had used a genjutsu on Kisame and sent a shadow clone to continue traveling with his partner, while the real Itachi stayed behind. 

You would live, as long as you made it back to the Leaf to be fully healed. He briefly wondered if you would even be able to travel with your injuries. 

He supposed he would only be able to tell once you woke, but the thought scared him. He was terrified to face you in a more coherent state. Would you scream at him? Try to fight him? After all, you hadn’t seen his face since the massacre. 

Leaving before you even opened your eyes was an option, but Itachi knew how stubborn you were. You were likely to attempt to push past the limits of your injuries and hurt yourself further. 

Your breath suddenly hitched in your throat. You were waking up. 

Itachi quickly ducked into the farthest, darkest corner of the room. 

He watched as you blinked and sat up. Your hands came down to clutch at your aching sides.

You peered around, taking stock of your surroundings. A confused frown was pulling at your lips as you examined the cabin, wondering how you had gotten there.

Suddenly, your gaze flicked toward him. You had sensed his chakra.

“Come out of the corner,” you ordered, scrambling to your feet. “Show me your face.”

He stepped into the light, causing the aging floorboards to creak beneath his feet. The guarded look on your face disappeared. Your mask of composure had completely shattered.

“I-Itachi?” you sputtered.

Dread bloomed in his stomach as he watched horror flash through your eyes. You were afraid of him. 

“I-I thought…I thought I was dreaming.”

“I’m as real as you are.”

He stepped forward, longing to reach out and touch you, but you thrust out a hand. “Don’t come any closer!” He frowned, but he didn’t take another step.

“Where are we?” you demanded. “What do you want?”

“Outskirts of fire country. This cabin is abandoned.”

Your fingers twitched to your sides, searching for weapons that Itachi had stripped you of hours ago. He reached into his pocket, fishing out your kunai and un-activated paper bomb.

“Looking for these?”

“You took my weapons.”

“Only so you wouldn’t use them on me.”

You glared. “You didn’t answer my other question.”

One of his dark brows furrowed. “I don’t want anything from you.”

“Then why am I here?” 

“You were dying.”

He offered up the answer like it made sense. You gritted your teeth.

“Last I checked, you weren’t in the business of saving people.”

He began to walk forward. You tensed as he came closer, hands curling into fists, but he simply strode past you. He picked up the cloak that had been lying on the floor next to a bedroll. Your bedroll.

You watched, confused, as he wrapped it around himself and headed for the door. 

“I stabilized your wounds, but you’ll need to keep an eye on them. You still have to make it back to the village.”

His hands closed around the knob, and the words left your throat before you could think better of it. “Itachi, wait.”

For years, you had thought about all the things you would say or do if you ever saw him again. Now you were realizing that, no matter how carefully you planned it out in your head, reality wasn’t going to be the same.

While a part of you was still burdened with the rage and betrayal his actions caused, indulging in those emotions wasn’t important right now. This could be the only time you would ever get real answers, to change things for the one Uchiha that still had a chance.

He turned, intrigued at the sudden desperation in your voice.

“Please,” you begged. “Sasuke…he’s so young. He’s so lost. I can’t let what happened to you happen to him. I need to know how to stop it.”

Itachi closed his eyes. Every part of him screamed for him to leave, to shunshin out of the cabin and put some distance between you.

“Why would you think I care about Sasuke at all?”

Your breath caught in your throat. 

“He was the only one you left alive.”

“So he could one day grow stronger and face me.”

“See, that’s the part that never made sense to me.”

Your voice was shaking as you spoke. You weren’t entirely sure Itachi wouldn’t kill you where you stood, but you needed to say it. Something about what he said to Sasuke on the night of the massacre had never sat right.

“You already knew you were the strongest shinobi of our generation. You already proved that.”

“Perhaps I wanted to prove it to myself.”

“Maybe. But leaving Sasuke alive just so you could face him one day, when his training would take a decade to reach your level…”

“True power and skill take time to achieve. You know this better than anyone.”

“I think you couldn’t do it.”

Sweat began to drip down the back of Itachi’s neck. His fingers tightened around the doorknob.

“I think Sasuke was the one person you couldn’t bring yourself to kill. And I think there’s probably a part of you that still cares for him.”

“Your sentimentality has always been your downfall,” Itachi mused.

“I disagree.” There was an edge to your words. “I’d sooner fall on my own blade than let go of my humanity.”

“And it’s that foolish ideal that will get you killed.”

“You told me once that it was the thing you loved most about me,” you reminded him.

Itachi closed his eyes. It still was.

You took a deep, shaky breath. Itachi briefly wondered if he was still making you nervous, or if your wounds were taking a toll on you. 

 “For so long, I wondered if there was something I could have done to help you, to change things. I know it’s too late for you, but I will be damned if I let the same thing happen to Sasuke.”

“You care for him that much?” 

“Yes, and I’ll do anything. Anything you want. If I have to die to keep Sasuke off the same path, then I will. Just tell me, please.”

Itachi hovered there, saying nothing. For a few moments, there was only the sound of the rain falling against the roof and thunder rumbling in the distance.

“What happened, Itachi? Tell me the truth.”

He thought of all those times he had watched you in the compound, throwing all your effort into raising Sasuke, fighting tooth and nail to give him the love and structure he so desperately craved. He couldn’t forget the image of you breaking down in your bed, finally giving in to the crushing feel of despair when you thought no one could see. 

Then, finally, finally, Itachi spoke the words that he thought would never leave his lips. They came pouring out, and he was unable to stop himself.

It was a terrible idea to tell you, to let anyone know his true motivations at all. But he had been alone for so long. He had kept the pain inside for too many years, and it was beginning to destroy him. His body was breaking down from the stress. And now you were here, begging him to tell you the truth, to help prevent Sasuke from following a path of darkness. He had never been able to say no to you, after all. So he sat you down in front of the fire and explained everything.

He told you of the Uchiha coup, how Danzo had threatened Sasuke. How he had finally made the decision to spare his little brother and stave off another great war at the cost of the rest of the clan. It had never been his desire to kill his family, to hurt you and Sasuke so deeply.

“Danzo,” you whispered. “That bastard...”

He nodded. “This secret must stay hidden.”

“But wouldn’t it make sense to come out with everything now?”

“Not while Danzo still lives, and not while the Leaf is still at risk.”

“The Leaf will always be at risk.”

He smiled sadly. “Maybe so. But if I have any sway with the Akatsuki, I will use it. And I have to ensure that Danzo won’t move against Sasuke…or you.”

You nodded, though the thought of him remaining a rogue crushed you. “I understand.”

He leaned forward, cupping your face in his hands and pressing his forehead gently against yours. 

“I have never stopped loving you or Sasuke. Not for a moment.”

“Neither have I,” you murmured.

“The way you’ve taken care of him…Y/n, I owe you everything.”

“You know then? You’ve been watching?”

He nodded. “When I can. Sometimes I send a summons.” 

“A crow?”

His lips curled up in a smile. Of course you noticed it. You were too perceptive not to, you just never gave any indication that you had. 

“So you have seen it then.”

“I was never sure if it was just a normal bird. I thought maybe it was hanging around, waiting for Sasuke to sign a contract.”

He shook his head. “Just me keeping an eye on the two of you. You’ve done an exceptional job.”

Worry clouded your expression as you shook your head. “I don’t know about that. I never know if I’m doing the right thing, if I’m making the right choices…”

You took a deep breath. “I just want him to be at peace.”

Itachi frowned. “He is an Uchiha. That may never be possible.”

“I’ll still fight for it with every breath I take.”

“Then I think you are making the correct choices.”

He brushed his nose against yours, nuzzling the skin. 

Your breath caught in your throat at the tender gesture. Itachi still gave you butterflies, even after four years apart. He still sent your heart racing, beating just as fast as it would if you were facing an enemy in battle.

He pressed his lips against yours. He was trying to be gentle, but you could feel an undercurrent of desperation in every kiss. 

It was evident in the way his fingers pressed against the small of your back, urging you closer and into his lap. You felt it in the way his tongue intertwined with yours, hot and persistent in a way it never had been before.

You ran your hands down his chest, feeling the taught muscles beneath his shirt. His fingers moved over the base of your scalp, sliding into your blood-crusted hair.

A whimper left your lips as he began to trail kisses along your jawline, then down to the hollow of your throat.

His grip around you tightened, causing you to jolt back at the sharp pain shooting through your side. He released you instantly, jerking his hands away and breathing out an apology.

“It’s okay,” you promised, cupping his cheek.

He shook his head, gently easing you off of his lap. “You’re in no state for this. We shouldn’t aggravate your injuries.”

He was right, but you weren’t happy about it. You desperately wished you weren’t in so much pain. It had been so long since you had been together like this, and there had been no one since Itachi.

He twitched suddenly and a deep frown formed on his face. “What? What is it?”

“My partner has realized I’m gone.”

He received the memories the moment the clone dissipated. It had been walking beside Kisame for a couple of hours when the other man suddenly pulled his massive blade on him.

“What are you doing?” Itachi asked, gazing down at the weapon warily.

Kisame grinned. “You don’t think I’m that stupid, do you? I know you left a clone in your place.”

The clone studied him, eyes dark and stormy. A masterful copy of Itachi’s deadpan expression.

“You went to get your rocks off with that pretty little ninja from the Leaf, didn’t you?”

He was only met with silence. Kisame simply chuckled and lowered the sword. 

“Jeez, Itachi. I know this is lonely work, but that girl was half-dead. You’re sicker than I am.” 

When he didn’t respond, Kisame simply sighed. 

“Just kill her after and hurry back. We’re supposed to be jinchuriki hunting.”

He dispatched the clone with a swipe of the enormous blade, and Itachi knew he was running out of time.

“Will he come back?” you questioned.

He shook his head. “No. He thinks I’m…”

He trailed off, but you understood what he meant from the dark look on his face. You suppressed a shudder, wondering what type of company Itachi was forced to keep by spying on this organization. Probably other S-rank criminals like him, who had done things far more abhorrent.

“Still,” he continued. “I can’t linger. We must get you back to the Leaf.”

“I can make it back alone.”

Itachi reached out to brush his thumb across your cheek “I thought you might insist on that.”

“Itachi-”

“Don’t be foolish,” he urged. “You’re no good to Sasuke if you collapse from exhaustion and die on the path home.”

You sighed. He had a point.

“I’ll take you as close as I can without being spotted.”

You put your bloody vest back on and prepared yourself for the journey. You hardly needed to. Itachi insisted on carrying you on his back the entire way. It took some convincing, but eventually you gave in, knowing you would never be able to make it without stopping. 

He was true to his word. After the hours-long journey, he finally stopped about a mile from the village. You had fallen asleep at some point, still suffering from exhaustion, and Itachi had shifted to carrying you in his arms. 

When he made it to the woods surrounding Konoha, he gently laid you down into the grass and whispered your name. He shook your face gently, watching with a warm smile as you blinked awake. He had always adored the way you looked when you were freshly woken from sleep, with your hair mussed and dazed, happy eyes that only brightened when they landed on him. 

“‘Tachi?” you murmured. 

You rose, still weak from your wounds, and leaned against him. He wrapped his arms around you as you buried your face in the crook of his neck. It didn’t feel real having him so close. You were almost convinced it was all a dream.

“When will I see you again?”

“I’m not sure.” He buried his face in your hair, inhaling the scent of you. “But I will be keeping an eye on you and Sasuke.”

He pulled back, cupping your face, and drank in every feature. The look on your face, full of longing and reluctance to leave him, would be forever recorded in perfect detail by his sharingan.

He leaned down and kissed you fervently.

“No matter what happens, always know that I will love you until my last breath.”

He brushed his thumb over your cheek once more and disappeared in a puff of smoke. He was gone before you even got the chance to say the words back.

 You hefted your pack onto your back and began the trek into the village. 

In truth, it was the longest mile walk of your life. Your wounds had reopened along the way, but you trudged forward anyway, ignoring the brutal burn in your abdomen. By the time you got to the front gate, you were ready to collapse.

You stopped at the hut where the gate guards sat, placing a bloody hand on the counter to steady yourself.

“Y/n?” Izumo gasped.

He exchanged a startled look with Kotetsu, watching in horror as you attempted to slur your name and identification number. 

“My…my team…”

You barely got a few syllables out before you crumpled, collapsing into a bloody heap in the dirt. One of them, you weren’t sure which, shouted for the other to call a medic nin. You closed your eyes, drifting into oblivion with the taste of Itachi’s lips still on yours. 

You swore you could hear a crow cawing in the distance.

[23raccoons]

i actually love that in the chunin exams, ino chooses sakura to cheat off of, because like of all the proctors and moderators and other genin she could have picked, that girl was waiting for sakura to finish her test.

like ino’s plan, with super prodigy shikamaru on her own team, is to steal sakura’s answers and then give them to both choji and shikamaru. 

and sakura’s completely convinced that her and sasuke’s combined scores should be able to float naruto enough for them to still be a high scoring team. but sasuke (by his own admission) and naruto both are completely unable to answer any of the questions on their own. 

like sasuke, neji, and shikamaru all needed to cheat. it takes sakura about half the time limit to finish the test, while sasuke is still cheating (presumably off a plant, he gets all of his answers from one person) and he never once thinks to check her answers?? like he was confident enough in her to answer them correctly, but not enough to copy her? she’s sooo close to where he’s sitting, i feel like with the sharingan he should have been able to. 

idk, just imaging ino taking one look at that impossible to answer test and going nope, and deciding to just be like ‘sakura’s got this’ and sitting and waiting for half an hour for sakura to finish answering all the questions is so funny to me.

[boinin]

Batten down the hatches: Rin's ego is about to land

The latest chapters show Rin playing with an unfamiliar aura: what looks like swirling rivulets of water.

This represents the refinement of his ego and playstyle since the under-20 match. But what exactly are they going for with the swirling water? Here's my two cents.

Rin is strongly associated with water, specifically the sea. He grew up by the coast; he and Sae shared a love of watching the sunset over the water after training together. Those childhood memories are turbulent now, like dark clouds on the ocean's horizon.

It's here he realises that he can no longer play the puppetmaster football that helped him thrive in Blue Lock. As good as he is, it wasn't authentic... and it's nowhere near where he needs to be to compete with his brother, or even Isagi.

Rin's flow state is the most unique out of any others we've seen. Let's dig into it. All panels are from the official translation, which is important as the translation choices are 1) consistent and 2) likely chosen carefully.

In the dying moments of the match, Rin complains about feeling restrained. Being Itoshi Rin is eating him alive.

Cool, calm and aloof.

A genius. Prodigy. Puppetmaster.

Team player. Team captain.

Isagi Yoichi's partner. Shidou Ryuusei's rival.

Itoshi Sae's little brother.

The prospect of defeat rudely wakes him up. His pretence comes crashing down hard, triggered by his ineffectiveness in spite of the teammates around him. It's one of the best rugpulls in sports manga.

When the power of friendship comes knocking, Itoshi Rin tells it to fuck off and die.

What a glorious moment... and not just because it posits Rin as a Uchiha Sasuke kinnie. I prompt you to examine his eyes in this panel.

They're a swirling vortex of hate and destruction, befitting Blue Lock's angstiest character. The shape reminds me of this:

Satellite images of Hurricane Franklin and Hurricane Idalia, August 2023. Image credit: NOAA Satellites.

Rin's true ego, which he unleashes against Sae, is a storm.

Optional soundtrack for the rest of this post (because Rin 100% listens to this once it comes out in Blue Lock's universe).

Although it isn't portrayed visually as such in the under-20 arc, the metaphor fits Rin's evolving playstyle. What is more destructive, more uncontrollable, more senseless than a hurricane? A violent force of nature that we can predict but never avert?

When a storm approaches, all we can do is rank it, track it, then attempt to mitigate the inevitable damage.

In football terms? Sounds a lot like playing Rin.

It's even alluded to in chapter 250: the graphics for Rin's formation are similar to the satellite images of large storms.

Within the U20 match, there are exchanges that support this theory. Darai calls Rin's evolving playstyle arrogant and avaricious. The latter (meaning extreme greed) is evocative of a force that pursues what it wants without regard for anything in its surroundings. What it can't have, it destroys.

Niou is confident enough in his physicality to try withstand his opponent's attrack. Rin literally flips him into the air. Niou's hubris brings to mind all man-made constructs which are supposedly storm-proof... until a cyclone comes along and proves otherwise.

The contrast between Rin and Sae's egos are interesting. If we accept Rin's is a storm, i.e. a destructive force of nature that cannot be controlled, Sae's is the opposite despite being as impossible to defy. Sae's motif is defined in the manga as "beautiful destruction", plays and passes depicted in graceful data strings. Rather than natural, his playstyle is sleek and controlled, and dominant to the point of appearing pre-ordained by his opponents.

Their attitudes are equally different. While Rin drools and loses composure in the final minutes, Sae does little more than raise his eyebrows throughout the entire game. He's completely emotionless.

It's the extremes of human nature: animalistic rage versus robotic detachment. This time, the latter wins. Will Rin have an opportunity to face his brother again, with a better grasp on his ego? Here's hoping.

My final thoughts on Rin are speculative. How does one beat a storm? Not just endure—but subdue and calm one?

It's beyond human capability. The ability to control the weather exists only in myth and fantasy, and even then it's usually in the hands of powerful entities, not mere heroes or wizards.

Subduing something as powerful as a hurricane would require a god.

Is this Isagi and Rin's endgame?

Time will tell.

[tora-the-cat]

A happy ending for Sasuke is literally not even POSSIBLE for basically ALL of Naruto like it's not even funny. He really never even had a CHANCE he has of living a decent life, it's not even on the TABLE, by literally no fault of his own (because he's never done anything wrong). I'm going to scream.

0-6? Forces unbelievably outside of his control are organizing, ensuring, and executing an ethnic cleansing of his entire clan at the hands of his favoritest person in the world. Forces including the shattered psyche of said favoritest person, who tortures him until he is too terrified and traumatized to even think about anything else for years.

7-12? enrolled in Child Soilder School, completely isolated socially (not as a pariah but as a prodigy) befret of any support system, still traumatized beyond belief, and left with no outlet for any of his issues besides obsessing over the day, one day in the future, where Itachi will be dead and all this unresolved suffering and guilt and love and anger and fear and fear and FEAR will go away forever. Right? Because it has to. There has to be an end. Right?

12? Government assigned found family give him the support and love and attention and outlet and for the future that he's been craving for so long he didn't even KNOW it's what he needed. Has a soulmate and a bestie that can read his mind and a mentor who actually is willing to meet him where he's at and help him and maybe even love him and is this......Hope? That perhaps he can have a life outside of what Itachi did to- Itachi. Itach- FUCK. ITACHI IS LITERALLY HUNTING NARUTO FOR SPORT WITH ALL HIS WAR CRIMINAL FRIENDS AND SASUKE SHOULDN'T HAVE LET HIS GUARD DOWN BECAUSE IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW STRONG KAKASHI OR EVEN THE WHOLE VILLAGE IS, ITACHI WILL KILL ANYONE SASUKE IS STUPID AND SHORT SIDED AND CRUEL ENOUGH TO CARE ABOUT, HOW DID HE FORGET, HOW DARE HE FORGET, HE NEEDS TO GET STRONGER HE NEEDS TO AVENGE HIS CLAN HE NEEDS TO FUFILL HIS FRATERNAL DUTY HE NEEDS TO LEAVE BEFORE ANYONE ELSE IS MURDERED BY ASSOCIATION-

13-16? He dropped a lit match on his support system behind him him and ran into the cold shadows of obsessive anger that he only stepped out of long enough to loose the ability to ignore the gnawing want for warmth. That's bad enough, not even taking cohabitating with goddamned OROCHIMARU. No further explanation required there.

17? Kills his brother, gets NONE of the 'benefits' he spent his life convincing (begging) himself must be awaiting at the end. Instead everyhting has, in fact, gotten much worse very quickly and now all he has is a list of powerful people and systems that don't work and hurts and kills and tortures the people they've promised to protect that no one except him will oppose because it's basically suicide, and isn't he already so familiar with being on the shit side of this dynamic? Isn't it the normalest thing in the world, to fill the hole where his vengeance used to be with a hunt with near identical goals and intentions of his first vengance, the only real difference being his increasing dissalussion with ever being able to 'go back home', his almost all comsuming doubt that there's a 'home' waiting for him still, if there ever even was? So he dives into another goal before it goes as cold as the love he doesn't dare indulge, accumulating more power and rage then he knows what to do with (where can he put it down? where can he put it down?) and no reason NOT to challange corruption until it's either all gone or it kills him. Naruto, once the only person who looked at him with empathy instead of pity or expectation, thinks he should grit his teeth and bear it and go back to the village, as if that was ever an option for him. Sakura, once the only person who understood him, who followed his every thought process with ease and loved him even when he thought himself a monster, has finally given up on him and tries to kill him. What can he do but laugh as the world burns? It burned him first.

(but if that was true, then why is he still so cold?)

[peekintoeternity]

Naruto - Chapter #385

"An immortal man who is both my comrade and my mentor."

Itachi calls Uchiha Madara (Obito) his comrade and mentor.

The former descriptor may have been simply a lie to get Sasuke to distrust Obito as Itachi was also presenting himself as one whom Sasuke should never trust.

Nevertheless, it is interesting he said it at all, considering the antipathy there.

Naruto - Chapter #385

"For no matter how good you were, you couldn't have taken down the entire police force by yourself!"

These are also panels often used to show that Itachi to an extent saw Madara (Obito) as superior (in strength), admitting that without his help he would have failed to take down the Uchiha clan members, especially the police force.

(Also note that in the Itachi novels it is shown that Obito actually took down the entire police force by himself.)

In other words, Konoha (Danzō et al) knowingly set up Itachi to fail, as he would have died — and most likely become the excuse for Konoha's full forces (perhaps including Kakashi) to descend to directly complete their state-sanctioned Uchiha genocide — if he hadn't swallowed his pride and asked for (and received) Obito's assistance.

And evidently, the Uchiha clan members were far stronger than most fans think; they weren't just swiftly annihilated by a single 13yo, no matter how much of a prodigy.

Rather, it required arguably the two strongest Uchiha alive at the time to take them down; one of whom was also the strongest shinobi alive (even if no one knew it). Fugaku himself could have very well been a force to reckon with, but merely gave up without fighting as he could not stomach killing his own son.

[leportraitducadavre]

You know there’s a weird connection between the fandom’s perceived idea of “good writing” and their personal feelings about specific characters. “I like this character, therefore, they’re well written” and viceversa, “I dislike this character, therefore, they’re badly written” –I’ve seen this in many fandoms and with different characters, but there’s no fandom where this is more noticeable than in the “anti Sakura” portion of the audience.

Before we start, let me be clear on something: I don’t personally like Sakura, I don’t consider myself a fan of hers (or her stans, which are just as annoying as Hinata’s), nor I believe she’s the “heroine” of a story that has no room for a character with such status (I’ve said this before, Naruto is the hero and Sasuke is the antagonist -there’s no necessity nor space for anyone else as Sakura is merely the female character with most panel time, yet she doesn’t move the plot forward and she isn’t relevant to the development of other key characters, as most of them completely ignore her existence).

“Likeability” isn’t a determining factor when it comes to labelling a character “well” or “badly” written, such notion relies on subjective factors which makes it impossible to objectively determine the overall value of a character inside a story.

The most important factor to label a character “goodly written” has more to do with how well they represent their theological narrative. For instance, Danzo -who I genuinely despise, is amazingly written, as he spot on tackles the subject of extreme-nationalistic world view, while Itachi -on the other hand, is sort-of all over the place as he subscribes to Danzo’s ideology and defends it with the same actions, yet Kishimoto desperately wanted to keep him inside the “good guys” group, which ultimately failed and took down anything Itachi might have had going for him (besides other inconsistencies as he’s presented as a genius who made nothing but mistake after mistake). There’s a reason why the antagonists are often the ones with the best characterizations, as they aren’t tied to been “morally correct” or “likeable” in order to reflect their thematic plot, which is why the better characters in Naruto happen to be Uchiha (Sasuke, Obito, Madara).

Sakura has no weight inside the plot, as she is mostly used for support of either Naruto and (to a lesser extent) Sasuke, she stands narratively in the same spectrum as most “good” characters of the show, so she’s thematically not much more relevant than the rest of K-11; yet she’s given more depth than many other characters, as she’s a layered character of whom we see both her strengths and flaws, something we can’t say for other characters, such as Hinata.

In the Hyüga princess™’s case, her personality is mostly one dimensional as she is a thematic piece used to deepen Neji’s character. In case you haven’t noticed, she was constructed in opposition to him: She needs to be shy in order for Naruto to take pity on her when Neji insults her (as Neji is mostly arrogant and outspoken), she’s comically bad because Neji is a prodigy, she’s “a freak” (said by Naruto himself) because Neji isn't, she’s a slave owner because Neji is her slave, and so on –the only thing she has that wasn’t built in order to oppose her cousin was her infatuation with Naruto, something she makes a priority.

Everything we “know” about Hinata was mostly fandom-made, Hinata is shy and soft spoken, why is she considered “nice”? We never saw her worrying about anyone but Naruto: She was glad Kiba lost his match and offered Naruto the ointment to treat his wounds, she diminished her cousin’s trauma and endorsed the oppressive system of her clan, we never see her visiting Kiba after he returned from his mission to bring Sasuke back to Konoha (something we see Ino and Sakura do with their respective teammates, and while Hinata was recovering from Neji’s attack, she had enough strength to train and go see the Chünin Exams final stage, at no point is mentioned she was bed-ridden, as Sasuke had enough time to recover from Gaara’s attack before escaping the village), she thought about Naruto’s warm hand seconds after her cousin died and she was the only character not shown to be glad about Shikamaru being alive as we saw her pouting and thinking about how much she wanted to be beside Naruto. Furthermore, is there any scene in which she appears where she’s not thinking or talking about Naruto or where he is not the main focus?

How come a character designed to be nothing more than support (for Neji and Naruto, as her infatuation with him was built in order to have some oppositional force to the idea of “nobody likes him”, as Naruto has an unrequited love for Sakura during the whole duration of the manga) is “better written” than Sakura, who despite herself being also support she has far more thematically ground to move around (Kishimoto explores through her different themes, even if they aren’t relevant to the plot itself, such as romantical obsession, low self-esteem and the decisions/characteristics that are driven by it, female friendship, and few others).

Honest question: It’s her sad background reason enough to like Hinata? Do you truly need a “compelling” backstory in order to claim a character is “better written” than others? Sakura was bullied because she was shy, Hinata -being the Hyüga heir, wasn’t shown to suffer the same fate at the hands of her classmates. Think about it this way, while Sakura was being bullied and had to be helped by Ino, Hinata was being trained by her father and witnessing Hiashi torture her uncle while Neji cried, helpless! –and just a few years later, she used that exact knowledge to insult him! So she’s not really that nice after all!

What is it with the obsession of both fandoms with the idea of “potential” and how, apparently, they were “robbed of it” (what “potential”? When did Hinata even hint at improving her fighting techniques? She was defeated every single time! When did Sakura, who canonically has a smaller chakra pool than both Sasuke and Naruto, have the possibility of surpass literally Ashura and Indra’s reincarnations? Them having more panel time will mean absolutely nothing as we’ll see them doing the exact same thing we already see them do only twice as much. “Potential” is about exploring a latent ability of them, Hinata has none and Sakura’s chakra flux control was properly exploited!).

There’s more to say about this, but I’m honestly tired at this point…

[theheirofthesharingan]

Oh dear… I'm sorry I made you cry. Hope you're feeling better now.

Are you Asian too? May I ask which country you're from?

I just finished reading your novel Unbreakable Ties. You're an amazing writer. Thank you so much for giving readers such an authentic, canon-based story. I love it, especially Chapter 2 when Sasuke came to see his brother’s body. That scene resonated with my headcanon, and I’m grateful you brought it to life. BTW I drew a sketch of that scene as a gift for you. I left out the headband because I didn’t want him to carry that identity anymore. He should be free from that burden in the afterlife. I also drew another piece of him with Kina’s cat in Chapter 4. I'm not very good at drawing, but I hope you'll like it. 

The boy's life was devastating. I still remember the day I learned the truth about him, I couldn’t cry. I got physical symptoms instead (heart palpitations, insomnia, chest pain...etc.) for about a month. Felt too depressed to cry.

Yes, it's pure injustice. He hated himself to the extent that he accepted suffering without questioning and never once complained. That was his way of living… the path he chose was not an easy one. And yet, he died with a sense of relief and contentment. He had carried out such an intricate suicide plan for 8 years. In a strange way, I felt happy for him. He finally found peace in death, leaving behind all the pain and misery. The afterlife in Naruto seems like a better place for him than the cruel Shinobi world. No more killing, no more impossible choices.

People are mad at him because he chose to kill innocent people and left them no choice. He didn’t give Sasuke a choice either, he forced him down a path without his consent. They say he acted out of pure arrogance, that arrogance was his fatal flaw. That he had no right to play god and decide the fate of the entire clan on his own.

But I understand why he didn’t seek help from Sasuke or anyone else. The only person he could rely on (Shisui) was dead. As an introvert and a prodigy, he was always alone. He took all the burden upon himself so others wouldn't have to. He didn’t want Sasuke to be involved in those dirty things and got tainted by the darkness. But things could have turned out differently if only he had shared that burden with Sasuke. That’s the tragic part of his character. He was overprotective because he loved Sasuke too much to risk involving him. Sasuke was the only thing that anchored him to sanity after the massacre. Without Sasuke, he might have lost his mind completely and ended his life right away.

BTW I'm not sure if this has been discussed much in Western fandoms, but it's quite well-known in Chinese fandoms that Masashi Kishimoto has a twin brother, Seishi Kishimoto, whom he loves dearly. Sasuke was, in a way, created in Seishi’s likeness. Seishi is also a manga author. He's hardworking and talented, but lived in the shadow of his genius brother. People constantly compare him to Masashi, and that stressed him out. Sometimes I feel that the lines Itachi said to Sasuke (for example, encouraging Sasuke to surpass him) were actually directed at Seishi. Masashi seems to insert parts of himself into Itachi (and Naruto) to express his own feelings. Perhaps that’s why people feel so uneasy about Itachi, especially those who love or sympathize with Sasuke, or those who experience the story from Sasuke's POV. Masashi probably wasn’t allowed to do so before, but after his editor Kousuke Yahagi left the team, there was no one to stop him (lol).

Another interesting detail is that Seishi named one of his manga series Sukedachi 09, an abbreviation of Sasuke and Itachi. It's a subtle way of expressing brotherly love. 

Maybe we can talk about the mythology aspect some other time. There’s a lot to unpack there, and it's definitely worth analyzing.

It's okay. I'm used to cry over Itachi.

Ahh, I'm sorry, I can't reveal my country here. It's to protect myself from some people who might use any information about me against me. I'll just we're neighbors, so.

Thank you for reading the fic. It's truly close to my heart. Apart from the fact that it was my official dive into writing for Naruto fandom, the fic really helped me explore and figure out many of my own feelings.

I'd only written for a small fandom where the readers could be counted on your fingers, so posting the fic was quite overwhelming.

And those pieces are lovely. Thank you so much for taking your time in drawing those. It means so much to me.

We've all had such reactions to his truth. Even if I saw it coming, the tragedy and intensity of it was shocking.

People keep getting mad at him for weird reasons. They think he killed innocent people and was okay with it. They neither understand the compulsion nor the fact that he wanted to be hated and killed for his actions. It's just, these people look at him through the black and white lenses of morality. And anything else doesn't make sense.

Itachi couldn't ask for anyone's help because he didn't think there was anyone he could rely on. Sasuke was too little. What was Itachi really supposed to do?

I don't really think anyone who sympathises with Sasuke or sees story from his perspective should be feeling uneasy with Itachi. They can't do it without looking like hypocrites. But that's not the part of the discussion right now, so I won't delve into it.

From what I know, Kishimoto said Naruto and Sasuke's relationship was inspired from his and his brother's relationship. That's all I've known.

Another interesting detail is that Seishi named one of his manga series Sukedachi 09, an abbreviation of Sasuke and Itachi. It's a subtle way of expressing brotherly love.

Wow, I didn't know this. It's interesting indeed. Thank you for sharing it. Though I wish I could find an interview about it, but maybe it's in Japanese or it's mentioned in the passing.

Sure. Naruto and its connection with Japanese mythology is an interesting thing to explore.

[realkyuhoney]

Still so proud of this... 🥺

SasuNaru ASMR.

Written by me. Performed by Yuri Lowenthal.

~~~~

Naruto…

Are you… already asleep?

Heh… Of course you are. It's been a long and exhausting mission. Feels like we’ve had a lot of these lately.

You know, despite everything that’s happened. I bet you’ve never experienced a bad night’s sleep a day in your life. But… you’ve always been that way, haven’t you? Even when we’ve had to sleep outside on the ground like this.

You’re fierce and you’re determined and you protect the people that you love and you love the people you should hate. I suppose there’s nothing to keep you awake. You’ve always had this innate ability to just know that everything’s going to turn out alright. You just…

*Sasuke chuckles softly at what he’s about to say*

Believe it… You always have and you make others believe with you. Or you beat them down until they do.

I, on the other hand, am riddled with regret… and… if I’m being completely honest. Fear.

My past haunts me to no end and I fear I may have ruined the future. I’m terrified of losing the people I love. I’m terrified that, no matter how powerful I may have become, that I’ll never be able to protect them. But the thing I’m most afraid of… is me. I’ve spent most of my life alone and I’m still terrified of making the wrong choices. I’m afraid that I’ve ruined any chance at any kind of relationship with my daughter. I still struggle to even think of myself as a father. Because I haven’t been.

I’m glad she has you, Naruto. I’m glad they all do.

I’m no longer… angry… all the time. And I’m still learning how to express any other emotion. I feel them… I just *sigh* I don’t know how to shut off my indifference. I’m not indifferent. I care. Deeply. Maybe too deeply…

I suppose I’m much like Kakashi in that respect. But maybe he’s braver than I am. Maybe I’m just such a coward that I won’t ever be able to truly let go of that darkness. It’s like a comforting blanket that I can never let go of, even though it’s cold and it's wet, I still cling to it. How did he let go of all of that? How did you? And what’s so wrong with me that I can’t? Especially with all of the good things I have in my life. I’m surrounded by beauty. So why am I still like this?...

All those times you came after me and I just ran away... I don’t know if I would’ve ever done that for you had our roles been reversed. I’m not sure I’d do it now… I’d want to. But something dark would stop me. It would tell me to give you your space. It would tell me to let you have your revenge. Let you be angry. Let your hatred consume you so that you can be stronger for it. I would want to help you, but I don’t have the light for that. I’ll never be like you. But you make me want to try.

I’m sorry for fighting with you. That time on the roof… I was such a petulant little brat. Throwing a tantrum, because I’d always thought of myself as some kind of prodigy, I put myself so high above you, but I wasn’t and it drove me crazy. I don’t know why I did. And it’s not true that I only spared your life on a whim. I was just trying to sound detached and… well, maybe a little cool. I never wanted to kill you. I never even wanted to hurt you. I just knew that you wouldn’t let me go if I didn’t. One of us was going to end up in the hospital after that fight. I couldn’t let it be me… And then that fight after the war. *soft chuckle* We were both a bit foolish that day. But you know, you already had my respect. I just… I wanted to make sure that I had yours too. I wanted you to see that my time away from the village wasn’t a complete waste.

Though, looking back now… of course… I no longer believe that. I should’ve let love guide and motivate me.

Not hatred.

You were the first light in my life. Even though I kept trying to shut you off. I tried so hard to blow your flame out, but you’d just light it again. And then you’d make it bigger. And everytime I’d get more and more angry, furious. You’d match my darkness with your light until finally… I couldn’t extinguish your fire. Everything suddenly stopped feeling so cold and empty. It was like… I looked up one day and finally saw how full my heart was and the warmth just… washed over me.

You pulled me from my darkness even when I didn’t want you to. I’m not sure where I’d be if you hadn’t. Probably trying to burn the world to the ground.

I would love to just put my past behind me entirely and be the person I want to be. Not just for me, but for Sakura and Sarada. Even for you and Kakashi. Say thank you. Say I’m sorry.

Say… I love you…

I can’t be too sure, it’s all still so unfamiliar and new to me, but I’d like to think that I am motivated by love and light now.

And… well… I know you’re asleep, but I guess all I mean to say is. Thanks.

Loser… (said affectionately)

[sleeplesslark]

3 and 15 for the end of the year ask game!

Thank you very much for the ask!

This took awhile to answer because you made me reread my own writing, and I wanted to answer it properly.

3: Your favorite scene of the year:

Kabuto used up the rest of the sunlight walking aimlessly. He wasn’t looking to go anywhere in particular, but he ended up atop the Hokage monument, watching the sunset. He sat atop the Fourth’s head, not sure how he got there.

It wasn’t like he had anywhere else to be. No one was waiting for him back at the apartment. Besides, this had always been one of his favored spots, away from crowds, but allowing him a complete view of the village.

Kabuto did what he did best. He turned his attention to what he could control. After Lee’s surgery he’d help rebuild the village. From this high, it was easy to mentally map the damage the invasion of Konoha had caused. A trail of destruction with its origin in the stadium where the Chunin exams had ended. That had been Sasuke’s match against Gaara, hadn’t it?

 Kabuto tapped his fingers on his kneecap. He didn’t like physical labor. He’d never been strong, especially for a shinobi. If it got him out of staying in his apartment all day though, helping with the repairs would at least keep his mind safely away from reality. After that he’d be back in his element. Spy work would keep him from ever needing to think again.

“Soon,” Kabuto said, leaning back. He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. “Soon you’ll be out of here and you’ll never have time to think again.”

Kabuto sat back up, staring down at the village, biting his lip. “How do you do it, keep marching on like that?”

From this high the people were unrecognizable dots, like pieces on a game board. They moved in a kind of controlled chaos. Even so, Kabuto picked apart, and made mental notes of their movements, watching a few specific people and tried to figure out their routine. Some habits never die, Kabuto suspected he’d be inclined to automatically gather information until his last day. Several people moved like shinobi, leaping to and between rooftops.

Kabuto rested his chin on his hand, it was this kind of grandstanding that made him uncomfortable with Konoha shinobi. Well, any kind of shinobi really. So many of them were the kinds of people who thought they were the most powerful, important, person in any room they were in. That mentality ended with a bigger, quieter, fish eating them. Seven Chunin exams under his belt, and this was one of the few things about Shinobi he was certain of.

“Should I be more charitable?” Kabuto asked. He kicked the Fourth’s stone hair when he wasn’t given an answer. “Hm, quiet are you? I guess I can respect that.”

He should be more charitable. Maybe they were trying to convince the civilians that Konoha was still strong, maybe even strong enough that tragedy would never touch it again. It would be stupid for anyone to believe that. He’d yet to be convinced of Konoha's intelligence as a concept.

“You know, this isn’t a good exercise, it doesn’t take enough focus,” Kabuto said. Again, the Fourth’s stone head didn’t offer any good advice, bastard that he was.

Kabuto groaned loudly, laying back and staring at the stars. No matter how hard he tried to distract himself, his mind went back to Sasuke. Oh, he understood Kakashi not letting him anywhere near Konoha’s prodigy. It didn’t make it sting less though, not out of shame, or even the knowledge that Konoha still didn’t trust him. He’d be given ample trust in time.

No, the reason he was irritable was that he wouldn’t have the satisfaction of playing a part in keeping the boy from Lord Orochimaru. Kabuto knew he was clever. It was why he was worth being traded between factions. He was certain he could find a phrasing that would bypass the seal. There were, after all, many things he could say that would undoubtedly cause Sasuke doubt about Lord Orochimaru’s ability to give him the power to defeat Itachi Uchiha.

“I don’t think I’m that necessary though, not on that front,” Kabuto said, rolling onto his side so he could go back to looking at Konoha.

He doubted the boy would go for it. Sasuke may be unsatisfied. with the rate of his growth right now, but he had strong bonds with the people of Konoha. If Kabuto had someone look at him with the same expression Naruto had when he found Sasuke awake in the hospital…he struggled to think of anything that could convince him to leave them.

End scene

I generally don't like my writing. I'm trying to move to having more of a neutrality to it though. I wanted to pick a scene I'd enjoyed writing the first time and editing. Also not something too recent.

This scene is from LP 1. It's kinda the moment I started enjoying the story. I think I finally got into Kabuto's head a bit here. I still have a ways to go with writing him in a way I like, but this kinda had me thinking I might be able to enjoy writing him. More than just, this is a thing to write and finish. Something I could enjoy on par with my original work.

15: Something you learned this year:

This was also hard. I graduated college this year, moved halfway across the country twice, and began focusing on a long fanfic rather than original novels.

Writing wise? I'm kind of learning to enjoy writing again. I don't wanna say a complete process. I still can't reread most of my writing. It's lesser though. I can finish my own projects now, something I've struggled with for years. It's not about being perfect I suppose, not the first go around. I'm learning to edit, identify my issues rather than just cringing and restarting.

Fanfic helped a lot with that. Even if I'm the worst author to write Kabuto I'm one of hundreds. So it's easier to just go "ok I'll just tell the story I see here" than fixating on doing it the right way. Soo, kinda getting over perfectionism? Not there yet, and this isn't to say I haven't got to improve as an author but, maybe I'm getting there. Maybe someday I'll be able to release a piece and just be proud of it. Here's to 2024.

[bitchnojutsu]

okay HI i came back to this!! amazing work chandu i will be rereading this forever and ever and consulting it moving forward. you’re so right and should keep saying it; these are the things that stand out to me that i would love to scream about together:

- tenten def notices other people’s looks but is overall more drawn by what she thinks is cool about them. there’s another post about tenten’s style and characterization that i really like which emphasizes tenten’s lack of overt femininity, and i think tenten wants to be recognized - more than for her appearance; maybe more than anything, at some point, to a degree - as cool herself. tenten doesn’t want or have a ton of power (even socially, i’d argue), but she positions herself in the sphere of it. her icon is a “legendary kunoichi” and the fifth hokage. she bemoans her sensei and teammate frequently for being cringe in her vicinity. the one thing she can do that is really cool - carry any size or quantity of anything, anywhere - gets completely dismissed as “convenient” by lee and neji during their chunin exams in suna, and we saw how that affected tenten’s morale.

- on that point, hell, her entire friendship with neji: her bestie is a bully victim neglected child prodigy from a prominent and revered clan, set up in the first chunin exams as The Kid To Beat, and just like you pointed out, tenten was right at his side for that entire month between prelims and finals. also, i want to emphasize what you said about tenten being the mouthpiece during the finals: her whole interlude where she’s giving exposition to the viewers like us bragging on neji’s abilities? tenten isn’t speaking out loud to anyone. she’s just smirking to herself and staring down at the arena, thinking about how neji is so talented and so well prepared and so strong and so cool.

- re: tenten being one of those people you find yourself accidentally saying too much to. that has to be how her actual friendship with neji started tbh. and i think it was clan related, hence why we got tenten’s close up reaction among hiashi’s and hiruzen’s when neji started his lore dump. like you suggested, she already knew.

- tenten’s friendships with her teammates are notably different but consistent. like i think neji is her best friend and rock lee is her brother. (i’m getting a little ahead of myself, but tenten’s relationship to her teammates is what sakura’s would look like with her teammates if we removed sakura’s crush on sasuke and naruto’s crush on sakura)

- the databook stats have zero consistency but is anyone surprised lmao

- TENTEN DOES DID NOT LIKE HINATA. (we’re veering into headcanon territory, but especially after *certain events* toward the end of shippuden, regardless of everything else, y’all think tenten likes hinata now??)

- for reasons you already explained i also think tenten has complicated feelings about sakura. i’ve mentioned in a few of my own posts that i see team 7 and team gai as foils for each other, pairing tenten and sakura in that manner, which is giving me even more thoughts in this context. obviously they get along well enough, they seem to respect each other, but i’m considering tenten’s self esteem and mental health and her saying she wants to fight sakura and the goals she physically would never be able to accomplish while she had to sit back and watch sakura literally live out her dream…

- …which opens the door for a friendship between tenten and ino. hello, busybodies!

- while i’m talking about tenten and every other kunoichi, let’s go ahead and focus on temari. she handed tenten’s ass to her on a silver platter, publicly, without batting an eye, all while tenten was still confused because she uncharacteristically missed her mark. her disbelief is valid as explained, and the point of the fight was to poise temari as a serious competitor for the final round, but i’m also going to gripe at kishimoto here - tenten got done so dirty in this fight. if he wanted tenten’s error to be that she missed her mark, temari could have created a shadow clone for tenten to waste her time attacking, thus allowing tenten to show off her incredible skill while forcing her to “miss” her true mark and opening her up to an attack, and planting the idea to use a shadow clone in temari’s head for later purposes.

- you touched on tenten not liking people she perceives as weak, and how could tenten not perceive herself as weak after that quick defeat? in front of everyone? after waiting an extra year before signing up for the exams? the only member of her team to not break to the finals? and she missed her mark?! that’s a core memory. that’s ego-shattering, soul-crushing, reality-questioning, life-changing shit.

- the idea of a lowkey one-sided rivalry between tenten and temari a la lee and neji is so funny to me, and also plausible given how much of an impact losing that fight had on tenten. (though the exact same is true for sakura and i think tenten would be ready to fight both of them anytime)

- i love your point about tenten applying her enthusiasm for research to her weaponry because of course she would! she’s a one-woman museum and proud of it! there are easter eggs of this in reliance, but i like to imagine that she falls down all kinds of research rabbit holes; she may not be a med nin but she learns everything she can about the human body, we see her consult kurenai while in her ultimate tsukuyomi world for advice about genjutsu and i believe she kept studying that back in The Real World™️, she has to know a thing or two about space-time jutsu by nature of the transportation jutsu itself. but we also know that in the naruto world, “research” sometimes is a double entendre! a woman of many hobbies, truly

- you said the right string of words to trigger my activation phrase so now you get to hear me talk about one of my favorite venn diagrams in all of naruto: the overlap between tenten and shikamaru. she wants to be recognized so badly and works hard for it, he works hard not to be recognized so he doesn’t have to do hard work. / i would not be surprised if during that month between exam prelims and finals, shikamaru was constantly replaying and assessing tenten’s performance against temari in his mind, or if he straight up hunted down tenten (and neji by proxy) one day to ask about a few logistics and called his training done. / loud, strong women (like tsunade and temari) grate on young shikamaru while they’re everything tenten would want to be if she actually believed she could be like them. / re: tenten has chill vibes and can get people to open up. i think shikamaru opens up to tenten on purpose sometimes. perhaps on that one random mission they went on together; sometime approaching the war when naruto and yamato and gai etc. were on a boat for a long time and needed a supply drop (tenten’s mission), shikaku saw that shikamaru needed to take a step back from war prep and nominated him to accompany tenten. ironically enough for the both of them (considering shikamaru’s woes during the sasuke retrieval arc, the trap team gai encountered in the desert in their second exams, and the end of the upcoming war, unbeknownst to shikamaru and tenten at this time), the trap they fell into was a series of genjutsu creating perilous conditions for the boat. i think in the adult generation - excluding sasuke’s sharingan and the knack for genjutsu that sakura should have had - tenten and shikamaru are among the best equipped shinobi to encounter genjutsu.

i made your long post longer but i hope it was worth it <3

Just noting down some things about Tenten that influence my view of her characterization/personality. primarily for my own reference as i’m writing, as well as to kind of get a more mature and consistent characterization of her than i had before. this gonna be an extremely long and rambling post, (where I think I repeat myself a whole lot oops) and there’s not really anything profound, just some traits i’m pulling from canon and interpreting.

most of Tenten’s ’canon’ characterization comes from filler and databooks, which I then further interpret, so a lot of her characterization in this post is three degrees of fanon/headcanon, with some liberties taken where I dislike the interpretation.

We’re introduced to Tenten during the chunin exams, where she’s seen throwing kunai at a target dummy that Neji is sitting under. She casually throws her kunai and hits the target dead center, instantly showing her marksmanship skill, but also Neji’s implicit trust in her since he doesn’t even flinch and the target is pretty much right over his head. This ties in later but basically, he fully trusts that she will not miss.

We see Tenten again before the first round of the chunin exams, while Izumo and Kotetsu are blocking the door. The thing I find notable in that scene is Tenten not being immune to Sasuke LOL.

(Manga panel grabbed from @tentenarchive)

it's interesting to me that her thing is specifically that there's not a single scratch on him, and that he's "cool". Makes sense given that she's on a team with Gai and Lee and she desperately wants them to be cool too. And she dislikes weak people so yeah, of course it's cool to her that he's untouchable.

Actually on this topic, Tenten's taste seems to be "cool people"? In a filler episode (naruto 162) she thinks that the lord of a local land is really cute when she sees him get down for his palanquin. The lord's whole thing is that he's like cold and cool and pensive etc. so this seems to be Tenten's taste to some degree. He turns out to actually be a girl in the end so yknow. bi Tenten confirmed.

Here's her page from the first databook (screenshotted from The Narutoversity). She gets annoyed at Lee injuring himself for Sakura's sake, which I'm pretty sure isn't really out of care so much as it is that they're in the middle of the forest of death in like. the worst situation possible. Love how Ino's just standing there like "what the fuck kind of medical care is this".

I generally dislike the stats since I find that they’re inaccurate to what we see on-panel (a whole rant I could go on another time tbh), and Kishimoto tends to skew them egregiously in favor of characters he particularly likes. Ex: genin era Neji’s total is 21, and shippuden Tenten’s is 20.5. You cannot seriously be telling me that Neji as a genin is stronger than chunin Tenten three years in the future. Come on Kishimoto. There are a few things of note here though, so let’s go through them anyway.

Tenten’s highest stat is her speed, at 3, which is the same as Sasuke from the same databook. So clearly, she’s fast, especially since Sasuke is known for his speed. She's not as fast as Lee, but still quick on her feet and dexterous, with fast reflexes. Makes sense, since the second databook describes her fighting style as “dancing flexibly and firing speedily”.

Her strength is a 1 and her stamina is a 1.5, which is insane to me. Like she’s on Team Gai???? They do 500 laps around Konoha and 1000+ pushups every day???? I reject canon here, fuck u kishi, I know she’s actually buff as hell and has hella stamina.

Her intelligence is a 2, which might seem super low but it matches Sasuke's intelligence, and is only 0.5 lower than Neji and Temari's. I think it just goes to show that the scale for these stats is skewed as hell. But basically what this means is that she operates at a similar level to Sasuke, Temari, and Neji, where she picks up on the things around her, and while she isn't operating on the level of Shikamaru, she's still a good strategist.

Back to the actual show, we get to the elimination round and her fight against Temari (episode 43). I’m basing this part off the anime because their fight in the manga is like three panels long.

So technically, this is “filler” (as if any tenten fan really cares lol).

From the Hokage's commentary, her battle sense is pretty good. She positions herself a perfect distance away from the enemy. She's trying to bait Temari into attacking, to see what her power is and figure out how to counter it, and Temari calls her out on it.

Tenten isn't a 200 IQ genius strategist the way Shikamaru is, but she is still a smart fighter. We can see she thinks in a similar way to him (and Temari) feeling out the enemy's power and what they can do before counterattacking strategically. I need them to be best friends tbh.

Her first reaction when she throws her shuriken at Temari and misses is surprise. She is deeply confident in her own abilities, so it's genuinely shocking to her. She yells "I missed? There's no way!" and in the stands, Gai also insists up and down that Tenten never misses.

She has the utmost confidence in herself, and from the rest of her team. None of them have any doubt in her, and this also ties back to that introductory scene. No wonder Neji let her chuck kunai at targets near him. It's probably something she does regularly too.

Tenten loses to Temari, and is immediately down on herself. We see a lot of this in Shippuden 237, where she's lying in the hospital and loses all her confidence in herself and her abilities.

Shippuden 237 shows us that Tenten does actually have self-esteem issues, even before this fight with Temari. During their first year as genin, when Lee keeps getting defeated by Neji, Tenten tells Lee that he really should just give up on beating Neji, because he's a genius, and Lee is not. It's clear in the voice acting and the expressions that to some extent, Tenten isn't just speaking about Lee when she says this, she's also speaking about herself.

She seems to compare herself a lot to others, often in a negative light, talking down about herself when others are better than her, but still trying her best to surpass them.

But the way she talks after losing to Temari is much worse. Her match with Temari affects her deeply, and likely for many years to come. I think it becomes one of her primary motivations to become stronger, as she keeps holding that moment as her lowest point and vowing to never be that helpless against an opponent again.

Headcanons here. After her fight with Temari, Tenten also throws herself into learning 1) fire jutsu to combat Temari’s wind (this is why she develops that dragon bomb jutsu she uses during the Konoha Crush filler episode), and 2) seals that can absorb/store away opponents’ attacks.

I think Tenten’s primary chakra nature is actually lightning, which is also why she is so weak to wind chakra. I love this post by @/fineillsignup that goes into detail about chakra natures, and a lot of the traits listed under lightning nature fit with my interpretations of Tenten. I also am heavily biased toward the idea of Kakashi, who is basically student-less during the interlude period, teaching Tenten lightning jutsu since she's his husband's friend's student.

Going back to that scene in shippuden 237, I do think her talking down to Lee in their first year as genin is also interesting. Even though I love the idea of Lee and Tenten being besties before Team Gai and her standing up for him, I think the reality is that she probably didn’t really talk to him in the Academy, and once they were on the same team, she was kind to him, and learned to work with him.

Lee very specifically mentions in a flashback in episode 100 that nobody told him anything encouraging, sensei or student. This obviously includes Tenten. So while she wasn’t outright mean to him, she also didn’t have the greatest opinion of him.

She very quickly found herself relating with him, and that probably made her take out some of her own self-loathing on him at first. Eventually they become close, and form a very deep friendship, but things start out pretty rocky.

Kishimoto confirms that every day for a month between the second and final rounds of the chunin exams, Neji and Tenten train together in secret to help him reverse-engineer the 8 trigrams 64 palms and the rotation. It’s interesting that everyone else goes to train with a jounin and only Neji chooses to train with his teammate.

I think this implies Tenten to be a good secret keeper and evidence that Neji already told her about the cursed seal and all the clan drama. During Neji’s speech to Naruto, Tenten’s reaction is shown alongside Hiruzen and Hiashi’s, both of whom already know all about the curse mark and his father’s death. So Neji has told Tenten as well.

Plus Tenten is uniquely suited to help with Rotation, since she can throw a billion knives no jutsu.

During Naruto vs Neji, Tenten gets used as the mouthpiece to explain Neji's attacks, which also shows how well she knows him after training with him for the Chunin exams, but she's also genuinely impressed when Naruto wins, and even compliments him.

There's a brief scene during Shikamaru v Temari where Tenten comments about how she couldn't beat Temari. Also look at her arms. A 1 for her strength stat??? with those arms??? sure kishi.

Okay, we move on to when Orochimaru attacks Konoha, and there’s this filler episode (shippuden 192) where Hinata gets kidnapped by Kumo shinobi. This episode has some small Tenten moments, where you can also see how Neji thinks of her, and I like them a lot.

We start off with Tenten going to check in on Neji after his conversation with Hiashi, and he actually opens up and tells her all about what they had just spoken about, another sign that he's told her about everything with his clan.

When Hinata is kidnapped and the Hyuuga Elder makes Neji go get her, Tenten comes with him, not out of any particular concern for Hinata, but purely to back up Neji. I doubt she likes Hinata much at first (my eyes were opened after this post by @tentenismybitch), so she’s doing this more for Neji’s sake.

As they're chasing after the man who kidnapped Hinata, they get caught in a trap, and Tenten tells Neji to leave her behind (strategic thinking) and Neji only hesitates for a second before agreeing and going on ahead. Neji expresses that this is because he knows Tenten can handle herself.

We see her using a new jutsu (the Dragon Bomb), which as I mentioned before, I think she developed with Temari in mind.

During the Hokage’s funeral we do see her in funeral attire looking sad but is she really? debatable. I think no, but it’s not entirely relevant. This is all personal headcanon here, not based on canon evidence beyond extrapolating from what I’ve seen.

Tenten doesn't strike me as someone burning with loyalty to the village and harping on about the “will of fire” and whatnot. She does her duty, and that’s about it. It doesn’t go further than that. She cares about the people dear to her, but not really about the village specifically.

After the Hokage’s funeral, Tenten doesn’t appear again until the end of the Search For Tsunade arc, which I think is her last non-filler appearance in the original series other than a few flashbacks.

She’s excited about Tsunade coming to the village, and tells Neji after he trains, and asks him to come with her to go see Tsunade. Neji tells her he’s not interested, and Tenten looks a little disappointed.

We see Tenten in some flashbacks to Lee's genin years (episode 100). As Neji is talking down to Lee, Tenten doesn't really say anything, which matches with what i said earlier. But, when Gai tells them that with hard work, anyone can be a shinobi, Tenten has a similar reaction to Lee, while Neji just looks annoyed.

What Gai says seems to give her hope. That with enough hard work, anyone can become great. She doesn't think of herself as a genius, and if anything, seems to group herself with Lee in terms of ability. This is also shown in Shippuden 237, which I'll discuss later.

After this we only see Tenten in the end-of-series filler, which will be part 2 of this post since it's already really long. We'll finish off by looking at data book 2, which came out after the manga for the first series had finished.

From the second data book (screenshot also taken from the Narutoversity), we see part of her personality is being a "busybody" LMFAOOOO. So yeah she's inquisitive and curious, being a research enthusiast, but also uses that same nature to get in on everyone's business too. We can assume she's also observant and detail-oriented, can probably read people pretty well.

I like this a lot! I think Tenten is a good people person, and many find her easy to get along with. She’s probably one of those people that you accidentally find yourself telling really important or deep stuff to without really knowing why. She’s just got this air around her that’s very chill and comfortable.

But I do think she’s nosy, and does wanna know about everything, just to be in the know. She’s a little detective LOL.

The research enthusiast part is a fun thing too. She strikes me as a tinkerer, messing with new weapon designs or seal ideas, constantly turning something over in her head.

The first and second databooks list her hobby as fortune-telling, which is also really cute. I think she knows palmistry and does readings for her friends, and has some knowledge of astrology. She isn't overly superstitious, but she does believe in ghosts, and gets fairly nervous when she sees or hears something that can be considered a bad omen.

She has pride in her weapons, clearly, and her arsenal is implied to be the largest and strongest of any ninja. I’d like to assume that some of her pride comes from the weapons in her arsenal that are of her own design.

Her 'carefree, smiling face' is also an interesting point. At first I was unsure how to interpret this, but to me it reads as her being rather laid-back and carefree, despite her power and lethality. Again, not very sure how to interpret this line and I'd love to hear how anyone else sees it!

It’s cute that Tsunade coming to the village and becoming hokage made Tenten train harder. I think aside from her defeat to Temari, this becomes another major motivation for Tenten. She wants to impress Tsunade, the kunoichi that she admires most.

She says she'd like to fight Sakura, so I think there's some kind of jealousy or something to prove there since Sakura got to be Tsunade’s apprentice and Tenten didn't. This goes back to her low self-esteem and those issues she’s been having since her fight with Temari.

Shippuden 237 touches on this but Tenten did actually try to become a medical ninja for a bit, she just didn’t have the chakra control necessary. Obviously this adds to her insecurities when Sakura turns out to be a natural at medical ninjutsu with unnaturally good chakra control.

I’m not a huge fan of the ‘trying to be a mednin’ part of this ngl, I think she’s a little too fixated on weapons to truly care about medical ninjutsu, and wants to emulate Tsunade just for the ‘strongest kunoichi’ part rather than trying to be her exact carbon copy. Plus, I think (headcanon) Tenten’s chakra control has to be at least decently good in order to do seals, but that’s a different rabbit hole. I tend to disregard this in my fics and will likely continue to do so.

I do like the thing of being jealous of Sakura in some way for being Tsunade’s apprentice, though. It’s some nice flavor and I appreciate the one-sided rivalry. I think it would be funny for Sakura to think of Tenten as the cool senpai and look up to her, meanwhile Tenten is struggling to not immediately challenge her to a duel, Gai-style.

Since this is already super long, I’ll do a part 2 for all the filler arcs she’s in, and then a part 3 for shippuden.

[empressofthesunwriter]

Goddess of the Sun, Queen of the Stars

On a night shooting stars cross over Konohagakure the life of 12-year-old Hinata changes forever. A white wolf named Shiranui searched for her to end the reign of the “Planet Eaters” as she calls the enemy. The young Hyuuga awakens power beyond her imagination. But will it be enough to end the millennia-old conflict?

OP!Hinata

Goddess!Hinata   

Chapter 3: Beginning

Slowly breathing in and out Hinata stood before her classroom door.

When she goes through this door…she will start her life as kunoichi of the village hidden in the leaves.

Even with all the training she had done over the year with Shiranui, the Hyuuga Heiress was still in disbelief that she managed to become a Genin yesterday.

Also, Iruka-Senei congratulated her, as being kunoichi of the year. 

A spot Haruno Sakura would have gotten if her Hoshi-Kami friend never had stepped into her life, she was sure.

“Nervous, Hinata-Chan?”, asked Shiranui in the form of a star brooch on the dark blue Obi she wore.

As a graduation gift, Shiranui had given her a new ninja gear. 

Hinata wore a sleeveless black turtleneck made out of soft fabric. Woven in it was the plate of a headband from Konoha.

An off-the-shoulder white kimono jacket with golden trims and the already named dark blue Obi with Shiranui in the form of a silver star brooch.

Simple dark blue baggy pants and the standard ninja sandals, kunai holder and pouches on her back completed the outfit.

It was one of the most beautiful things she ever wore.

It also made her nervous.

Showing her shoulders…also her clothes did nothing to hide her..erm…developed figure…if this wasn’t a gift, Hinata would never wear such a thing.

Nervously she played with a kimono sleeve, answering her wolf companion: “Kind of…I’m not used to such clothes…also what will happen now that I’m a Genin.”

“We will cross the bridge when we get there.”, advised Shiranui. “Already making yourself freak out will do nothing good. Keeping a calm head is the key to being a good shinobi and one day a powerful goddess.”

Only because she heard the Hoshi-Kami say this for a year, Hinata managed not to sign and again saying she would never be the goddess, the Messiah, Shiranui wanted.

Did the hellish training of Shiranui turn her into the best kunoichi of her class?

Yes.

Did it turn her into the heiress her father wanted? 

Also yes.

Could she use advanced Jutsu like Kagebushin and was she not affin to all 5 elements?

Yes, Yes!

But it didn’t mean she was a goddess.

Maybe, and even thinking this made Hinata feel unworthy, a prodigy in the ninja arts.

There were still a lot of shinobi out there who would clean the floor with her without breaking a sweat.

Sadly she couldn’t win against Shiranui. She was a blockhead trough and trough.

Hinata only waited for the day she WOULD undoubtedly screw up and her wolf companion would see what big mistake she made in laying all her hopes in the Hyuuga Heiress.

So she only thanked Shiranui for her words and entered the classroom. 

Swift, she found a place to sit down, hoping no one would take note of her.

Thankful no one did.

But she took note of something pleasing.

Naruto was in the room, proudly wearing a headband.

Naruto-Kun was able to graduate…she thought happily for him.

Then Sakura and Ino formally burst into the room and all got downhill from there.

Our goddess-to-be didn’t need to see Naruto and Sasuke accidentally kiss. 

Naruto's first kiss was stolen in such a stupid way. 

She wanted to cry.

In her brooch form, Shiranui nearly died of laughter seeing the scene.

Over the past year, the Hoshi-Kami had learned that the blond boy was always good for a laugh.

Still, neither of the two females liked that Sasuke’s Fanclub beat the poor boy up.

It was a stupid accident, not like both boys wanted to lock lips.

Anyway, Iruka-Sensei finally arrived, which calmed the class down. 

He sends them all a warm and happy smile.

“Starting today, you are all official ninjas, but…You all are still new Genin…”, he began. “It’s going to get harder from here.”

He explained how they would form a group of three with a Jonin instructor as their sensei doing missions together.

Again Hinata played with her kimono sleeve. It would be nice to be with Naruto-Kun in a team…I don’t know who should be our third. I’m open to anything.

For her growth and allies, she needs…Uzumaki and Uchiha., thought Shiranui. No doubt the reincarnations of the sons of the Sage of the Six Paths will play a major role in this world…

Calmly Iruka-Sensei began to read the teams aloud, Hinata got more twitchy any second she didn’t hear Naruto’s or her name.

She didn’t want to hope…but it would be so nice to finally talk and interact with Naruto. 

Even if they were only teammates, Hinata wished to be closer to her crush.

“Next the 7th group, Uzumaki Naruto…”

So hard Hinata gripped her kimono sleeve so that Shiranui thought she would rip it apart any second.

“...Hyuuga Hinata…”

…Did she hear right?!

A tiny happy squeak came out of her mouth. Blushing she put her hands over it.

Please, let nobody have heard it…

If someone did it was forgotten since the third and last name was Sasuke Uchiha!

Not only did Naruto crumple like a balloon, but Sasuke’s Fanclub, mostly Sakura and Ino, screeched in outrage!

“Why her?!”

“This is not fair!”

“She doesn’t even like him!”

“No Sasuke-Kun belongs with me, how could destiny be so cruel!”

Oh Kami, Hinata wished to crawl into her kimono, why did it have to be off-the-shoulder?

“Girls calm down!”, shouted Iruka-Sensei over the hyestric fangirls. “Hinata was placed on the team since she is the top kunoichi. It’s tradition to put the Rookie of the Year, Sasuke here, the top kunoichi and the dead last in one team. It balances their weaknesses out.”

Naruto didn’t seem to have listened since he asked how a top student like him was placed in a team with Sasuke. Again Iruka-Sensei explained the reasons. 

Sasuke told Naruto arrogantly to not get in his way.

The two boys would surely fought each other if Iruka-Sensei hadn’t stopped them.

I take it back…not anyone with Naruto and myself…even Sakura would be better…

Damn, that sibling rivalry transcends lifetimes…my poor Hinata-Chan…

The Hyuuga and the wolf in brooch form had a sweatdrop running down.

After Iruka-Sensei called for the other teams, Shiranui took only note that Team 8 would be the Inuzuka boy, the Aburame and the Haruno-Fangirl and Team 10 Yamanaka, Nara and Akimichi, it was time for lunch.

Thoughtful Hinata ate the Bento she had prepared for herself. She had wanted to ask Naruto and Sasuke out to eat with her. 

It would be good to bond with them, but she had chickened out.

For all the power she was wielding now…she still was shy and timid.

Also, her wolf friend wanted to talk with her.

So she sat down alone on a secluded bench and waited for Shiranui to speak.

“What do you know about the Sage of Six Path, Hinata-Chan?”, was she asked.

Okay, she didn’t expect that.

“Not much.”, she admitted. “Only that legends say he was the one who first unlocked Chakra and he taught it to the rest of the world.”

“Remember when last week I returned for the weekend to my home planet?”

“Yes, you didn’t want to tell me why.”

“I needed some information on this world, just in case you would be placed in a team with Naruto and Sasuke.”

The Hyuuga stopped mind-chow. Confused she looked down at her brooch.

“What? Why Shiranui-San?”

“Both are reincarnations. Important ones. Let me tell you the story of the Sage of the Six Paths.”

And she listened.

[team7-headquarter]

My personal headcanon is that Naruto is brilliant in battle tactics because he doesn't care about certain rules like decency or what is appropriate.

We're talking about the little prick that tricked Kaguya with the sexy jutsu, that threatened Kakashi with icha-icha spoilers, that won one of his Chunnin Exams fights by farting. A complete idiot, but brilliant nonetheless.

So it takes some time but eventually people start to realize just how creative he is and how well he uses the resources at hand. Kakashi says he must have got it from Minato.

Sakura is a genius with theories and concepts, with the technical implications and the facts. Sasuke is a more traditional battle tactics prodigy, preparing himself before the fight and evaluating the situation with critical eye, in order to decide how to act and what is the best path of action. Naruto? He's Mr. Wild Card. You never know what he'll throw at you and he uses that to his favor.

That's how the "losers team" is actually balanced in terms of intelligence and skills.

[theheirofthesharingan]

I didn't knew you were pro-uchiha too, so I would love to deepen this discussion ahead. I stand corrected about the war thing. Well, I admit that coup would have started a war which makes choosing the village a safest option to guarantee the peace. But when I think about it, maybe Itachi might have played it out differently. Both Itachi and Shisui were prodigies who had prestigious powers and talent. Especially for Itachi, he was promoted to the Anbu at 11 years. Both had a lot of political influence. They could have used this to their advantage to stop the coup. In the novels, he did say that he understood the clan's predicament. But he could have asked the clan about their distress or could have tried to comfort them with lightening words. This might have ensured that the clan trusted him completely just like how they did for Shisui. It isn't like he didn't know how to sympathise or verbally comfort, since he did very much so with Sasuke. So, he would have been able to succeed gradually to convince the clan to not to launch a coup by slowing illustrating/explaning them why they were wrong, without having any harsh disagreements or critisms. This also would have been possible with Shisui too. It's just a alternative not sure if it would have worked.

Now that you mentioned about Madara(which I completely forgot about)now I think that his decision did made sense. Madara, a dangerous enemy for the village was better handled by Itachi. He successfully managed to keep Madara away from the village for more than 7+ years till strong Shinobi like Naruto and Sasuke was brought up who could save their people from him. The honour of the Uchihas, his little brother's life and the well being of the people of the village were shouldered upon him ultimately becoming a greatest victim. I never did disagreed on that. But I felt as if that would have been avoided but now I understand better.

I'm very much pro-Uchiha. Loving Itachi doesn't mean I don't love Sasuke or don't understand the clan's plight. They were all victims of Konoha and none of them deserve to be scorned for what happened to them.

You're mistaking Itachi's IQ with his EQ. He was a genius doesn't mean he was good with people. Him and Shisui are two very different people. Shisui was sociable and amiable kid and Itachi was reserved. He was also much younger than Shisui. Expressing himself in front of Sasuke and expressing himself in front of people are two different things too. Sasuke was a kid. The clan wasn't. You're expecting too much from a literal child here who was trying his own best to stop the destruction and was burdened with all the impossible things. From the moment he saw war and decided to change the system/world and make it a better place, he took this burden upon himself and he had no one to stand beside him. Shisui's death left him completely alone.

I'll be repeating myself because I'd already answered why there was no other way either for Itachi or the clan. Itachi would have done something else had there been any other way. If he were a little bit older, he'd be more mature and your suggestions might be executed, but you're talking about a kid who wasn't even a teen at that time. He had his own set of ideals and lack of any other options left him with what he did.

Yep. He knew the Akatsuki, Madara were upto no good. So he warned the village and even talked Kisame out of capturing Naruto when they captured the Four Tails.

Itachi is a tragic character not only because of all the horrible things that happened to him but also the things he did. He took their full responsibility instead of blaming others, and suffered enormously. Even if the clan forgave him, Sasuke forgave him, everyone else forgave him, he would never forgive himself. He knew killing people was wrong, destroying Sasuke's life was wrong, and in the hindsight he did see flaws in his original plan, but he couldn't have acted much differently while he made those decisions.

[kiigan-archive]

The reaction was immediate.

Itachi's sharingan activated with a vengeance, the moment his instinct took note of something - namely, hands - so close to his eyes; ever the most prized possession to an Uchiha. In what could only be qualified as a miracle, however, no dreadful consequences came to be other than that moment of slight panic. Because... the same instinct was promptly telling him there would be no need to fell this person by means of retaliatory genjutsu, despite being a complete stranger. Because, instinct insisted, someone with shark-like features would never mean Itachi any real harm. Gods. He had to have a concussion. No other explanation for such naivety, if even his most basic self-preservation instincts were that dazzled. Deciding to not fight against it, already having far more than enough to deal with for the time being, Itachi exhaled and willed his heartbeat to return to normal - irises once again fading back to mostly harmless black.

With all that, he even missed out on the whole whatever the young lady was busy with, in order to, apparently, offer Sasuke a sliver of healing and care. The only thing that mattered. A medic shinobi, then? Despite all else, Itachi couldn't keep a smile from his lips when the most-likely Kiri-nin claimed to be protecting him [again, why was he so at ease with the notion of being kept safe by someone from the Bloody Mist, of all the places?] from scenes not suitable for younger audiences. This sweet summer child; if only he knew half the things Itachi had seen and felt and touched and tasted and, overall, experienced. He dutifully did not move, then, nor did he attempt to peek, because keeping that image of innocence and purity in Sasuke's mind was also something that greatly mattered.

All of a sudden, however, the group mood did a one-eighty and all to be blamed on a single word: ANBU. Itachi's eyes widened slightly in response to the animosity being thrown at him, brain promptly entering overdrive yet again to try and puzzle the pieces together. Sasuke did mention something about the two of them being wanted criminals... therefore, his friends' reaction was accordingly. What was not accordingly, never would be even if Izanagi and Izanami themselves wrote it by decree, was the implication of a brother who was out to kill Sasuke. What, why, how, when, where, by what force in existence...? Itachi could feel his eyes burning, despite remaining unchanged and inactivated, as if about to spill tears made of blood.

"What brother-"

In what had to be the worst timing in the entire generational line since Madara himself, Sasuke's words interrupted his own, and Itachi was left bereft of an explanation for what brother are you talking about; hardly the first, that day, and he highly doubted it'd be the last. But it thoroughly displeased him all the same. Prodigy and genius, most would call him; helpless control freak, might be the words of choice from his ANBU teammates. Whatever the adjectives, few things bothered Itachi more than to be ignorant when it came to relevant matters and what, pray tell, could be more relevant than his little brother's life being threatened by another implied ghost brother? Breathe in, regulate your emotions, compartimentalize for later. Never in his life, just as much, had he been more grateful for the unforgiving ANBU training. With a silent nod, he took a moment to study the sun's position and determine the right direction to go, trusting the group of friends to follow his lead as he took off.

It should have been quick, given the short distance - yet, with carrying along Sasuke's injured form and with Itachi himself running on his last wisps of chakra, the journey took the best part of an hour. An hour of forcing himself to focus solely on the way to go, of trying not to mull over the question he so desperately wanted to return to, of having his throat seized by an invisible hand made of dull anxiety. Not the worst trek of Itachi's life, but by far he'd had better. Eventually, the safehouse came into view - nothing special, just an ordinary little cabin with a single room and a single bathroom, built from wood and half-encrusted in the hill growing above and around it, for proper concealment. From the nearest tree branch, Itachi landed in a manner heavier than usual, exhausted and sore and aching and dazed, stumbling a little as he approached the entrance. The barrier formula presented no issue and soon he was pushing the door open, stepping out of the way so that Sasuke could be taken inside.

"There is only one bed, let him have it."

Four teenagers and a single child out in the middle of nowhere. The perfect amount of variables for anything to go wrong, Juugo thinks. The others, well they were more worried about their self-imposed leader laying near incapacitated in Karin's arms. Never quicker was she to bare her arm, revealing the onslaught of blue-purple teeth marks that vanished somewhere into the fold of her sleeve, alluding to a trail that likely led up to her shoulder.

"Sasuke," her hand gestured his face over, tapping two fingers at the pressure point where his jaw connected with his skull. His mouth lulled open near the abused skin before biting down, hard, into already existing bite tracks to extract enough chakra to self-repair. Feasting for himself like a parasite, her hand pulse over his midsection to perform a diagnostic scan, determining where he needed to be mended.

Suigetsu, on the other hand, flipped his hands over Itachi's eyes. "Oop-- sorry, bub, this ain't for the young," he shuffled around him to block the view, deeming it too 'risqué' for a 'child'.

The child went on to mention something about medical care, which earned him a curious tilt of the waterling's head and a confused quirk of a brow from the boulder of a teen behind them all. Both heard 'ANBU' and their guard immediately raised, far enough for them to touch their fingers together in ready positions; resting on hilts and handsigns just in case reflex needs to pull through.

"Now give me one good reason why we should bring him anywhere near an ANBU establishment?? How do you even know what that is? Who even are you?" Suigetsu started his spur of questions, pale lavenders inspecting the older Uchiha a second time. "You're not colluding with that brother who was out to kill Sasuke, were ya?"

'Out to kill' were not fitting terms to what have been the momentous turning point in Sasuke's life; his climax and ending. However, the Uchiha's secrecy allowed little room for interpretation, leaving the rest of them to assume that his elder brother wanted to finish the job and carried a guilty conscious about murdering a child. Which didn't add up, as Karin would argue, given the rest of the clan children were murdered.

This was a point of argument almost quarterly for them.

After moments, enough of Sasuke's strength returned to him to manage a thread of conscious. Not nearly enough to rise, but enough to open his eyes to scene before him.

Just as he fears— nothing changed.

Itachi forever immortalized in the past, haunting Sasuke like his many nightmares, replaying endlessly in his waking moments. He wanted to scream. Amaterasu help him, he wanted to scream and cry until his throat bled and he could cry no more tears. But he can't, not with his team here looking to him for strength and leadership.

"Listen to him—" Sasuke chokes out, bitter and angry, with all the hate shirked from his pride," he knows where to take us."

"Haa— Sasuke-"

"Don't argue with me."

Defeated, Suigetsu slumped his shoulders in the most exaggerated forward tip of his weight with Karin sharing the feeling as she hoisted Sasuke against her.

" 'Kay, lil' man you hear 'im. Where we goin'?"

[peekintoeternity]

Why Obito?

Among many possible plot holes mysteries in Narutoverse, an interesting one is Madara's choice of apprentice: in a clan of elites and prodigies, for the completion of his singular life's goal, Madara chose... the black sheep.

Naruto: Shippūden - Episode #119

So, seriously, why Obito?

aka unhinged barely-coherent ramblings brought to you by @al-hekima's request :')

part 1: wtf old man you made no sense

Now, even though Madara himself has answered this question, he only engaged with it on a very superficial level, that is, he stated that he chose Obito because of his "deep love"—but why would this be a good reason?

Just because great love can be corrupted into great hate?

Naruto - Chapter #675

If only Madara wasn't a character marked by his manipulative ways and (poetically ironic) self-deception and (just a touch of) "madness"-

If only we refuse to assign him more depth & complexity (perhaps more even than the creators intended?)-

If only Madara wasn't revealed to have been so isolated and paranoid and lost in regret that he got conned by a strange lifeform claiming to be his own will...

Then, maybe, it'd be easy to take Madara at his word: Obito was his ideal pawn because he loved deeply, and love evolves into hatred, like a goshdarn Pokémon!

...except human ideals and sentiment (and bonds and emotional attachments) aren't so simple. Love doesn't always transform to hate, if ever, even when tainted—and certainly not so easily.

(Anddd let's not even get into the whole racist Uchiha biological determinism propaganda—courtesy of Tobirama—aka Curse of Hatred & "uCHihAz R oVeR-sEnSitiVe", etc.)

Just look at Sasuke.

Sure, he had grown to love his teammates (even almost dying for Naruto), but he didn't seem to particularly love his village, least of all in a brainwashed-by-state-propaganda kinda way...

(Ahem, hello, Uchiha "I'm gonna become Hokage and stop the war" Obito!)

Naruto - Chapter #653

Sasuke never was a crybaby, nor so soft-hearted that he couldn't stop himself from helping every elder he came across—to the point of being chronically late.

He never had a childhood friend with whom he shared true companionship and who was his whole support system (though his team was probably on the way to becoming a healthier version of that)—whom he simply couldn't lose.

And certainly, his whole mission in life wasn't to become Hokage and end the war for the sake of not only his loved ones, but also his village—even, as Madara said, all shinobi.

(Madara be like: Hashirama, is that you?)

All in all, Sasuke never exhibited what Madara would call "deep love" for the people around him, which Madara saw in Obito.

And yet, Sasuke grew to hate Konoha so strongly, he vowed to destroy it entirely.

(That Sasuke is a victim of the fucked up system and his "hatred" should actually be understood as, at least in part, righteous and justified anger—is a whole other topic.)

Naruto - Chapter #416

At the peak of it, Sasuke's hatred might have even surpassed Madara's himself; and it certainly eclipsed that of Obito, who never touched Konoha after the Kyūbi attack.

If one were to cite his "pact" with Itachi, well, many have rightly concluded that Obito was never really threatened by Itachi, whom he could easily eliminate—not least because Itachi was growing blind and succumbing to Ninja AIDS his mysterious lethal illness. Even if Obito were weaker, well, all he had to do was sic the entire Akatsuki on Itachi. (Deidara would have been delighted!) So, clearly, Itachi's pact is sadly inconsequential. Obito could've, and would've, destroyed Konoha—if he really wanted to.

In other words: this devotion & kindness that Madara cited are actually bad indicators for "who could grow to harbor the greatest hate", and Madara, on some level, should know this.

After all, Izuna—moreso than Madara, who'd even foregone vengeance on Tobirama for killing his beloved brother—held the most hate/distrust toward the Senju, and clearly he was more similar to Sasuke (as canon itself indicated via Hashirama's words) than to Naruto or Hashirama, let alone "crybaby" Obito.

Hence, our little thesis: there is another reason, the real reason, that Madara chose the boy who loved deeply.

(and as a quasi-outline, here I lazily quote the tags that started the convo lol)

real bruh moment from madara like hmmm mr warlord-

is it perhaps some unresolved issues/trauma

leading you to *choose obito* not for his talent/potential but... his love

has it not occurred to you that maybe- just maaaybe- this is your subconscious' desperate call for help (read: a therapist)?

your soul unwittingly yearning for an escape from the bitter unending road to the infinite tsukuyomi

on which you're shepherded by black zetsu- a thing that claims to be your own will

but only demands of you & never works for your happiness?

(​moment of silence for our fallen uchiha grim reaper)

like do yall ever think if madara never put a cursed seal on obito's heart

he might've been able to help madara and free him from bz

fr it really makes no sense for madara to choose a latebloomer like obito (black sheep?) when he could've picked literally any uchiha kid

i meannn genius shisui who *already had a mangekyo* at age 6-8... was RIGHT THERE

shisui got MS *during* the third war so even if the MS was after obito's rock moment-

shisui's sharingan had to have already matured (awakened up to 3 tomoe) BEFORE obito awakened his *base* sharingan

and i bet there were other unnamed uchiha kids- even orphans- who would've been a better apprentice for madara

madara & zetsu had no idea about kamui and could never have guessed so rly obito should've just been clearly shitty investment

and YET zetsu verbatim stated madara *chose* obito

even the ''obito is madara's direct descendant'' interpretation alone doesn't fully excuse this seemingly bad/risky call of madara's

so what if madara chose obito because- after watching all these random kids in the uchiha compound- he saw that nice loving kid and thought

deep down- without even admitting it to himself- without even *understanding* the pull he felt from this loser crybaby slowlearner kid-

"maybe this kid could save me"

part 2: so wait wdym "choose obito" (or: what zero pussupport system does to a mf)

First, let's note that Madara willingly and knowingly made the choice to pick Obito to be his "apprentice" / the next Madara.

Since Zetsu is the one cognizant of Madara's true intentions, their thoughts hold more weight than Madara's own words to Obito, who was his target for manipulation.

So when Madara said he "accidentally" found Obito because the cave-in (oh so conveniently) happened right on top of one of his secret underground passageways, while Zetsu said Madara chose Obito, we can safely conclude Zetsu isn't the one withholding truth here.

Naruto - Chapter #605

Next, let's consider the gravity of this role—especially for Madara—which many (including myself at first) have missed or failed to seriously ponder.

Sure, many have called Madara an "asshole" for turning on Obito and using him for Rinne Rebirth after Obito emerged heartlessly (sorry) from Kamui-

Sure, one could argue this adds to his characterization as a one-dimensional sociopathic villain who doesn't care about anyone or anything other than himself; his goals and quest for power-

Sure, many think Madara never regretted any of the damages he'd done, only that causing said damages still didn't get him what he wanted-

But didn't canon itself disprove this; through Itachi's false accounts of Madara stealing his brother's eyes in his blind (no pun intended) grasping for power—and how both Obito & Hashirama's accounts flip that idea on its head?

And maybe this is just me reading too much into this, but since it adds depth to a major character who (in popular fanon) lacks it, I'll go right ahead and conclude:

Through the reveal of Izuna's "gift" (rather than Madara's theft), i.e. the narrative evidence of Madara's love for his brother, which Hashirama said exceeded that of Itachi's for Sasuke, the text was drawing a clear parallel between Madara and Itachi on a level beyond that of "being a protective older brother":

Madara isn't a one-dimensional villain; he is a character meant to be misunderstood as a one-dimensional villain.

After all, his entire "descent" hinges on his loss of Izuna (read: his failure to protect his last & dearest brother) and his disappointment in Hashirama & Konoha (read: his failure to protect his brethren).

Naruto - Chapter #625

It's no wonder Madara reacted the way he did when Hashirama offered him the position of Hokage.

He saw himself as a failure—not that he would ever admit it. He fell in love with the idea of a world of dreams precisely because reality left him with nothing but pain and loss. It forced him to confront the idea that he, Uchiha Madara, the strongest alongside the God of Shinobi, in a world that (falsely) taught him power would grant you everything... He, Uchiha Madara, was still helpless to prevent tragedies from befalling his brother; from encroaching upon his clan.

To say Madara knew no regrets is to call blood devoid of red.

All of this is easy to miss, since only Hashirama ever got to see even glimpses of Madara's "weakness" (read: humanity). It's highly unlikely he would show that side of himself to anyone except one he trusted so like Hashirama and, certainly, Izuna (and maybe to a lesser extent, Obito; in genjutsu conversations they may have had "off-screen").

It would actually be strange and out of character for him to ever explicitly exhibit any of this in the text, just for the readers' benefit; especially since it would have had nothing to do with the plot or progressing it.

It just makes sense that, in an era where power (read: cruelty) meant everything, Madara would learn quickly to hide any vulnerabilities and purposely paint himself as something that detached or careless observers would see as a "one-dimensional villain".

Naruto - Chapter #398

And that's why Obito and the role he was chosen to fill—its sheer existence—is so important to assigning more depth to understanding Madara. It's the single biggest evidence for (post-Black-Zetsu) Madara's humanity.

After all, if Obito (the apprentice) was really meant to be nothing more than a disposable tool, why didn't Madara just use Nagato? Might as well get a 2-for-1 deal.

Orphaned Nagato would've been just as easily manipulated as kid Obito. And at worst, Madara could've mindfucked him with indoctrination or genjutsu (psychological shenanigans or sharingan shenanigans) or both. Could've even sicced him with a cursed seal—just like Obito.

If he had the chance to discreetly implant the Rinnegan into Nagato without anyone noticing, then he must've had the chance to abduct the boy.

So why the need for Obito, a second Madara?

Here Madara's humanity bleeds through.

(Anddd so we dive into straight-up headcanon nonsense-)

While it's less likely, perhaps in some small way, Madara didn't wish to get up close and personal with a child who would one day be sacrificed for his own revival, and get accidentally attached; hence leaving the "dirty work" to his apprentice. (Note that Madara never revealed himself to Nagato at all.)

(It would fit @al-hekima's interpretation of Madara & Izuna's dynamic too: Izuna is the one who's actually better with the "dirty work" compared to his clan-head/commander older brother, mirroring the dynamic of Hashirama & Tobirama.)

Most likely, though, after all those decades alone in that damn cave... well, Obito's date of birth should've already spoiled it:

Naruto - Chapter #386 + #612

Madara wanted—needed—someone to stand beside him: a stand-in for Izuna (and perhaps, in his wildest dreams, where lived on their ideal selves free of hatred & reality's corrosive claws... Hashirama).

But wait, wasn't Obito just another sacrificial pawn to Madara, no different from Nagato?

Welp, let's review the circumstances of Madara's using Obito as a "sacrifice":

FACT 1: The plan was always to use Nagato for Rinne Rebirth. (damn Anti-Uzumaki discr-)

FACT 2: Since Obito lost them Nagato (and presumably not just anyone can be forced to perform Rinne Rebirth using Black Zetsu), Madara's only option was to use Obito, or... forsake his one, true dream.

FACT 3 (conclusion): Obito—the apprentice—was never meant to be sacrificed.

If Nagato weren't already dead, Madara would've never "sacrificed" the apprentice.

(It's also worth noting that Obito was the one to first declare to Madara that they weren't comrades.)

Let's imagine Madara's ideal scenario—where Nagato lives (only to be sacrificed for Madara), Obito never betrays Madara, and... they "win".

Where would Obito be then?

Here the true nature of the vacancy Obito filled is revealed.

(For Obito, it's just another way to be used as a tool, of course; but this betrays something about Madara: something achingly, dearly human-)

The role of the apprentice that Madara sought and didn't consider Nagato for—that of the second Madara—was to not be sacrificed (hence Nagato was not an option) nor serve as a disposable tool (though they'd be a nice back-up for a worst-case scenario); it was to stand by Madara.

Of course, Madara (by that point) had been so unable to trust anyone (read: twisted by Black Zetsu), and so placed a cursed seal on the heart of his apprentice / surrogate brother / enforced support system.

Even so, it's curious that he seemingly didn't turn the chosen child (Obito) into a completely helpless puppet, or completely mindwash them with genjutsu (since Obito was at least able to refuse to revive Madara) or use a jutsu like Orochimaru's Fushi Tensei—yet another thing that could only point toward "the second Madara" being a role borne of Madara's subliminal need for companionship: a quasi-brother, a fellow warrior he could respect and rely on, and heck, a comrade to make his eventual victory feel not-so-hollow; so he wouldn't have to stand alone the day he achieved his "true dream"... someone controllable enough not to mess up the plan or "take Madara's back" as he always feared, but nonetheless human.

When Obito "rejected" this role by denying Madara his comradeship, it likely wounded more than just Madara's pride (though he probably never realized it), and his attitude slowly shifts from before vs after this proclamation:

Where before he was almost giddy ("you're like a kid"), excited for battle; addressing Obito in attempts at banter ("you look like you're having fun"); and almost in denial about the signs that Obito betrayed him or strayed from the plan...

Naruto - Chapter #601

...he switched to heartlessly objectifying (and not in the sexy way) the heartless Obito (sorry - reprise) and stating (out loud, anyways) that he was a mere "back-up".

Still, all this sounds like a flimsy cover-up (do we dare say lies?) for the sting of rejection by the closest person he had left to a brother/comrade—which must've been a painful reminder of Izuna's glaring absence—and the real reason he waited decades for someone to entrust the plan & even his own name to... something he couldn't fix or defeat or perhaps even confront—for all his "god-like" powers, and for all that it is so disgustingly pedestrian: loneliness.

(And how dear is it to imagine Madara in his cave, picturing the day of his glorious "victory", when he sends mankind to the perfect, eternal dreamworld... only to taste bitterness, as he saw himself standing on top of the world, all alone?)