There was a distant conversation, a shocked cry. Jun was carried with care. He didn’t wake up. He moaned softly but kept his eyes closed. He didn’t have the strength to open them. He was exhausted. Moreover, if he woke up, he would have to accept a cruel reality. He wasn’t ready for it, not yet. He allowed himself fall asleep again.
Jun vaguely sensed a new, soothing chakra moving over his wrist, shoulders, the cuts on his arms and cheeks. He had no idea he was injured so badly. He felt a firm mattress against his back and heard the regular beeping of machines. His mother’s voice came to his ears. It was a mix of anger and sadness. Jun also sensed the chakra of his little sister. The latter was squeezing his hand. He took all that in but did not wake up. His fatigue was immense.
Hours or days passed. Jun wasn’t sure. He navigated between dream and reality. He was somehow aware of his surroundings without fully being awake. He often sensed the chakra of the people moving around him. His mother and sister were there almost everyday. Iruka and Yugao also came to visit him. There were many strangers as well. Jun was a bit surprised. He didn’t think his sensory abilities were so precise.
It took him a while to wake up. He had no memory of when he first opened his eyes. Everything seemed distant and blurry to him. Had his mother really been there, sitting next to the bed with tears in her eyes or had he imagined it? Where was he? It wasn’t his room. Was he still dreaming?
Jun gradually emerged from his coma. That was the term they told him. Apparently, he was in a coma for two weeks. The nurses told him he was lucky. He had exhausted his chakra. Many people would have died from it. When he was brought to the hospital, they weren’t sure he would make it.
His mother and his sister came to see him. They told him how much they had missed him. Jun learned that fifteen days had passed since the appearance of Kyubi. The funerals had taken place. His father was dead. Their house had been destroyed. Hazuki’s parents had offered to host them, and she accepted. They were going to be part of the Uchiha clan now. His mother seemed nervous as she told Jun the story. She knew how her son felt about her parents. She was expecting him to protest. But Jun did not react. It worried his mom even more.
Jun hadn’t forgotten about the massacre. But, he didn’t have enough energy to care about it now. He felt empty. His dad was gone. The rest seemed unimportant. They released Jun three days later. The hospital experienced a shortage of beds. They couldn’t afford to keep him any longer. Jun left with his mom and sister. They were both holding his hands as they walked.
The village still bore the signs of the attack. There were ruins, battered streets, and damaged buildings. However, the reconstruction had already begun. There were carpenters all over the streets. The walk was longer than he remembered. It seemed like the police station and the clan buildings also suffered from the attack. The Uchiha clan had moved to another location. A couple in their sixties was waiting for them.
“Here we are.” His mother announced nervously.
“Father, mother, this is my son, Jun. Jun, these are my parents, your grandparents. Seichi Uchiha and Nao Uchiha.” She introduced.
Jun stared at them. Seichi had a stern face, a receding hairline, and was leaning on a cane. Nao had the same face as her daughter Hazuki, piercing eyes and long gray hair tied in an intricate bun at the back of her neck. They bore the Uchiha emblem on their clothes. They were his grandparents, yet, Jun felt nothing towards them. He was completely indifferent.
His mother’s hand tightened on his, as a warning. Jun got the message and bowed automatically. He was the very image of an obedient and well-behaved child.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
They exchanged some pleasantries, then Seichi and Nao accompanied them home. They had a big house. Nao told them it was smaller than the previous one they owned. Jun remembered her mom had mentioned they lost uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, and cousins in the previous war. It was no wonder they had a huge house. Jun also understood the reason they wanted to get close to Hazuki’s children now. Jun and Izumi were the only grandchildren they had left.
Jun’s belongings, or the little that was salvaged after the disaster, had already been placed in the room next to Izumi’s. He found a book on Fuinjutsu whose pages were damaged. It was the unique book that survived.
There was a futon bed in the closet, along with some new clothes. Jun turned away. He wondered how life could have changed so much in a short period of time. The family moved in with the Uchihas, and life went on.
It was probably easier for Izumi since she was still young. She could adapt faster. Initially, she cried a lot. With time, she managed to forget the pain. Their mother grieved longer. She was having a hard time dealing with it since she wasn’t doing much. She decided to come out of retirement and return to active duty. Konoha was short on ninjas anyway.
She received her old rank of chunin back and wore the green jacket all the time. Moreover, she was actively participating in the Uchiha’s relocation, which would take many months. She was home late. When her parents told her it wasn’t good for the kids, her smile would freeze, and her eyes would turn cold. So, no one said a thing about it anymore.
Jun mourned too. It took him several days to come out of his state of shock and emptiness. He did not cry with his sister or mother. He cried with his friends. Iruka had lost his parents during the attack. He endured the same pain. It was heartbreaking but also liberation to let his tears out. After he cried, fatigue settled in. He felt better.
He wanted to be angry. Truth be told, he was a bit upset. He was mad at Kyubi, at Tobi for unleashing the Nine-Tails in the village, at the Yondaime for not being fast enough, and at everyone for not saving his father. But the feeling was brief.
What’s the point? It won’t bring my father back. It just brings me more pain.
He would have liked to blame someone, to be able to hold someone responsible, to have someone to hate. But he knew better. It wouldn’t make things any easier, and he wasn’t that type of person. He cherished his mother and little sister, and even this messed-up village. He treasured them, and that feeling kept him going. It would have been so much easier to let himself be consumed by hatred and rage. But he wanted to heal. He missed his father, but he would move forward. His dad would have wanted him to keep marching onward.
The Academy reopened, and the students returned. The children were quiet the first few days. Everyone was dealing with the trauma at their own pace. Some were still in shock. Others were crying. A few were aggressive and angry, and other children were suffering in silence. Jun, Iruka, and Yugao stuck together. They all experienced the loss of someone dear. Iruka’s parents were gone. Yugao would never see her mother and little brother. Her father was also gravely injured. He would never be a ninja again. Compared to them, Jun was better off. He only lost his dad. On the other hand, he was the only one who saw a loved one perish. He still remembered it.
Jun did not talk about it. He would live with it until the gaping wound in his heart hurt less. He experienced many phases of the grieving process, from denial, and anger to depression. With time, he realized the grief was no longer as unbearable as it used to be.
The explosive trio began to fracture. Yugao no longer had anyone to train her in Kenjutsu. She started to exercise on her own at night. She had no desire to play and joke around anymore. Iruka was different. He hated the orphanage, the indifference of the adults, the loneliness, and the grief. He started acting up and getting himself in trouble to draw attention to his person. Jun tried to stay close to them. He tried to keep Yugao company and listen to Iruka. But that wasn’t enough. He couldn't give them back what was permanently taken away from them.
Jun’s grades had dropped. He no longer had the drive to perform well in class. He also lacked focus during the Taijutsu lessons. He went down in the ranking before stabilizing his position in the middle of the pack. He was still a gifted ninja. Thinking about it reignited a spark of pride in his chest. His dad has taught him a lot. He wanted to make him proud.
The weeks passed; the pain became less suffocating. He learned to live in his father’s absence, in their new home with his new family in a village in reconstruction. He still missed Renzo, but he was moving forward.
Thanks for chapter ~~
Considering how his grades dropped compared to his peers, are there many tough children amongst his class?
That either were able to move on or suppress it enough to not let it get in the way of their lives?
I can’t imagine Jun to be the only one who’s performance suffered from this.
He has yet to show his sharingan to his grandparents right?
Considering how chakra is made out of physical and spiritual energies I would imagine that people who overcome trauma have more chakra afterwards? Of course within reason.
Hopefully he get’s out of his funk soon-ish so that he won’t miss out too much on training during the period when his body grows the most.
He still has an massacre to survive after all …
Have a good day ~~
I appreciate your feedback :)
Other kids' performance suffered as well. As you pointed out, it wouldn't be normal for Jun to be the only one. However, he was among the ones being affected the most by the ordeal. Though some kids may have lost loved ones, there weren't many who personally witnessed their death. Losing his father in front of him had greatly shaken Jun.
He hasn't showed his Sharingan to anyone. He doesn't want to be associated with the Uchiha clan, so showing the Dojutsu to his grandparents may have the opposite effect. It may become harder for him to distance himself from the clan.
He had no choice but to keep moving forward. He needs to train to become stronger. Like you said, there is a massacre on the horizon!
Hope you enjoy your day!
@MilexKor I think it is too late for him to be worrying about being associated with the Uchiha clan. His family is already moved into the clan. His mother is now an active ninja helping with relocation. He knows that his little sister's name is associated with Itachi.
At this point in time if he wants to stop it from happening, he needs to stop being so passive. One thing I think that he is really screwing up on is being so passive. Now if he was an actual reincarnated individual I would have more of a problem with this. However, he is just regaining memories slowly over time. More like a kid that is dreaming. It will effect him but won't make him stop being a kid.
To be honest with the potential he has showed so far and the little political power he has from it, I don't see how he could stop it from happening. Unless he packs up his mother and sister and just leaves the village. He won't have the physical strength to stop it. Even if he grows to Itachi's level and is chosen to do the job he would still have to deal with Obito and Danzo.
Only way I see it really going is that he replaces Itachi in the mission and massacres everyone but his sister. Have to kill his mother then.
@KidBuu699
I agree with you about his passivity. He hasn't done much yet. He has no sense of urgency, but he will eventually learn the hard way he should have been more active.
You have some good ideas on how he will handle the massacre. I believe you will be surprised when you get to that part. I'm curious to know what you'll think :)
@MilexKor
To be honest I think he is relying more on luck than anything. The only idea he really has to avoid it is to make connections to people who would notice if they disappeared. (after his family was kicked out.) Which is a good idea but I wouldn't say its enough.
Him and his sister could be easily killed during missions and no one would bat an eye. If that happened then they could just have his weak mother "mugged" on here way home.
Just a side note that I think he should consider this problem in the future if he hasn't or you haven't thought of it. So he is keeping his eyes a secret to the point of killing anyone who sees them. Which is great. The problem is his sister. . . What is he going to do if his sister awakens them? Is this something that he is hoping/praying won't happen or is that a bridge he'll cross when he gets there. How would he explain to her to not tell their mom or anyone else.
For me I would say his best bet now would be to try to join another clan. Perhaps find himself a clan that he could marry into and bring his family with him. Now I am not saying that one of the major clans would be willing to take them in, but to focus his effort on one of the medium or small clans. They don't have to be strong enough to protect his family, just decent size enough that Donzo wouldn't want to risk the exposure to take care of lose ends.
He might not be strong enough to entice these clans just yet but maybe he can use his previous world knowledge to get in. Help them with their business or food establishments because really there isn't really any hidden knowledge or treasure in the naruto world that he could use as leverage. Can't think of any hidden jutsu or anything that he can get and give to someone that isn't guarded by something strong.
@KidBuu699
He's kind of hoping that with the little he's done so far, things will work out. He believes that making connections with people would make it hard for anyone desiring to make him and his family disappear. But like you said, no one is safe during missions. And accidents do happen... even in the village. He's being a bit naïve.
Joining another clan is a good idea. But with them being ex-Uchicha clan members, I'm not sure that any clan will be really excited to have them considering the tensions between the village and the clan. The Uchihas may not want them, but they may not like it if another clan is taking them.