“Be not the slave of your own past – plunge into the sublime seas, dive deep, and swim far, so you shall come back with new self-respect, with new power, and with an advanced experience that shall explain and overlook the old.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Noramori opened her eyes to the sight of an unfamiliar ceiling. It looked like a sterile white drop ceiling, the kind of ceiling you find in a hospital room. It took her a moment to realize she was in fact in a hospital room, though the unassuming ceiling attire clued her in pretty quickly.

Why was she in a hospital?

How did she get here?

Her thoughts were clouded, and she couldn't process much of anything. Stray thoughts ran amok in her head, and she couldn't seem to keep them on track. Everything felt wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on what was out of place. Maybe she was back in the group home. They had a nurse's office; could that be it?

Her gaze bored into the ceiling like it was the most fascinating thing she had ever seen.

'Nothing ever changes.'

She attempted to move her body but found she couldn't. Her head and limbs were locked in place. She shifted her eyes downward and saw that her upper body was lashed to the bed with what appeared to be rope with proto-kanji characters on paper seals attached along its length. It was difficult to make out their configuration due to not being able her head to get a better look but she was convinced that if she could look lower she would see the same ropes crisscrossing her lower body.

Fear struck her like a cold bucket of ice water. Her spine started to tingle. Her mind focused on the flight response.

'Oh, Shit! Have I been kidnapped?'

She attempted to struggle again, but it didn't make any difference. No matter what she tried, she didn't make any headway with her escape.

She froze as she heard a voice say, "Keep calm; Lord Hokage will be here soon."

The voice was soft, barely above a whisper, and held a decidedly feminine tone. It came from the far end of her bed, and she couldn't quite make out exactly where in the room it originated from.

'The Hokage?!'

"What kind of fucked-up cult has me in its clutches?"

"I have to get out; I have to get back to... Sasuke.'

Everything started rushing back to her all at once. That's right, she wasn't in her old world anymore. Thoughts of her new family—her mother, father, brother, and twin brother—flew through her mind.

'Where were they?'

 

'They were probably worried sick about my absence.'

'Wait, that voice said, Lord Hokage. What does Lord Hokage want with me?'

She tried to run her mind through the events that brought her to this hospital. The memories were fuzzy.

She remembered going through a roller coaster of emotions. She had swung from self-hatred to righteous rage. She remembered practicing till her arms nearly fell off, and then... Itachi.

'Oh, my god! Itachi! Did I hurt Itachi? Is that why I'm strapped to this bed?'

It hadn't struck her that she had succeeded in completing a class C jujutsu. Her only thoughts centered on Itachi. She had been so mad, so lost, and so broken. Horror overtook her as she thought about what she had done. She tried to kill him. She wasn't thinking. Her actions had just flowed out in response to his words. A lifetime of bottled-up regret spilled forth like an avalanche to crush everything in her path.

'What am I going to do? If I hurt Itachi, then I deserve to be locked up. I am a traitor to my village, a traitor to my family. Itachi is worth so much more than me to the village's future. Itachi is worth so much more to me than me. The council will have my head for this for sure.'

"Good morning, Noramori."

She flinched.

'That was Lord Hokage's voice. Oh no, this is it. My punishment awaits me.'

She stopped struggling. She deserved this. She deserved to be punished for all that she did in her previous life. She deserved to be punished for hurting her brother. She had accepted this fate.

"You were quite hurt when we brought you in. Your body was riddled with burns and lacerations. You put a lot of work into your training, don't you, little one?"

"Y-yes, sir," she stammered as she took on a differential persona, "I'm sorry, sir."

Her mind was racing. She couldn't get her fear at the possibility of having killed her brother to match up with her new desire to live this life to the fullest. On one hand, she wouldn't know how to go on if something happened to him, while on the other she couldn't accept giving up.

"Sorry? What do you have to be sorry for? I wish I saw more kids with the level of dedication that you have. You could serve to not hurt yourself so much that you can't reap the benefits of your training, but your determination is commendable."

His voice was soft and full of unfathomable patience. She didn't deserve this. Where was his anger? His reproach? She couldn't wrap her head around the current situation.

"I attacked my brother, sir."

"Oh, so that's it. Nothing of consequence; according to his report, he purposely egged you on after you showed signs of giving up on yourself. He specifically stated that you managed to perform the Great Fireball Jutsu. On a side note, he told me directly that he was worried for you, and hearing you say that you should be dead made him lose his temper with you. I'm sure you will have him visit you soon to let you know that he is proud of you."

'Proud?'

Her heart did a little happy dance around her insides.

"Wait... purposely egged me on? That son of a bitch!'

"Wait, Itachi is alive?" "I thought I..."

The Hokage cut her off by bursting into laughter. It wasn't cruel laughter; it was simply the laughter of someone who was overwhelmed by bewilderment at the current situation.

"Alive, of course, he is alive. It would take a lot more than a fledgling kunoichi to put down that monster. Rest assured, he is still out there prowling around. Your brother has a lot more skill than most Jonin, I daresay he is future Kage material. The people of Konoha can't begin to fathom the genius of that kid. He is the most loyal Ninja we have. Don't worry, little one; he will be here to see you once his duties have been taken care of. You caused quite a commotion with your jutsu."

"Wait, if my brother is fine and I am not in trouble, then why am I strapped to this bed?"

'You scared the shit out of me!'

She heard a rustle of fabric, and the Hokage was looking down at her. His eyes were kind but calculating. She barely even noticed the look of embarrassment coloring his features as he began to apologize.

"Silly me. I'm told you had to be restrained while you recovered. You were thrashing quite a bit in your sleep, and the medical ninja wanted to make sure you didn't injure yourself more than you already had."

Unspoken was the fact that both the Hound and Itachi had reported to him a storage occurrence involving the awakening of the young Uchiha's dojutsu. He wanted to keep her from moving around. He needed to keep her safe until he could get a measure of the threat these eyes presented. Hiruzen didn't want his old friend Danzo to find any reason to put this young girl's life in danger.

He freed her from her binds and began to help her sit up in bed. She was still quite weak, and her body felt like it was floating, almost like she was high.

"Wait, am I high?" They probably gave me something for the pain, didn't they?

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and looked around the room.

The room was simple, a white room with tatami mats covering the floor and wood boards lining the bottom half of the walls. She was currently lying in a large bed close to a wall full of windows that overlooked a grassy field sparsely filled with trees and low shrubs.

'This is one of the long-term stay units.'

"Lord Hokage, I must ask. How long have I been here? I feel like I was practicing only moments ago, but my body is stiff and weak. I can't help but notice that this is one of the more comfortable long-term stay rooms too, so... " She looked up at him, her eyes watering, confused, and pleading with him to give her the answers.

'Crack old man!'

'Cute!' Hiruzen's thoughts ground to a halt. 'This girl is quite dangerous, isn't she?'

"Don't worry, child; it has only been a day or so. Our staff is quite skilled at getting young shinobi such as yourself back on their feet."

"A day, well then, why am I here?" She raised an eyebrow at seeing his response to her puppy dog eyes.

'Wow, I've already got my claws in him, huh?'

 

'He is quite weak-willed, or maybe I'm just that good at what I do?'

Her thoughts were conceited but it was mostly a smoke screen. It felt good that people responded positively to her machinations, she just wanted to be loved and find people she could trust. This world was amazing but it was mostly unknown so she constantly felt on edge.

She shook her head and glared at him, and her face scrunched up in a frown, and he appeared to crumble under the gaze of this adorable little terror.

'I am Noramori, the champion of death; hear me roar!'

"I thought it prudent, given the circumstances, to put you somewhere we could monitor you and keep you safe."

"The circumstances, sir? I don't understand." She cocked her head sideways, looking very much like a puppy who heard a new sound; her face cast in the sweetest smile the Hokage had ever seen. If only he knew that this was the same smile she used on Sasuke when she was losing her patience with him.

"Yes, well, about that. What do you know of the Sharingan?"

"My clan's Dojutsu. It is the pride and goal of every Uchiha to one day unlock it. I know it lets us copy jutsu and view chakra."

"That is an adequate understanding," Hiruzen replied. "It would appear that during the emotional turmoil, you experienced while fighting with your brother, you managed to unlock the second stage of the Dojutsu. Both your brother and an agent of mine observed you activating it and have confirmed each other's stories."

Noramori winced at the mention of her fight with her brother and then froze in place, "I activated the Sharingan? I don't understand."

'Hell yes! I am the best!'

It took Noramori a second to recover from this news, but something didn't seem to add up.

"That doesn't explain why I am being secured, Lord Hokage. The Sharingan is a natural evolution of my clan's development. Why would you need to insure my safety for that reason alone?"

'This girl is way too sharp for her age; I wonder if she gets it from Itachi?' Hiruzen thought to himself.

"That is so; however, it would seem that yours manifested under a... let's say peculiar circumstance."

"Peculiar?" Her waning patience jutsu had returned as a sweet smile returned to her face.

Yes, very peculiar," Hiruzen eyed the girl. ' I think I'm starting to get the measure of this girl. That smile hides a lot of killing intent. If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was a threat to me.'

'Oh no, he has already caught on to my secret technique'

Noramori glared.

Hiruzen smiled.

Noramori Scowled.

Hiruzen chuckled.

Noramori was defeated.

"Okay, I cave; what peculiar circumstance?"

"I have two reports stating that just before you began to lose consciousness, a peculiar variation of your clan's Dojutsu began to form."

"Variation?" Noramori was confused by his words. She had only ever heard of the three stages of growth. Maybe he was referring to her jumping straight to the second stage of development, but no, that couldn't be it. It didn't explain the level of secrecy they were applying to her case.

"Yes, variation. We honestly aren't quite sure what this means. In all my years, I have never observed the transformation that was described to me by your brother and my agent. I find myself stumped as to what it could mean. I don't like not knowing things; it puts people and the village in danger when I am not privy to clan secrets. I have contacted your parents, and they assure me they have never heard of the dojutsu described in these reports. I was hoping that we could take this time to observe the details of such a variation. I isolated you so that anyone seeking your power for research, or otherwise, wouldn't be able to obtain access to you until we could assess the threat your dojutsu represents to the village and yourself. Dojutsus have a lot of power and put a lot of strain on their users, and it would be in everyone's best interest if we knew what we were dealing with."

"I see that is very thoughtful of you, sir. Thank you for thinking about my safety." She beamed at him as her thoughts whirled. This news had the potential to be earth-shattering. A new dojutsu—what could it mean?

"Do you think you have the energy to try testing it out now?" Hiruzen asked her with an amused expression.

'Yeah, he definitely knows. Hawk-eyed old bastard.'

"I don't know, sir. If I activated it before, I can't for the life of me figure out how I did that. It was mostly instinct. How do I even bring it back?"

"Just channel some chakra to your eyes; your bloodline should handle the heavy lifting for you."

"Hmm, okay, I will try."

Noramor was apprehensive. She had struggled so much with controlling her chakra over the years and didn't think she would be able to do something as precise as sending chakra to such a delicate area of her body. She hesitantly flared chakra in her eyes, and instantly the world took on a different hue. She glanced at the Hokage, and his face settled into a frown.

"That is peculiar indeed; I wonder what this could mean," Hiruzen's thoughts were racing through possibilities.

'It's not a Rinnegan; I thought it might be related, but this seems completely different visually. Maybe a precursor?' He turned the problem over in his head.

Noramori didn't hear a word of this; she was completely floored by what she saw in front of her.

To her eyes, Hiruzen was gigantic. He carried an authority that felt like it could subjugate mountains. She felt a deep sense that the man in front of her was pragmatic and efficient. He was willing to make the hard decisions so the village didn't have to. He felt kind but unyielding, and he had a fair amount of guilt that he had long since come to accept. He wore his position like a mantel, and anyone who threatened what was his would regret the day that they decided to.

"Noramori?"

She was startled by the sound of his voice: Yes, Lord Hokage."

"You seemed to be lost in thought," Hiruzen replied.

In reality, the instant her eyes landed on him, she stiffened up, her mouth opening and shutting like a fish out of water. He had already spoken her name several times before she showed any kind of response.

"I just... I am overwhelmed, sir. You are very strong."

"Tell me, what are you seeing?"

Noramori hesitated before responding. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the power cloaking the man in front of her. All of the many masks she wore had been dropped and in their place was the serious individual from her previous life.

"I- It's hard to explain, sir. Can I deactivate my eyes for a moment?" She stuttered under the weight of his immense presence.

"Of course, little one," the Hokage smiled kindly at her.

She cut off the chakra flow to her eyes and sighed in relief.

It took her a moment to gather her thoughts, and the Hokage simply waited patiently for her to calm down.

"Sir, that was... incredible. I could feel an aura around you. Feel your intent and your power. It wasn't just a feeling either—there was a tangible weight to your presence. It was awe-inspiring and... kind of terrifying, if I'm being honest."

"Hmm, a sensing skill of some kind? Did you notice anything else?"

"I believe that I was also able to access the other powers of a sharingan, but I was honestly too overwhelmed by your aura to process anything."

"Interesting... Do you think you could manage to activate it again?

"I can try."

Hiruzen gave the young Uchiha an encouraging smile and simply waited for her to reactivate her dojutsu.

As her eyes reactivated, she looked upon the Hokage again, and the effect was much more subdued now. She could still see his enormous aura, but it was less concrete and didn't overwhelm her. She didn't get much information from it, only a sense of great power and resolve from the man in front of her.

"That's easier to manage," Noramori spoke. "It's still there, but it doesn't feel like it is still present and still gives me the same feelings, but isn't overwhelming my entire being. What did you do?"

"I simply repressed my energy down to that of a genin. I figured if your ability was tied to chakra, then it wouldn't hurt to try and see the extent of this power. It seems that we are on the right track. Cat, come here, please."

A young ANBU flickered into being. She was kneeling beside Noramori's bed, wearing the standard issue ANBU Corps outfit, and had on a white cat-shaped mask. Her hair was long and purple, reaching down to just below her shoulders.

"Lord Hokage," the ANBU spoke with deference, "what would you have of me?"

"I simply need your presence to test something. You may relax," Hiruzen replied.

"Of course, Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen's attention shifted back to Noramori, who was staring at Cat intently.

"Noramori, tell me what you see."

"It's... It's beautiful. She is surrounded by a bunch of threads leading off in all directions. They all vary in color and intensity. Some of them are faint, while others are strong. They each have a different feel to them. Some of them convey a sense of duty, others a sense of hatred, and even more of them convey a sense of loyalty. There appears to be a single thread heading toward your location, but it fades out into nothingness barely a few inches from her center. I honestly don't think I would even be able to make out its existence or the direction if you weren't standing right next to her. That thread is the strongest and carries a sense of absolute loyalty, love, and admiration. I think... I think I am seeing her ties to this world."

Hirzuen was surprised by this. The implications of this power were great. The political and recon applications alone could be immense.

"Fascinating. What of the aura you described viewing when you looked at me?"

Noramori furrowed her brow and looked closer at the young cat, named ANBU.

"She seems to be strong—not as strong as you, but strong nonetheless. Her aura conveys a sense of loyalty and reliability, as well as a willingness to put her life on the line to uphold her sense of duty. She feels caring and kind but also seems to carry a sense of loss and loneliness like she lost something long ago and was never able to get it back."

"Is that all?"

Noramori blushed in embarrassment.

"Well, no, she... she has really pretty eyes. A sad pouting mouth and one of the most beautiful faces I have ever laid eyes on."

'Why am I like this? She's just a girl... A pretty girl- Shut up brain!'

Noramori didn't know how to process these emotions, so she simply moved past them. She hadn't ever considered the concept of attraction. The only physical relationship she ever experienced was thrust upon her and was incredibly unhealthy and abusive. She didn't have the energy or experience to think about her response to being forced to examine this woman in detail.

You could hear a pin drop in the silence that followed—no, not a pin—you could hear the dust colliding in the air as the currents in the room rushed past each other.

"HAHAHAHA," Hiruzen burst out laughing, "Cat, could you please remove your mask it seems it is not needed and I would like to see if her image of you is accurate, HAHAHA."

Cat removed her mask, and Noramori's blush deepened; she looked even prettier in person.

Noramori looked like she might faint from embarrassment, not unlike a young Hyuga heiress that went to the academy with her.

Cat raised an eyebrow in amusement.

'How old is this kid?' Her lips pursed as she took in the little girl's response to her.

"Well, that settles it," Hiruzen spoke while wiping a tear from his eye. "This power has amazing potential. I would ask that you keep the details to a few individuals. I'm going to set this as a pseudo-S-class secret for now. At least until we can further study its powers. This means that I will not be writing it down in any documentation, and it will only be spread by word of mouth. I have already destroyed the reports made by your older brother and my other agent. I ask that you do your best to keep its abilities under wraps. That isn't to say you cannot use it; I encourage you to use it. Just try not to spread the information on what it does."

"Of course, sir. I understand the impli...." Noramori began to reply but was quickly interrupted by a loud crashing sound.

Someone threw the door open and shouted, Hey, gramps, I have a bone to pick with you."

Hiruzen turned around quickly, a frown blooming on his features, "Narut.."

He was cut off as Noramori began screaming. Her pain was all but forgotten as she attempted to crawl up the headboard and get as far away from the new arrival as she could. An animalistic terror filled her. She had never been so afraid in her entire life. Her entire vision seemed to be consumed by a dark murderous rage. A massive fox face was laughing at her, it wanted to rend the flesh from her bones and tear her soul up like a chew toy.

"What the fuck is that?" She didn't recognize her classmate in her terror. "Please get it away from me, Lord Hokage, you have to save me!"

The boy halted in his tracks, his expression quickly becoming guarded. He was used to people giving him dirty looks, but the look Noramori was sending his way hurt a lot more than the snares and mistreatment he had experienced all of his life.

"Noramori, it's just me, Naruto. Don't you remember me?" He was confused and hurt. Noramori was one of the few people who treated him like a person. He had come to learn that she was more than a little manipulative, but she was always kind and listened to him with a small smile whenever he spoke.

Noramori continued to scramble away from him.

He felt tears begin to sting his eyes and a rising sense of self-hatred and defeat filled his chest.

"Noramori, deactivate your Dojutsu, now!" The Hokage gripped her shoulders and looked into her eyes. Eyes that appeared incapable of leaving the now cowed form of the blond boy wearing his signature orange jumpsuit.

Noramori continued to scream, and Naruto's spirits kept falling. Why did everyone treat him like this? And why was Noramori, one of his only friends, acting like he was some kind of monster? He felt like his heart was breaking into a million pieces as he watched the girl shake in fear.

He tried to reach out for her, but she flinched away and her screams increased in intensity. He didn't understand what was wrong with her. He didn't understand what was wrong with him.

"Keep it away from me!"

Naruto's eyes stung with unshed tears. Why did she keep calling him that?

"Noramori! DEACTIVATE YOUR DOJUTSU NOW!" The full weight of the Hokage's aura settled upon Noramori's mind.

She flinched but finally did what he said.

As she did, her eyes were locked on Naruto, and in a shaky voice, she spoke, seeming to come out of some kind of fog. "Naruto, what are you doing here? What happened to the fox?"

If her mind hadn't been flagging from the stress of viewing a being that had such a powerful soul with her newly awakened dojutsu she would notice a faint bubbling red aura mixed in with the bluish-white aura of the boy. This red aura felt malevolent and powerful. More powerful than anyone who wasn't intimately familiar with the Nine-Tailed Fox could ever imagine. Even the tiny amount mixed in with the boy's chakra was terrifying to behold.

"Noramori, we will speak of this later; please lie down and rest. Do not speak of this to anyone else. This is very important. I will explain everything later."

As she nodded and began to slip into unconsciousness, Hiruzen turned to Naruto. The poor boy was shaking with unrestrained anger, self-hatred, and betrayal.

"What happened to Noramori? Why was she calling me that? Why was she so afraid of me?

"She was treating me like everyone else—worse than everyone else. That's messed up. Did she just lie to me all those times we spoke before? Was this all some sort of sick game to punish me for something I don't understand?"

"Naruto, Noramori had an accident. She doesn't hate you; she is just recovering and having a really hard time with it. I'm sure you saw her eyes when you barged in here."

The blonde-haired boy nodded meekly, too distraught to care about his actions or process what had just happened or what Noramori had said just before passing out.

"She's my only friend. Is she gonna be okay? What was up with her eyes?"

"She is going to be fine. She is just tired and injured. As for her eyes, She appears to have developed a unique dojutsu and is currently struggling with its effects. That is why she just reacted the way that she did."

The boy just nodded in return. He wasn't well versed in the histories of the shinobi world due to having been neglected by most of the village's populace. If he was more informed he would have realized the gravity of something as rare as a newly discovered Dojutsu.

"Go home, Naruto; we will take care of her, and I promise that once she reawakens, you will be able to speak to her again without this happening. You haven't lost her, so please don't give up on her. She needs her friends to get through this. The effects of her dojutsu are very strenuous on her, and I'm sure that she will need you when she is of a calmer mind. I need you to stay strong for her; can you do that?"

Naruto nodded and steeled his resolve.

"Yes, Gramps," Naruto's hands balled into fists and his back straightened out, "I will stay strong for her. Believe it!"

Naruto gave one last glance at his sleeping friend as he marched out of the room. He didn't understand what was going on, but he knew that Noramori needed him right now. He would put aside his emotions until he could properly address them. He would hold his questions until she was ready. That was just the kind of boy that Naruto was; he valued friendship above all else.

As the young Uzumaki left the room, Hiruzen watched him go with a frown. This complicated things and put a whole other spin on the potential of Noramori's Dojutsu. The ability to see the Kyuubi directly was ludicrous. He couldn't imagine the extent of this power.

'What else could it do? Would it develop further?' He thought as he considered this Uchiha's future.

He shook his head. He wished he could answer these questions now, but these answers would only come with time. He would need to have a long conversation with both Noramori and Naruto. This was a huge mess, and he couldn't see a way around telling both of them the truth. After all, this situation was bound to repeat itself if Noramori wasn't properly prepared in the future. He would have much preferred to put the topic of Naruto's Jinchuriki status off for a few more years until the boy had more time to grow and develop. It hurt to keep the boy in the dark, but it was necessary to keep him out of the crosshairs of enemy ninjas. He was much too small and weak to survive a targeted assault at his age.

"Cat, keep a close eye on this room and notify me when she reawakens, we don't want another person to barge in here and cause this situation to spiral out of control."

Cat was standing in the corner of the room, she immediately went on the defensive when Noramori started flying off the handle. She was honestly pretty ashamed by how she had responded. The combination of the embarrassment she felt at Naruto getting past all of the guards stationed in this hospital, as he somehow always did, and Noramori's apparent terror had activated a motherly instinct in her. She had wanted to be ready for whatever threat the girl was facing. When she realized Noramori was responding to the presence of the Kyuubi it floored her and she was ashamed to admit that all of her training went out the window as her mind turned to what this could mean for the girl's future in intel gathering. If she could manage to control this power and learn to filter out the distractions she would be well on her way to being Konoha's little monster. Well, their second little monster but that was beside the point.

"Yes, Lord Hokage. I will make it my top priority"

He looked down at the sleeping Uchiha and scoffed, "S-class secret indeed."

 

 

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Below is the art I made representing what I imagined Noramori's current variation of the Sharingan looks like. It's simple, but I like it simple. 

 

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