The Little Uchiha - A Naruto Quest

[8] Yes!

Your stomach gave a loud grumble. Yeah, you were going in.

The glass doors swung open with a light push. Overhead, a bell chimed.

"Oh? Hello there!"

An old man peered down at you from the counter as you walk in. "Good morning," you politely nodded, and then glanced around. There were a few square tables to a side. The sandy walls were made of palmwood, thousands of grainy lines vaguely reminiscent of rainfall. Beneath the counter was a glass case displaying a myriad of bread, pastries and baked goods.

The old man kept squinting at you as you perused the display to choose what to eat. Something sweet perhaps?

"I want the buttermilk pancakes with vanilla maple syrup," you piped up. "And maybe one of those cinnamon rolls."

"Alright," the man blinked. "Take a seat then, boyo."

Behind the counter was the entrance to what was probably the kitchen; you could see a teen bustling around in there. The old man momentarily went to the back to place your order, while you sat at a table near the doorway and lightly drummed your fingers on the surface.

It took a few minutes for your breakfast to arrive. It came with a tall glass of milk, a few slices of fruit and a side of scrambled eggs too!

"Those are on the house. A growing boy needs his nutrition!" the old guy boomed out a laugh, ruffling your hair. "Eat up!"

And so you did. You tucked in with gutso, spearing into the fluffy pancakes and then rubbing them in syrup. The scrambled eggs were creamy and good, while the slices of apples and blueberries went just right with the pancakes.

Other customers came and went all the while, but most of them took their orders to go.

A particularly harried looking Hyuga runner left with what seemed to be a few dozen cinnamon buns in a bulging sack. An Akimichi woman sat down a table away with a plate of food thrice as high as your own. She finished it before you were even halfway through yours, and glared when she caught you staring. You immediately looked back to your plate.

You were almost done. The shop was again empty barring you and the elderly owner, when the bells jingled once more.

...

Your last pancake vanished just as you were about to eat it.

"Hwibikey," the thief warbled out while munching on your breakfast. "Lucky I spotted you from outside! Yikes, you gotta come quick!"

His hands reached out towards the cinnamon roll you had saved for last, but you batted it away with impunity. Quickly, you gobbled up the roll before the thief could make another attempt.

"Aw. Thought I could get that too," Shisui sighed.

You got up and moved to wash your hands at the nearby sink. Then you went to the counter.

The owner scratched his head as you handed him the right amount of ryo. "The cinnamon roll and pancakes were delicious. The eggs too," you spoke seriously. He laughed, "Well, thank you then, boyo!"


"You done yet?" the obnoxious voice piped up from behind you.

"What do you want, Shisui?" you grumbled while pocketing your change.

Your older cousin grinned and jabbed his thumb out at the glass door, towards the hospital on the other side. "Aunt Mikoto's water broke! She's giving birth to the baby right now- we'll miss it if we're late!"

You stared at his grinning mug for a moment, and then wordlessly rushed at the exit.

"Come again another time!" the old man hollered as the door closed behind you. You gave him a wave, and then sprinted to catch up with Shisui.

---

Despite all your curiosity, none of you were allowed inside the birthing room.

"But uncle Tekka!"

"No buts," the austere man spoke impassively, face as bland and composed as the white walls of the hospital.

"You're a butt," Shisui muttered back.

It had been an hour already. According to uncle Tekka, the baby might even take half a day to come out if it wasn't in the mood.

"He."

"Hm?"

"It's a he," Itachi spoke once more. His eyes were closed; he rested his chin over his knuckles.

"How do you know?" you asked curiously.

Half-lidded eyes stared at you, and the corner of his lips turned up slightly.

"I just have a feeling."

-

The occasional sounds coming from within made you think it was a good idea that you were out here. Shisui leaned back on the bench you three were sitting in, fidgeting this way and that, while Itachi looked at the closed door every once in a while. You did what you do best.

You took a nap.

. . .

"Hey, Hibiki. Get up!" Shisui furiously whispered as he shook your shoulder. "We can go in now!"

"Don't be too loud though; you don't wanna disturb Lady Mikoto and the baby now, do you?" a voice spoke up gently. It was a medic-nin; the one who had overseen the birth.

You shook your head, and so did Itachi and Shisui.

Beneath her white scrubs, there was a different grey ensemble.

Spoiler

???

Uncle Tekka nodded respectfully at the woman as she walked away along the rather empty hallway.

"Go in. Keep your voices down."

Uncle Tekka ushered you three inside and shut the door behind your backs, not entering himself.

"How long was I asleep?" you whispered.

"A bit more than two hours," Itachi whispered back. He'd been the only one of you three to stay awake all throughout; Shisui too had drifted off at some point. You glanced at the other occupants of the room.

Lady Mikoto looked tired but happy as she laid beneath the white covers. Her eyes were on the man at the bedside - your clan head and Itachi's father, Uchiha Fugaku.

And cradled carefully in Lord Fugaku's arms, was a blue bundle. A little pink face with a tuft of dark hair peeked out from within the wrapped towel.

He smiled at the three of you. "This is Sasuke," he spoke in a tone gentler than anything you've ever heard from him.

The baby was a boy.

Itachi had been right.

He was tiny. Unbelievably so. His eyes were scrunched up and his little button nose sniffled every once in a while. Wrinkly and pink, but impossibly adorable in a way you cannot describe with words alone.

Had you been this small when you were a baby?

"Sasuke..." Itachi mused, testing the word on his tongue. "Sa-su-ke."

He smiled.

"Hello, Sasuke," he spoke again in a whisper. "I'm your big brother."

The baby's eyelashes fluttered. Grey eyes squinted up, and then little Sasuke giggled and sputtered.

"Would you like to hold your brother, Itachi?"

The boy nodded. His father showed him how to hold the baby, and then carefully deposited it in Itachi's steady arms. You and Shisui huddled around to get an even closer look.

"I'm Hibiki. You can call me Hibiki-nii if you want," you told Sasuke. "I'll...I'll show you all my best napping spots!" The baby sniffed and looked the other way, trying to wriggle out of his towel.

Adorable little jerk. You vow to pinch his cheeks extra hard when he reaches the cheek-pinching age.

Shisui silently laughed at you.

"Hey there little guy!" he spoke in an excited whisper. "I'll be your coolest nii-san, the super cool Shisui-nii! When your dad won't be watching, I'll let you play with real kunai and shuriken. How does that sound?"

Sasuke stared- then sniffled, before promptly bursting into tears.

"I'll be taking him now, if you're done," your clan head spoke up dryly. "And Shisui?"

"Yes, Lord Fugaku?"

"You will not hand my son live weapons when I'm not around."

"Of course, Lord Fugaku."

The door opened about a foot, and Uchiha Tekka peeked in. "Alright you two, give the kid some time alone with his family. Come on out."

You trailed behind Shisui, when Fugaku addressed you.

"While I'm glad to see you here, shouldn't you be home today, Hibiki?"

"I left in the morning to walk Nee-chan to the academy," you spoke tentatively. "Shisui found and brought me here afterwards."

"I see," the man spoke quietly. Sasuke was in Lady Mikoto's lap now; she had propped herself up against a pillow.

"You should head back. There was a reason I asked you to stay home today, you know," he chuckled mysteriously.

---

The rubber soles of your sandals touched upon rooftiles with every leap. The sun glared down from above; it was around noon now.

You landed on the cobbled streets of Southern Konoha with a light thud, chakra flexing around through your leg muscles to counteract the impact. It was a short walk to your home after that.

The front door was unlocked when you turned the handle to check. You heard faint sounds from within.

There was someone in your house.

Your first thought was to pull out a kunai and then carefully sneak in, but you decided against it. Lord Fugaku already knew of this from what he indicated. You didn't have any kunai on you either, for that matter.

You looked around.


A fat brown cat lounged on the wall nearby, staring right at you.

"Who's in my house?" you asked.

"Some guy, and a woman," the cat replied readily. A moment later, it hit its own forehead with a paw. "Ignore me, I'm a normal cat."

The cat refused to utter any more words despite your prompting.

Shaking your head, you turned the handle and walked inside your house.

The intruders were staring at you from the dining table.

There were two of them; a dark haired man with a faint beard on his chin, and a woman with even darker hair and a scar over her brow. Between them, an empty bottle of sake and two saucers.

The woman smiled at you and opened her arms.

No, wait. She had only one arm. The other sleeve hung loosely at the elbow.

"Hikari-chan! Come here! Why is your hair so short? And I thought you'd be taller by now...but that's alright, I was really short as a kid too..."

"My name, is Uchiha Hibiki," you cut through her tirade. "May I ask who the two of you are?"

The woman didn't immediately speak; she seemed startled, rather.

Were those tears in her eyes?

"Hibiki, huh," the man spoke up quietly. There was something familiar about his voice- something familiar about both their voices, in fact. His steady gait as he stood up from his chair and walked over to you pulled at a memory from long ago

You, stumbling forward with unsteady steps, and a tall man catching you whenever you fell.

"Her name is Uchiha Miyu. Mine is Uchiha Shinichi," the man said in an almost-whisper as he knelt before you. "But you, little Hibiki. You can call us mom and dad."

---

-You met Uchiha Sasuke. What a cute kid. You think you want a baby sibling too!

-Your parents have returned from the Third Ninja War.

-You met ???

Uchiha Tekka will oversee your training the next month.

You have 20 exp to spend for the month. Vote in plan format, as always.

[ ] Persuation - Worthless (4/50)

[ ] Kunai Throwing - Worthless (9/50)

[ ] Running - Worthless (36/50)

[ ] Taijutsu - Novice (35/100)

[ ] Chakra Control - Novice (39/100)

[ ] Ninjutsu - Worthless (28/50)

[ ] Genjutsu - Worthless (1/50)

-

Spoiler: Notes

Busy catching up with lectures and procrastinating. I should finish that Minato Interlude too, but can't find the time to touch it...

-I'd have increased the exp from 20 to 25, but Fugaku won't be teaching this month as he'll be busy with baby Sasuke.

-Good catch whoever realised "Yes" meant seeing Sasuke firsthand. Underneath the underneath!

-Next month you start at the Academy as well, by the way.

Vote; I'll then prompt your rollz.