Shazo was deeply troubled.
He had run into a huge problem. He had struggled with it for two years, dragging things out without being able to solve it.
As early summer of Year 55 of Konoha arrived, the huge problem was about to turn into a full-blown crisis.
Shazo sighed repeatedly in his anxiety. "Sigh, this is driving me crazy!"
The girl with large eyes and long, silky black hair rolled her eyes adorably when she heard him, complaining in a sweet voice, "Why do I feel like you're not worried at all, Brother?"
Shazo could not accept his sister's slander. "Izumi, I really am worried. Look, I've even got blisters in my mouth."
Izumi pouted. "That's because you keep shoving whole grilled rice cakes into your mouth and burning it badly enough to blister."
Shazo gave an "Oh," picked up another grilled rice cake, bit into it, and swallowed it in a few quick bites.
Only after finishing the hot, fragrant, sticky grilled rice cake did he say, "Izumi, no matter how worried we are, we still have to eat. We can't do anything on an empty stomach."
The girl sighed helplessly. "Sigh, honestly, why are Dad and Mom so stubborn?"
Shazo shook his head. "There's nothing we can do. The Uchiha are so powerful, so influential, and so wealthy. They're also extremely generous to clan members who awaken the Sharingan."
"Izumi, you've received quite a few benefits over the past two years, haven't you?"
The girl nodded. "Mm. Guidance from Jonin, high-quality ninja tools and weapons, ninjutsu scrolls, and money. Lots and lots of money."
"Hehe, I even graduated early and became a Genin before you did, Brother."
Shazo smiled indulgently. "It's precisely because the Uchiha Clan is so generous that Aunt Miko and Uncle Heishiro believe you'll have a better future in the Uchiha Clan."
"The Uchiha Clan is far too strong. No matter how you look at it, there's no chance of them being destroyed."
"They refuse to move back because they're thinking about your future."
Izumi said with distress, "I know. After you reminded me, Brother, I noticed it too."
"Actually, Dad and Mom both dislike the Uchiha Compound."
"It's just too remote, too far from the center of Konoha. Dad can't continue his old work anymore, and he just sits at home all day."
"Mom has secretly complained too. The Uchiha ninja look down on her, while the Uchiha civilians avoid her. It's been two years, and she still doesn't know any of the new neighbors."
The girl sighed. "Dad and Mom are forcing themselves to live there because of me."
Shazo ate another rice cake, then sighed. "They insist on staying for your sake, while you can't move back for theirs. We're stuck on both ends."
Helplessness, frustration, worry—every kind of negative emotion filled the girl's heart and dampened her spirits.
Stimulated by those emotions, sinister chakra formed in the girl's mind and flowed endlessly into her eyes.
Her clear black pupils suddenly turned blood-red. Then two black tomoe emerged within them—the Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan.
Shazo suddenly reached out and pressed a hand against Izumi's forehead, carefully sending his own chakra into her to suppress her emotional fluctuations and prevent her thoughts from sliding toward impulsiveness.
Shazo sighed and asked, "When did you awaken the Two-Tomoe Sharingan?"
Izumi, Uchiha Izumi, cautiously glanced at Shazo. Only after confirming that he was not angry did she pat her chest and let out a relieved breath.
She answered, "During our last mission, Teacher Tekka led us in attacking a bandit stronghold. He ordered all of us to kill someone."
"I was only scared, disgusted, and nauseous at the time, but I never expected to awaken the Two-Tomoe Sharingan after we came back."
"Brother, is there something wrong with my eyes?"
Shazo shook his head. "There's nothing wrong with your eyes. But awakening the Sharingan at eleven was already a little early. Awakening the Two-Tomoe Sharingan again at barely thirteen is far too early."
Uchiha Izumi asked strangely, "But everyone in the clan says the earlier you awaken the Sharingan, the better..."
Shazo sneered. "Heh. What a stupid, short-sighted idea."
"The Sharingan is such a powerful Kekkei Genkai. It demands a great deal of chakra from its wielder and places an enormous burden on the body. How could awakening it earlier possibly be better?"
Madara Uchiha, the strongest Uchiha ninja in a hundred years, was already fourteen when he awakened his eyes. That did not stop him from rising all the way to the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Uchiha Itachi and Second Pillar, who both awakened their eyes before the age of ten, were riddled with illnesses and injuries.
Uchiha Itachi went blind and died young in his early twenties. Second Pillar was not much better off. If not for the Sage of Six Paths looking after him like a father, he might have died even younger than his brother.
Shazo said, "With your little thirteen-year-old body, you simply can't bear the burden of the Two-Tomoe Sharingan."
"Izumi, after awakening the Two-Tomoe Sharingan, haven't you been getting tired very easily? Do your eyes often feel dry? Is it difficult to activate them, and even harder to deactivate them afterward?"
Uchiha Izumi nodded like a pecking chick. "Brother, you're absolutely right. I have all of those symptoms."
Shazo instructed her, "Don't activate your Sharingan again anytime soon."
"Later, go to the hospital and use dry eyes as your excuse to get some medicine. Apply the topical medicine for half a month, and you'll feel better."
Uchiha Izumi agreed, "All right, Brother. I'll go to the hospital later."
Shazo nodded, very pleased with his obedient little sister.
He stressed his words and warned her solemnly, "Izumi, be careful. Over the next few years, you must keep your emotions under control. You cannot lose control and awaken the Three-Tomoe Sharingan."
"Otherwise, you may develop a Kekkei Genkai illness."
Uchiha Izumi smiled bitterly. "Brother, we need to solve my parents' problem first. Otherwise, when the Uchiha Calamity erupts, there's no way I can keep my emotions stable."
Shazo stroked his chin, feeling the faint stubble brush against his fingertips, then suddenly said, "Izumi, what do you think about me pretending to be sick?"
Uchiha Izumi blinked and looked at her brother from different parents in confusion.
Shazo asked with a smile, "If Aunt Miko and Uncle Heishiro hear that I'm sick, do you think they'll move back to take care of me for a while?"
Uchiha Izumi's face lit up with surprise. Then she looked at Shazo again, her expression turning embarrassed as she shuffled closer to him in small steps.
With both hands behind her back, she silently pulled a tiny hammer from her ninja tool pouch.
The girl moved gently, but Shazo still noticed.
He made the face of an old man on the subway. "Izumi, why did you take out a hammer... What terrible idea are you plotting?"
Uchiha Izumi said awkwardly, "Brother, I was thinking that if you broke your leg, Mom would worry that you couldn't take care of yourself. She'd probably move back to look after you."
Shazo rubbed the bridge of his nose and could not help sighing.
When had the soft, fair, tender little neighbor girl from his childhood, as adorable as a kitten, become—
A girl who was black inside once cut open?