Clear Mirror, Still Water to Calm the Heart

After bantering with Shisui for a while, we ate. Then the two of us and the little baby curled up at the cozy side table, sipping tea and nibbling on fruit.

Itachi's baby teeth had come in, and I was still wondering whether he could eat oranges when Shisui, across the table, fell silent.

I took a closer look. Resting his head on his left arm, he had fallen sound asleep.

Going out on missions must be exhausting.

I made a shushing gesture to Itachi, put the bottle in his hands, and told him to be good.

Then I lay down on the table too, facing the sleeping Uchiha Shisui.

A few strands of his bangs fell over his forehead, hiding his slightly furrowed brows. Through the gaps in his hair, I could see his long lashes.

I glanced at little Itachi, who was drinking his milk obediently, and felt a sudden pang of envy.

Tch, two pairs of gorgeous lashes.

Half of Shisui's face was hidden in the crook of his arm. From where I lay, he seemed completely motionless, his sleeping posture full of weariness. If not for the faint breath brushing past me, he might have seemed unconscious, utterly silent.

Feeling a little sorry for him, I leaned closer and let him rest against me. After a while, I felt his body slowly relax. His breathing grew steady and even as he drifted into a dream at dusk.

I brushed Shisui's bangs aside, revealing his profile. Gently, I smoothed the furrow from his brow and touched the marks beneath his eyes.

"You're so young. How do you already have tear troughs?" I sighed, wondering if I should find some eye cream for him.

The Uchiha tendency to age prematurely seemed to show most clearly in the more talented members of the clan.

I nervously touched the skin beneath my own eyes. Thankfully, it was smooth and wrinkle-free. I poked little Itachi, who was drinking his milk obediently beside me, on the forehead. He couldn't understand me, and his expression was completely innocent, but I sternly warned him not to overwork himself when he grew up, or he'd meet an early death.

"No being a genius, got it?"

Then I quieted down too and adjusted my position so Shisui could sleep more comfortably.

For a while, the slanting sunlight painted the floor blood-red, and the whole room was silent.

Toward evening, I heard a soft noise from the entryway downstairs. Someone was home.

Half my body and one leg had gone numb under Shisui's weight. I was wondering how I could get up when the person in my arms caught the sound and woke in an instant.

The haze in his eyes lasted only a moment before they cleared.

It was an instinct left behind by a long life of fighting as a ninja.

Seeing me frown when he woke, Shisui thought I was angry and hurriedly said, "Sorry, Akatsuki... I feel so relaxed around you that I fell asleep without realizing it." His voice was hoarse from just waking, and he sounded unusually honest.

"I wanted you to sleep a little longer," I said. I struggled to move, grimacing as the numbness in half my body made it hurt to shift. "That's why I didn't wake you."

"It's already evening. I should go." Shisui glanced at the clock and stood, carefully helping me up as he did.

Mikoto had turned on the lights downstairs. She called out for Itachi and me as she came up.

Hearing her, Shisui hesitated, seeming to consider escaping through the window, but I grabbed him.

"Why run? Come meet my mother."

Mikoto naturally liked Shisui.

Her affection was always wrapped in gentleness. Watching them talk, I felt as if I were seeing my first meeting with Mikoto all over again. Shisui went from being uncomfortable at first to letting her do whatever she wanted. Whether she pinched his cheek, patted his head, fed him, or teased him, he accepted it all without complaint.

He was only a boy, after all.

When I handed little Itachi over to my mother, he was already fast asleep. He'd worn himself out today, so he was sleeping especially soundly.

I changed into clothes for going out and told Mikoto I was staying at Shisui's tonight to ask him about ninjutsu and shuriken techniques, so I wouldn't be coming home to sleep. She hesitated for a while, then sighed and agreed.

Before leaving, I ran my hand over the blade of Murasame and solemnly hung it beside my bed.

"Don't you want to spend more time with your mother?" Shisui waited for me outside the main house. The night breeze stirred his clothes and the ends of his hair.

I looked at him and slowly stopped walking.

The scene felt so familiar, as though I'd been waiting for it for a very long time.

"I said I was going to spend the night at your place." I said it without even hesitating. Only after the words were out did I realize they could be misunderstood, but thankfully Shisui didn't tease me.

It had been a long time since I'd been out at night. Shisui and I walked side by side along the street as the shops lit up one by one. Red, orange, and dim yellow light softened the darkness.

I tucked my bangs behind my ear and let the cool air brush my cheeks. I breathed in the scents of the streets and the food stalls, feeling warm and content, peaceful and calm.

When I was beside Shisui, it felt as though even time could slow down.

At some point, he took my hand. Maybe it had happened as we walked through the crowd, or maybe while I'd been daydreaming. Either way, it had happened as naturally as could be.

Two boys holding hands—it really shouldn't be... that weird, right?

"Your birthday's in mid-February, isn't it, Akatsuki?" Shisui held a skewer of dango up to my mouth. I took a bite. The filling was sweet, and the outside was coated in salty teriyaki sauce. Delicious.

"Yeah... sometime in the middle of February," I mumbled, taking the skewer from him.

Since I'd hardly ever celebrated my birthday, I couldn't even remember the date clearly.

"Remember, it's February fifteenth." Shisui sighed, his eyes roaming the night market. "What kind of present do you want, Akatsuki?"

"A present?" I thought about it solemnly for a while but couldn't come up with anything, so I switched to complaining. "Who asks someone what present they want?" I put on a threatening act. "I want a present from you!"

"That's a real headache." Shisui didn't fall for it at all. Instead, he took my hand and ate the last piece of dango, which was infuriating!

Hatake Kakashi rarely passed through Konoha's busy streets at night. The sight of people holding hands beneath the lights—especially happy-looking parents with their children—only made his solitude more noticeable.

But he'd been so engrossed in studying Lightning Release Ninjutsu that he'd lost track of time. By the time he realized how late it was, everything around him had gone dark, with only the sparks in his hand still flickering.

It was too late to go fishing, but he still needed to eat. So he chose the restaurant he knew best, the one with his favorite—and most perfect—food.

"Salt-grilled saury, miso eggplant, and a bowl of rice." Sitting in the restaurant, Kakashi gradually relaxed. The noise outside faded from his mind. He was almost lost in thought when a bright voice called him back.

"Tempura shrimp! And a grilled fish too—yes, and a serving of stew!"

Kakashi frowned and looked to his left. Two familiar figures sat there, with black hair and eyes and the Uchiha fan emblazoned on their backs, shining like beacons.

Two geniuses from the Uchiha Clan.

They were impossible to ignore. Every move they made drew glances from the people in the restaurant, but they seemed completely unaware. Uchiha Akatsuki in particular had a doll-like, delicate face lit up by a sweet smile. Unconsciously, he was acting cute and fawning over the boy beside him, and he'd already drawn several lovestruck customers into the restaurant.

Kakashi didn't care much about whether people were handsome or ugly, but even he had to admit that Uchiha Akatsuki was unfairly pretty.

As he slowly looked away, a strange thought suddenly crossed his mind.

—Anyone with a little brother like that would never refuse him anything.

"Here, Kakashi. Some fruit wine." The plainspoken owner knew the white-haired boy well by now and understood what he really needed.

"Thanks." Kakashi took it and downed it in one gulp.

Underage drinking was forbidden, but the occasional drink helped him sleep soundly, without dreams.

By the time we'd finally had enough fun and followed Shisui through his front door, I was still clutching his hand tightly.

His home was about as plain and old as a house could be.

We pushed open the creaking wooden gate. Beside the main house stood a tall old tree, its dense branches rustling in the cold wind. The moon showed through the leaves, and its light speckled the lonely courtyard.

"Sorry it's so shabby." Shisui lit the lantern by the entrance, brightening the courtyard.

I didn't think it was shabby. If anything, I was curious, but it was too dark to explore properly.

"Wait here for a bit. I'll get a few things ready." Shisui led me to the low table inside. Moonlight streamed in through the window and spilled across the floor, so beautiful I wanted to reach out and catch it.

The low table in front of me was marked with the grain of the carved wood. I ran my hand over it. The surface was rough.

I leaned against the table and imagined Shisui reading and studying there, practicing ninjutsu, living in this house, growing up, being happy, and having his troubles...

—All alone.

"Here you go, young master." When Shisui returned, he'd changed into a bathrobe and brought one for me too.

"I've run you a bath. Go on, get in."

The bathroom at Shisui's house was old too, but the white tiles and hot water made for a perfectly comfortable bath.

I sank into the hot water with a white towel over my eyes and let out a satisfied sigh.

Steam curled through the air, and water trickled softly. With the lights off, I could see the moon through the window behind me. I rested my arms on the edge of the tub, completely relaxed.

"Akatsuki, you've been in there too long." I had no idea how much time had passed. The water had gone lukewarm, but I was still playing with the soap by the tub, pretending not to hear Shisui calling me. The room was filled with the scent of herbs and trees.

"Akatsuki?" After another two knocks, he said, "I'm coming in."

The instant the sliding door opened, I splashed water at Shisui. Watching him stumble back in disarray, I laughed triumphantly.

But before I could laugh for long, he subdued me.

By the time Shisui had wrapped me up like a bundle and sat me on the veranda to dry my hair, my face was bright red.

That nasty little Uchiha!

A few crows called out in the moonlight from the tree, their cries a little mournful. They gathered in the courtyard in small groups, pecking at grains of rice scattered on the ground in the lantern light.

I tipped my head back and looked at Shisui through the gaps in my hair. "Are those crows yours?"

"More or less. They've been here for as long as I can remember." As he spoke, Shisui gently pushed my head down, his hands never stopping.

For Shisui, the crows must have been his only companions when he was little.

"Shisui, start teaching me how to use a sword tomorrow." I suddenly caught hold of his hand, my eyes shining.

"Akatsuki, you've been a little too eager to improve lately." Shisui frowned.

Seeing me naked in the bath had shown him all the bruises and scars on my body. It had upset him.

"I want to graduate early." I explained the reason. "It's what Father wants, and what the clan wants."

His expression changed. I hesitated, then said, "I also..."

"Akatsuki, do you know what becoming a Genin means?"

Shisui's hands grew heavier. "There's a war going on out there right now."

"I know..."

"Once you graduate, you'll have to face the battlefield, and that place..." His voice lowered. "It's no place for someone your age."

"I..." I started to panic.

"I know what you're going to say," Shisui cut in, "but you can't rush your growth. And you shouldn't force yourself to improve through such extreme methods."

He'd figured it out...

"Akatsuki..." Shisui covered my hair with the towel and gently stroked it, his voice full of emotions I couldn't understand.

"You're still a child. Why do you have to live so tired?"

I froze, my fingers clenching hard.

Since I'd been transported to this world, I'd never told anyone how much hardship and exhaustion I'd endured over the past few years. No one knew how lonely, frightening, and difficult it was for a soul from another world to drift into this one. No one would know, and no one would care. People didn't like listening to complaints, and no one took another person's suffering to heart.

My eyes reddened as I sat there, deflated. My emotions spilled out, and I sat perfectly still, feeling the warmth on my head.

I knew all too well that people could never truly understand one another unless they had suffered the same tragedy.

Uchiha Shisui was a genius boy even more gifted than I was. The world saw the brilliance of his reputation, but no one knew how much hardship and pressure he carried that others couldn't see.

Whether it was all the training he'd endured or the expectations of his clan, each brought its own pressure and obstacles. Even the soul of an adult couldn't bear it all—let alone a child like Uchiha Shisui, who had no one to rely on.

This world was far too cruel. So many things kept forcing young children to grow up, wearing down their bodies and minds at every turn.

This world was so cruel.

And yet—

And yet, in this strange and unpredictable ninja world, when Fugaku chose me as his eldest son, when my mother pushed me into an unfamiliar family, and when, after five years, I finally put on the perfect mask of Uchiha Akatsuki, there was still someone who treated me like a child and saw the real me inside.

"Little Akatsuki..." Shisui looked at me and sat down beside me, trying to comfort me again.

"Sorry. I'm being too long-winded, aren't I?"

Shisui turned my face toward him.

His eyes were as gentle and bright as ever, but suddenly, I felt so sad I could barely bear it.

Since birth, at least I'd had my mother to confide in. But what about Uchiha Shisui? Who could he confide in? What did he have to rely on? How many times had he fallen along the way, and how much had he suffered?

Why would someone who'd been caught in the rain spend all his thoughts on holding an umbrella for others?

Uchiha Shisui, what kind of person were you?

I suddenly threw my arms around him and held him tight, wanting to give him warmth.

But he smiled as always and put his arms around me. Instead, I found myself surrounded by his warmth.

Beneath the eaves, Shisui and I were like two little beasts tending to each other's wounds—or like two leaves pressed close together in an autumn rain.

We had only each other, and we warmed each other.