"I find your lack of faith disturbing."
— Darth Vader, Star Wars
--
The night over Konoha was silent — too silent.
Even the cicadas seemed to hold their breath.
Two figures ran through the narrow stone streets of the Uchiha compound — Sayuri and Sasuke, both carrying their school bags, their sandals slapping against the pavement. The red paper lanterns hanging outside each house swayed in the faint wind, and yet… there was no sound, no movement.
"Sasuke…" Sayuri whispered, clutching his sleeve. "Something's wrong."
Sasuke's face hardened. "Let's go home."
The Uchiha district was usually alive this hour, training grounds echoing with practice shuriken, elders chatting near the gates.
But tonight?
Nothing…
Sayuri slowed down. "It's… too quiet."
Sasuke glanced around, confused. "Maybe everyone went to the meeting hall?"
Sayuri shook her head. "No. Even the guard post is empty."
They exchanged a glance, that unspoken sibling panic that spreads faster than words.
And then they ran again.
Past the silent houses, past the empty training grounds, their footsteps echoing like heartbeats.
When they reached the central courtyard, they froze.
Someone was standing on top of the main pole above their home — a tall, familiar silhouette under the full moon.
His cloak fluttered, and the light caught his eyes — scarlet, spinning with power.
"Onisan!" they both shouted.
The figure turned his head slightly.
The moon behind him looked almost crimson.
A suffocating wave of killing intent rolled off him. It hit the siblings like ice water.
Sayuri gasped, knees trembling. Sasuke felt his heartbeat stop.
Itachi's gaze pierced through them, freezing them in place.
"...Weakness disgusts me," Itachi said coldly. His voice echoed down the empty street like a ghost's.
Sayuri's heart dropped. "W-what—?"
Then—
SMACK!
A hand came down on the back of Itachi's head so hard it made an audible thud.
He flopped forward, nearly falling off the pole before landing on his feet in a crouch.
"Mother!?" Sasuke yelped.
Mikoto stood behind him, her hand still raised, and her expression somewhere between tired and furious.
"Itachi," she said sharply, "what did I say about using killing intent on your siblings!?"
The red haze of his genjutsu flickered and vanished, the illusion of the empty district melting away as the reality returned.
Villagers appeared again, as if nothing had happened.
Sasuke exhaled shakily. "So… it was fake?"
Sayuri glared up at Itachi, still pale. "Onīsan, you're the worst!"
Itachi rubbed the back of his head, looking sheepish for once. "Mother, I was only… encouraging Sayuri to push her Sharingan further. And Sasuke too…he still hasn't awakened his—"
He stopped as Mikoto's glare sharpened.
Sayuri's face twitched between relief and fury. "Onisan! You almost gave me a heart attack!"
Sasuke pointed up accusingly. "You were going to pull that creepy 'test your hatred' thing again, weren't you!?"
Itachi looked away.
Mikoto sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Enough. Say your goodbyes. You're leaving in a few hours."
Sayuri blinked. "Leaving? For where?"
Itachi looked at them, the teasing expression fading
"A mission," he said simply. "One that may take some time."
"How long?" Sasuke asked.
"Long enough," Mikoto answered softly, stepping closer and resting a hand on his shoulder.
"He'll be gone for a while."
For a moment, all three of them stood there
Sayuri's lips trembled. "You're coming back, right?"
Itachi smiled faintly "Of course."
Sayuri's eyes glistened as she stepped forward and hugged him tightly. Sasuke followed, burying his face against his brother's cloak.
Itachi's hands hovered over them before wrapping around both and pulling them in close.
Mikoto watched quietly, her Sharingan flickering just once before fading, as if recording everything into it.
When the siblings finally let go, Itachi stood tall again, his cloak swaying lightly in the wind.
"Train hard," he said, voice calm again. "And the next time we meet, you two should have surpassed me."
Then he turned to his mother. She gave him a small nod.
Moments later, he vanished into the night
Sayuri and Sasuke stood side by side, watching the place where he'd disappeared.
The moon hung above them — beautiful and distant.
***
The sun hadn't fully risen yet. Mist hung over the river like a blanket.
A pair of dark eyes opened — already irritated at the day's existence.
Otis sat up, long strands of hair falling forward over his face and brushing past his shoulders. He tied it back loosely with a red string.
He grunted once as he stood, stretching his arms until his joints cracked. "Alright," he muttered to himself.
Otis stood before the mirror shard nailed to the wooden wall, tightening the leather strap around his forearm.
He reached for the wolf pelt draped across the chair beside his bed. It was large, silvery-white with streaks of darker gray, and he hung it over one shoulder like something out of an old northern tale. His look wasn't shinobi standard. It was something like the kind of thing a Viking might wear if he got dropped into the world of shinobi. No helmet, no armor. Just scars and muscles.
He gave his reflection one last look.
"Viking look, huh," he muttered with a faint smirk. "Not bad."
Just as he reached for his gear, the air shifted — sharp enough to make him pause.
He didn't turn immediately.
"Itachi."
The Uchiha appeared behind him,
Otis turned slightly, one eyebrow raised. "Didn't expect you to show up this early. Something wrong?"
Itachi's gaze lingered for a moment before he spoke.
"I'm leaving the village for a while. It may… take longer than I expect."
Otis studied him "So it's that serious, huh?"
Itachi nodded once. "Yes. And… if anything happens in my absence, watch over my siblings."
A brief silence followed.
The river kept flowing. A bird called in the distance.
Otis smirked
"Sayuri and Sasuke. Got it. I'll make sure they stay out of trouble."
Itachi's eyes softened. "Thank you."
And then he vanished.
Otis exhaled, looking toward the trees
"Goodbye, Uchiha," he murmured.
He turned around. The wolf hide shifted across his back as he raised one hand.
A faint chakra circulated through his arm — a heartbeat later, an axe and a round shield came flying from the weapon rack into his hands.
Otis strapped them across his back in one smooth motion.
"Now that's better," he muttered, flexing his fingers. "Can't start the mission without my steel."
He grabbed his small pack and stepped out into the cool morning air.
Birds chirped somewhere in the distance as he started heading deep into the forest — to where the air turned cold enough to sting.
(Pic)
***
Deeper in the woods…
Between the roots of an oak, something massive was sleeping. A deep, rumbling snore echoed through the trees, followed by a twitching paw the size of a table.
"Lunchbox," Otis called out casually, leaning against a tree trunk. "Wake up. Mission time."
No response — just another grumble that made the leaves above him shake.
Otis crossed his arms. "We've got a mission. B-rank escort. Probably boring, but there's food involved."
Still nothing…
"Yuki-box!"
The bear opened one lazy eye and blinked at him with the same expression people use when deciding whether getting up is really worth it.
Otis sighed. "If you don't move, I'll tell Sayuri you got scared of a cat again."
The bear's eye twitched.
A heavy thud followed. Yuki's eyes gleamed, breath fogging the air as she stared down at Otis like a moody child caught sleeping in class.
Otis crossed his arms. "Don't give me that look. You ate three deer last week, you're not hibernating anytime soon."
Yuki grumbled, rolled over, and rose to her full height, her fur bright against the dark forest.
"Good girl," Otis said, patting her leg. "Let's go make some ryo."
That earned another snort.
***
At the village gate...
The scene there was… less tranquil.
A merchant named Takeshi was pacing in circles beside a carriage, muttering to himself as he tapped his foot furiously on the dirt. His polished sandals were covered in dust now — not that he noticed.
Inside the carriage, his wife Hana sat gracefully, trying to maintain her calm while their eight-year-old son, Ren, climbed from seat to seat like a small, excitable monkey.
Hana looked tired in the way only mothers could look tired — half her energy gone to keeping Ren from breaking something. The boy had the kind of boundless curiosity that was both endearing and fatal in equal measure.
"Dad," Ren said for what was likely the twentieth time. "When do we leave?"
Takeshi sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "When the shinobi arrives. He's supposed to be here by now."
Ren frowned. "But you said the ninja would be here by sunrise. It's way past sunrise!"
"Maybe he got lost?" Ren added.
"Lost?" Takeshi repeated, incredulous. "He's a jōnin! They don't get lost."
Hana chuckled softly. "Don't say that. Maybe he got called for something urgent, or maybe he's just preparing. You know shinobi — they have strange ways sometimes."
Ren kicked the carriage side. "Still, he's late!"
He turned back to glare at the open gate — and froze.
A giant polar bear stared right back at him.
"Dad!" Ren tugged at his father's clothes.
Takeshi sighed, turning. "If he doesn't show up soon, I'm—"
Then he froze mid-sentence.
Because something enormous was standing in front of him.
Yuki's massive frame loomed over the carriage, its fur shining in the sunlight like snow under glass. The bear inhaled slowly through its snout, and a puff of cold mist escaped.
Ren's eyes widened — then a low exhale brushed against his face.
"AAAAAAAAAAH!"
He screamed.
"Monster! MONSTER!"
Takeshi's heart stopped as he jumped so hard he nearly tripped over his own feet. "REN!" He lunged forward, pulling his son back.
The samurai guards he'd hired rushed forward, swords drawn, shouting things like, "Get back!" and "What the hell is that thing?!"
And came a calm voice, carrying a lazy confidence.
"Now, now… Yuki."
From behind the bear stepped Otis, the sunlight glinting off the wolf pelt on his shoulder. The fur looked eerily similar to Yuki's, almost like they were carved from the same hide.
His black shirt was sleeveless, showing muscles and a few faint scars. The headband tied around his arm bore the Konoha symbol, old and slightly singed. He took in the scene, the screaming kid, the panicked father, the sword-drawn samurai.
"Don't scare the kid," Otis said, scratching the back of his neck. "We haven't even left the gate yet."
Yuki tilted her head at him, feigning innocence, then sat down with a heavy thud that shook dust off the ground. The bear gave a deep rumbling sigh and started grooming its paw, completely unbothered.
Everyone else looked like they'd seen the end of days.
Otis stepped forward and extended a hand to the merchant. "You must be Takeshi. I'm Otis — jonin from Konoha. I'll be your escort to the Land of Grass."
Takeshi stood there, caught between confusion and awe. "Ah—yes, yes! Forgive me, I didn't expect…" He glanced at the polar bear. "…such a large companion."
"Don't worry," Otis said. "She only eats little kids when they irritate her"
Ren's face turned pale.
Otis's lips twitched. "Kidding."
Everyone stared at him like, Who jokes like that?
Takeshi cleared his throat. "I—I am Takeshi of the Golden Trail Company. And that's my wife and son. We're headed to the Land of Grass."
Otis nodded once. "Jewelry shipment for the Daimyō, right? Heard it's important."
"Yes," Takeshi said nervously. "That's why we hired a jōnin and… um… samurai guards."
Otis's eyes flicked toward the samurai — two men with decent stances, polished swords, and absolute terror in their eyes at the sight of Yuki.
"They'll do," Otis said dryly.
Hana covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. Ren, now hiding behind his mother, peeked out cautiously.
"Um… sir?"
Otis crouched slightly so he was eye-level with the kid. "Yeah?"
"Is that your pet?"
Yuki growled, and Otis raised an eyebrow. "She says no. She's my partner. Big difference."
Ren's eyes widened.
"It… talks?"
Otis straightened, glancing at Yuki. "Only when she feels like it."
Yuki snorted again, and Ren looked at it nervously. Hana gave Otis a small smile. "She's adorable," she said, which made Yuki's eyes narrow in mild offense.
"Alright then," Otis said, swinging his bag over his shoulder. "Let's get moving. The sooner we leave, the sooner I can eat something that isn't dried fish."
Yuki rose behind him — a moving mountain of white fur — as the caravan started rolling forward.
The gates of Konoha faded behind them, and the uncertain road to the Land of Grass stretched ahead.
--
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