Fair warning this chapter was my first attempt at trying to kind of expand and show a changing and unique mindset and reflection etc you'll see ig
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5 Hours Later
Hikaru slept peacefully in the mindscape; his earlier study session had long finished. A sudden rough shake jolted him out of his stupor, followed by an irritated voice cutting through his daze.
"What?" Hikaru muttered sleepily, a yawn escaping as he rubbed his left eye, squinting as his eyes adjusted to the light.
"School's over; get up." Inner said, arms crossed, annoyance evident in his tone.
"Ughh," Hikaru groaned as he snapped his fingers. His consciousness shifted the mindscape's interior, dissolving into a black-like void, Inner's figure vanishing with it before reality reinserted itself.
The familiar interior of the classroom came into focus as the sound of scraping chairs and hurried footsteps entered Hikaru's ears. The classroom emptied at record speed as students rushed to reclaim their freedom.
"Come on, Rin, Ichiraku Ramen is having a buy-one-get-one-free deal; we can't miss it." A young boy with orange goggles framing his face said as he pulled a young girl with brown hair along.
"Okay, Obito, but slow down some." The girl said, giggling, as both exited the classroom.
Hikaru watched this with detached eyes, knowing he would never be like any of these kids simply because he never had anything to look forward to—at least nothing good.
'You're wrong. Today we have Mom's birthday, so get walking.' Inner said with mock annoyance as he smiled slightly, his optimism being shared with Hikaru through their connection.
"Yeah, let's go." Hikaru mumbled with a slight smile on his face as he lazily stuffed his hands into his pockets as he began walking toward the door.
Suzuki, who sat rigidly at his desk with papers in one hand and a pen in the other, happened to glance at Hikaru's leaving figure with a small smile on his face.
'That's surprising. In the year and a quarter I've known that kid, he's never smiled, not once.' Suzuki thought a bit surprised.
Hikaru, now walking out of the academy building, began walking toward the gate that connected the school to the streets of Konoha. However, when he was only a few feet away from it, three figures appeared from behind the other side of the gate wall, blocking his path.
Hikaru, analyzing the figures, immediately recognized them. In the center stood Uchiha Akito, a boy slightly taller than Hikaru, with spiky black hair tied into a short ponytail. His black eyes burned with arrogance and barely hidden disgust.
To the right stood Haruno Yuuki, a shorter, rounder boy with short pink hair and hazel eyes hidden behind round black glasses. He looked looked at Hikaru meekly, like he wished he was anywhere but there.
Lastly, to the left, Kousei, a civilian, the tallest of the three. Lanky, brown-haired, dark-eyed—and smiling. Not a friendly one, but a sadistic one, the kind a predator wore when it had cornered prey.
'Oh come on—' Inner started as he groaned internally, looking at the figures of the three boys, but he was cut off by Hikaru.
'Just let them get their anger out; there's no need to cause unnecessary trouble. They feel they need to do this and won't stop until they complete it; that's just how people are.' Hikaru spoke, seriousness evident in his voice. He planned to just let them do what they felt like they needed to and get on their way.
Inner, agreeing with Hikaru's sentiment, just nodded.
Akito, seeing Hikaru simply standing there, his eyes looking at the three with detachment, began walking toward Hikaru, a smile full of arrogance plastered on his face.
"Make sure he doesn't escape," Akito said, his words directed at the two standing behind him.
Akito reached Hikaru, his smile growing bigger and bigger as he met Hikaru's eyes.
"Hey Halfbreed, I haven't seen you around much lately. Did you miss me? Do you want to know why I was gone?" Akito said, punching Hikaru's chest playfully.
Hikaru, hearing this, simply stayed quiet; his detached eyes looked at Akito.
Akito, seeing this, frowned slightly, his excitement disappearing, being replaced with disgust and anger.
"Oh, come on. If you act like that, you'll make me really sad." Akito said, his fist snapping back as the blow charged toward him.
Hikaru, looking at the fist, didn't move despite his instincts warning him as he let the fist hit him.
The fist slammed into Hikaru's stomach as Hikaru was pushed back slightly; air escaped Hikaru's lungs, and his knees buckled as he clutched his stomach as pain set in.
'Chakra-Enhanced' Inner hissed as pain tore through his stomach, his knees also buckling as he felt the pain Hikaru did through their link.
Akito, seeing Hikaru's eyes widening slightly and clenching his stomach, his smile widening again in pleasure as he finally saw a flicker of pain cross Hikaru's usually empty expression.
"Like that half-breed," Akito sneered as he grabbed Hikaru by his ash-grey hair, lifting him up, making sure the boy's sea-green eyes could see the enjoyment on his face.
"My uncle taught me how to reinforce my body with chakra." Akito said, his smile dropping slightly as a memory surfaced.
"You know why? Because I told him some stupid half-blood took a punch from a mighty Uchiha… and dared to act like he could take it. And when I told him that Halfbreed was you, he jumped at the chance." The Uchiha was a clan of pride and power.
For someone like Akito to fail to be unable to drop a half-blood was unthinkable and something that needed correction.That was why his uncle had taught him early.
Akito saying this put his mouth close to Hikaru's ear. "Now enjoy this beating," he whispered as he tossed Hikaru up slightly, just enough to slam his fist into his jaw as Hikaru's face snapped sideways as he crashed to the ground.
Then another hit followed before he could fully register the first, then a kick to the stomach, which made him cough a mouthful of blood.
And Hikaru just let it happen, taking each hit faithfully; however, despite his actions, his thoughts couldn't help but wander as he fully took in and analyzed his situation with a cold tint and logic.
'I could stop this.' The thought stirred distant and unemotional. He could feel his chakra stir like a tool waiting to be used, but he didn't reach for it.
'They're not wrong, they're not right,' he thought as another punch hit his ribs; a crunching sound sounded as pain flared sharply.
'The body is reacting nothing more.' Hikaru thought his teeth were gnashing slightly.
'This is just what they feel they need to do.' Hikaru thought, he knew anger demanded an outlet. It didn't matter where it went, only that it was released. Today it moved through fists, and tomorrow words or glares, and some days all three; that was simply the way the world was.
Akito grabbed his shirt and picked him up slightly before shoving him back down into the ground hard enough that Hikaru could feel his bones rattling.
'And if I fight back—' He reasoned calmly, 'That changes nothing, neither better nor worse; it only changes who feels satisfied.' So Hikaru stayed still and let them take all of it out on him because there was no meaning in fighting back.
Another kick landed, this time in his face.
'It hurts.' Hikaru acknowledged simply, somewhat emotionlessly.
'Sigh, but despite everything, they aren't monsters for hurting me for the pain or the blood, nor are they heroes for hurting the "half-breed."' They were simply just doing what they believed they should and wanted to do' Hikaru reasoned as another punch targeted his face.
A thought soon slipped in, one that repeated in the back of his mind.
'Why is that allowed for them but not for me?' he asked himself seriously. They got to do what they wanted without care simply because it felt necessary. Not only Akito but also those who glared at him or talked bad about him or kicked him out of stores or threw bottles and food. They did it with no hesitation, no guilt.
So why was he just lying here enduring the pain, choosing to stay still and take it? Using the pretense of it being unnecessary, he can't change it, or he was simply their outlet they chose.
'Why do I let myself be their outlet?' He asked himself. If there is no right or wrong, only following emotion, impulse, and what we deemed necessary, then what separated his restraint from simply being a coward?
'If they can act to feel better…why can't I?' Hikaru thought somewhat with clarity as the pain suddenly stopped, a red-haired woman filling his sight.
'Next time I might just do what I feel like doing.' Hikaru thought
—
A few moments earlier
As Akito hit Hikaru relentlessly, students and parents began to form a circle as they watched the kid get beat up and battered.
Some parents shielded their kids' eyes from the bloody sight; some who were ninjas got ready to intervene. Sure, they were kids, and kids fight, but not to this extent. They were all a village, one that needed to be harmonious.
One man with very distinctive ringed, red eyes, black hair that flowed to his shoulders, and a very prominent jawline stood protectively in front of his daughter.
His daughter, a girl with long, untamed black hair, distinctive ringed red eyes like her father, and fair skin and a slender build, stood behind him shivering at the sight.
The man was the first one to make up his mind as he moved to step in and was grabbed by his colleague, a man with light brown hair and circular glasses that sat perfectly atop his nose.
"Stop, Shinku; that is Hikaru, the bastard child of the Yamanaka clan, Paitrich," he warned seriously and loudly enough that the whole group heard. Murmurs started as the group's sentiment toward Hikaru flipped like a switch.
"He's right; it's that half-blood. Look at those devilish eyes and demon hair."
"Bastard."
"Cursed."
"Kill him."
"He probably deserves it."
Shinku, hearing these murmurs, took a step back, his fist tightening slightly as he apologized to Hkaru internally.
'I'm sorry, child, but even associating with you could affect my clan and my daughter.' Shinku thought, his gaze travelling to his daughter, who covered her eyes in fear. Simply helping the boy was too much of a risk he was unwilling to take.
His clan has been declining rapidly since the warring states period, and simply helping the boy could lead to being socially ostracized.
Not only for him but also for his clan and daughter. Not only that, but both the Kurama and Yamanaka, who are major clans, have cut off the boy, so helping him would put the Yuhi in a position they couldn't handle currently.
Behind Shinku, a young red-haired woman, her face obscured by a brown hood, gnashed her teeth angrily as she observed the crowd, each blinded by hatred or too fearful to help.
'A child? You all hate a child to this extent, to the point you curse him like this?' She asked herself angrily, despite not knowing what that child did to deserve this, she knew that it didn't warrant those eyes.
The woman looking at Hkaru's sea green eyes saw something she saw in herself: tiredness, tiredness at it all, at his situation, at the hatred. She could tell the boy was about to break.
The woman mobilizing her chakra moved to the center of the circle in a flicker and grabbed Akito's hand, her hood falling off from the intense speed and wind that followed.
Revealing a slender woman with fair skin, striking violet eyes, and vibrant red hair. Her hair, no longer restricted by the hood, fell straight down to her shins, with shoulder-length strands framing her face and a black clip parting it neatly to the left.
Akito, feeling the strong, nearly crushing grip, couldn't help but say as he whipped his head around following the hand, "Hey, who dares to touch a member of the glor—" But as soon as he saw the woman in her entirety and her characteristic red hair that was the only one of its kind in the village, he turned as pale as a ghost.
"Demon Fox!" Akito said in terror, his previous arrogance gone; his scream awakened the previously confused crowd, who took a minute to analyze the woman.
'Red hair, check; a woman, check; young, check. Yeah, that's the Demon Fox. Everyone internally went through the knowledge known about the demon fox, comparing it with the woman they saw.
The moment the crowd was sure the woman was the Demon Fox, they immediately screamed in terror for their dear lives.
"Demon Fox," they yelled as ninjas flickered away with their children in tow, and civilians rushed out the school gate, pushing Yuuki and Kousei aside as they went into the closest building they could find, closing doors and blinds.
The woman sighing turned back to Hikaru's battered body, who tried to push himself up with his eyes on her as he analyzed everything about her. Beside him sat Akito, who had a puddle of pee and terror etched on his face.
"Scram, Kid." The woman said, disgust evident in her tone. Akito, not needing to be told twice, rushed out.
The woman sighing again turned to Hikaru, who was struggling to push himself up, and attempted to reach out and help him, only for her hand to be swatted away by Hikaru.
"I didn't need your help," he said plainly, his face attempting to mask something the woman couldn't discern, only it happened after he touched her.
"Yes, you do, kid. Just looking at you, you look close to death. Just let me heal you a bit, then you can go." The woman said a polite and slightly scary smile took her face, but Hikaru didn't care as he forcefully pushed himself up, wincing slightly.
"No, I've got stuff I need to do, and it would've been over in another 10 minutes, so no, I didn't need your help." Hikaru gruffed as he turned around and began limping.
However, the woman, starting to get annoyed and seeing the nice way he got nowhere, grabbed Hikaru by his collar, yanking him back toward her.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to walk away from adults while they're talking?" Kushina chided.
"No, she's too busy being in a vegetative state." Hikaru responded back simply.
'Dammit.' The woman mentally punched herself at her idiocy.
"Father?" The woman asked, trying to hopefully save herself.
"Never met him." Hikaru responded unemotionally.
"Grandparents" The woman asked, reaching for any straw, only for Hikaru to shake his head.
I'm just going to stop before I come off even more as an asshole. The woman thought as she changed the topic.
"Anyway, I'm Kushina. Who are you?" Kushina said as she began to forcefully heal Hikaru.
Hikaru, sensing he had no choice but to be healed, simply allowed it. "Hikaru" He answered monotonously.
'Damn, this kid is boring.' Kushina couldn't help but think, seeing the boy's lack of well… anything
"Well, I'm done healing you, but for your serious injuries, you should visit the hospital, okay, kid?" Kushina said, smiling as she ruffled Hikaru's messy, unkempt hair.
Hikaru, hearing this, simply nodded as he stood up preparing to leave.
"Wait, Kid. If you ever need anything or just want to talk, I live at *******, okay?" Kushina added worriedly; her motherly instinct told her she couldn't willingly not offer the boy a safe space, not when it seemed she was the only one in the village who gave a damn.
Hearing this, Hikaru simply nodded and continued on his way.
After they were a decent distance away, Inner spoke up. 'She was only trying to help,' Inner muttered. His voice came out strained, as the pain from the beating still lingered.
"Did you feel it?" Hikaru murmured, shifting the subject as he walked, his attention fully on trying to understand what he had seen.
Inner let out a heavy sigh, frustrated that Hikaru was ignoring him. 'You're an asshole, you know,' he added lazily.
Hikaru's ears twitched at the comment, and he glared—only to realize there was no one to glare at.
"Did you feel it?" Hikaru repeated, his tone serious.
'Yeah, I did. A second soul… mind… or both? I'm not sure of the specifics. I didn't have enough time, but I sensed something in her when she touched us. Something alive… and dangerous.' Inner's expression sharpened as he relayed the information to Hikaru.
"Why didn't I feel it?" Hikaru muttered, half to himself, half to Inner.
'I'm more adept at these things,' Inner explained with a shrug. 'I've been in the Mindscape since you were born. Just like you know your way around Konoha, I know my way around here. Plus, I'm Yin energy—it makes sense I'd be better at sensing it.'
"Hmm… Demon Fox?" Hikaru murmured, repeating the name the woman had been called several times in his head as he walked, trying to make sense of it all.
He paused for a fraction of a second, the curiosity flickering in his mind, but he pushed it aside. Flowers were currently the priority.
—
Still kneeling, the red-haired woman watched Hikaru's departure, her expression complicated.
'I should do something, shouldn't I? What if it were my son?' The thought pressed on her mind, insistent and troubling.
Elsewhere, in a space detached from reality yet connected to her, an orange fox remained chained to a massive boulder. Each of its nine tails, stomach, palms, and feet was pinned with wooden pegs.
It stared at the boy's departing back, its face a mix of ferocity, malice, and confusion.
"That boy… His Yin affinity, his Yin Chakra, is greater than mine? Me? the Nine-Tailed Fox, created by the Sage as the pure embodiment of Yin and Yang," the fox growled, eyes stabbing daggers into the boy.
"What did that stupid tree-hugger reincarnate… flip the script?" It muttered self-deprecatingly, frustration lacing its words.
There had only ever been one human who surpassed the fox in his own domain, the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju.
The man whose Yang affinity and chakra exceeded the Nine-Tailed Fox by leaps and bounds. And yet… This boy's Yin surpassed even Hashirama's Yang. It was almost… infinite.
"No human should be able to possess that. It's unnatural… How is he even alive?" the fox asked, sifting through millennia of memories for anything resembling this but coming up empty.
"If he could control and harness that energy, he'd be… unstoppable. Able to sense me the instant I tried to escape… No, even if I escaped, he'd know where I was, wherever I was.
There'd be nowhere to run. That's not even accounting for the Jutsu applications or illusions; he might even be able to control me to the extent of those Uchiha, maybe even surpass them." A shiver ran through the Nine-Tails as its mind raced through all the possible outcomes if Hikaru mastered his near-limitless Yin.
"Kushina, grab that boy and kill him!! Please!" The fox began to yelp to his warden, who had just stood up after Hikaru fully disappeared from sight.
Feeling the disturbance in her seal, Kushina, frowning, wondered aloud.
"What does this stupid fox want?" she asked as she tightened the seal, cutting off all resistance and connection between them.
"Grandma always said when the fox throws a temper tantrum, just lock him up, and when he behaves, still lock him up," Kushina said, smiling as she remembered the old times.
But her smile quickly disappeared as she sensed an incoming shinobi.
"Ughh," she groaned as she turned to face where the Shinnobi would appear. Suddenly a tall figure with long blue hair appeared wearing a dog mask with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Uzumaki Kushina, you know you are not to leave your home unless absolutely necessary." The figure said, his tone commanding as he chided at her.
Kushina, however, completely unbothered, simply rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever, Sota. We both know I'll escape again and you'll catch me and we'll repeat again and again, so let's skip this part; it's unnecessary." Kushina said as she walked back in the direction of her house.
Sota, hearing this, sighed angrily, "You're not supposed to use my real name."
Kushina hearing this simply smiled. "Yeah, there's no way I'm calling you Bite-O. What even possessed you to choose that?" Kushina said, disappearing in a flicker.
"I was young." Sota sighed solemnly as he followed in a flicker.