Chapter 5: Chapter 5 – Ten Thousand Needles

"I want to travel around the world," I said, alternating my gaze between her and the paper bag.

"Huh, is that it?" The young girl scowled. "You can still do that even if you become a police officer; sure, you will need to get a vacation, but it's way safer."

"That's not it." I shook my head. "I want to travel the world for a special reason."

"And what is this special reason?"

My gaze followed her hand as she took a Dango from the bag, leaving only two inside.

"A secret," I said.

Raising the dreaded fist, she growled, "Stop testing my patience, brat."

Alright, alright, no need for child abuse.

"I will tell you if you promise not to hit me."

"I promise I will try."

Good enough, I guess.

Standing up, I took two steps before turning to face her. "I want to travel the world and marry every beautiful Kunoichi I meet," I crossed my arms, my voice firm and determined.

"..."

"..."

"...what?"

"Not only Kunioichis, but civilian women as well; as long as I like them, I will mar-Eck-"

I almost bit my tongue when something heavy struck me in the head.

"Where did you hear that?!" The perpetrator yelled, "Who taught you that?! Is it in the hospital? Is it some perverted doctor, huh? Tell this Onee-san and I won't hit you more."

"You promised not to hit me," I rubbed the same spot I got hit twice, "it's hurt."

It really did.

"I promised to try, and that is before you start sprouting bullshit," she said, grabbing me by the collar, her eyes as furious as a Toro Bravo setting on the matadores. "Now talk, where did you get this idea from?"

Isekai genre?

"I know why you are angry, Kyo-Nee, but don't worry." I shifted slightly in her iron grip. I didn't try to prey myself out; it's but a pipe dream for an untrained kid to overpower a Chunin "I didn't forget you; in fact, I have planned everything; you will be the second wife."

"Huh?! Planned?! Planned your ass," I felt my feet leaving the ground as she lifted me with my collar, "and why am I second? "Who dares to be the first?" steam burst from her mouth.

That's the wrong sense of focus.

"That," I said, pointing to the paper bag that still contained Dango. "The person who made those dangos."

As soon as I finished my words, I felt her grip loosen, and my feet touched the ground once more. "You're kidding." All the rage left her face, leaving an incredulous expression. "Right?"

I panted slightly after getting released, then tilted my head to the side, seemingly not understanding why she would think so.

"Why?"

"What if the one who made them is a man?"

Oh, I haven't thought about that. Nevertheless, I quickly answered.

"If that is the case, then," I trailed off, mulling it over for a moment before shrugging. "I will compromise."

"You, you've lost it, didn't you?" She sighed as if giving up all hope for a rational conversation.

Rude. A harem is the dream of all those who call themselves cultured men, you know? Besides, wanting to have a harem in a world where it's arguably not morally acceptable is in no way an adequate incentive for labeling me insane.

... or is she referring to the compromise part? Is she thinking I'm willing to marry a man? She wouldn't make such a misunderstanding, right? I specifically stated Kunoichi and civilian women. If the one who made the dangos is a man, then hopefully he has a sister or a daughter. Something like that is what I meant.

"Enough with this nonsense," she waved her hand. "I promise to not tell Otto if you tell me where you've got it from."

I kept quiet. Not that I'm hard to crack or a fearless bastard; simply that I don't have a credible excuse, and any more bullshit would be counterproductive.

After a long moment of silence, she raised her hands in surrender. "Okay, if you don't want to say it, then I can do nothing about it," she crossed her arms, puffed out her chest, and she said with her nose in the air. "I'm your Onee-san after all, and I respect your choices."

I nodded. She truly is more mature than she behaves.

"Oh right!" She exclaimed suddenly. "How could I forget?" she tapped her knuckles against the side of her forehead. "I'm such an airhead."

My eyes narrowed slightly at her exaggerated acting. That smells fishy. She's scheming something. The little tidbits of memories I have of her are more than enough to conclude that.

"You said you didn't remember anything of the attack, right?"

I nodded slowly. Where is she getting at?

"So..." she trailed off with a dubious smile on her face. "You don't remember awakening the Sharingan then."

My eyes unconsciously widened. I did?... he did?

"Is that true?" I blurted. The excitement oozing out of my voice surprised me almost as much as her words did.

"Of course, this Onee-san never lies."

A Shinobi that doesn't lie? Good luck to anyone believing that. Also, using "Onee-san" so often to refer to yourself would lessen your credibility, had a third party been listening.

But at least she is smart. Using such an irresistible bait as the Sharingan right after she all graciously decided to respect my choices... yeah, she is definitely scheming something.

"Eh," she echoed, tilting her head, raising an eyebrow, and placing her hand on her chin. "Is that it?"

Imitating her, I tilted my head slightly to the side.

"Isn't that a bit... I don't know... lukewarm. That is the Sharingan, damn it, the Sharingan! No day passes without you asking me to show you mine, and now that you have successfully awakened your own! Damn it. Aren't you happy about it?"

Trying yet again to get a reaction out of me? Sorry to disappoint you, but this is the most exciting face I've made since the first time Thor started responding whenever I called it by its amazing name.

"I'm happy."

That's true. I fully removed any inclusion of the Kekkei Genkai from my plan earlier, since it's quite tricky and distasteful to awaken. But if it was already awakened, then it's a pleasant surprise I would be willing to dance for.

"Then stop being a plank of wood and show it!"

I meant it figuratively; besides, I'm not a good dancer. I would only embarrass myself in front of a beautiful lady if I did that. That would have been another story had I been alone.

"How?" I asked, my face blank as ever.

The blank expression I wore is not the result of me closing in on Izuna after his dad's death. Nor was it some half-hearted acting. This is me, my face, my expression, and I've always been like that. Sadly, I can't nor am I willing to fully change my behavior.

Of course, that is within reason. If I were to suddenly behave entirely like a different person, I won't doubt I would end up with a Yamanaka's intrusion in my brain, and that would be awful, to say the least.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, this body is doing more than necessary to alter me to fit into it.

"What people do when they are happy," she shrugged, then fixed her gaze on me. "Smile, I guess."

No dancing?

I paused for a moment, then nodded. I can pull that off.

"If I smile, will you show me how to use it? "

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Since I'm pretty sure she is scheming something, it doesn't hurt to trade. I feel a bit bad about it, but not enough to cloud my view of what is important. Then again, isn't this her duty as a big sister?

I could of course try to activate it on my own, but I feel it would be less effective and prone to risks. And the fact I didn't even know this body had already awakened the Sharingan is a telltale of my chances of succeeding alone in this endeavor.

Still, it's not hopeless either. I thought, feeling the fresh sensation lightly gliding in and out of my abdomen. It's subtle, almost unnoticeable; had I not known what world I was in, I would have dismissed it as the cold weather.

Chakra. My chakra.

And the exciting part is that it responded to my command the first time I tried it. After I'd finished checking my new body yesterday, I made some tests, and they worked. All I had to do was focus, and it moved.

Of course, the movement here was more like filling a barrel with a spoon from a river with rip currents. But for someone like me, an everyday Joe who comes from a world of only everyday Joes, this is better than winning the lottery.

The excitement of this fabulous discovery was quickly cooled as the realization that I'm not the only one with the magical powers slowly dawned on me.

Nonetheless, controlling the chakra is awesome. I just need to find some Ninjutsu techniques to try... and to be responsible with it, of course. It's not a toy after all.

And the Sharingan would be my first step into the magical world.

"Aren't you getting too far ahead of yourself, brat?"

... or not.

"First the dangos and now a cheap smile, do you take me for an idiot?"

"...no?"

"Is that a question?"

"Yes? I mean no." I immediately reworked my reply as she raised her diabolical fist.

"Anyway," she waved her unfisted hand. "Show me something, and then I will see."

I snorted internally. What a wicked woman! She knows she has the physical advantage, and she isn't shying away from using it.

"Alright."

She won, is what she thinks; however, that is in no way to say that I lost. If someone steals your trash, does that count as being robbed?

I inhaled deeply, straightened my back, looked her dead in the eyes, and then proceeded to tighten the muscles on my cheeks and raise the corner of my lips to form the happiest smile anyone has ever made.

"What the heck was that?!"

Before she could finish her yell, my vision flashed white once more, and a strong, painful impact struck my head.

"Why?!" I unconsciously yelled back as I put a hand on my head.

"What do you mean, why," she exclaimed with a dumbfounded expression, as if asking such a question were a sin. "That was the most creepy smile I've ever seen."

So uncalled for.

This is why I dislike being around people. They always try to judge you for whatever you do. Be it bad or good. Even if it's something they asked for.

"I did what you told me to do," I kicked the wet grass on the ground; that is as far as my anger could be displayed. "Now show me how to activate the Sharingan."

"Do you really think that would be enough?" The disdain on her face was clear as she said those words.

I didn't answer, my gaze on the ground as I kept abusing the grass, getting my toes wet in the process.

I heard her sigh loudly.

"Let's forget smiling for now; if you tell me where you got that perverted idea, not only will I show you how to activate the Sharingan, but I will also teach you an awesome Ninjutsu before you enter the academy."

"...lie?"

"Onee-san never lies; here, promise." A light smile was on her face as she reached over with her pinky finger extended.

Eh?

A pinky promise? No. The pinky promise. A sacred and absolute contract often made between individuals who later end up becoming extraordinary.

If such a godly pact isn't trustworthy, then I don't know what it is.

Mirroring her gesture, I raised my hand before interlocking my pinky with hers.

"Pinky promise. If I lie, I will drink thousands of needles and cut my pinky..." She swung our hands up and down while rhyming horrible things, but then paused and looked at me with a questioning gaze. "Eh? Why aren't you singing with me?"

"I don't know, isn't drinking thousands of needles a bit too much?" I asked with a hesitant expression—at least, that's how I perceived it.

"Mm, you're probably right. How about five hundred then? That seems fair, right?"

Fair? Who the fuck are you kidding?

"... I'm not sure, and how could anyone drink needles? They are not like water or sake."

"You are saying strange things," she said, looking at me suspiciously before her eyes hardened. "Don't tell me you are planning on breaking the promise from the start."

Nonsense! Banish that thought in this instant!

"No."

"Is that so?" She looked at me for a little bit longer. "Then you won't mind going with ten thousand needles, right?"

I nodded reluctantly. It's not like I'll do it anyway.

"Good, then repeat after me," she said before starting to swing our hands up and down once more.

"Pinky promise. If I lie, I will drink ten thousand needles and cut my pinky."

"Pinky promise. If I lie, I will drink ten thousand needles and cut my pinky."

"Good," unfastening our pinkies and putting her hand on her hips, she nodded at me. "Now tell me who put that idea in your little rocky head."

Now that I've decided, I didn't hesitate. "Lions."

"The animal?"

"Yes."

Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times before she asked, giving up finding the link by herself, most likely. "... how?"

I wanted to smile here, but my head got enough abuse for today.

"Lions are strong, and they have many wife lionesses, and I want to be just like a lion."

Her mouth hung open for a moment before her eyes lit up as if realizing something, and then she laughed. "Of course, how could I forget?" She said, putting a hand on my head and ruffling my hair aggressively. "If you want to be like a lion, then you need to work really hard, you know?"

"I will work hard."

"Good, this Onee-san will also work hard for the first place wife," she grinned at her own joke, then turned, grabbed the back of dangos, and walked in the direction we came from. "Let's get back to the compound; this isn't a good place for training."

Nodding, I followed a step behind.

Looking at her back. At the clan's crest. I tried to squash the sour feeling that was scratching in my chest. Sighing. I never felt this uncomfortable lying to someone before, and I don't like it.

But it's alright; I will get used to it, or at least bear with it until I'm powerful enough to get as far away as possible from death.

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