Chapter 2: Desperation

"Hello Ishoku-san." The man said, his red eyes spinning wildly. "I apologize for the state of disorder I have left your house in."

Ishoku looked around in horror as the harsh realization of the events that transpired here finally took hold of the frail boy's psyche.

His mom and dad were murdered in cold-blood, and the murderer decided to stick around and wait for his next victim to prance around merrily and unsuspectingly.

As the reality of what happened tightened its grip on Ishoku, he gained an epiphany on what is going to occur next.

He was going to die. Not even 8 years old yet, and he was going to be killed.

He was expecting to have been murdered brutally by an insane mob gathering in front of the school. In spite of the frequent warnings, it never really did cross his mind that a hunter-nin would actually come to the village and kill his entire family.

Ishoku accepted his inevitable demise. He made peace within himself, a little grateful that his nightmarish life was coming to an end.

Yet, he could not help but shiver in fear as he stared death in the face.

The man…er, boy, looked a little like his father. Under his eyes, the boy had very pronounced tear-troughs, either a sign of an aged appearance or a life filled with stress. Ishoku would have placed his bets on the latter, had it not been for the gentle look of his eyes in contrast to the wildly spinning blood-red irises. The boy could hide his intentions very well under the guise of a metaphorical mask. Whether or not he was an insane sociopath hell on killing off everything or everyone, or a silent introvert with propensities towards gruesome violence, Ishoku could not tell off first glance.

He wore shinobi attire designed for Konoha's ANBU division. He knew this information based on the stories his parents often told at the dinner table, and from newspaper articles and magazines he snuck from the local library. He had a high-collared, short sleeve black shirt with matching pants, arm guards, and a grey flak jacket. His clothing appeared to be damaged from countless days of continuous wear. If he was indeed a hunter-nin, he probably would have looked a little more cleaner, considering the fact that it only takes a couple of days to reach Konoha on foot.

Ishoku did not know why he was analyzing every aspect of the boy. But he discovered that he could not forget any minor feature that he laid eyes on. In fact, this entire scene was imprinted into his memories, and the more he thought about his reaper, the more the images would flash before his eyes. He noticed every subtle movement now, from the way the boy tapped his left index finger on the shuriken holster taped over his left thigh rhythmically, or even the lice that crawled around the carpeting. He was not even paying any attention to the floor; his peripheral vision was mysteriously enhanced, allowing him to take more careful notice of everything that happened in the house.

Maybe his newfound insight could provide him with a means to escape! Yeah, that would definitely be his best option at this point. Carefully take two steps back, pretend that you are afraid of him…

"Your feeble attempts at escape are not going to work, Ishoku-san." The boy said again.

Ishoku froze in place. How did he—

"I have the same gift as you do, Ishoku-san." The boy said. "The Sharingan grants the user enhanced perception on the environment, one that would normally be unreadable by the naked eye."

Sharin-what?

"I can see your chakra flow, Ishoku-san. It's steadily increasing in speed, indicating tension on the limbs. I can count how often you are exhaling, and can determine your state of nervousness from the sweat that's gradually accumulating on your brow."

A sweat droplet rolled down Ishoku's face as he—wait, how did he know this? Could he really read Ishoku's every move?

The boy stood up from the couch in a fashion meant to promote fear and anxiety. The gentle look on his face morphed into a menacing gaze that threatened to tear Ishoku apart from the outside. His fears grew uncontrollable the closer the boy walked towards Ishoku. He never felt this way before with the children in his Academy, or with the teachers or the Grandmaster. He had better control of his emotions in that dreaded "learning environment." But here…

He felt a wet tinkle slide down his legs. He did not even want to think about what that—

The boy grabbed onto Ishoku's hair harshly, slamming his face on the wall. The mirror that was hanging on the walk cracked, slicing Ishoku and causing him to bleed. Ishoku was now terrified. He was going to die! He was going to die…he was going to die…he was going to…

The boy lifted Ishoku's face and grabbed his cheek, forcing him to see the cracked mirror. Forcing him to see his horrendous features. Ishoku hated looking at the mirror. He hated seeing his black and white irises staring back at him with a bored expression. It was a constant reminder of the iniquitous conditions he involuntarily lived under. If only he was born with a normal set of eyes. Not this white and red abomination!

Wait…red?

"Do you realize it now, Ishoku-san?" The boy said, cutting his thoughts. "You have awakened the second stage of your Sharingan, the kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan. This is undeniable proof that you are indeed an Uchiha, not just some anonymous child sharing the same surname. You and I are a part of the same clan, Ishoku-san. I share the same gifts that you possess."

Wait…what was he saying? Yeah, he knew he was an Uchiha. Duh. His name was Uchiha Ishoku, after all. But…he was a part of a clan? What nonsense was this guy spewing? They were related? Are they brethren or something? Because that would be insane. It would not answer the unspoken question. The question of…

"…Why?" Ishoku mumbled out, his mouth accidently taking in a bit of blood from his forehead.

"I was merely cleaning the filth." The boy answered, dropping Ishoku from the wall. Ishoku landed on a small table, breaking the table in half and causing further exterior damage to his body. "The Uchiha are a plague to this society. Grossly obsolete ideals and a tendency to seek ultra-violent solutions to their problems. Arrogant to a fault, and completely unable to empathize with other, lesser clans. The Uchiha are a contamination that needed to be annihilated post-haste, so I did the world a favor."

"W…what do you mean?"

"I killed off the entire clan. Everyone, Ishoku-san. Down to the infant."

He was going to die. Definitely.

This was the utterance of a narcissistic megalomaniac who got aroused off the pain and suffering of others. The shit this boy was saying to him was merely the icing on the cake. When the boy stabbed that tantō into Ishoku's shivering body, he wondered what kind of orgasmic inducing face the boy was going to make.

"Of course, it was not feasible to kill off every single Uchiha in Konohagakure no Sato. Some of them were currently engaged in missions that required an extended leave of absence from the village…and others were missing-nin, such as your father."

"My father…is not a plague!" Ishoku screamed at the top of his lungs, defying the pain he was currently feeling.

He jerked under the pressure of the boy's hand grabbing him by the throat. He could feel his airways being cut as the boy clenched tighter and tighter. He struggled in vain to remove the boy's hand from his throat. The boy held such unrestrained ire in his eyes, as if Ishoku had said something completely wrong.

"Your father was an Uchiha! From the moment that he took his first breath, he was destined to lead this world to the brink of implosion. I did him a favor when I took his life."

Ishoku's head was feeling very light. He couldn't handle it anymore. Finally, he was going to join his father and mother in the afterlife. Anything was better than staying another second with this psychotic asshole, or the problem children in his school.

He was slammed back first on the wall again, opposite of where he once was. Ishoku coughed madly, trying to regain all of the air he was denied during his asphyxiation.

"You would not understand, Ishoku-san. You've been living here, in this village, presumably being ostracized because of your condition. You've lived a sheltered life, completely ignorant of what truly goes on in this world of ours."

The boy grabbed Ishoku by the collar of his shirt. "You wouldn't understand the pain of a 4 year old child crying over the body of his innocent mother because the mission specifications were vague and inconclusive, and you were forced to kill that child in cold blood in order to 'prevent any witness.' You wouldn't understand what it's like to watch your best friend rip his only remaining eye asunder, trusting you with the future of his village and clan, and then subsequently killing himself!"

He let go of the boy's collar and walked around the living room. "I've killed many people, Ishoku-san. Missions to intercept rival ANBU agencies. Missions to eradicate entire villages. Missions to infiltrate the most fortified strongholds and assassinate VIP targets. Some of these missions having mortality rates of 95%. All in the name of my village. All in the name of my clan. A clan who then proceeded to look at me as if I were just another tool to use in their bitter hatred against Konoha. No, you wouldn't understand any of that."

Ishoku continued to tremble in front of the boy, unsure of what laid in his future. He was absolutely positive that it was death, but the boy continued to prolong his demise for some self-righteous ranting on the flaws of some system he could care less about.

"Do you know how old I am, Ishoku-san?"

Ishoku, in fear for his life did not answer the question.

"I'm thirteen. My birthday's in a couple of more days actually. Can you not believe it, Ishoku-san? A thirteen year old, killing off his entire family. Normally, it would be baffling. I probably would be staring at me the same way you are currently looking at me. Fear…dread…lacing my eyes. But that's the world we live in, Ishoku-san. A world where my family is better off annihilated, and where I travel all over to clean up the remaining scum."

"Why…"

"Hmm?"

"If the Uchiha were a parasite to be killed off from the world…WHY DID MY MOM HAVE TO DIE?!"

He knew that his father was one of these "Uchiha" characters this boy had ranted about. But he also knew that his mom was not really an Uchiha. She never did talk about what her heritage was. She happily accepted the Uchiha surname upon getting married, and was equally joyful when she renounced use of her maiden name.

But her features were vastly different from his father and this boy in front of him. She had lavender hair and milky skin to compliment her ivory eyes. His father had jet black shoulder length hair and a deeper skin complexion than his mother, along with black eyes that seemed to hide his pupils.

She was no Uchiha. She didn't deserve to be wiped clean from the earth.

So then…why did she have to die?

"I didn't want to kill her."

'Don't make me laugh.' Ishoku thought in sarcasm.

"That look on your face…you don't believe me."

How did he—

"Sharingan. I can read you expressions and predict your emotions and actions. In a sense, I know what you are thinking based off the muscle tension coming from your face and body."

Oh. Those red eyes that frightened him to no end.

"Regardless, your mother was not supposed to die. I came here only for your father, and I would have preferred avoiding a scene. But your mother was hysterical. Sobbing over his corpse whispering 'why, why…' over and over again. I did not desire to kill your mom, Ishoku-san. But she wanted to kill me. Grabbing the nearest sharp object, she tried to ram me through my throat."

Ishoku clenched the carpeting underneath him to bide off his anger. This man was insane, no doubt.

"Quite frankly, I'm surprised that you haven't tried your luck and attempted to kill me."

"Heh. Quite frankly, I'm surprised I'm not dead yet."

"In time, Ishoku-san. We all die with time. It is unavoidable."

This confirmed it. He was going to die, right here, probably right now. Dammit, why did the boy continue to postpone Ishoku's death? It was agonizing not knowing when the fatal slash would come and clean out his jugular of all the blood that flowed through it?

"Hey," Ishoku began, a thought springing up in his mind. "If you killed off all the Uchiha because they were 'plagues of the earth,' why haven't you offed yourself yet?

"I did not kill every single member of the Uchiha clan. I did leave one person alive."

"So? Why aren't you six feet under?"

"That person…he will be the one to end my life. He will atone for the sins committed by my clan by killing me. That is why I am not dead yet."

"Couldn't there have been some other way?! Why'd you have to kill my father, my mother… why'd you have to kill them?! They…they did nothing wrong… THEY WERE GOOD FUCKING PEOPLE!"

"Do not make me repeat myself Ishoku-san. I have stated my reasons far enough. You should have it engrained in your memory by now."

"Oh, you mean the memory that won't fucking matter in the next couple of minutes? The memory that's gonna wipe with me body the moment you stab that tantō of yours through my brain?"

Faster than the eye can follow, even for Ishoku's heightened perception, the boy held his tantō in front of Ishoku's eyes. The blade was mere millimeters from piercing through his skull and ending his life. Ishoku's perspiration overflowed, and he started to sweat uncontrollably. Why was this boy not killing him already?

"Ishoku-san, if I wanted to kill you, you would have been dead by now. Surely you don't believe there is any reason for a shinobi of my caliber to converse with a villager like you, do you?"

Ishoku collapsed to his knees. The tears welled in his eyes, seeking release. Once again, he asked himself why everything that happened to him had to be so awful. Why did he exist, just so that his existence could be stained over by the likes of cruel, heartless people like this boy and his classmates? Why was he still breathing?!

"…Your existence has more value to it alive then dead." The boy said. "That is why I haven't opted to end you right now."

"Why…why me…?"

"You symbolize the union between two conflicting factions. You represent the results of what can occur when people filled with hatred set aside their differences and seek mutual understanding. Killing you now would undermine the years of isolation your father and mother had suffered through to keep you alive and healthy. Therefore, your life has value. In my mercy, I have judged you to be an Uchiha undeserving of the fate of the clan."

"WHY. ME? Stop beating around the bush! My father was a great man! He should have been saved too! If anything, he deserves to live, not me!"

"This conversation has gone far too long for my taste." The boy said. "It appears that you are adamant on denying your own utility in the long term goal of promoting peace."

He approached Ishoku, who cowered away in fear. Although the boy had made clear his intent on allowing Ishoku to live, he still exuded an intimidating presence, if only for the intense gaze he held. Speaking of gaze, his red eyes morphed into a radically different shape. The tomoe surrounding his pupil had combined to create a three-pronged pinwheel. If his blood red eyes had inspired fear into Ishoku's heart, this new form petrified him in sheer terror.

"It's time I put you to rest. Enjoy your evening, Ishoku-san. And once again, I apologize for the state of disrepair I you're your home in."

The pinwheel rotated rapidly, lulling Ishoku into a state of trance. The memories burned into his brain by his newfound perception began to whiten away as everything turned black…

…

…

…

Ishoku's eyes opened abruptly.

'Ugh. How long have I been out…?' Ishoku wondered.

The first thing he noticed upon waking up was the revolting smell that permeated the room. The smell was a mix between a person soiling themselves and rotten cheese. It did not take long for Ishoku to realize what exactly he smelled.

It was the decomposing corpse of his parents.

Ishoku could not hold the smell any longer. Immediately he emptied out (yesterday's?) contents on the rug. The vomit was then mixed with the salty tears Ishoku was shedding when he came to terms with the reality.

He was all alone. His parents were killed, left to rot away in his living room, and nobody could now support him.

As the son of nukenin, his immediate family was the only kin he actually knew. His family could not afford the luxury of mailing their home village in fear of having their mail traced and suddenly awakening in the middle of the night to the knocks of their executioners. Not that it really mattered. They came anyways.

Ishoku slammed his fist to the ground. Why didn't that Uchiha bastard kill him? The sadistic prick just left him to fend for himself against the unjust assholes that call themselves human in this hellhole far from the quietest sanctuary. If they were a part of the same clan like he said, why didn't he just take him along for the ride?

Oh, right. He killed them. He's probably going around killing all the rest of the Uchiha that were not home when he began his deranged genocide.

But he left Ishoku alive. Something about "symbolizing peace," or whatever bullshit he managed to convince himself. Whatever helps him sleep at night.

No matter what Ishoku thought, it still left him with the biggest issue currently facing him: he had no home. Although his parents owned the house they lived in, they were his primary caretakers. They fed him, clothed him, and kept him alive for as long as he was breathing. Now that they were gone, what was he going to do?

What can an 8 year old boy do with no money, no skills, and despised across the board as some miscreant demon? He could always get adopted by some benevolent old people living in this village. No, that was not going to happen any time soon. Not only did people deplore his very existence, but they did everything in their power to remind him that he was beneath even the worms crawling in the dirt.

If anybody were to have adopted the boy, they would probably beat him every single day within an inch of his life. Of course, they wouldn't kill him. They took sadistic pleasure in his suffering, so no wonder they would kill him. It made them feel more powerful than they actually were.

There was no way Ishoku would want to live with anyone in this village. He'd rather kill himself.

'Hmm…that is another option…' Ishoku thought. No, his parents would not want him to kill himself. The concept seemed corny and cheesy, but now that they were dead, he wanted to, at the very least, honor their fallen memory. They left their home village because of…because of…

Why did they leave the village?

It was because they were nukenin, right?

But why did they go rogue?

Ishoku had fervently told that boy that his parents were never in the wrong; that they were good people who did not deserve to die. But if they were nukenin, that must mean that they had did something really bad, right? Why else would they have to flee from the safety and comfort of their home village?

Ishoku shook these thoughts from his mind. Now was not the time to have doubts about the integrity of his parents. Besides, they only wished for the best of him. They raised him to be morally sensitive and empathetic, despite the daily repression. They were the reason he looked into the future with nothing but optimism brimming in his eyes. No matter what they did to get cast away from Konoha, it would not deter from the love and pride he felt towards his selfless and compassionate parents.

While he thought of his parents, a sudden burst of brilliant epiphany struck him.

What about going to Konoha?

Yeah, that seemed like a plausible idea. His parents had him while they were living in the village. That meant that, if they were not being secretly monitored by stealthy ninja, they should not know of his existence. Maybe if he played his cards right, he could even be accepted into an apprenticeship with a shinobi! Finally, an opportunity to grow stronger!

…Except, he did not know where he was going to live when he actually arrived at Konoha…

He knew that he was an Uchiha. He inherited his surname from his father, and the boy had verified his lineage; told him that he had the "Sharingan" or something insane along those lines. But the Uchiha was a recently extinct clan. So he had no family from his father's side ask for assistance.

But what about his mother?

His mother never, ever talked about her life in the village. In fact, she always wore a bandanna over her forehead to cover some tattoo. He saw the tattoo when he was accidently peeking on her while she took a shower.

…What? Ishoku didn't know any better. His curiosity got the better of him.

She had a really wondrous design etched onto her forehead. It was the manji symbol, a symbol for goodness and grace. Ishoku had wondered why she did not flaunt her lovely mark to the rest of the world.

Maybe that mark was unique? Maybe it was a hint to what her clan could be…

Ishoku walked towards the bodies of his parents. Carefully, as to not further damage their corpse, Ishoku braved the horrendous odor and examined his mother. What he saw surprised and horrified him.

Her forehead was wiped clean of any symbol that used to belong there. What's worse was that her milky white eyes, once the most beautiful orbs Ishoku had ever laid his sights on, were a dread greyish color. Her eyes appeared to have caved in itself, taking the grotesque appearance that now stared down at Ishoku.

Just what exactly happened here (last evening?)? It hurt Ishoku to even think about what actually occurred before he walked into the nightmarish land this house became.

He wasn't going to find any information regarding his mother's background from merely looking at her defiled corpse. He'll probably have to go through her identification papers in her room.

Before he started anything, he needed to go and give his parents a proper burial. Leaving them to rot in the living room would be a gross disrespect to everything they had done over the last couple of years. Besides, the odor was growing eerily worse as the seconds pass by. Ishoku did not want to vomit again from the smell.

He steeled himself against the smell by tightening a scarf over his mouth and nose. The aroma of woolen fabric would filter out the smell of death and decay, hopefully making his work a little easier and bearable.

Just as he was about to drag his father's body to their backyard, the doorbell rang.

'Shit!' Ishoku thought as he carelessly dropped his father on the ground and scrambled to run towards the door. 'Why now, of all times…? Maybe they heard all the commotion? Hopefully they saw the culprit!'

Ishoku did not have much to clean up. He just rushed to the door as quickly as possible. It was going to be a quick conversation, and then he would ask them to politely leave the premises.

Ishoku opened the door slightly ajar. He did not want any curious minds to stare into the disaster that surrounded his home. The last thing he needed was unnecessary drama.

There was a girl in front of the door. Ishoku recognized her. She was Mei from his history class. Ishoku knew all of his classmates. He had a really good memory, which allowed him to retain information easily. Just by associating a name with a face, Ishoku could immediately memorize who you were.

"…Um…Uchiha-san…" The girl hesitantly spoke. He could tell that she did not want to be here. He scowled loudly before closing the door on her. Strike what he last said. The last thing that he needed was any unnecessary attention from his school.

He went by to his business. Mei would surely leave when she learned that Ishoku was uninterested in hearing out the girl. He could tell by the way she shivered at his presence, and how she avoided eye contact with him. It wasn't like he wanted to spend any longer than 3 seconds with the girl, either.

Surprisingly, the doorbell rang again. Ishoku ignored the doorbell, continuing to drag his father towards the backyard. The doorbell continued to ring with increasing frequency. Gods, why will this girl not leave Ishoku alone?

When the doorbell proved fruitless, she began slamming her fist on the door. "Ishoku! That was completely rude! Hear out what I have to say!"

Ishoku was irate. Dropping his father's body again, he stormed to the door and opened it furiously.

"WHAT?" He screamed in anger.

Mei flinched in fright. She wasn't expecting that kind of response from Ishoku. The Ishoku she knew was a passive, pacifistic young boy who never displayed any sort of emotion.

"I-I was sent to give you the classwork. You've been absent for an entire week."

"An…entire…week…?" Ishoku stuttered in disbelief.

"Yeah! The teachers were growing worried and—AHHHHHHHHHH!" She suddenly screamed.

"What? What's wrong?" Ishoku asked.

"Y-your eyes…"

"Oh, not this again…" Ishoku said, rolling his eyes. He was going to slam the door on her face again, but she stopped the door with her foot.

"Itai! Uchiha-san, please stop slamming the door on my face!"

"Well I'm sorry if the demon has eyes too frightening for your tastes!"

"I know about your weird eyes, you big doofus! It's just that today they were a bit different."

"Different? How so?"

"It's just that…your left eye is usually black, right?"

"Yeah. Your point?"

"Geez, your rude, aren't you?"

"Just get on with your stupid point."

"Well! Your left eye is this really cool red color now!"

"Really…cool?"

"Yeah! And it has these two comma thingies going around your pupil!"

Ishoku thought about what the girl had just said. Red eyes…comma thingies going around the pupil…why did that sound familiar…

The boy.

His eyes were a blood red with three tomoe (not comma thingies…baka onna) rotating around the central pupil.

'I…really do have the Sharingan, don't I?' Ishoku thought. 'I guess I really am an Uchiha…too bad that doesn't matter anymore. Will I ever get my black iris back?'

Ishoku covered his Sharingan with his left hand and concentrated. He didn't want to have the Sharingan on forever. Besides, he really liked his eyes, despite what he said about them before. His eyes were each a gift from his parents, and he would value them forever with his life; the one that the boy so graciously allowed Ishoku to keep.

"Just ignore the eye." Ishoku said.

"But I think it really looks cool, Uchiha-san!"

"Do…you really?"

"Yeah! I know the others treat you really bad because of your discolored eyes or what not, but I've never said anything bad about you. In fact, I kinda think it looks pretty on you."

"Then…then why don't you say anything?!"

"W-why? Why are you screaming at me like that?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe it's YEARS OF PENT UP RAGE AND AGGRESSION FOR EVERY DAMN PERSON WHO'S TREATED ME LIKE SHIT! And then you come by today and you tell me that you think my eyes are cool! Where were you when I needed you the most? Do you think I just take the shit they throw at me with a smile like some kind of whipped dog? DO YOU?!

"P-please stop screaming, it's not like I had a choice!" Mei cried out. "I was scared! My best friend hates you, and she probably would hate me too if she found out my real feelings! I…I didn't want to be alone…"

"…I-I wouldn't have left you alone. We could have been friends…"

"Uchiha-san, I see what you go through every day. I'm wowed every time I see you come back from one of those beatings, ready for the day's lesson. I'm…I'm not as strong as you. I couldn't handle even a second of that pain…"

"I…I…" Ishoku stuttered. He took into account what Mei was saying. In fact, if he recalled correctly, this would have been the first time he ever considered the feelings of a potential friend. Although the beatings were painful, Ishoku grew accustomed to it. He was able to tolerate the growing pain with ease, and it did not bother him as badly as when they first started happening.

But other kids probably would have cracked to the pressure immediately. Pain makes a superb motivator, and nobody was willing to go through such ordeals (unless they found sexual arousal in such torture. Ishoku always somehow envied those people.) Maybe that's the real reason nobody was willing to rise against the norm and tried to be his friend.

Or people could just be selfish assholes. Either explanation fits the bill perfectly.

"…Don't you have something to give me?"

"Oh, right! I'm sorry, I got caught up in the moment. Here you go…" Just as Mei was about to hand over the lesson plans from the last week, a strange aroma wafted through her nose. "Neh, Uchiha-san, do you smell something?"

'Shit…!' Ishoku thought. He could slam the door on her face, but that already did not work before. He could lie. Yeah, that would work. But what could he lie about…

"I don't smell anything." Ishoku lied. He scratched the back of his head and looked to his right, avoiding Mei's eyes completely. He felt himself heavily perspiring as he dreaded what could result should his lie be caught.

"Maybe it's just my imagination…" Mei said before taking a sniff again. "No!" She quickly covered her nose. "It definwinitely smells in there!"

"No, it's just your imagination! Hey, thanks so much for the papers, I'll totally see you in class tomorrow, don't worry nobody will know what you think okay thanks bye!"

Mei refused to leave now. Ishoku was acting might suspicious, and now she wanted to know what exactly was going on.

"What are you hiding, Uchiha-san?" Mei asked, brows raised in curiosity.

"N-nothing at all!" Ishoku almost screamed. Damn it, how did real shinobi lie through their teeth? This was harder than he thought it would be…

"Uchiha-san, please calm down. Just…take me into the house, I'll see for myself."

"No, you can't come in here! My, uh, my parents!" He hated himself. "Yeah, my parents are uh…having sex?"

Mei blushed horribly after hearing that. "I-Ishoku-san! T-that was totally uncalled for! I-I'm a girl, you know!"

"Is there a problem?" Ishoku asked honestly. "Don't you know that girls and boys have sex? There shouldn't be a problem."

"S-still! You should be more considerate of what you say around people you jerk! Pervert!"

"Yeah…they are busy doing that stuff. They…uh…they are…" 'Please tie a noose over my head' "…they are coprophiles…"

"What does that mean?" Mei asked.

"You don't wanna know…"

"But I wanna know!" Mei insisted.

"You…really don't…" Ishoku's face flushed deeper the longer this conversation lasted. Why couldn't Mei just leave?!

"Ok…" Mei said in defeat. Her shoulders slackened and she began to walk away from Ishoku's house.

Ishoku sighed in relief. Finally…He wiped the sweat on his brow, relieved that the torture was over. He appreciated Mei's sentiments, but absolutely nobody needs to know what happened in—

His thoughts were interrupted when he Mei unexpectedly rammed into him. The force of the tackle was enough to knock the both of them into the house.

"Ouch…" Ishoku said rubbing his head. He hit the floor hard. For a second, he swore he could see stares.

"What did you do that for?" Ishoku asked, still unaware of the situation.

Mei just stood there, gaze fixed on the living room. An eerie silence was shared between the two before epiphany hit Ishoku.

She was in the house.

She was staring into the living room.

Shit.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The scream could be heard for miles.

Ishoku needed to do something. Anything really. Mei could not be allowed to tell anyone else what happened here. Then he really would be killed by an angry mob of blind-sided, ignorant villagers.

"MEI!" He screamed at her, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her around. "Mei, I can explain what happened! Just, calm down and listen to me."

The screaming would not stop. In fact, it was joined by wetworks and chocked sobs. Of course.

The girl could not handle the psychological burden of seeing death. Especially one as bloodied as the scene she was currently witnessing.

Ishoku was desperate. Mei was a liability. She knew too much, and she was creating a humongous ruckus. She needed to be silenced. But how?
"MEI!" He screamed again. He felt the weird surge of energy again rushing into his left eye. Why now?

As his Sharingan enveloped his black iris, Mei's screams halted abruptly. She no longer was crying uncontrollably, and her entire body stiffened. Her eyes, once fixated at the dreadful murder that was in the living room, now was focused on Ishoku's unique eye.

Ishoku blinked. Mei collapsed on the ground.

"Mei? Mei!" Ishoku said, rushing to her aide. What in the world was going on?

The two tomoe on Ishoku's Sharingan rotated wildly around his pupil, as if yearning for more suffering and despair.