Shinobi Isekai!

Family Ties

His blood ran cold. She would have been there, that night, targeted by that man. No. It was better this way. This way, he still had someone waiting for him to come home; someone who made him bentos and told jokes at his expense. She didn't have to be an Uchiha to be that someone, but now that he knew she was...

A hand ruffled his short hair and he looked up at the man who'd somehow crossed the room without him noticing.

"Mah, squirt," Kakashi chuckled dryly. "No need to look so glum."

"What are we going to do?" Sasuke asked with clenched fists. "If people find about this, she'll be a target."

"She's already a target, but I get what you're saying." Sasuke watched as Kakashi aged ten years in an instant, exhaustion and worry dragging down what little of his face he could see. "It'll be a tough sell, for sure, but..."

"But what?"

"But~," Kakashi drawled, his momentary vulnerability already being covered by a saccharine smile. "Lucky for us, her Sharingan isn't normal."

Sasuke waited for the jounin to elaborate. When he made to leave without saying anything else, he reached out and caught the man's sleeve.

"How isn't it normal?"

"Hmm? Oh, didn't I say? How forgetful of me." Ugh. Sasuke hated when Kakashi acted like this. It was his go-to tactic to avoid talking about or doing uncomfortable things. "Well, you see, squirt, her Sharingan is blue."

What.

"That's impossible."

Kakashi was already nodding along. "Yep, no, I agree with you. If she hadn't looked me dead in the eye, I'd be saying the same thing." He ruffled Sasuke's hair again, a terrible habit. "I have no idea what's going on, squirt. I'd tell you if I did. The most important thing now is controlling the flow of information. So, while I'm off reporting to the Hokage, you're going to impress upon a certain Hyuuga the true value of silence."

Sasuke stared blankly up at Kakashi for a solid minute before his meaning sank in. "Neji saw it?"

"Mah, I wonder? I'd certainly hope not."

Right. That was the whole point, wasn't it? To make sure Neji said nothing, even if he saw something.

"I can do that."

"I never doubted you, squirt."

🐶🐶🐶

When Hanako opened her eyes, it was to blinding white light. As her eyes adjusted, she slowly became aware that she was in a hospital room, wearing a hospital gown and laying on a hospital bed.

Why though?

She wasn't hurt, as far as she could tell. Limbs: functional. Pain: nonexistent. Her eyes were itchy, but that was probably from being asleep for god knows how long. Rubbing at them absently, she got to her feet and pressed a hand onto her chest. Oh. Right. It had become such a reflex that she forgot she could only access her seal like that when wearing clothing she'd made herself. Oh, well. Her clothes were probably around here somewhere.

Except they weren't.

Huh.

She looked around for a nurse call button but found none. Strange. Why would she be in the Anbu ward? That didn't make any sense. The window was barred and reinforced, and the door was locked from the outside with no indoor mechanics. Anxiously, she wracked her memory for anything she might have said or done to warrant this kind of caution.