Book One: The Rise of the Blue-Haired Devil.

      I woke up the next morning. My head was throbbing badly and my body ached with pain. I found several bruises. Apparently the guard I'd managed to take by surprise yesterday had been very angry. I was in no hurry to get up or show signs of waking up. Almost the entire convoy was still asleep. The ninjas were taking turns on duty, making sure their goods didn't escape. The chain that connected all the hostages was wrapped around a thick tree. Thus, only by co-ordinating all together could the would-be slaves be freed, but all these men had already resigned themselves to their fate. I was not secured to the common chain again. The guards simply tied my hands and feet with rope. I must admit that they did a good job, for I could not move. It rubbed against my skin every time I moved. They'd tightened it very tightly so I wouldn't think of anything if I woke up before they did. Thoughtful bastards... I was able to rest for a while longer before they started lifting everyone up. I was the last to be approached. I was very unlucky, for it was the very guard whose pride I had managed to hurt yesterday who went to wake me up. He was carelessly cutting the ropes on my arms with some kind of cold weapon. I had already opened my eyes to watch him calmly and looked behind me to see that the slaves were being given some water to drink. My throat was already dry, so I didn't mind quenching my thirst either.       - What? Thirsty? - With a nasty grin on his face, he asked the guard who was untying me. I saw that he had a small container on his belt, designed to hold liquids.       - Yes," I answered him in disbelief, realising that he was up to something. I didn't have time to react to his unexpected blow.       The man slapped me across the face with the back of his hand. My eyes blurred. I felt the painfully familiar taste of iron in my mouth. My lip was torn. Blood began to drip from it... My blood. It should be painful or unpleasant, but for some reason I smiled at this man, though it could hardly be called a smile. I had already realised that I was a valuable commodity to them, because otherwise they would have killed me yesterday. I loved that feeling. My heart was beating at a triple rate, and my brain was ready for something unimaginable. I knew the man across the room wouldn't leave my grin unnoticed. After so many years without emotion, I felt alive in this moment. I wanted to savour absolutely any feelings and emotions, even if they would only bring pain. The man read the challenge in my eyes, a challenge I simply had to answer. He repeated his blow, but with the other hand. I could have tried to block or dodge the attack, but I wanted to do what this ninja least expected. Since we were at a very close range, I decided to counterattack. I really wanted to kill this man for all the suffering he had caused me... And not just me. The second guard was more adequate, reacting to the prisoners only when absolutely necessary. From my past, in which I had conducted many experiments on people, I knew very well that the blows of a small child could not cause serious harm to an adult, unless the child attacked in a jump, having gained a decent speed for his age. Knowing this, I realised that my fists were useless at such a short distance now, so I decided to use the only more or less hard and sharp part of my body. I sunk my teeth into my enemy's neck, biting his skin until it bled. By my calculations, I had to cut open the carotid artery to kill.       - Ahhhh, you white-eyed bastard! - the man cried out in pain. He jumped up, trying to pull me away from his throat, but I clung very tightly, wrapping my arms around his neck. Every second my teeth sunk deeper and deeper into the man's flesh. It would have taken a few more moments for them to reach the ninja's carotid artery, but he managed to pull me away from him. I flew a few metres aside, hitting my head hard against a tree. In my teeth was a piece of human flesh. I spat it out instantly. The last thing I saw before I lost consciousness again was that ninja pulling out a kunai from his bag, heading towards me with obviously not good intentions.       I woke up a few hours later. Someone was carrying me on their shoulder. My hands were once again bound with rope. I tried to move to check how well it was taut. It was tied perfectly: I couldn't get free, but it didn't hurt as long as I didn't move.       - You're awake, then? - More affirmed than asked the ninja who was carrying me. I answered him nothing, making another attempt to free myself.       - Boy, don't push your luck. You have already realised that you are an important cargo for us, however, I want to assure you that if you pull something like this again, I will give you to my fellow clanmate, and he wants to get even with you very badly. If you're good until tonight, I'll give you a drink of water. Understand? - said the boy with sternness in his voice.       - I understand you, sir. - I answered him, realising that this man was not joking.       - My name is Izuna Uchiha. What's your name, and what's your beef with Ren? - The ninja introduced himself to me while asking me questions.       - Why are you so interested in me? I'm not a ninja like you. - I tried to find out more about the man, because I did not understand why he was still alive.       - Well, you interest me. Your will to survive is the envy of many ninjas, and your cruelty amazed me. - The Uchiha clan member clarified to me.       - Hmm..." I stretched out, accepting my interlocutor's answer. - My name is Michiko. Your comrade-in-arms struck me, and I merely parried. - I answered Izuna's questions.       - That's interesting. - My guard said with thoughtfulness in his voice. - Do you know what clan you belong to? - He added after a moment of silence.       - No," I answered him. I wondered what he might know about my origins.       - You definitely belong to the Hugo clan. - Izuna said affirmatively with tension in his voice.       - Do you hate my clan? - I decided to ask, to learn more about this world.       - Well, I hate proud people who think they are the centre of the world. I'm sorry, but all your clan members are arrogant turkeys who have to show who is the strongest in the land of fire. - The Uchiha clarified his point of view.       - I don't live in the Hugo clan, so how did you determine that I belonged to it? - I asked, already assuming the answer to the question. But I still had to seem like a little kid, not a grown man.       - By your eyes. Anyone who has ever met Hugo can recognise the dojutsu in your eyes. Byakugan is a bloodline inheritance passed down only within the Hugo clan. Your clan has strict rules, so I don't know how you could live outside the clan. - Izuna answered my question.       - If I have dojutsu, why can't I use it? - I continued to extract information from my interlocutor.       - How do you know what a dojutsu is? - The Uchiha asked me, apparently watching every word of the dialogue.       - Um... Well, my parents used to tell me stories before bedtime. - I said in a low voice so the guy would realise they were already dead.       - I'm sorry..." the Uchiha muttered nervously. - To harness the power of your eyes, it's not enough just to have a bloodline. You have to train hard physically and spiritually to make your body ready to use dojutsu, but that's not all. Eye awakening occurs during stressful situations. Experiencing negative emotions is the cause of dojutsu awakening. In fact, I'm surprised you haven't awakened the Byakugan yet, but trust me, if you continue to survive on the edge of death while experiencing a huge range of negative emotions, it's only a matter of time before the power of your eyes awakens. - shifted the dialogue to another direction Izuna, realizing that I was uncomfortable with the past topic.       - Wow! You know so much about dojutsu! You probably have some too, don't you? - I shrieked in feigned surprise, trying to show that I was still a child. Towards the end, my voice became hoarse due to my throat being completely dry. This did not escape my companion. He easily threw me over in his arms. I was now able to make out his appearance. Izuna was a man with fairly fair skin, spiky black hair that had a blue tinge to it and was tied into a ponytail. Fringes diverged down the centre of his face on either side, framing it. He wore a blue shirt with a high collar and a strange emblem on the back and blue trousers with bandages on the ends. On his belt is a pouch that probably contained ninja gear. As I studied him closely, he removed a flask of water from his belt, and then from his hands he gave me a drink.       - Yes, I have dojutsu, too. - He didn't snatch the flask from me, just watched me sip greedily at the refreshing liquid. He didn't snatch the flask from me, just watched me sip greedily at the refreshing liquid. - Can you walk on your own? - he said, looking me in the eye. I nodded. - Did you remember the deal? - My guard added, squinting his dark eyes.       - I remember everything. - I assured him immediately.       With that, Izuna cut the ropes on my legs, and we continued on our way together. My hands were still tied, but I decided not to complain about that, realising that I would have to earn my interlocutor's trust. I continued my careful dialogue with the Uchiha, trying to gather as much information about the world as I could. In two days of travelling, I managed to learn about his dojutsu. Izuna didn't reveal any important secrets, just informing me of those things that all shinobi know about.       Shinobi is another amazing word in this world. It's synonymous with the word ninja, as I understand it. Now, the dojutsu of the Uchiha clan is the sharingan. They have a number of abilities: The first is the ability to anticipate an opponent's movements. The sharingan slows its master's perception of the world, which increases reaction time. The second ability is the ability to copy the enemy's techniques. The Uchiha only need to see the seals of a ninja's technique once to master it, but it takes training to perfect it. The third ability of these miracle eyes is genjutsu.       Genjutsu are illusion techniques that allow you to imprison your opponent in another world. This world is created by the wielder. Illusions can be cast in many different ways, but the most common in the ninja world are auditory illusions and collision illusions. Sharingan also gives the ability to discern the genjutsu of an opponent. These are all gifts I learnt about from Izuna.       All in all, the Uchiha turned out to be very talkative. I also learnt from him that my chakra theory was wrong. It turns out that every person has a chakra point inside of them, which is the source of the chakra. Ninjas are the people who have been able to awaken this nucleus. Chakra spreads through the body of shinobi by means of its channels. These channels run through the entire human body, forming together a chakra circulation system. As I understand it, each ninja has a limited chakra reserve, but it can be restored when the body rests. The reserve can be increased through training and meditation. As I understood, chakra consists of two components: spiritual and physical components. In general, this world began to seem more and more interesting to me. I wanted to study it to the smallest detail.