Days passed. Jun started to relax again. But this was the moment fate chose to add something else to his plate. The teenager rarely saw his mother outside the Uchiha District. When it happened, they just waved at each other before going by their business. So when his mom waited for him at the exit of the Admin Center, he knew something was amiss. The feeling grew stronger when she led him to one of the most isolated training grounds.

It was the ideal place to talk without fear of being spied on. His mom sat down by the river and urged the teenager to do the same. Jun’s mind was racing trying to figure out the reason for her sudden action. Did something happen to Izumi? No, she would have told him right away. Did she argue with her parents? Or was it maybe a mission that would take her away for a while?

“Jun… You know how much I loved your father. We had a very happy marriage. But, he’s been gone for some time now…” She said.

Jun’s eyes widened as he guessed where the conversation was going.

“Are you going to remarry?”

“No. But I met someone. It’s been almost a year now. We agreed to be discreet, and that’s why I didn’t tell anyone. But we can’t keep hiding the relationship.”

His mother inhaled deeply. Jun had rarely seen her so tense.

“I am pregnant. You will soon have another sibling.”

Jun stared at her in bewilderment.

“I see…” It was the only thing he managed to say.

His mother looked a little amused at his reaction, but she didn’t relax. Her voice became even more serious.

“His clan wouldn’t allow him to marry me. If they discovered the truth, they would punish him. He can’t acknowledge the baby as his own. So, we separated.”

It was a lot of information for Jun to process. His head was spinning. A new relationship, a pregnancy, and a breakup… It was too much to digest at once. The fact that he didn’t suspect anything also bothered him. He couldn’t believe his mom had kept such a secret from him.

“My parents are going to be furious. They were against my relationship with your father. And now if I have a child without a father…”

Jun nodded. He could imagine how his mom and the baby would be treated by his grandparents and the clan.

“We must leave.” He said.

His mother nodded silently.

Jun couldn’t help but think about the irony of the situation. He had planned to leave the clan. It was one of his goals. He initially believed he would leave with only his sister as he wouldn’t be able to convince their mother. But things were different now. They would leave together. However, the teenager didn’t think their departure would happen the way it did.

It started when his mother had a discussion with his grandparents that ended up with both parties screaming at each other. Then, Seichi gave them three days to leave. Izumi’s friends began to avoid her, as their parents ordered them to stay away from the disgraced family. Itachi wasn’t showing himself. The rumor had spread fast. They had no support.

Jun was considered an insolent child who didn’t listen to his elders and a bad example for other kids. Hazuki, their mother, was the rebellious girl who had once dishonored her parents by running away with a commoner and having children with him. They had given her a second chance, and she had ruined it. People whispered they weren’t worthy of the clan. Jun wanted to spit at them. It was the clan that was not worthy of them.

Shisui was the only one who stayed true to himself. He braved the disapproval of the village to help Jun carry his things. His shoulders were tense, and his face was unusually serious. Jun felt bad. Shisui was his friend. At first, he came into his life on an order given to him by Nao. But now, Shisui had no reason to stick with him unless he truly saw him as a friend.

The Uchiha’s loyalty touched Jun. He found a whole bunch of small gifts in the bags Shisui had helped him carry. There were a few household products, new kunais, and a big fat envelope containing cash. There was also a drawing of a map showing the location of a training ground that no Uchiha ever used.

Jun slipped the map into his pocket with a smile. It would be more difficult for them to see each other. And when they did meet, it should be in secret. The situation left a bitter taste in his mouth.

His mother purchased an apartment in the Nara clan district. The place was fairly spacious. They might have been kicked out, but she wasn’t miserable financially. She had her late husband’s pension and the money she saved from her missions. Moreover, she received a small loan from the village. The apartment had three bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom. There was some little work that needed to be done in the bathroom and kitchen. Jun contributed by using his share of the bounty they received on his first C-rank mission. He felt good spending the money that way.

When Seichi had given them the three days deadlines, Jun had informed his team he needed some time for personal reasons. He discovered later that everyone knew what happened to his family. The rumors spread further than he had anticipated. Well, it wasn’t every day that a major clan kicked out its members.

Most people didn’t agree with the Uchiha clan’s decision. It was nice of them, but Jun would have preferred it to remain a private matter. He hated to know that people were whispering behind his back. Some people felt pity for his family; others were outraged. A few people believed it was their mother’s fault.

The teenager was furious but ultimately ignored them. He also noticed the attitude of the patrolling police officers had changed when they saw him in the streets. They gave him haughty looks. There was no provocation or aggression, but their constant hostility was disturbing to him. He thought they were all Konoha shinobis.

Jun was relieved that they left the clan. It was what he desired to protect his family from the massacre. The talking behind his back was a small price to pay. Curiously, they kept their last name. The clan issued no formal request to make them change it.

Jun still had his friends. Yugao and Iruka were there for him. They would sometimes get into fights with some Uchihas who badmouthed their friend in front of them. Jun was happy they stood up for him. However, he told them to quit fighting because of him, that he didn’t care about what others said about his family. As a result, they got involved in fewer fights.

A few weeks later, Yugao and her team went to Suna for the Chunin exam. Jun asked his sensei when Team 14 could take the exam.

“You’ve been genins for four months.” The jonin replied.

“Almost five. I need to help my mom support the family. The fee for a D-rank mission isn’t going to cut it.” Jun said.

Shiba looked embarrassed for a moment. Natsumi and Susumu looked away. The team hadn’t talked about his family situation. Jun ignored their reactions.

“I’ll get us more C-rank missions.” The jonin declared.

Jun nodded.

“When will the next chunin exam be?”

“Maybe in half a year… It should be in Kumo or Kiri.

“It could be worse. It could be Iwa. They hate us in Iwa.” Susumu said.

“Kiri has a reputation for killing people with Kekkei Genkai.” Natsumi pointed out, looking at Jun.

Shiba rubbed the back of his neck. He seemed hesitant. He knew his genins were good. Maybe not enough to become a chunin, but enough to survive an exam. They just needed a little more combat experience. Half a year was plenty of time to improve that.

“Next year’s exam may be in Konoha. We’ll see then.” The jonin said.

Their sensei honored his promise. They stopped doing D-rank missions and took more C-rank ones. They even went on a few small B-rank missions. The team didn’t have chunin rank, but they were already at that level. Not individually of course, but as a unit. Susumu’s Taijutsu still required some work, and Jun only cast basic Genjutsu that a novice shinobi could easily dispel. But together, they defeated enemies at a chunin level. They had some close calls during a few missions, but they hadn’t failed a single one yet.

With the passing of time, people got bored of talking about the same thing. What happened to Jun’s family was no longer on their minds. Team 14 gained more experience as they performed more missions. Susumu had the opportunity to use his medical Ninjutsu on his comrades. During one mission, he claimed his first life. Natsumi and Jun killed again. It was different this time for the young Uchiha. He acted purposefully. It wasn’t an accident like the first time.

Some missions went wrong. At least a couple of two C-ranks turned into B-ranks with the appearance of stronger enemies. Shiba-sensei was remarkable. However, he couldn’t protect them all the time, especially when they were outnumbered. The genins experienced the fear of a real fight when they had to fight for their lives. On one occasion, Jun was separated from his team and cornered by two opponents. Driven by terror, he activated his Sharingan. The Dojutsu gave him the edge in the fight, and he slew both enemies within a few minutes.

He could have let them live, but they had seen his eyes. He couldn’t take any chances of them telling others. Perhaps he should use his Sharingan in other fights, as long as there were no witnesses. There was something chilling about that option. It meant that every time he used his special eyes, at least a life would be lost. But he was a shinobi. Jun had made peace with that part of him without realizing it. His first kill, which had shaken him so much, had already faded into the background.

He saw Shisui again at the end of the summer. Jun frequently went to the training ground the Uchiha had shared with him. It was inevitable they would meet again. They didn’t talk about what had happened. They just practiced like before. Jun was improving, and he managed to take him by surprise a few times. Maybe it was because they weren’t used to each other anymore. In the past, they trained together several times a week. The last time they saw each other was when Shisui helped him move. It had been a while since then. They hadn’t interacted since that day.

At the end of their training, they sat down and updated each other on their lives. It was a bit awkward in some instances. Shisui had lost his father. His mother was devastated by grief, and it was ruining her health. Itachi hadn’t made any new friends, but he sometimes spied on Izumi at the Academy. Jun didn’t know if he should be happy about that.

Shisui also told him that Fugaku wanted Itachi to join the police, but the young Uchiha preferred to remain a Konoha shinobi. The Hokage had noticed his talents and was thinking of entrusting him with a unit. Jun’s news wasn’t as juicy. Izumi was doing well at the Academy. His mother’s pregnancy was going well. He was the main provider for the family as his mother couldn’t work as much. After a while, they found themselves sitting in silence. The sun was setting. From their location, they occupied one of the best views in the whole village.

“It’s beautiful…” Shisui whispered as he watched the show.

Jun remained silent. He had missed Shisui. He considered him one of his best friends. However, he knew Shisui’s future. It was like having a friend with a terminal illness, except that Shisui won’t slowly die. Jun couldn’t even tell him what he knew. He shouldn’t have gotten close to him. He was aware of it, but things just happened. Shisui would die in a few years. He knew he was going to be sad.

He just remained silent and admired the sunset with him. As they were both looking at the sky, Jun discreetly activated his Sharingan to engrave the moment in his memory. There were a little over four years left before the massacre of the Uchiha clan.