It took me a long time to adjust to my new life as a baby. For someone with the mind of an adult, the humiliation of being so helpless was difficult to bear.
I had to depend on my mother for everything—feeding, changing, even the most basic things. It didn't matter that I knew it was natural, that everyone goes through this.
The embarrassment was still there, simmering beneath the surface.
Days turned into weeks, and weeks into years.
Three years passed without any major events, except for my gradual discovery of this new reality I found myself in.
The first significant revelation was my name—my new name. Though I couldn't remember my old one, I knew I had one once.
"Izuna Uchiha" had a nice ring to it, giving me a strange, nostalgic feeling.
And so, I could now introduce myself properly: I am Izuna Uchiha, the three-year-old son of Mikoto Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha.
My mother, Mikoto, was as beautiful as she was kind—a gentle, loving presence that comforted me through my early confusion.
My father, Fugaku, was stern but not unkind. In his own way, I could tell he cared deeply for me.
As the patriarch of one of the village's founding families, he carried the burden of the Uchiha clan on his shoulders.
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After my birth, I had to learn the basics all over again—how to sit, walk, and speak. Speaking came the easiest.
It felt like a skill I had learned long ago, rusty from disuse, but still familiar.
That's how it was when I began learning this new language—the language of this world, my new mother tongue.
Strangely, the language I used to think in was different from the one I now spoke.
Listening to my father, my mother, and others around me, I picked it up quickly. My mother, noticing how curious I was, started buying me colorful children's books.
I devoured them, moving on from simple stories to more complex ones. Soon, I found myself spending hours in the clan library, reading everything I could—about ninjutsu, history, and much more.
For someone with so many blank spaces in their memory, reading became a way to fill those gaps.
I wanted to learn everything I could, not just about this world, but about myself. Who was I before? Why was I here? Where had I come from?
After nearly devouring half the books in the library, I began to piece together a clearer picture of this world.
It was a world driven by a mystical energy called Chakra, something everyone possessed to some degree.
Some were born with vast reserves of it, while others had so little it was hardly worth mentioning.
Even so, training could increase one's chakra, which was a blend of two other energies: physical energy, drawn from the body's cells, and spiritual energy, which came from the soul.
As you trained your body and mind, both energies would grow, allowing you to create stronger chakra.
I also learned about the five elemental natures of chakra: Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, and Water.
These elements were so important that the Five Great Shinobi Countries were named after them.
Every shinobi had an affinity for at least one element, sometimes passed down through family lines. For the most members of the Uchiha clan, fire was their natural element.
However, even without an affinity, a shinobi could master other elements if they were skilled enough.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was proof of that. Affinity just made the process easier.
There was also a balance of strengths and weaknesses between the elements: Fire was strong against Wind, Wind against Lightning, and so on.
This dynamic shaped the shinobi world, influencing both combat and training. In addition to elemental natures, I read about Yin and Yang release, the forces behind non-elemental techniques.
….
Yet this was only the tip of the iceberg of what I had learned. It was a lot of information, and I soaked it all up like a sponge, spending most of my days in the library or in my room reading.
Naturally, after reading about chakra and how it could be used, my curiosity grew.
Since my birth—or perhaps even before, when I was still in the womb—I could sense something.
At that time, I didn't know what it was, but now I realize it was chakra. I could feel it within me and even in the air around me.
'Wait. .. this not Chakra.. when I think about it, the energy around me feels more ... natural?'
'That's the only way I can describe it. Maybe chakra originally comes from the energy in the air.'
'Should I experiment with it? No, that would be risky. I don't understand chakra deeply enough, nor do I fully grasp the chakra inside me. I'll have to wait until my training with Oto-san begin.'
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"-una. -zuna."
" Izuna!"
A familiar voice startled me out of my thoughts.
"Izuna Uchiha! How many times must I call you before you answer? And how many times have I told you not to be late for dinner?"
" Even your father is more punctual than you. Now get out here before I have to come get you, young man!"
"Just a minute, Kaa-san!" I yelled back, scrambling to pick up the books scattered across my room.
I didn't want to test the patience of the Uchiha matriarch. My mother, as kind and sweet as she was, could be terrifying when she was truly angry.
No one—not even my father—dared to cross her when she reached that point. And I speak from experience.
After hurriedly tidying up, I rushed downstairs, where I found my mother busy in the kitchen, preparing dinner.
I helped her carry things to the table, placing everything where it belonged. As we worked, I asked where Oto-san was.
"He's finishing up some paperwork in his study," she replied, handing me a plate to set down.
Once we were finished, she leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. "Thank you, Izu-chan," she said warmly.
Touching the spot where she kissed me, I followed her into the living room, where my father was already seated at the dinner table.
I sighed inwardly, thinking, 'Don't call me Izu-chan, and stop with the kisses. I'm grown up now... At least we were at home and not out in public.'
I took my seat, still grumbling to myself, 'Troublesome woman... '
But despite my complaints, there was a warmth inside me—a warmth that I knew came from the love of a family that I had somehow, in this strange new life, grown to cherish.