When Itachi finally joined the academy, Fugaku's full attention was on her. Every evening they would train when he was back home from the front lines. In a way, Ryoko was glad of this development. She noticed how her big brother relaxed, from the pressure on him being relieved. Hell, the boy even played with Shisui now. And smiled more.
That in itself made the grueling practices worth it. Fugaku didn't hold back, placing her in one genjutsu after the other. She was tortured. Had seen her whole family massacred. Had seen her own death.
So basically nothing too bad.
The use of sharingan still left her drained. She started meditating to work on her chakra reserves. It felt like pulling a string from a dusty pile. As she pulled harder, the string seemed to never end. The flow of chakra was like a drug.
After noticing her quick improvements, her father forced her to learn how and keep her chakra concealed at all times. He said that a good shinobi should never reveal the true extent of their power. He was a smart man.
At age five, Ryoko was well on her way to be the next Madara Uchiha. She knew it in her guts, that that was her destiny. The girl even grew out a partial bang to cover one of her eyes as an homage to her idol.
"Ahhhh, I HATE HIM!" suddenly Obito appeared in her garden, while Ryoko was doing some stretches. Her dark eyes glanced at the boy.
"What's the bastard's name?" she said, narrowing her eyes. If anyone dared to mess with her clan, they would have to pay.
"Ryoko-hime, you're just the cutest," he smiled, dropping on the grass by her side. "It's my teammate. The stupid Bakashi."
What a strange name she thought to herself.
"Why stupid?" compared to her, most children were indeed stupid, but to hear Obito say it was another matter.
"He has this huge stick up his ass…" twack! Itachi was behind Obito now after serving her cousin a hit to the head.
"Watch your language in front of my sister, Obito-san," Itachi smiled sweetly, but there was a dangerous edge to his words.
"Yeah yeah… I mean, he is taking my Rin away from me!"
"Rin?" Ryoko asked.
"Yeah, my other teammate. She's the best!" the sparks in his eyes spoke louder than the praise he just said. The boy was head over heels in love. How cute.
"Rin and Obito, sitting in a tree. K. I. S. S. I. N. G," she chuckled while the boys gaped at her. "What?"
"That's… never heard that before…" Obito looked puzzled as his mind slowly tried to put her spelled-out letters into a word. As the blush started to color his face, Ryoko knew he finally got it. She smirked wider.
"Yeah, I came up with it just now," she shrugged, while Obito was lost for words.
"Obito-san, you're corrupting my sister," Itachi said sweetly again.
"NO! Itachi-kun! Your sister is a freakin' genius. Maybe if I ask Rin to sit with me in a tree away from Bakashi…" he was now muttering a plan under his breath.
Itachi frowned and it didn't suit his face, Ryoko thought. But she understood his reaction. Who else if not Itachi could understand the deeper meaning behind the label 'genius'.
"Koko, could you leave us for a bit, I have to have a talk with Obito-san," Itachi smiled at her then. She sighed but nodded. How could she refuse, when he used that nickname from their childhood.
"Alright, big brother. Just don't hurt him too much," she said and gave the boy a hug before leaving back to the house.
While inside, she picked up a book about war strategies and started to read it.
"You read way too much, cousin," another voice interrupted her from the entrance into the living room.
"Reading is fundamental, Shisui-kun," she said, not even looking his way.
"Pft! I do that enough in the academy," the boy complained, taking a seat next to her.
"How is the academy?" she asked. Her eyes continued to read. It was nice to be able to keep a couple of trains of thought at the same time.
"Me and Itachi were placed in the advanced class. We will probably graduate by the end of the year."
"Hmmm," nothing surprising there considering their skills. Yet, early graduation would mean that her brother will be going outside the safety Konoha provided. She wanted to go into the academy soon so that she could protect Itachi. At least he had Shisui for now.
"Oh, and Itachi already has a bunch of fangirls!" the way Shisui smiled, was mischievous. He probably enjoyed her brother's suffering from all the attention. Ryoko sighed.
"Names, Shisui, I need names. Then I will put them to their rightful place - away from my brother," she deadpanned.
"Awww, you're soooo cute, princess," Shisui chuckled and then did something unusual. He poked her forehead. Ryoko could only blink at this weird action.
"Don't frown, it will give you wrinkles," he laughed. Ryoko pouted harder.
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Weeks went by. Father was at war. Obito was off doing missions. Shisui and Itachi were in the academy or training afterward. Ryoko was alone.
She felt loneliness growing in her, but there was nothing she really could do about it. It was their duty to serve Konoha. So when one day, her mother suggested a playdate, Ryoko reluctantly accepted.
Usually, she would prefer to train or read, but Mikoto persisted.
That is how Ryoko ended up being pushed inside the Nara compound. She read about them. A smart and lazy bunch. While Mikoto chatted with some woman, Ryoko stood with her arms crossed over her chest, a stance mimicking that of Madara's she learned from the paintings.
"Aww, so this is your little Ryoko-chan? Nice to meet you, darling," the other woman gushed.
"Hn," Ryoko said her dry greeting unamused.
"Shikaku, come and meet our guest!" the woman yelled to the back of her home.
"Ryoko, darling, this is the Nara clan head's, behave," Mikoto pushed the girl forward expecting Ryoko to give a proper bow. The problem is, Ryoko never bowed to anyone. Nara were no exception. The girl only gave a nod of acknowledgment to the young adult who entered the room. Mikoto sighed.
"Hmmm, wanna play shogi, kid?" the man named Shikaku asked. This probably was not what her mother expected to happen from the playdate, but Ryoko gladly accepted. Anything was better than dealing with small children.
In hindsight, this probably was Nara clan heads' way of testing the waters and checking Ryoko out before allowing her to mingle with the kids from his clan.
So they played a game of shogi. It was similar to chess from her past life. Quickly she got the hang of it but still couldn't win a single game against the man.
A worthy opponent, Ryoko deducted.
That is how her 'playdates' turned into games of shogi with adult Nara clansmen. Everyone was happy with it. Except for Mikoto. Her mother sulked for days.
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Itachi and Shisui were training like always after the lessons. It was almost time for their graduation.
"So, your sister will be going to the academy soon, huh?" Shisui panted out avoiding the kunai.
"Hn."
"Hey, don't be so upset. It will be good for her! I doubt she will finish it as quickly as we did."
"She will," Itachi's answers were too dry on the topic and Shisui felt obligated to dig deeper.
"Oh? Yeah, I know she's smart, but it's not only about that in there."
"Hn. Father has been training her past few years," Itachi remarked. It didn't look like he was upset by the attention Fugaku gave to Ryoko.
"So? He trained you too. He has a reputation to protect," Shisui said after sending a Katon jutsu.
"That's not why."
Okay, now Shisui's interest was really piqued. He adored both of his cousins to bits, so naturally, their business was his business.
"Why then?"
Itachi stopped mid-swing of his fist and sighed. Shisui noticed how quickly the boy created at least seven genjutsu around them for privacy. Interesting.
"Promise me, Shisui, that you can keep a secret?"
"You bet I can!"
"Ryoko… she has awakened her sharingan," Itachi's voice was like a whisper, but he heard it alright.
"Shit," Shisui's hands dropped by his sides.
"Yeah."
"But she's like… what, almost six?"
"Yeah."
"Wait! When did it happen?"
"Two years ago."
Shisui openly gaped. This was unheard of! For a child to develop their dojutsu at such a young age. She was smart and all, but this was not a kekkei genkai like Byakugan. You had to…
"How?!" the boy urgently asked dreading to hear the answer.
It turned out to be not as bad as he initially imagined. Actually, it was even funny.
"Aww, Ryoko-chan protected you! You have the best little sister ever."
"Shisui! That's not the point!"
"Yeah yeah, I know," the smile on his face was gone quicker than he could shunshin'ed. And that was already saying something. Both of the boys knew what it meant. Shinobi who are considered geniuses, the prodigy among peers, they were the first ones to be sent on dangerous missions. They were often the first ones to face the death and the horrors of the war. All because of their exceptional skill.
"She'll be fine, Itachi. She's clever. Just ask her to keep a low profile, yeah?" Shisui tried his best to stay optimistic, but he wasn't sure he believed the words that left his mouth. For an Uchiha to keep a low profile was like asking a Hyuga to have a food fight. Not happening.
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Ryoko didn't hold back during her entrance exam. She wanted to get into the academy as quickly as possible and be done with it. The clan praised her results, only Itachi was more subdued with his reaction. His concern was sweet, but she had to protect him. Even though he was older, she was mentally the eldest one.
On her first day, Ryoko was taken to the academy gates by Mikoto. Fugaku was back in the front lines fighting for the village.
"Alright, darling, please, just please don't sleep during class, okay?" her mother pleaded.
"Yes, mother," she agreed, not really intending to keep the promise. Finally, though she was free to go inside after the opening ceremony.
Her classroom was on the top floor. When she opened the door, Ryoko didn't even falter in her steps while all the eyes were pinned on her little form.
"Oh no, another one…" she heard the other kids whisper. They were far older than she was.
"Ah, Ryoko Uchiha. I will be your sensei, Kabure Tokisuki. Please introduce to the class," chunin said with a kind smile. She almost smirked at his naive misconception, that she was a small fragile child.
The girl stopped next to him in front of the class. Her arms went to rest crossed over her chest. She looked more like a substitute teacher with the way her eyes observed every kid with stern determination.
"Nice to meet you. I am Ryoko Uchiha," that's really all they need to know about her.
"Mmm, Ryoko-chan, why don't you tell us more about yourself. Like the things you like, the things you hate. Your hobbies. Your dreams of the future," Tokisuki sensei suggested.
"I like some things and I dislike some other things. My hobbies are not relevant. And my dreams for the future are my own to know."
"Ahhaha! Okay, please take a seat," the teacher accepted her answer reluctantly, while the class whispered even more. Their eyes sent very unkind stares her away. Ryoko almost felt at home. Dealing with negative reactions was easier than dealing with smiles and kindness. She smirked, planning how she would crush every single one of them if they dared to stand in her way.