THREE YEARS AGO

"F-Father?"

There's no mistaking the man. His long brown hair, his bright green eyes, and the structure of his body—it is my father. The same one I'd been told had disappeared the year my chakra and memories had been sealed away, the same one existing in the photos in the office back home.

I shake my head, and rush over to the other side of the kotatsu he sits at. Sen had tried to stop me, but I'd escaped his hand.

"You're... actually my... father, aren't you?" I say, leaning over the table. My heart pounds in my throat; I swallow, nervous for his response. "There's just... no way."

"You're right, Kari," Taon says, and my breath catches in my throat. "I'm not your father."

"But I... I don't understand!" I exclaim. "You have to be! Your eyes, your hair! I look just like you!"

Taon sighs, and I begin to grow restless for his response.

"I hadn't been lying when I had told you that I'm not your father. However, at the same time, I am your father." I swallow. "I am not sure whether it had been explained to you, how we in the Yamada Clan continue on, but I am happy to refresh your memory.

"We do not conceive. That is, we are unable to conceive. Our Clan's history tells us that the First Yamada forbade incestual birth, but to keep our line of chakra pure and whole, devised a way to split apart and combine the chakra of two Yamada, therefore creating a new life, in the same amount of time it would take to conceive." I nod in understanding, and then it occurs to me:

"Wait, so was I born like that?" I ask.

"No," Taon says. "Your mother, Mara, was not a Yamada. The law is not just against incestual birth, but conception in general... If this weren't the case and she was a Yamada, she wouldn't have been able to give birth to you naturally."

"But why can't the Yamada have children?" 

"Basically, the First Yamada," Sen interjects, "wasn't fertile. She became spiteful—while those around her continued to expand their bloodlines, she remained childless. At this point, she had developed her chakra splicing technique and created new life—when they'd grown, they went against her wishes and conceived."

"I guess I'd be frustrated, too, then" I admit quietly.

"She felt betrayed, and punished her bloodline by forbidding future childbirth. The practice of "chakra splicing" became a thousand-year-old law in the Yamada Clan. Or, as others view it-- a curse."

"But I've gotta ask— what does this have to do with my father? Er, you?"

"It is also how Taon was created," Taon says. "When you were only just a child, Kari, you became gravely ill. To prevent your death, your father sealed away your chakra, and your memories, and your mother—" he gestures to the flat of my stomach, where once before, I could recall that a strange marking had appeared "—within the seal placed on your body to keep it in place, therein sacrificing his own life to save you. It is believed that your Yamada father and your Uchiha mother deciding to conceive naturally and against our laws, it created a paradox in your life cycle. It wounded your soul. I believe that this effect is the true curse."

"But I can't understand why; it's not like I was anything more than a baby," I reason. "Why would they bother?" Taon shakes his head.

"You are wrong, Kari," he says. "Chiharu Yamada received a foretelling from a great Shinobi many, many years ago, that spoke of an "ill child". Of course, the foretelling hadn't been especially detailed, as you can imagine, but this prophecy is over one thousand years old, and between then and thirteen years ago, there has been no such child dared to have been born. Until you."

"... until me?" I say. They both nod. "I can't imagine what this prophecy was about..." I sigh. "Wait, okay, so then, my father..."

"Yes. Taon was a highly-respected member of the Yamada Clan. He was also the last Clan Head. Without him leading the Yamada in the past decade, the Clan would've fallen apart. And as for the prophecy... only Chiharu knows its truth. Chiharu was the one who used our splicing techniques to splice Taon's remaining chakra from him, to make a complete copy." The Taon before me shrugs his shoulders slightly. "I don't have half as much chakra as your father did."

I frown. So he really isn't my father, I think, and I bite down on my lip to keep it from quivering. This isn't a time for me to be emotional. I need answers while the questions are fresh in my mind.

"I see," I say. I look to Taon from across the table. "Is it okay if I ask you more questions? I feel like if I ask Minako, I won't get exactly what I'm looking for."

Taon nods. "Of course," he says. "After all, the things you've gone through since Makara took you in all those years ago—you deserve the truth. You are old enough, after all."

"Thanks, Lord Taon," I say. He suddenly stands, and I follow him with my eyes as he walks over to the big, open door behind Sen, leading to a large balcony.

"On the topic of your maternal grandmother, it had been agreed that you would reside in the Uchiha Compound under hers' and the other Uchiha's care after your parents performed the seal. Their chakra control would be necessary to monitor your well-being. When both of our clans existed within the Hidden Leaf Village, we watched you grow, pained by the loss of your parents when you became old enough to understand their sacrifice. We believe it was around this point that Makara decided to flee with you after erasing your memories. This is why you haven't been able to recall anything from before that point.  The after-effects of the Jutsu took such a grand toll on you and your body when you were... I think she may have wanted to have given you a blank slate."

"There's... something I'm confused about, though," I interrupt. "Even with my memories were sealed away, if I was so young, how is it possible for me to have any memories that would be of any consequence? Why bother?"

"We had learned early on that you had inherited your mother's eidetic memory," Taon says. "You were barely even a year old, yet you knew things a newborn truly shouldn't. Your intelligence had been beyond our comprehension, and because of that, you learned how to speak at an early stage. The chakra built up inside of you had been so concentrated that you quickly gained and accumulated strength enough to walk.

"You recognized your parents' faces, their names; speech patterns. For a six-month-old child, you can imagine how unnatural it had been to see this occur. Something had to be done, and then arose the problem considering your buildup of chakra. You had about as much chakra stored inside you as a Jōnin-level Shinobi, and from this, you became gravely ill. We had no choice but to go against the law to save you, if it meant fulfilling the prophecy... at the cost of your childhood. Initially, we were against it; we all agreed that it shouldn't be done, but... You suffered, Kari." He grimaces.

"There's no reason to sound so sad, Lord Taon," I say, putting my hands up. "Really! It sounds like you all wanted to spare me and help me through things, and Makara-sensei went and did what was too hard to do. I just wish..." I sigh deeply, letting out a buildup of air I'd been holding in for a while now. "I just wish I could've met my father. I mean; you technically are my father, but, you know."

"Yes, and I apologize," Taon says, "but it truly couldn't be helped.

"As you can imagine, Minako, your paternal grandmother, was infuriated at the thought of Makara taking care of you and raising you. Afterbeing exiled from the village and settling here in the mountains, we searched the lands, high and low, for you." Taon hums in thought for a moment. "I do recall her once suggesting you not learn anything of the Shinobi world."

"But wasn't Makara-sensei a Shinobi, too?" I ask.

"Makara had been out of action for many years already at that point, which is why I believe she came to this decision all in her own, and stole you away." I nod. "Your memories were erased, and as such, the memories that existed of you in the minds of those who knew of you were abolished, too. Who would've thought she would bring you to live in the same land we migrated to?"

"When we learned of her passing, we searched for and discovered her body in your cabin, we buried her here, in our shrine, and went on to then search for you."

"Chiharu and the elders expected Makara to have sent you back to the Hidden Leaf Village," Sen tells me. "It's where you were born. It's where both your mother and Makara grew up and lived. And when we learned that the Hidden Leaf was hosting this years' Chūnin Exams, we began to come up with ways to bring you home."

"We knew you might have already grown attached to the Village, which made things more difficult for us," Taon explains, "so I had Sen travel there with his brother to introduce themselves to you, in the hopes you might choose to return here with him instead of remaining in the Village." He suddenly smiles at me. "Clearly, we failed to recall how unwaveringly loyal your mother had been to those in the Hidden Leaf, as well. We should have expected your response."

"What about your alliance with the Sand and the Sound?" I suddenly remember aloud. "You guys caused a lot of pain with what you did."

"I know," Taon says quietly. "Upon Sen's return, he recounted your feelings toward us, in regards to the events that took place during the Chūnin Exams. But I must tell you, and with complete sincerity, that we were in the dark about most of Orochimaru's intentions."

"But you knew that he'd murder the Kazekage," I state. He nods.

"The Third Hokage had been Minako's Sensei and Master," Taon tells me. My eyes widen in surprise. "Long ago, during a rebellious stage of hers, she up and decided to become a Shinobi, and stayed with Makara in the Uchiha Clan compound out of spite. If we had known of Orochimaru's true intentions, we would have instead done whatever we could to stop him. And Minako would have never had allowed him to get away with it."

"I had no idea Lord Hokage taught Minako," I say, frowning into my lap. "If I did, I... I wouldn't have treated her so harshly when she came to me before his funeral..."

"It's all right," Taon says. "She understands your pain; you both share that connection now."

Still, I think, I'll apologize to her the next time I see her.

"Oh," I say. "Can you tell me about my mother?"

Taon looks back at me and smiles. "What would you like to know?" he asks.

"Everything," I say. "Whatever you can tell me." He nods.

"Your mother's name was Mara. Now, unlike most Uchiha, who interbreed with each other – the fiends –" Taon winks at me with a grin; I laugh. "-- your mother was brought into the world through our forbidden Jutsu. Makara had gotten much too old to conceive, not that she could, and was desperate for a daughter."

"Why couldn't she?" I ask.

"She was infertile from a war injury," Taon explains. "There was nothing anyone could do to change that.

"Makara was in Chiharu's good graces, and had been for many years. With her help, Makara managed to pass on most of her chakra to Mara. She had inherited all of Makara's abilities, which you have also inherited."

"Were they Sensory Ninja, too?" I ask. So many questions keep popping up in my head; I can barely keep up with them!

"Yes. Very talented ones, at that. Especially Mara. There's... not much I remember about your mother's childhood, other than the fact that she had been taught and trained by the master of the Fourth Hokage—"

I let out an involuntary gasp, and cover my mouth to stifle it. Whispering a "Sorry!" through my fingers, I nod for him to go on.

"—and that she had become a Jōnin at the age of thirteen. I didn't know her personally until after we graduated from the Academy together. I do recall, which had been odd considering her pure heritage, that the one thing your mother didn't have going for her was the Sharingan."

"But if my mother was created directly from Makara-sensei's chakra, wouldn't she have inherited the same ability?" I reason.

Taon shakes his head. "Because Makara had still been alive, she still had to have some of her own chakra or she would have died. It would have been different if Makara had had her chakra spliced along with another's, or if she decided to pass on and give all of her chakra to Mara, but because this wasn't the case, there was no chance for Mara to inherit it.

"When Minato Namikaze, became the Fourth Hokage, Mara became his advisor, and also, a Tokubetsu Jōnin."

"Erm... what's a Tokubetsu Jōnin?" I ask.

"They're a Jōnin that specializes in a specific field," Sen tells me.

"So, then, what did my mother specialize in?"

"Tracking. As a more-than-capable Sensory Ninja, she often led reconnaissance missions for the Fourth Hokage that required her talent, and was the Fourth Hokage's senses, despite being a Sensory Ninja, himself. Anything that happened in the Village, she always knew about it before anyone else."

Wow... she must've had a wide range, I think.

"She was truly exceptional," Sen says.

"Yeah," I agree. "So then... How did my mother really finally meet my father?"

"Your parents... never truly spoke during their time in the Academy together. It was only until they graduated and happened to be placed on a team together that they became acquainted. Mara didn't like him, almost immediately. Supposedly, I'd been quite fickle over Mara the first time I'd seen her," Taon says with a chuckle. "It's undeniable; the Uchiha Clan are lucky to have such an attractiveness to them."

Sasuke's face appears before my eyes, and I sigh deeply, as I recall his dark hair and intense eyes that always reminded me of Makara-sensei.

"Can't argue with that," I mumble. "I've been quite curious about something," I add to Taon. "Ever since I've come to terms with my Sensory abilities, I've been able to... well... see things. I can see things that've happened in the past to other people. The only thing I've been able to come up with as a theory is that because it'd been a Jutsu that sealed away my memories, that it's some kind of Jutsu that allows me to view the memories of others."

"And you would be right to think that, Kari," Taon says. "It's true—Miroku Bosatsu sealed away your memories. To make up for this loss of space, by its instinctive coding, the technique allows you to tap into one's senses and feel not their just their chakra, but their emotions, and thereby, the memories attached to each of them as they existed in that moment. If the emotion is strong enough, you can feel it, yourself, and see the memories that brought them up in the first place."

I take a breath of relief. "That makes so much sense!" I say. "It was the only thing I could come up with at the time."

"I've got... just one more question," I say hesitantly. "Just how much longer should I expect to have to wait for my mother to be released from this seal on me?"

"I take it you've... seen her?" I nod. "Usually, once the seal can be upheld without the help of the one placed inside by means of self-sufficiency, it will take a great deal of stress on the body for her to be released. There isn't any definite time or date when you'll see her again. It could be months, or even years, until you reach your self-sufficiency." He claps a hand on my shoulder. "The harder you work toward becoming stronger, Kari, the sooner, I'd imagine, you'll see your mother again."

"How do you feel?" Sen asks me after we leave the room.

"... enlightened," I admit after a few moments. "I'm not as tense as I'd been when I'd got here. I was so worried, and honestly, I don't even know why."

"I think you were afraid," Sen says. I whirl on him.

"I was not afraid," I say. But it comes out sounding like I'm just trying to assure myself of it, not him.

"Yes, you were," Sen insists. "Of what you'd hear, I mean. Of the truth. I wish I could've explained things to you, myself, about Taon? It probably would have been much less difficult for you if I did, but Taon..."

"About that," I start, "it doesn't make any sense. You said you're sixteen, so you're two years older than me... But Lord Taon is your father? But he was created a year after my birth, when my father died. So... you should be younger than me, no?"

Sen chuckles. "Again, I have to apologize to you, my beloved," he says. "I've been a rather dishonest person lately, and that includes when I told you this. Your father, your Taon, is also mine."

"... huh?"

"In the Yamada Clan, we interbreed our chakra with each other if we are compatible. I had been the result of his second interbreeding. After Mara had you, I had been born using the splicing method."

"So... you're not my cousin, but my brother? And you're actually younger than me," I say, pinching the bridge of my nose. He nods. "My head hurts."

"I'm sorry," Sen says, trying to hide his grin. "But I'm relieved. My beloved sister. Though we aren't related by blood, it's nice to finally be able to say these words to you."

I smile up at him, my eyes watering. "Yeah."

THREE YEARS LATER

Naruto,

How are you? I'm sorry I didn't respond to your letter sooner! I swear, Minako's keeping me on my toes on purpose, I've barely had a proper nights' rest because of it. Minako's out of the compound here today, so I have the whole day to myself, and I just don't know what to do with it. I've never been more bored in my life. But how are you?

I miss you. It's already been three years since we left the Village. I can't wait to go home. Don't get me wrong—I love being here with the other Yamada, but... it's not the same, as I'm sure you can imagine. It's not home. And you know? You never gave me a response, when I'd asked you if you wanted to come stay with me? You know how big that house of mine is? I've got three rooms completely empty down the hall, one with your name on it. If you don't want to, that's totally okay, but... I thought it'd be nice. I think I might sell it if you don't. It gets lonely in there sometimes. The idea of a little apartment sounds nice.

Oh, and happy sixteenth birthday! I hope you got the gift I sent you? I'm not sure if it'll fit you properly... It was the only size they had when I'd gone, but the second I'd seen it I'd thought of you and had to get it. I stitched on one of the village's symbols, too!

Anyway! You and Master Jiraiya should come and visit the Hidden Snow one time! If you ever get the chance to, of course. With everything going on, I know it's hard for you both to move around comfortably. If you can't, I understand. Writing like this is fine, but seeing your face is a completely different story.

Bye, bye!

                    Kari